Very, very early this morning, 12:53 to be exact, Chris threw open our bedroom door and, in a panicked voice, asked, ‘Where’s the car?”
In my startled, groggy state my brain quickly went from trying to make sense of what Chris was asking, to realizing just how bad the implication of that question is, to panic, and then to confusion.
Chris continued on, “I was really worried about you guys when I didn’t see the car! I thought you’d had an emergency and left! I called the ER!”
My mind said (because I was not awake enough to verbalize) The ER? I couldn’t have even gotten to the ER last night because I let Chris take the car to work.
Then the lightbulb went on.
He wasn’t missing the car at work. He was missing the car from our driveway. The car he took to work. He took the car. He forgot the car. And walked home in the rain. Without the car. And was going to have to walk back to work, in the rain, to retrieve the car he had forgotten he took to work. At one in the morning.
On top of that, he had come home, and instead of checking the beds, immediately assumed we were at the ER (with Jonas in the family, this is not as crazy as it sounds).
He was also miffed that I had locked the front door with the lock that cannot be opened from the outside. Apparently he had needed to jump the slippery wooden gate, in the rain, and come in the back door to get into the house. If he’d had the car, he could have used the garage door opener. Or you know, he could have rang the doorbell, but, hey there was no one home. We were all at the ER.
I love this man. I love that every so often, I’m not the dumb one. It’s rare, but when it’s his turn, he always does the job with a flair.
Posted by Lou on February 28, 2006 @ 9:41 pm | 26 Comments
One of the most startling differences between military life and civilian life is the sudden addition of formality and decorum to a life that was previously unfettered by verbal expressions of respect, such as ‘sir’ or ‘ma’am’. The military is heavily fueled by the South, and so many Southern traditions and ways of life are implemented into military routine. Being from the North, and Chris from the West, neither of us grew up with any inclination to use the terms sir or ma’am. Our parents never encouraged it, it wasn’t used in school, and our friends didn’t throw the terms around. This certainly doesn’t mean we grew up having less respect for our elders. We called most adults by their last names and didn’t talk back or behave rudely more than the average Southern kid.
Growing up outside of the South, one only heard these titles used in frustrating customer service situations, or when two strangers were arguing. They were never used with the intent to show respect; in fact they usually slid out of the speaker’s mouth with the snarky tone and feeling that one would give the phrase ‘F-you.’ Usually, they were reacted to in the same manner. This being thus, when my husband entered the US Air Force, and everyone and their dog started referring to me as ‘Ma’am,’ I frequently had to fight the urge to say, “You hold his arms, I’ll hit him!”
It took a few months of repeatedly getting my hackles up before I was able to let go of the connotation I was used to. Instead of taking offense and wondering, ‘What the heck did I ever do to you?” I managed to respond graciously and with some dignity. These southern boys were just being polite. I’m a ma’am. I can handle that.
Once I got used to the rigamarole of the military, I began making friends with other military spouses. Instantly I could spot who was from the South because when they introduced their children to me they said, “This is Miss Lou.” I could be standing in a room full of married women and there wasn’t a missus to be had. Miss Glayds could be sixty-three years old with seven children and a tattoo of her husband’s name on her left buttock, but she was still referred to as Miss by the kids. Even Jonas’ speech teachers are Miss Carla and Miss Nicole. I understand, once again, this is just a southern courtesy, but it really blows my mind. Why Miss? Why not Mrs.? It just doesn’t make sense. I am the person who watched Gone With The Wind cracking up or being annoyed every time Prissy called Scarlett O’Hara ‘Miss Scarlett’ after she finally got hitched to Rhett.
At any rate, after being around so many parents who are working hard to teach their children to say “yes, sir” and “no, ma’am”, I finally brought it up to Chris and asked him if he felt we ought to be teaching our children their ma’ams and sirs, since it seemed to be the going standard of respect. He responded with a vehement no and looked at me as if I’d lost my mind. He completely agreed that outside of a rank situation, that’s a pretty rude thing to say! We may be against the world, be we are together on that point!
We will, of course, teach our children to address adults in the manner that they have asked to be titled. If they want to be called Miss Carla, our children will be calling them that. I am sure that I will continue to be called Miss Lou, even if I ask that their children address me as, “Your Ladyship.” Why this courtesy doesn’t go both ways, I’ll never understand.
Posted by Lou on February 27, 2006 @ 9:53 pm | 12 Comments
You know, January was a really crummy scrapping month for me. My creative juices were all but zapped and I was a big fat creative dork. But now, with March around the corner, my scrappin’ mojo has returned with a funky vengeance! WOOOOOT!
Everyone says that you should use your own handwriting on occasion, so I did. My handwriting, as you can see, has a crazy grace all it’s own that lends itself to being illegible. Ah, well. The writing reads: Art isn’t a momentary pursuit, it is a way of living, a way of breathing and loving. Art makes colors more vivid and life more tolerable. It turns pain into beauty and ordinary into incredible. I used new Chatterbox papers (it’s like Christmas everytime they release new lines), KI Memories Ice Word thingers, and my all time favorite stamp that I have been hauling around for over three years trying to find a use for!
I’ve also been creating some stuffs for sale, so if either of these cu-ute tag books float your boat, hop on over to my corner of ebay and happy bidding. Trust me, you at least want to see the details on the individual tags. I am so stoked that I actually bought the chickie die after thinking about it for over a year! Turned out so cute, it makes me want more dies! So buy my stuff so I can buy more dies so I can make more stuff for you to buy so I can. . .yes, it’s a vicious cycle. I admit it.
Posted by Lou on February 26, 2006 @ 7:03 pm | 10 Comments
Yes, folks. I am totally zapped. I couldn’t sleep last night. So I’m the living dead today, after a very stressful week and a March schedule that is shaping up to be quite a doozy.
Several funny and cute things have happened this week, and I’ve hada few prfound thoughts, none of which I have the energy to convey to you guys today, so hopefully tomorrow will be better. Thanks for sticking around, and here’s the meme.
4 Jobs You Have Had in Your Life:
English Tutor, Balloon Artist, Florist, Human Resources Assistant
4 Movies You Could Watch Over & Over:
White Christmas, The African Queen, Singing In The Rain, Love Actually
4 Places You Have Lived:
Utah, North Dakota, California, Texas
4 TV Shows You Love to Watch:
I don’t really watch tv. I guess I like Friends, Mad About You, Everybody Loves Raymond, and Red Dwarf. I just never see them.
4 Places You Have Been On Vacation:
Mt. Rushmore, Mt Rainier, The Bahamas, & Canada
4 Websites You Visit Daily:
www.twopeasinabucket.com
www.yahoo.com
www.verymom.com
www.zazzafooky.com
4 of Your Favorite Foods:
Chicken burritos at Chipotle Grill, Crispy Flautes at Chevy’s, Lefse, & Snowballs
4 Places You’d Rather be Right Now:
Gramma’s house, A garden store with a wad of cash, in bed sleeping, or at the beach.
Posted by Lou on February 24, 2006 @ 11:04 pm | 1 Comment
It’s just a few of my favorite shots from my wedding. It was fun to make. Not the best photo I could have taken of the pages, oh well.
Posted by Lou on February 19, 2006 @ 1:43 am | 20 Comments
I just signed up to be a Pampered Chef consultant. I sold Pampered Chef kitchen goodies back in the good old days before we joined the Air Force and started moving around every four to six months. The time has come again where we could really use a second source of income ( the military doesn’t pay so great), so here I am again, going back to The Pampered Chef. It’s a good thing, really! You see, with Chris’ crazy and totally unpredictable schedule, and the fact that child care around here costs more than I’m worth at most entry level part time jobs, The Pampered Chef is a great job for me. I set my own hours and can take vacation when ever I want to. Can’t beat that.
So, to kick off this new jobski, and get me off to a good start, I’m throwing my own Pampered Chef party next Thursday. All of you locals are invited to attend, and for those of you a little out of driving distance, who won’t be able to see my spill food all over myself, stutter like a fool, and generally look like a moron, you are invited to my online Pampered Chef show! So, if there’s anything you need, drop me a comment or an e-mail! You can check out the catalog here.
If anyone out there is interested in being a consultant, feel free to contact me and I can get you some info. If anyone wants to do a catalog show, I can hook you up there too 
Posted by Lou on February 16, 2006 @ 10:30 pm | 5 Comments
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