Annual Easter Egg Contest 2010

The competition was fierce this year. We had a new set of judges since everyone complained about last years judges. Last year, the neighbors judged, but they brought over their kids who also judged. Unfortunately the children were easily swayed by props and candy and seemed to get stuck on the first row. We think it was because they were too short to see accross the table or something.

Over the course of the day my sister was approached by the family that judged last year. They wanted to participate this year. Things got tense as the hour approached and she had to field complaints from contestants who complained bitterly about the fact that kids wouldn't get their egg and so forth. As the day progressed things looked grim. The contestants perservered with their ideas not sure whether the contest would be fair. My sister blithely bypassed the neighbors in favor of her friend Dreama, Dreama's sister Faye, and Dreama's husband Al. Dreama and gang agreed to the judging, knowing what a competitive and surly crowd we could be. She and her fam agreed to the judging thinking that it was ok because we were going to go out to see a favourite band playing at a local bar that night, and they liked what Laura was making for dinner.

The Winners!

THE JUDGES:
AL, DREAMA, FAYE were incredible, and serious! That's Jim in the background. Just
ignore him! He thought that would help his chances for winning, EVEN THOUGH NO ONE
KNEW WHO MADE WHAT EGG. It was all very hush hush.


Brutus



We should explain that the reason Brutus is a Judge, and there is an award: Brutus' choice winner, is because when he was lifted up to the table, that's the one he tried to eat (almost immediately). One thing Brutus knows is opportunity.

THE CONTESTANTS (in no particular order BUT MINE FIRST!)

"the Emperor Who Had No Clothes"


"Fried Eggs"



"Fr 'egg'enstein"


"Egg Monkey"


"Na Egg Vi"


"Egg Petting Zoo"
Hey! How did Na Egg Vi's head get in there?


"Egg Pig"


"Egg The Scream"


"WyEgg Earp"


"Eggo"


"Eggs in a Basket"


"EggstraTerrestrial Landing"


"Eggstraterrestrial"


"Bombshell McEgg"


And the winners were:

Best in Show - Laura (Fried eggs)
First Place - Laura (Fried eggs)
2nd Place - Jim Eggstraterrestial Landing)
3rd Place - Kelly (Eggs in a Basket)
Most Artistic - Mom's Scream )
Best Animal - Matt's (Egg Petting Zoo)
Most Original – Wyegg Earp Harry's
Lamest - Billy's (Egg Monkey)
Most Creative - Na Egg VI, Eggo, Emporer ( Jenny, Mike, Anne)
Best Break Out - Shannon (Eggstraterrestrial)
Best Theme – Bryan's (Fr'egg'enstein)
Brutus's Choice - Megan (pig)

Get Up And Dance: To That Eastern European Kind of Funk!

Spring Break

Harry and I had been talking about his plans for Spring Break. He was going to spend the week at home just chillin'. This was actually a couple of weeks ago as his school had an early spring break, middle of March actually.

So, Harry calls me at 2pm on Friday the day he was due to come home. I was at work. He calls to tell me when he was coming home,around 6:30pm, and was there any food in the house. Fortunately I had gone grocery shopping and bought the cereal i thought he was eating and milk and orange juice and a roast and i took some things out of the freezer. I said yes we had food.

So that evening Harry gets home and he asks if I went to the grocery store and commented that he saw I had eggs and he could probably live on those. After some questioning I discovered the root cause of all the concern. I did not have food that he could eat right out of the package and he wanted something he did not have to fix. Feeling sorry for the poor kid, I made some spaghetti.

Conclusion: Saturday / Sunday I cooked a roast (for snacking), made a meatloaf (and potatoes) and baked a chicken so that he would have some food for the next week while he was at home. I think that will probably last through Wednesday.

Of camels and men

We went to the zoo one time in February. It must have been early February. There was snow on the ground. It was dry and cold and in the low 20's, but was a really nice sunny day. We rode the Zoo Tram while there because John had trouble walking.

Most of the animals were inside. The camels, to our surprise, were out in the pasture. There was a male with two females. They were up by the gate where they go back in to the sheds. The tour guide told us that they were let out into the pasture daily for grazing but were returned to the shed and pen yard at 5pm every day in the cold weather. It was about 3 pm in the afternoon and the male had the two females corralled up near the gate. The male was behind them, keeping them from going out into the pasture to graze. The females stood their patiently,chewing cud or whatever they do.

Every day, the guide explained, the male camel herded the females up to the gates. The male repeated this at the same time every afternoon to wait to be let in to the sheds. Her comment was that he was rather bossy with the females. It was always early afternoon and he was consistent.

I think of this behavior often because it reminds me of the sort of thing that I see men do all the time with women. It can be protective and meant to be helpful but still it looks like herding. I seem to notice many more examples of this these days now that I don't live with them. And now, when I do see it happen, the image of the camels comes to mind. It is funny how these characteristics have transmuted through the animal kingdom. I really like men but that was one of their more irritating characteristics. I don't miss it (I guess).

Joan

Last night after my exercise class I used the hot tub at the gym and I met Joan. Joan is 48, and single, and lives with her mother. Joan was from a smallish town in central Ohio. The way she got around to introducing herself was a different, but she wasn't from around here. What she told me was that she had spent 28 years in this little town, and she moved this year, and she missed all her friends.

As we talked, I am thinking WOW, She reminded me of a character out of a novel, or perhaps I could write her into a novel or write about her and make it a novel!

I have never actually met a single person who lived with their mother past say 30. I thought that only happened in fiction novels or movies (creepy guys like Norman Bates, or again usually creepy guys who keep their mom in the freezer, or desiccated in a closet for 10 years to collect on her social security).Single people in novels, on TV or in movies who live with their mothers are never, in my memory, portrayed as healthy, normal people, but Joan seemed pretty cool and I liked her.

Her mom was 87, and they moved here to be closer to her brother. Maybe she needed more help with her mom, I wasn't sure. From Joan's description, her mom was in good enough shape to come to the gym, she just tires easily. I couldn't tell if Joan worked, and I did not ask. For that matter,Maybe Joan has been married and I just have an overactive imagination.

I don't remember the details but Joan asked me if I was from around here, which I
was. Then she asked if I grew up here which I hadn't. When she mentioned she
was from Ohio we had lots to talk about.
.
Before all this started I had pre-arranged to meet a friend (who happened to be male) in the hot tub. I talked this guy into getting a membership at the RAC, because he had been complaining about his weight and exercising. He was from the area and had lived here all his life except to serve in the army and traveling for work. I had barely said hello to my friend before I started talking to Joan. This friend made no motion to talk to Joan and turned away several times and his body language was pretty clear that he did not want to participate and had no interest in meeting her.

Joan started to tell me what activities she had gotten involved in. They all sounded good and I was encouraging. Joan asked me if it was hard to meet people here. I said yes, you have to be aggressive She kept taking side long looks at this guy, like she was considering addressing him and including him into the conversation. I was just rolling on the inside and trying very hard not to wisecrack. I so wanted to say to Joan... see they are all like him.

In Memorium

Pufkin
2006 - 2008

Xplod explosion

When I moved to Rochester I wanted a stereo to play cd's, tapes, and the radio. I wanted something with GREAT sound. I used some of those electronic buyers guide websites like CNET and read reviews and finally decided on the Sony XPLOD CD/CASSETTE BOOMBOX with AM/FM Radio in BLACK with all these great features:

"Take this boombox to the beach with you and lay out on the sand with some of your favorite songs.

Product Features
Built-in CD player and cassette deck let you enjoy all of your favorite tunes
CD functions include track programming, shuffle, repeat, high-speed dubbing and CD synchro record
Digital AM/FM radio tuner with 30 presets (10 AM, 20 FM)
Xplod power drive design for improved bass quality
2 built-in high-power 10W speakers with a built-in 100mm power-drive subwoofer
4-preset graphic equalizer
Digital display for easy menu navigation
Frequency response: 20Hz - 20kHz
Remote included"


I read the product reviews from average guys. I read a review from a guy who had the box in an auto body workshop garage and really liked the quality of the sound over the noises at work in the shop. I thought, wow, that is great. I'll take one!

And I loved it until one day when a friend pointed out that at our mature age, in the stage of our lives where we are downsizing, kids leaving home, minimizing our footprint, you know, mature urban sophistication, condo living, all that; we want something sleek and powerful and cool with great sound and neat features. Yes, cool things in small packages that fit our minimalist, live it light lifestyle. Ok well he didn't say it quite like that. What he said was "What the hell IS that? Its so big, you don't have room for it anyplace!" And all his stuff by the way, IS all really cool and black.

Next I went to my mom's place and I looked at her boom box ..She lives in a neat and tidy two bedroom condominium. Her boom box is small and sleek and silver and sits on a shelf in her dining room. It must be true. Everybody does have small sleek and cool.

And then I felt bad. My boom box is big and chunky and yes it was hard to find a spot in the kitchen to set it. (I finally got an old table in the corner.) And, it is kind of awkward looking with the big red disk in the center that lights up when you hit the BIG RED XPLOD POWER DRIVE BASS SUBWOOFER BUTTON or whatever the heck that is that pulsates red light with the bass beat.

In reality what I had done was bought something that would appeal to an adolescent boy or so my friend pointed it out. What he said though was, "that's something
a kid in high school would like." Apparently, a lot of my personal style choices go this way. Yes, maybe it looks like a teenage boy version of the big fluffy animal purse...a chunky black boom box on steroids.

I see now that the fact that I did pick this style MAKES PERFECT SENSE.

I only ever had a son. All the toys that I bought, the family movies that we watched (I did sneak in a few interesting films BUT), the games we played, and very often the music I listened to are influenced by the fact that I spent a great deal of time hanging out with my son and his friends. OK... maybe if I had waited till my son was off in college for a few years it would have worn off.

Still... I am not going to replace the one i've got and it glares at me YES ITS ON STEROIDS every morning and is still a joke with some of my friends. Well, one in particular.

This is my "sound center" at home...yes, next to the refridgerater. It is a multi-use station that also houses my recycling center and office supplies.
I was at a local neighborhood bar (outside, on a corner and very local er I said that) in Buscerias, Mexico and here was MY BOX... a slightly different model but still banging out the tunes with the heavy bass throbbing!


And my friend saw the same model in the health office at a local Middle School and sent me this pic: So now I am thinking, if I am lucky, and I hope to be.. I may start collecting pictures of xplod's all over the world!

Keeping Things Whole

In a field
I am the absence
of field.
This is
always the case.
Wherever I am
I am what is missing.

When I walk
I part the air
and always
the air moves in
to fill the spaces
where my body's been.

We all have reasons
for moving.
I move
to keep things whole.

-- Mark Strand

What would we do without them?

So, since publishing my last post, I have recieved many anecdotes from my vast readership... oh alright, just one from my sister! She sometimes works remotely, and has a home office, AND she has the same problem I do... yes, you guessed it, those crazy adorable pets that color our life. What would we do with out them?
Her cat is fanatical about the computer mouse, and spends the major part of her feline day fixated with the computer screen. It is a constant battle for Laura, always pushing the cat out of the way so she can work. But sometimes the cat wins.


Not to be outdone, below is the other little bugge..er I mean, charmer.

When my sister's husband put together her home office, he equipped the room with steps for their daschund to use to get to choice spots like the window above the file cabinet, or up to the sofa. With a bad back, they do not want it to jump and cause more aggravation. What a life! He's such a cutie pie, how could you not?

The Cats

We have a cat named Tiger. We meaning Harry and I, although Harry is away at school, so now it is just Tiger and I. We are watching another cat. Tiger never agreed to it but she has gotten used to Bandita and I think she might even like Bandita. I am not sure. They are sweethearts and fun to watch.

They look for me at the windows in the evening, and then Bandita runs to the door and is waiting for me to rub my ankles and say hello. Then she shadows me the rest of the evening. Tiger shows up later, but mostly Tiger shadows her. Often they chase each other or wrestle or box and it is a riot to watch.

I won't let them sleep with me because Bandita anchors herself on my leg and Tiger sits on my chest. Tiger is the worst because she pats my chin periodically ALL NIGHT LONG. I am constantly woken up for petting I guess. Instead they are waiting outside my door in the morning and Bandita shadows me as I go through my morning routine. They follow me into the bathroom and wait while I take a shower. Then back in my room, Tiger sits on top of the bed so that she can lay on anything that I throw there...whatever it is ends up with tons of cat hair so I limit it to jeans. Bandita goes under the bed where she grabs anything that I pull out of the dresser or the closet..my room is very small. When she misses she snags my leg instead and that hurts. One morning I took pictures of them as they followed me around...


Really, I think I need a life. They need to go outside.

Hip Hop for Whites

Where I live is beautiful this time of year, even as it is, as much as I am tired of the cold. I took the picture on my left last Saturday morning,
and yes that is my thumb.

Ok fast forward....

Last night I went to my "dancersize" class... it is the first night of Winter II sessions at the gym. And, because we have such long winters here in Minnesota, we have TWO sessions per the winter season, not just one. So how awful is that?


Anyway, it was a Hip Hop class, which i like better than ZUMBA, only because gracefulness is not a requirement, and it is boxy, and looks tough, and fits my personal style better. My personal style, you ask? Some people would laugh about that one especially if you ever watched me.

Last night a lady that I know from Zumba was there. After a couple numbers, she came up to me and commented that she's missed a few classes, but boy have the dance selections changed. I explained that this was Hip Hop, not Zumba. That explained a lot and the light went on you could just tell. So she danced a couple more numbers, and usually she dances sexy, and she's very good, but with this the steps are different and she was having a rough time. The instructor is also different, not our usual Zumba instructor. So my friend says to me "The instructor is very bouncy. I don't like her." and then she says as if she had some kind of epiphany.. "this is hip hop for whites, isn't it?" and I smiled and nodded, and she gave me this "what a bunch of schmucks!" expression. When the song ended she walked out.

I could tell she was irritated, and I think she was trying to make herself feel better by insulting the instructor. She made her comments like it was an insult, but to who? She's white, I'm white, the instructor is white, we were all white in the class. Oh, excuse me, we have a few Asians..(are they white?) So yeah i guess its pretty white. I am actually not sure how people of color dance hip hop and if its any different for them. Hmmm now that I think about it, we have a few Eastern Indians occasionally, and some Middle Easterners...they are not white, but they dance as white as I do. And so, by the way, do the Asians.

FaceOff!

Dumb old face book. It seems like everybody, friends, family and now even the 40 something hold outs, are joining facebook. The kids, BUT NOT MY SON, the nieces and the nephews, have been on it for some time. With some of my generation, the change is recent. Not sure the sudden change, but it is becoming the only place they are willing to share their pictures or communicate. They are always telling me they have new pictures soooo go look at facebook.

Well, my nieces took pictures from some time ago when we were at an art fair in Chicago, and that is how I got hold of this survey.

I'll back up... A couple of days ago I filled out this IQ survey on facebook. Dumb old me. The survey asked for my cell phone number and oh boy am I stupid, I GAVE IT OUT. No sooner than did I complete this survey, when I began getting text messages on my phone from Ted, my IQ Coach.

Today, i got the 3rd text message from "Ted". I was feeling harrassed and absolutely po'd that they kept sending me these stupid long winded texts. I asked my coworker if I should tell Ted in a text to F**K Off. My coworker suggested I simply say I was too dumb or something. Of course I thought THAT was dumb, so I sent my original text anyway. I IMMEDIATELY got a text from "Ted" saying that I had violated the T's&C's of Facebook and might lose my subscription! I can't lose my subscription ..i won't be able to see all my friends dumb old pictures! Oh well..figures it would bite me. I still can't get "TED" to stop sending me messages either.

Winter 2010

I am watching a friends cat and this morning it got into my purse and stole my sandwich. I got it away from her and I ate it for lunch anyway. She is the Bandita alias the KITTYCAT KONG!

It has taken some adjustment but now she and my cat are getting along famously. More on those two another time.

I've been hibernating since after Christmas...but hey it is January and this is now a ritual for me that starts after the holidays.

And we've had a particularly cold and snowy winter. I hardly see anyone unless it is by accident. (My friends had a baby and because it is snowy and they live in the country and I am afraid to drive up their driveway that is on a steep and curvy hill, i put the gift in the mail and told them I would see them in the spring.)

So what do i do with my free time?
I've been going to the gym .. basic survival...doing ZUMBA! and HIPHOP! and it is my
answer to alzheimer's because you have to remember the dance moves you learned the week before. NOT! And you have to be able to step up and wave your arms and sashay and jiggle in that order and all at once. When i first started this i was so upset at my two left feet that i went out and bought the biggest padded bra i could find and the lowest cut shirt to wear to the next class. At least i look good. (This was also my solution to my lousy skiing skills about 5 years ago... a fantastic ski outfit ...)

I've been taking Spanish classes Monday nights and dreaming of retirement.

I've been going to the library and getting out books on Costa Rica. (LAST Winter it was Chile and Argentina. I like to get travel books, travel guides, AND cook books.)

I've checked out books like FROMME'S Travel Guide, Retirement without Borders, a collection of short stories by Costa Rican (ticos) and Panamanian women writers titled "When New Flowers Bloom". The Author's notes are written by a man and all he does is go through the history of literature WHICH DOES NOT INCLUDE ANY REFERENCES TO WOMEN. Who does he think he's kidding?

I am in the process of labeling my house espanol-ish and in full sentences...as for example "The basement is down the stairs. It has three rooms, but there are no bathrooms." ...and then i look at it later and i don't know what the hell i wrote. I use google translation tools. This saves time. I say what i want (i've also been describing all my pictures and photos on walls around my house.. cut and paste it into word, print out a page full of them, cut them out and then tape them to the walls and objects etc..bulk statements..but takes a while to figure out what i was thinking, how to translate, and then where to stick it). Is this a rare form of cabin fever?

A coworker sent me this:

" Anne,

My oldest sent this to me.
This is weird enough that I thought you'd enjoy.... when you have time.
Not to sure anyone else around here (at least on my team) would get it. Not that there's much to get !

TOM SELLECK WATERFALL SANDWICH LINK

The names of the sandwiches are light and hard to read.
One of the pages has a link to the Sellick Waterfall Sandwich Theme Song which
sounds like it was recorded in someone's kitchen.
I was never a fan of Tom Sellick."

Well, I am a big fan of Tom Sellick...and I thought it was terrific.
I miss the shorts guys wore back in the 80's. So much
man-leg. Ha cha cha!