Still Around

I’ve been getting a lot of hours at work the last couple of weeks so I’ve been going almost everyday. The prompts haven’t sparked much interest lately and I don’t have a lot of time to spend writing. Even now, it’s 9:46 a.m….. I need to do some housework before I go in this afternoon. I can only write in the morning; at night I like to be horizontal.

Yesterday I was off but I had to go to town to send off a parcel.  A few weeks ago I won an i-robot Roomba 880 vacuum cleaner, retail worth $700! The contest is with Canada Dry. I was hoping for the fridge, of course, or maybe the home entertainment centre but I had to win the robotic vacuum cleaner. I’d be a little embarrassed to win the Grand Prize; a trip to the set of Modern Family. I don’t watch it and Los Angeles isn’t my destination of choice by a long shot.

Happily, I sold the vacuum cleaner for $500!  Yesterday I drove it to the nearest Purolator depot…a 45 minute drive. Then I spent too much money at the SuperStore (but enjoyed it).  What a lucky break! Usually when I ask ‘The Universe’ for more money, I end up getting too many hours at work….. not what I had in mind.

This work marathon is ending in two days of ‘samples’. I’m going to stand for six hours for two days and give out samples. I have a feeling those are going to be looonng shifts.

So, I’m still around reading everyone’s stuff and waiting for something blog-worthy to write about. I have a great sense of relief that I have enough money but my place is getting messy. Today and tomorrow is the ‘closing’ shift ; 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. Not bad: it’s growing on me. I have all day to clean up and get ready. Going in as the sun is setting is the hardest part but once I’m there; it goes fast.

I’m adding a link to a very funny article I read this morning; nothing to do with this post but it’s just entertaining. I have lived in Vancouver and worked at a health food store so I sure know the types.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kelly-maclean/surviving-whole-foods_b_3895583.html

Keep on writing, everyone!

Be Careful What You Wish For…..

I see myself at Tim Horton’s 10 years ago. I look haggard and depressed. My hair is long and pulled back. I’m dressed in dull colours.

I get a coffee and sit down with myself to try to give myself some hope for the future.

“Well, there’s good news and bad news……  the bad news is that you are no longer married to Doug, your Mom has passed away and you’ve moved back to the region you grew up in; too far away from your volunteer work.

The good news is that you are no longer married to Doug, your Mom has passed away and you’ve moved back to the region you grew up in; too far away from your volunteer work.

You own a house at Ipperwash Beach, with a flushing toilet (no more digging shit out of that ‘composting’ toilet), satellite TV, propane furnace, air conditioning and no one to look after except yourself; not even a pet!  That’s right; no dog or cat!  Soon you are going to experience a year of loss; a year of heartbreak that will turn your world upside down. But as hard as it is; it’s for the better.

We can do whatever we want now. Well, within reason; money is tight. We had to get a part-time job but no one is asking for my time or making any demands on me. If someone treats me with disrespect, they are out of my life.

Look at me; I hardly look any older and I look better. I’ve learned to love myself and look after myself. I dress nicer, now, and get my hair styled. (My heart aches at how bad I look, under all that stress, but I don’t say anything.)

I can watch whatever I want on TV, whenever I want. My treats are always still there in the cupboard when I go for them.

I can spend all morning on the computer writing my blog (that’s a thing where you can write whatever you want and post it on the internet) because it’s my day off and I really can take it OFF.

You are going to be 52 tomorrow; I know how you will spend it; working and getting yelled at. In a few days, when the time is right for him, you will go out for dinner. He’ll be either gruff and silent all the way or rant on about the current “fucking guy”. But in the restaurant he’ll put on a good show of attentiveness, for others.

Tomorrow I’m going to be 62. Jennifer is having a family get-together for Chris and I; he’s going to be 43. They do love us. I don’t know what would’ve happened if I didn’t have my family. Doug just wants to isolate you when he tries to tell you they don’t care about you. The grandnieces and grandnephew bring so much joy into our life; they are awesome!

I really wish you could come home with me today; you would love it. It’s just perfect for us.

You are always saying, “I wish everyone would just leave me alone!”   Well, they did.

It hasn’t been easy: it hasn’t been fun. But I’m so proud of myself.

Happy Birthday to us!

Present-day you meets 10-years-ago you for coffee. Share with your younger self the most challenging thing, the most rewarding thing, and the most fun thing they have to look forward to.

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/good-tidings/

Ready, Set, Rant

This morning’s biggest news was;

Maryland’s biggest school district has stripped references to religious holidays from next year’s calendar, removing Christmas, Easter, Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah from the lineup of days off.

The first thing that came to mind is “those poor kids!”. A bunch of intolerant, miserable grown-ups can’t stop squabbling about their religions. Celebrating our traditions has become offensive to someone? We can’t get along and honour everyone’s beliefs?

I didn’t have kids but if I did, I would want them to learn about all the religions and let them decide what to think.

I get stuff on Facebook about people shaking their fists “I”m saying Merry Christmas, so f*#k you!”

We are all “Happy Holidays!” now, but wait…… isnt’ that HOLIday? “AAArrrrghhh!  We don’t want no ‘holi’ around here!”

C’mon, people, this is ridiculous….. this is why there is war!

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/ready-set-done-6/

My Electric Blanket, My Love.

Today I have the chance to tell you how much I love you, Electric Blanket. I don’t have a name for you: my love transcends the need for labels. Every night you bring me such pleasure and comfort, my love is renewed.

I remember the days when I would get into a cold bed and curl up in fetal position in my flannelette nightgown, bringing my legs down bit by bit as I slowly warmed it. If I was lucky my husband would go to bed before me and I could cleave to his heat while he shrieked at the ice-cold feet walking on his legs.

But you, you my love, gently heat the whole bed. The pleasure of getting into bed and stretching out in a warm cloud; my cold feet reaching into your broad foot, where it’s even warmer. I always think; “The richest person couldn’t be more comfortable than this!”

I know you must miss our dear friend, Egyptian Cotton Sheet, as much as I do. Oh, we were a trio….  No one, no sheet will ever be as soft as her. Alas, I had to give up on trying to sew rips closed; she finally disintegrated beyond use. I was forced by financial circumstances to buy sheets with less thread count from WalMart; it was a rough adjustment.

But I had you, you dear blanket, to sooth and comfort me, to take me into the basking glow of your EMF, and soon I got used to the starchy newness of cheap sheets.

We both know you are past your peak will also be replaced soon. I have to turn you on an hour before I go to bed as your strength is diminishing. For now, you’re still good enough for me. When the time comes, I won’t send you to Value Village; I’ll use you in the summer when my bedroom gets cool and dampish and the bed needs a little ‘warm and dry’ boost.

It’s been great, talking to ya’, old blanket. I have to go to work now, because you and others use electricity and ‘that ain’t cheap’ as my ex-husband used to say.

See you tonight, my darling.

*********************************************************************

Someone or something you can’t communicate with through writing (a baby, a pet, an object) can understand every single word you write today, for one day only. What do you tell them?

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/literate-today/

‘Cause Cheap is How I Feel

It’s the kind of night that so cold your spit freezes before it hits the ground.

When  bum asks for a quarter, I give a dollar, if he’s out tonight he must be truly down.

And I’m searching all my Mondays for last minute present to prove to you how I feel is real;

for something small and frail and plastic, baby, ’cause cheap is how I feel.

 

Half a moon in the sky tonight…. not enough to come up with an answer

to the question ‘why is every time I see you, my love grows a little stronger?’

But your memory leaves my stomach churning, feeling like a lie about to be revealed.

And I hold all this to myself, ’cause cheap is how I feel.

 

It’s that smell in here; it really gets to me and the lights, how I hate the shadows that they cast.

And the sound of clinking bottles is the one sure thing I’ll always dread with me from my past.

I think I’ll find a pair of arms tonight, to fall into and maybe strike a deal;

Your body for my soul: a fair swap…. ’cause cheap is how I feel.

————- Cowboy Junkies

You’re asked to recite a poem (or song lyrics) from memory — what’s the first one that comes to mind? Does it have a special meaning, or is there another reason it has stayed, intact, in your mind?

I love singing this song; It has a country feel, which lends well to humour. And it’s entertaining!

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/by-heart/

Little People: The Memegwesi

Someone very reliable told me this story that her cousin told her. I guess that’s third hand but it was her cousin.

My friend, Donna, grew up at Kettle Point First Nations Reserve.  She has some great stories about people who have seen and experienced things rooted in their myths and legends.

We were walking in the woods behind my house on The Dunes and Swales Trails when she told me this story:

Her cousin was walking through these woods when she saw a small man, not 3 feet high, dressed in buckskin. They were both surprised to see each other and froze. She was afraid because he was baring his teeth and seemed upset. The Little People are very careful about never being seen. He was so angry he took hold of a near-by tree and shook it violently. The sound he made was between a shriek and a growl. She turned and ran as fast as she could.

All the hairs on my body stood on end when she told me that story. Suddenly I felt as if we were being watched. I’ve long felt spirits in these woods that live behind my house but I never pictured them as little people.

I looked it up on Google and found the legends of the Memegwasi. They are said to live around the Great Lakes. I’m on Lake Huron.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_people_(mythology)

I asked another native friend if he’d heard about them and he laughed. They knew about them as kids. He used to set up his little sister’s toy tea set in the back yard and when she got home he’d say, “The Memegwesi were here! You just missed them!”

Sometimes, when I feel something is present or watching from the woods, I wonder if they are real.

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/second-hand-stories/