Kim's Thoughts
Just a few thoughts I feel worthy of jotting down!
Hello, WordPress!
Well, this is my first post on WordPress — all the other posts in this blog were originally written on my blog on Blogger. I transferred them all over here so that I can keep all my thoughts – past and future – in one place!
I had a lovely dinner with friends at the Down Home Buffet – I was really hungry, too – I hadn’t eaten since lunch yesterday! I did have a pack of peanut butter crackers about 9:00 am…. I wasn’t hungry last night or this morning – then, a meeting went through lunch, so I didn’t get out until 2:00 and decided that it was too late to eat lunch cause it would spoil my supper! By the time I got to eat tonight, I could have eaten the table and chairs and not bothered to fill a plate! ha-ha
Well – I have a ton to do in the morning, so I am going to go get some sleep!
What Day Is It???
I rarely pull up the blind over the kitchen sink – I usually just open the slats. But, I wanted to let some more sun in when I got home this afternoon, so I pulled on the cord to pull up the blind. It felt like it was caught on something or stuck — I pulled a little harder and the whole blind came crashing down into the sink!!! If it had just come out of the bracket, I could have put it back……but, no…….not my blind!!! It broke the brackets AND bent the top part that goes into the brackets when it hit the center divider on the sink AND the cord broke!!!! No fixing that blind!!!
I’ve been thinking about changing from Blogger to WordPress, but I’d hate to start all over again with a new blog and get my address out to everyone who has it! I won’t lose what I have here – I’ll leave it active and put my last post as an “I moved….” message directing people to my new address, so no problem there! I don’t know why I am hesitating — I’m comfortable with Blogger and I would have to learn a new system…….I don’t know…….I’ll have to think about it some more!!! I registered on WordPress and set up a shell — I’ll play with it a while and decide if I like it or not!
I have to review a book and two articles I read for a meeting tomorrow morning — I need to refresh my memory so that I can discuss them intelligently! I better get to it so that I can get to bed at a decent hour! Hey – what’d ya know – I remembered that TOMORROW is Friday and I need to prep for it! Woo Hoo! There’s hope for me, yet!
Myra’s – Just don’t get no better……
I went to Myra’s for dinner — she never ceases to amaze me! I went fully intending on having her absolutely wonderful meatloaf — I was craving it all day and would have been so disappointed if it wasn’t on the special board tonight! It was on the board, so I settled in and got ready to order it! Then, I was told that Myra said she knows how much I like the meatloaf, but that I should really try the chicken parmesan. My response was that it has cheese on it and I’m allergic to cheese, so that was out – I went ahead and ordered my meatloaf! Then she said she could make it without the cheese and it came with spaghetti and meat sauce and a salad — hhhmmm – that sounded good! So, I thought for a minute and changed my order! I had the chicken parmesan with no cheese – of course, once we decided to leave the cheese off it wasn’t really chicken parmesan anymore – it was chicken over spaghetti with meat sauce! ha-ha But, it was sooooooooooooooo good!!! And was WAY too much to eat – I could only finish about 1/2 of it and even that didn’t help save room for dessert!!! And — Myra put a small piece of meatloaf on the side so I wouldn’t go into meatloaf DTs – just a couple bites, but it was enough to satisfy my need for a meatloaf fix!!! ha-ha
Thoughts for Tuesday and a Belated Movie Review
I realized that I never posted a review for “Traitor” — I went to see it a couple weekends ago (not sure exactly when, but I think it was the first or second week it was out). Since it is so belated, I won’t go into a ton of detail, but I am going to take the time to post a brief review now — better late than never!! This isn’t the type of movie I would normally go to, but it was intriguing to me, so I went! I wasn’t sorry — it was actually quite good! There were some spots that I wished it would move on, but the story was good, the acting was GREAT (Don Cheadle was amazing), and they refrained from over doing it on the blood and guts! It was scary to think that these types of things actually happen all over the world – terrorism is a major threat! Anyway — I found this movie to be very interesting and exciting — I really enjoyed it!!!
I went to CCCC tonight to have my friend, Christy, color/cut my hair! I gave her a vague description of what I thought I wanted and she gave me a GREAT cut!!! Christy used to work with me and left about a year ago for a great job with the state. I miss seeing her and like to use getting my hair done as a good excuse to spend some time with her (not that I need an excuse, but it helps!) Christy is really good at hair — she’s in school right now, but is about ready to finish up! I love the cut she gave me tonight!
I have three sleepy cuddle-bugs on my hands tonight!!! I am sitting in the middle of the couch using the laptop on the coffee table — I have Katie sprawled out on my left, snoring like a freight train — I have Amy curled up on my right with her paw on my leg so I can’t sneak off while she sleeps — and I have Megan balanced on the back of the couch directly behind me – if I lean back, she will make a perfect doggie shawl around my shoulders!!!
Movies I am looking forward to opening:
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Night in Rodanthe – Richard Gere and Diane Lane – from the writer of The Notebook and Message In A Bottle – both major favorites of mine!
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Beverly Hills Chihuahua – live talking dogs – looks GREAT!!
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W – Josh Brolin as George W. Bush
I am really looking forward to Saturday — I am having a little get-together that promises to be a lot of fun and the weather looks like it is going to cooperate – in fact, it looks like Saturday is going to be very pleasant, in deed!!!
Guess that’s it for now — hopefully, I can get some sleep tonight — I have been having some pretty serious insomnia for about a week now……..
Movie Review – The Women
Ding, ding, ding — Chick Flick Alert!!! Guys, you probably won’t like this movie! I usually don’t jump to that conclusion – usually, most chick flicks make great date movies and there is generally something that the guys can relate to, as well. But, I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say that this one may not fall into that category!
With that said — this is a PERFECT “Girls Night Out” movie! Ladies – leave the guys home to take care of the kids or have a poker night, call as many of your female friends as you can get together, and go see this movie! I think the more friends that go see it together, the more fun you’ll have watching it!
I have been waiting for this movie and it did not disappoint!!! I saw it at the Saturday matinee and the theater had several women – no men – laughing and enjoying the movie! Everyone left talking about how much they liked it!
How could you go wrong with the top notch cast: Meg Ryan, Annette Bening, Debra Messing, and Jada Pinkett Smith as four women who have been best friends for years; Eva Mendes as the girl at the perfume counter at Saks Fifth Avenue in NYC who is having an affair with Meg Ryan’s character’s husband; Candace Bergen as Meg Ryan’s mother and Cloris Leachman as her housekeeper; and cameo appearances by Bette Midler and Carrie Fisher. I had heard that it was an “all women” cast, but still expected to see glimpses of some male characters – the husband or at least some guys in the background in crowd shots. But, no — there wasn’t so much as a male silhouette!!!
I won’t go into the story – I alluded to it already and the promotions provide more info. Instead, I want to write about what the movie was “about”…..it is about the strong bonds of true female friendships and how those relationships are not perfect! They will have their ups and downs, but if the friendship is true, they will always eventually forgive and find their way back to each other! It is about the importance of self esteem and being true to yourself! It is about being yourself and knowing what that means and living to develop that – regardless of what others may think!
And it sends an important message about accepting personal imperfections: In an early scene, Annette Bening is approached by a sales girl at Saks to try a sample of wrinkle prevention cream and Annette just walks on past her saying “this is my face – deal with it!” But more importantly, it deals with young girls who think they need to look like super models – Meg Ryan’s 11 year old daughter is lovely and thin, but she is obsessed with thinking she is fat! Her mother tries to tell her that she is lovely and not fat, but what pre-teen listens to their mother? She counts points and Annette Bening’s character finds out that she is smoking to help her keep from eating! So, of course, she tells her that she is perfect and lovely and she shouldn’t think she is fat. The girl tells her that she just wants to look like the models in her magazine (Annette plays a fashion magazine publisher)! But, Annette looks at her with a dry expression and says “Honey, no one looks like they do! THEY don’t even look like they do! They are so airbrushed and touched up….”
It is funny – very funny! There are some wonderful one-liners – my favorites are ones that I wouldn’t share here (but if you’re interested, ask me when you see me……he-he-he)!
So – you see why I don’t think guys will find anything to relate to — leave them home and take a few girl friends and enjoy a good laugh!
White Walls
I bought my house almost 5 years ago. It was fairly new when I bought it, so there wasn’t a lot that needed to be done, but I did have some things I knew I would want to change. I wasn’t crazy about the beige carpet all through or the linoleum in the kitchen and bathrooms. Changing them would be a big expense and they weren’t horrible, so I decided to wait and do them later. Also – every wall in the house is WHITE! I always thought I would like white walls – clean, bright looking rooms! But, when I saw the rooms with nothing in them and all those blinding white walls staring at me, I knew I was going to need to paint. But, the question was – what color? I gave it a lot of thought and decided to just move in and see what adding color with furniture and accents would do and really think about what I want to do with each room. So, I moved in with the white walls.
When I got settled in, my priorities changed – I wanted a house with a fenced in back yard and an attached garage. I couldn’t find a house I liked with BOTH, so I decided to settle for a garage cause putting in a fence would be easier than adding a garage! So, my first priority was the fence and then some landscaping. And the walls remained white!!!
I kept the desire to paint the walls on my radar. I have avoided putting a lot of things on the walls so that when I am ready to paint, I won’t have to take a bunch of stuff down and then re-hang it all – I have some stuff up, but not a lot! And every year it is put it on my list of things I want to accomplish that year…………but other things keep getting moved up on the priority list!
I have replaced the carpeting with wood flooring in the living room, foyer, and down the hallway. I have replaced the linoleum with dura-ceramic tiles in the kitchen and guest bathroom. I have replaced the white appliances with stainless steel appliances. But the walls are still white!!!
The original reason for waiting was that I really didn’t know what I wanted to do with the walls – I wanted to live there and see my “stuff” in it before I decided on colors. That is no longer the issue – it didn’t take me long to decide on colors and what I wanted to do! Now, the “excuses” I come up with every time I get ready to do it are:
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“I should wait until spring (or fall) when the weather is nice enough to open all the windows and keep down the new paint smell” — then, when the nicer weather comes, I decide to do stuff outside to get it done before it gets hot (or cold)!
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“There is so much heavy furniture to move, I’ll need to wait until I can get someone to help me” — then never actually ask the friends who would gladly help!
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“I have 9 foot ceilings and the ladders I would need to climb to reach that high would be higher than my comfort zone for heights – I should get quotes to see how much it will cost to just hire someone to do it” — then the next excuse quickly follows…
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“If I hire someone who will just come in and get it all done so I can stay off ladders and not bother someone to help me move furniture, it will cost me a fortune!” — then I hear of people who will do it reasonably, but I never call them for a quote!
Next spring, I am definitely getting a quote and having someone come in and paint it all at once and be done with it……….but, that will depend on whether or not it will cost a fortune and what other projects may need to be done first — after all, I’ve lived with them this long……
Uugghh — I guess I’m doomed to have white walls FOREVER!!! I should have just got it over with before I moved in!
Best News of the Day!!!
It appears that the Durham County Commissioners became heroes for the many dogs who are left chained to trees by their owners. The passed a sweeping ban on the tethering of dogs that will take effect in 2010. The only sad part is that they have to allow the 15 month educational period before they can fully implement the ban, but I understand that it can’t happen over night. I applaud the Durham Commissioners and hope that Lee County Commissioners will move in the same direction – ASAP!!!
If you have read this blog at all over the past year or so, it is no secret that I am a dog lover! I am a huge supporter of rescuing dogs who, without intervention, would be doomed to live a life not fit for a rat! I have three of those of my own – Katie, Megan, and Amy – and up until a little over a year ago, I had another rescue – Puddles – who was my pampered princess for over 16 years! I have a long history of taking in strays and loving them! I would have a house full of dogs, if I thought I could give them all the individual love and attention that they deserve, but for now, three is my limit!
I get sick to my stomach when I see a dog tied to a tree or the side of the house and no one around to give them the attention they deserve! Or worse, yet – when they don’t even get their basic need for shelter and water met and they are neglected to the point of shameless abuse! Tethering just makes a dog frustrated and unruly. I have never understood why someone would make the effort to get a dog and then tie them to a tree and only interact with them when they take them a bowl of food once or twice a day!
I know that not everyone who tethers a dog is guilty of the level of abuse and neglect that prompts the need for a ban such as this one, but it happens more than most people want to know! I do like the stipulation that the Durham Commissioners made to allow tethering when a responsible adult is within eye sight of the dog. That allows for people who have dogs that live in their homes and are loved and cared for, but can’t have the luxury of a fenced in area for their pets – either because of cost or restrictions where they live. They can walk the dogs on a leash, but if they are out doing yard work or something, a tether in certain conditions allows the dog to be out there with them and remain safe from wandering off and getting hit by a car or lost. That is good!
If you make a dog a part of your family, they will give you so much more in return! Give them a way to run and play safely, let them in your house and your heart. Right now, two of my dogs are running around their fenced in back yard playing safely with each other and the third one is laying next to me on the couch with her head on my lap while I am typing this!
OK – so maybe I go a little over the top when it comes to the way I treat my dogs – they are treated like children, live in my house, sleep in my bed, and I am shocked when they actually act like dogs! ha-ha BUT – my point is: If you don’t want to invest time, love, and companionship to a dog — don’t get one!!!! What is the point of having a dog that is tied to a tree and not a part of your life? Be a responsible pet owner — love your pets — they will love you back 1000 fold!!! I promise you!!!
Sorry for the soap box — but I am obviously very passionate about this and was so elated to read about Durham’s ban and the editorial by the Herald’s Editorial Board that I had to write a comment — and I just couldn’t stop my fingers from rambling on about it!!!
Now — go have a great day — I know I will………and be sure to hug a dog!
Tuesday Thoughts…
I heard some sad news today — El Rancho, the Caribbean restaurant on Wicker Street, went out of business! I always hate to hear of any business that doesn’t make it, but I know the owner – Jose – and he had such a passion for bringing his specialized cuisine to Sanford. It is a really tough year for small businesses — just recently, we’ve seen Casa Toscana and Julia’s Cuban Sandwich restaurants go out of business and now El Rancho is closed. I’m sorry to see them all go – they each brought a unique ethnic touch to Sanford!
I went to Myra’s Kitchen tonight to show her past Gala photos and talk about what she can expect as one of the participating restaurants. While I was there, she mentioned that she is going to have Pot Roast as one of her specials this week – probably Weds or Thurs! I’ve had her Pot Roast and it is WONDERFUL…….she doesn’t offer it often, so if you want to give it a try, call to check which night she decides to have it on the menu and go enjoy!!! You won’t regret it!!!
The girls are whining at me to go to bed, so I’ll end my thoughts here and say good night!
Pat Paulsen For President
Sadly, Pat passed away in 1997, so we can not vote for him this year — but, we can keep his memory and vision alive through You Tube! So he’s dead – “Picky, Picky, Picky!!!” Dear Pat, If you’re listening, we sure could use you this year!!!
Update: Per the comment left on this post by Noma Paulsen, you can get more info about Pat on his website: http://www.paulsen.com/
It is the simple things…
Here is the one particular simple thing that makes each one happy:
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Katie loves to hold hands! She’ll sit next to me and I’ll put my hand out and she’ll put one of her paws in it. I hold it and rub it and she’ll sit there holding hands for as long as I’ll hold it – I am ALWAYS the first to let go cause she’ll sit there for hours just holding hands! When I do start to let go and pull away, she’ll grip her toes around my hand to keep me from getting away!
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Amy loves to be close and have me put my arm around her shoulders! She’ll sit next to me and if I don’t put my arm around her, she’ll scrunch closer or wiggle or lay her head on my shoulder or something to get me to put my arm around her! When I do, she just leans into it and lays her head on my shoulder! If I am standing on the deck at the railing looking out over the back yard, she’ll put her front paws up on the railing so I can put my arm around her and we’ll both stand there looking out over the yard together!
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Megan loves to play ball! She’ll squeak her balls and bring them to me to throw – over and over and over – and if I am busy and don’t take it to throw, she’ll relentlessly squeak it in at me until I give in!
Here are just some of the simple things that get them ALL in a state of bliss:
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Hearing their name!
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Hearing my voice!
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Scalp massages!
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Snuggle-fests!
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Wrestle/tickle-fests!
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Singing and dancing around the house with me!
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Their pool!
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Their toys!
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Anything that moves!
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Laying on the bed!
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Going for a ride in the car!
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Meeting new people!
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Laying in the sun!
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Biscuits!!!!!!!
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Chews!!!!!!!
And that is the “short list”!
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