Turkey day...not my favorite holiday

Happy Thanksgiving, to one and all!

So I suppose you are wondering about that headline. No, I am not a turkey suffragette. I am not a fowl-sympathizer; nor one of those tree-huggers who goes too far in protecting all of nature. Let's face it...some of nature is pretty doggone delicious, and I am not ashamed to strap on a napkin and belly-up to a packed table full of victuals...fork and knife at the ready, to eat from the carcass of a beautifully roasted turkey. Yum yum!!

No, I would not feast at the expense of a lion or horned owl, or any other protected/endangered critter...I am simply saying I AM NOT A VEGETARIAN. Ohhhhhh, yuppy ding dong. You betcha. I am a meatatarian, and my meat headed sons and I are soon on our way to a lovely (albeit small) family feast.

As a matter of fact, I have just put apple dumplings in the oven to take to my grandma's for T-day dinner. (Got the recipe online, and I need to revise it a bit to make it work for another go-round.)

Nope, my dislike of this particular day - or, time of year, really - is that unemployment for me seems to be 'the thing'. Pervasive, in fact, right around the holidays. Those of you who really know me, know that I have been unemployed for quite a while now. Believe you me, I have been working on correcting the unemploymentedness. And I am going to do it without the aide of any government or state agencies - MOSTLY because they don't help, and don't really know how to. They simply exist so that the gov't/state can pay someone to have a job (other than myself) and they can say to themselves: "My, aren't we wonderful politicians and statesmen. Harrumph, harrumph, harrumph."

Yes, I know how crazy that sounds, but I have tried to look at this from so many viewpoints and I can't figure out how it is that a single mom of two, without a completed college education can jump through all of the mandated hoops from all of the unemployment office-type dealios, be identified as best performing certain jobs, and then not get any sort of monetary help from those agencies - or the state - to obtain said training?!?!?!?!

Sadly, now that I am joined by so many thousands more on the unemployment line, I have less of a chance of getting work, let alone any $ help for further training or sustainance. And this always seems to be a thing for me at this time of year.

Hey, somebody call a friend or relative with a job available and give them my name, PLEASE.

I thank you.

Happy Thanks Giving day to one and all!

Happy Birthday, Big Brother!

(Hunting for an appropriate photo)

Because you asked

Yes, I did end up going to the stylist schmoozing night at Michael Angelo's Spa in Royal Oak. It wasn't the easiest place to find in the dark (and in the rain), but it was a very pretty place up-the-stairs and inside. Industrial chic.

After finding a parking spot (which was no easy feat), we wandered over to Main Street and travelled north, following the addresses to find 108 N. Main.

Just above a coffee house sat the target. The signage wasn't particularly obvious, so finding the location based on landmarks provided by the radio intern was necessary. LOL ...Should have remembered to bring the notes with me!

The food was picked over by the time we arrived, and the speeches from the plastic surgeon and stylist shop-owners was under way, but the wine was flowing and the massage chairs were empty, so we had ourselves a glass and a seat. Boy, sometimes a massage can take the edge off - but this was not one of those times.

Not long after we arrived, one of the owners walked up to me and said 'Laura was hoping to have a word with me about [my] hair.' Hmmmmm. Who was Laura, and what word could she possibly want to share with me in regards to my hair? I sat in the swivel chair I was guided to, and eventually a blond woman still wearing her Halloween eggplant costume bounced over and grabbed my head, daring me to gaze into the looking glass on the wall with her as she buffeted me with delightful questions.

Of course my answers were equally delightful :^) - and by the end of it, we agreed my perm was a travesty of justice...a blot on the social register...a laugh and a half, and it had to go!

For the next half hour or so we listened to, and watched, drawings for $45 gift certificates while she spritzed and brushed and tamed my tresses. Although, embarrassingly, I also won one of those prizes right in the most hideous portion of my comb out! The 'before' photo is going to appear very unflattering - to say the least!

Ah well.

It was a good night out, although I do wish I had followed my instincts and stayed home instead. Now, though, I have a free hair cut and style coming from that cute little spa in Royal Oak, so I may be heading down that way in the next week or so. Too bad I will still be wearing the same face to go with the new hair. LOL

Just in case you are wondering, the woman who won the grand prize of $18,000 in plastic procedures decided to have a breast reduction. Now she's going to have to learn to swim!

Live well and be happy, everyone - and be kind to yourselves, and to one another.

Another strange turn of events

Isn't it funny how things happen? I think you know what I mean.

I was cruising through several websites late last week (or was it earlier this week?), when I came upon this contest happening in conjunction with my radio station - WMGC 105.1:

WMGC-FM “Reinvent Yourself Make-Over” Contest Rules

The contest runs from Monday, October 13th through Friday, November 7th, 2008; contest entries must be received by 12:00 pm on Thursday, November 6th. Listeners will register to win by logging on to the contest page at http://detroitmagic.com/ and submit their story of why they would love to be reinvented with a make-over from Dr. Karaca! Enter by going to the contest page at http://detroitmagic.com/ for further instructions. All entries must be received by 12:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 6th, 2008. On Friday, November 7th, 25 finalists will be chosen at random to join us for a special VIP event at Michael Angelo Salon located at 108 S. Main Street, Suite A in Royal Oak, MI on November 14th (date pending). At the conclusion of the party, the grand prize winner will be announced, along with 14 runners-up. The Grand Prize winner will be selected from the 25 finalists by Dr. Karaca and his staff based on the stories submitted; selection is in the judges’ sole discretion. Runners up will be selected by random drawing from finalists.

Well...guess who's going to the party next Friday evening? Go ahead - guess! LOL All I really wanted to register for was to attend a business breakfast meet and greet, but I missed the boat on that one, and on a lark I typed up a quick reinvent-me-quick logic entry (1000 characters or less) to explain my need for help to look younger as the way to get a job in this town hinges on whether you look as young as you feel.

Something I wrote must have tickled somebodys' funnybone. I got the telephone call right around 5pm, and I am so flabbergasted. I know darn well that 105 always generates a huge response to any of their contests and events...so I am in the 25 finalists!

I will keep you updated. LOL

Hmmm...another year older, and blah-dy blah-dy blah

I am working once again with the Bible Quiz Time show for the cable access stations well south of home. Acting as the Audio Tech and helping to instruct technically minded broadcast wannabes from the parochial schools who want to learn how to work the equipment and get a leg up in their early years.

I think it very cool that this is being made available to children in Jr and Sr high schools...this was never a consideration when I was their age. I had a yen to learn - certainly the curiosity was there - but girls were not encouraged to think about such idealistic careers in the seventies. Hey! Wait a minute! Mary Tyler Moore's character did - but she had to go to MN to make it happen! LOL

Boys! Pack your rooms up, we're headed west.

Wonder if I will have a cool apartment and a find myself a 'Rhoda'?

In fact, I wanted to be an architect when I was younger, but was told by the girls in my class that only boys and lesbians went into that class. Since I was neither (and naive), I stayed out. What a fool I was!

At any rate, if I had been told 'yes, go learn how to DJ' or to shoot and edit for the news, where would I be today? Oh, so far from where I am, I can tell you with so much certainty. But wherever I would be, and however far up the ladder I would have chosen to climb, I would be the exact same perfectionist, striving to tell the stories accurately and fairly, succinctly and intelligently, humanely and clearly, so that the reflection of the story would not be of me but of the life or situation under the magnifying glass.

So now I am working on my do-over. If the economy were a little better off I would stand a fighting chance...but right now things are a little tight and hard to squeeze into, so I am going to continue trying and pushing and asking and meeting and cajoling and learning and improving and and and. The minute my new boss figures it out, we all will breathe a big sigh of relief. Until that happens, I will repeat my activities and share my sage knowledge for another season of volunteerism.

Blah-dy blah-dy blah.

Be healthy and happy, y'all.

Get out and VOTE, America!

That's all. Get out there and vote, or quit your yammering and sputtering and stone-throwing!

The boys and I piled into the car and went to our polling site together. As a mother, it was a proud moment for me to see my two boys in the line ahead of me...together, as first-time voters. It put a lump in my throat. And yes! there would be a photo, but Karl turned to me as we stood in the last few feet awaiting our time behind the curtains, and said: "And no pictures, mom!"

So, despite my inclination to the contrary, I did not whip out my little Pentio and capture the moment.

No matter who wins this election, I feel as though I am the victor...my sons and I sharing in a very historic moment!

Good luck, America. Don't let this election year be the first and last push for a CHANGE in our future.

Did you remember to turn your clocks back?

Hop to it! Here's an extra hour to waste...don't waste the gift.

Hello, November...see ya next year, Halloween

Well, well, well...Halloween came and went just like that [snap!], and I am still having a hard time processing that we seemed to have skipped right from cold, soggy winter to late spring/early summer, with no sign of a segue from early spring to summer heat. I mean, where did our gradual seasonal changes go, anyway?

Not one to disappoint, though, Mother Nature is rewarding us with a beautiful Indian Summer.

So, thank you, Mother Nature!

If you've wedged yourself under a rock to bypass the cold dreary weather of late you will no doubt miss out on the sunshine and gorgeous temps which have come our way. Yesterday was a blast - 60+ degrees and not a cloud in the sky - and today is a repeat! Thank you!!!

Being the first Saturday of the month, the neighborhood is filled with the smell of burning leaves, and I imagine this will continue throughout the rest of the next few days. The forecast for our area of MI is phenomenal, with warm daytime temps and clear nights expected right on through the middle of election week...so, no complaints here.

I am going out to the garage to clean up a bit and rearrange the contents so that I can park my car in it over the winter! LOL Why waste this lovely day sitting inside...night will come soon enough, and I can do my indoor activities then. Let's not waste this gorgeous day!

Get outside...I'll meet you in the yard with a rake.