Hey Gang!

Where is the Christo thing, ImissEthan? I was all over the park this weekend and didn't see it. I'm curious.

That sounds like a fabulous bachlorette party, skagirl, but you must be worn out for sure with such a three day extravaganza. It's a good thing you've been working out. Now, you need to rest up for the wedding! What was in those goodie bags, by the way? They sound like quite the hit.

And hurray for Mr. Heidihug and the abundance of roses. What a sweet gift. I'm glad the birthday was nice. It's just what you deserve. And isn't it great to look out on a finished garden - Aaaah!


Ricci, I was so glad you "said" that. It made me laugh as it's exactly how I'm feeling. Mr. Yogi insists I give her a bag though, however undeserving she is of such riches. Since I have labeled all the bags, do you think it would be evil if I took half the stuff out of hers? (I mean evil in a bad way. Evil in a good way is OK.)

OK, you know I'll give the rude witch a bag. Ugh. And I'll be nice to her. Ugh.

So I just finished the place cards, menu cards and gift labels. All have been printed in a beautiful and tasteful sunflower motif. After this shower, I may never be able to look at another sunflower again. I did hire a professional photographer to record the event. I never take photographs, but this was just too much to do without some sort of a visual record.

On Friday, 200 hundred sunflowers arrive and I make all the crostini. Does anyone have a good recipe for a cocktail that would taste nice with tapanade, herbed goat cheese and proscuitto and fig spread on crostini? I was thinking a champagne cocktail with marsala wine and grappa. It's very tasty.

Hi all! It's been a long time since I have posted in this Meet Market but I have a request for all you wonderful TWoP people. In two weeks my family and I will be participating in a Relay for Life sponsored by the American Cancer Society. We're going to walk (as a team) for 12 hours straight. We're going to be walking in honor of my aunt who has just found out that her cancer has relapsed. I am trying to talk to everyone I know to ask them to pledge. Every dollar counts and this really means a lot to me and my family. If you would like to help out and pledge please email me. I promise that 100% of the money pledged will go straight to the cause. This is an honest request for help, not a scam. Thank you for even taking the time to read this and I hope you'll consider pledging. I am only posting this in the Meet Markets that I visit so if you do decide to pledge (or even if you don't) it might help if you could spread the word around to other TWoP-ers. I would really appreciate it!

(In case anyone is wondering, I checked with HoPs to make sure this would be ok to ask before I posted.)

Hi y'all. Okay, someone just has to explain to me what this Christo thing is exactly. I'm getting more confused each time someone mentions it.

Ricci, I don't feel bad about the IEP, I guess I just got emotional seeing all the reports again, and it brought home again just what my child has to deal with. The school have been great, and do everything they can. I've done the IEP thing so many times it's not funny. It's the Education Dept that seem to cause the problems, like, as you said, categorising all the kids. I agree with you that it would be great if every child had an IEP - I think that every child should, as each one is different. I guess that just makes too much sense.

BTW, I've never heard of a pony party, but it sounded like a lot of fun! And your dog sounds adorable.

The workshop in NY is a Humanities Team workshop. I've found out that it's in Montauk at a hotel called Gurney's Inn, right on the beach. Now that's my kind of hotel! It goes for 5 days, and I would like to stay for a couple of days at least before and after. I will have to fly into and out of NY, not sure which airport, but it would be great to meet up with some MM'ers. Anyway, it's not till September, so we have a few months to plan it if I do end up going. BTW, what's the weather like in NY then?

ska what a party! Like Hildy, I'm exhausted just reading about it too! You and Yogi sure plan parties well. Have a good rest and recuperate now!

Heidihug - okay, what on earth are "yummy brats"? I know you must be refering to food, but the only brat I've heard of is a naughty child, and I'm sure I'm way off there! And 20 white roses? How sweet Mr HH is. I like how you said it was the 20th anniversary of your 20th birthday. I liked being 29, so every birthday after that, I became 29A, and 29B etc. Now I'm halfway through the alphabet.

Hildy I'm green with envy! I love Jimmy Buffett, as does Mr Aussie. I don't think he's ever come out here. Hope you enjoy it, and that B Rob sits next to you (now that would utterly spoil it for me!).

Yogi can't wait to hear how the sunflower shower goes. You have put so much into this, and it all sounds great and the food yummy. See if you can post some pics.

Since you asked, Yogi, the final items in the bags were leis (lais?), Mardi Gras beads (bride got silver & "pearl" ones, everyone else got a variety of strands), colored disco/mirrored ball clip-on earrings, costume rings (3 or 4 each), body glitter on a string (wore around necks- lots of crap around necks), never-break bubbles (which stick to everything...never buy this stuff) but they came in disco-color containers, Disney Princess lollypops, penis pacifiers, penis gum, Star Wars puzzle games (bride is a SW freak), blow horns, and I think I'm forgetting one or two other things.
Bride herself got a veil/tiara, a wand, a garter, and a giant pink & white bow that was in the First Communion section of Party City which is next to the Hawaiian section (duh), which we attached to her butt to keep her partially virginal. Please note said butt then bumped butts with a half naked boy in tiny shorts covered in glitter & sweat. So only kept her partially behaved. Oh, and a hot pink tee shirt that said "50% Single." Hee. We found it at some teeny-bopper store.
All & all, it was moderately classy - in the sense that I didn't have people wearing penis hats or nothin', but just to have fun & go with a theme.

Ugh, I need to get some stuff done....crud...is it Friday yet?

The Christo thing isn't in the park yet, but here are generated photos of what it will look like.

As for the stand-up, I quickly realized I don't have it in me to attempt it as a profession, but it's a hobby I enjoy and it allows me to be creative and write and perform. In fact, if I didn't spend so much time writing posts on TWoP, I'd probably do it more often. I am a big procrastinator and as lazy as my circumstances allow.

Aussie, thanks for asking. Brats (pronounced like the woman's undergarment + a "ts") are German sausages, spiced in a variety of ways. Bigger than a frankfurter, smaller than a kielbasa/ring bologna. They fit into a hot dog bun, and are super excellent with sauerkraut and brown mustard. I tend to douse them with a bit of ketchup, relish and chopped onion, too, so the bun usually ends up being overloaded. We prefer them boiled in beer for a bit, then browned on the grill or over a fire. Supposedly Sheboygan, Wisconsin, is the brat capital of the world. All I know is that they are good eatin'.

iME, I am still impressed, even though stand-up is "just" a hobby for you. When I was in college, I read my poetry at readings, kind of like Spike did in the last episode of Angel. Hee. Anyway, that was hard enough, but to be able to get people to laugh ON PURPOSE is an admirable skill.

Oh! Brats!

Makes me think of the Saturday Night Live skit with George Wendt and Chris Farley - the guys from Chicaaago. They were always getting brats stuck in their throats. And I remember once they were talking about their idea of heaven is a place with faucets flowing with beer and brats.

Da Bears (Bers)!

Thanks for the advice about how to handle the food organization, Hildy. I'm going to do it exactly like you described you all did for your friend. It sounds clear and straightforward.

Your gift bags do sound great, skagirl. How have I made it this far in my life without ever seeing a penis pacifier? And penis gum? Is that gum shaped like a penis or some other variety that I hesitate to "explore" further?

Sure is making my sunflower shower seem very, very booring by comparison.

ETA: The woman finally RSVPed last night at 8PM. She had the grace to not make some lame excuse for her behavior. For that alone, I've pretty much forgiven her.

Mmm...brats....ahhh...beer....that's the only way to make them.

Meant to say, I think the stand up, however sporadic, is very cool, iME. Very cool. Send me the info (even if my email says it blocks you) - I'm getting in very late the night of the 14th so I may be tuckered out, otherwise I'll try my durn'dest to get there.

Yogi, penis gum is an over priced novelty shaped like, well, penis. I can send some up to you if you'd like, or I can take you on a tour of the sex shops of my neighborhood if you'd like. Anyone else for that matter? Snickering & questions totally allowed.

I'd be up for a little penis gum myself. I hesitate to ask, but what flavors does it, er, come in?

Yogi, your shower sounds so totally cool, and I'm happy to hear that taht woman RSVP'ed. Finally. Now be extra gracious to her at the party to heap coals of fire upon her head.

Also, a friend just found this on Amazon. It's my book!

Not out yet, as you can see. Still, all excited.

Wow, Hildy, you're my hero! I am all over the three-ingredient format. Next time, I think chocolate should be a "free" ingredient in all the recipes. Hee. Kidding, kidding, congratulations! And I love the cover photos. Mmmm.

SkaGirl, penis gum? Ouch! Don't tell the groom, I don't think he'll like the idea of the bride practicing chewing...on...that...guys get sensitive on that topic.

Champagne Cocktails for all the Meet Marketeers! Why? Because this drink has three ingredients!

Hurray for Hildy! How thrilling is this? I get excited when I put my homework in one of those clear plastic folders, so I would probably be celebrating in the streets with my name on the cover of a real book sold at Amazon. I am compiling my list of recipients as we "speak." Just in time for holiday giving!

Thanks for the link to the Christo project, ImE. I remember when I was at the Art Institiute of Chicago, lo those many years ago, we were discussing Christo. Almost everyone in the class was saying they found him not so interesting, innovative, etc. But there was one woman in the class, probably in her early forties, and remembering back, she seemed so much older to me at the time (ugh). She said that she was in California for Christo's Running Fences project, and if fact, she was part of the huge installation which covered miles and acres. She said that the moment those panels were raised, that it became not so much something to look at, but a community experience, that every person at that moment was moved. And when she said those last words, her voice shook and her face changed in such a way that I knew that she was so moved then, she still was emotional just thinking about it. So I am actually very excited to be part of this similar Christo project as a member of the community that uses the park. I have waited almost 20 years to experience myself what this woman described. Or not experience. Whatever. It will be interesting to me.

But will it be as interesting as visiting the sex shops in skagirl's neighborhood? I think not! I could purchase my own penis gum to "chew on" - heh, ausgezeichnet. I'm thinking wild cherry flavored....

I just realized that Yogi typed the last post at 5:49 this morning...do you sleep?

And I failed to give the flavors of the penis gum. IIRC, there was peppermint, cinammon, some sort of fruit (hee!), banana (eww) and spearmint. I'll be sure to swing by & find out for certain.

Last Dodo what's the situ with the new job? Crossing fingers and legs because I really need to pee.

Hildy! that is Fantastic! Love that.
Belated bday greetings to Heidihug
iME - I am impressed as well. Please let me know your next show. These upcoming days are focused on graduating masses of students. Funny story (to me), when I first came here to MM I thought your "i" was the upside down Spanish exclamation point! Don't ask. Sometimes I spend too much time with ESL (eng as 2nd Language).
Ska-I am shocked that there are flavors of penis gum - i thought it would just come in that plain "bubblegum" flavor. The favor bag sounds awesome.
Speaking of favor -bags, I am with you Yogi if someone admits upfront how stupid they have been (IMO) I forgive almost anything. She will be very glad she was truthful when she gets her favors.
The town is still filled with Cicadas. I have been hit by two on the head this week and one got stuck around my ear and kind of scared me. Pretty tired of the whole natural wonder.

Hee! Thanks for asking. Truth is, I have no idea, which is why I haven't posted, and I really need some advice.

OK, so as you know, I left a message for the second manager who interviewed me last Friday. Nothing.

Tuesday, after not hearing anything, I left a message for the human resources guy who set up the interview with me. I explained that I need to give notice where I'm at, and if training starts Monday, that's cutting it awfully close, and I just needed some idea of where they are in the process. Nothing.

I have been trying to get a hold of the guy I interviewed with originally, who thus far has been the only person who will actually talk to me when I call, but he's never in his office. They said to try his cell and I finally did, even though I felt really awkward about bothering him on it. Turns out I just got his voicemail. I didn't bother leaving a message; I'll just try him in the office again tomorrow. (They haven't asked who's calling, otherwise I would have just left a message once and moved on there as well.)

I'm completely flummoxed and have no clue what is going on. All of my interviews went extremely well, so I don't know how it went from that to no one wanting to talk to me.

Honestly, I think tomorrow I'm just going to go in person to the HR department (it's right across the street from work) and ask to speak to a supervisor and wait until I can get an actual human being who will speak with me. Not being all confrontational--just very polite--but firm that I do need to actually speak to someone. I don't know what else to do. I feel like I'm completely being given the runaround.

I'm just completely at a loss as to what I should do. This is the company I really would like to work for; it's the only one out of the 3 I interviewed with that I really had a positive feeling from and that provided the most comprehensive training for new agents. Yet do I really want to work for a company that would treat me like this? Because honestly, this whole process has made me such a nervous wreck (for the reasons I posted about last week) that I actually had to miss work one day. And plus, if they don't wind up hiring me, what excuse do I come up with for why it's taken me over two weeks to get back to my second choice? And what if they don't want me either now?

So yeah, I REALLY could use some advice because I am at my wits' end!!!

At least the visit with my mom went well. She's going to try to get out here more often. We did a lot of stuff I've been meaning to do but never got around to like the Staten Island Ferry and Coney Island, and did some neighborhood exploring over in Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill, Brooklyn (I used to work there and thought she'd appreciate it). And I just found out that Aimee Mann (who's one of my absolute idols; my user name is a play on one of her album titles) is coming in concert so I'm picking a ticket tonight after work. I saw her years ago with Squeeze, but I haven't seen her since I really got into her.

Hi Meet Marketers!!
Dodo I think your plan of going in person to see what's happening with the job is probably your best bet. You have legitimate reasons (as opposed to just being impatient) to need to know as soon as possible. It's always a good idea to give as much notice as you can to former employers, and it makes future employers think very well of you for your courtesy.
Yogi I hope your shower is fabulous, it sure sounds like it will be! I'd love to see pictures of your wonderful sunflower motif. It sounds so beautiful.
Thanks for the penis gum update skagirl. My sister-in-law found penis shaped pasta and made a macaroni salad with it for a family get together once. Don't ask, suffice it to say Birdman's family are all nuts!! And very, very funny. I so lucked out with my in-laws. They're all really great people, and we all get along so well.
Hildy how exciting!! I'm going to be looking feverishly for your book. Three ingredients sounds just about right to me! And ausgezeichnet, I have to agree, I think chocolate should be one of the freebie ingredients too!

Hildy, congratulations mate! Three cheers for our own TWoP celebrity! Can't wait till I've got my copy, and can start making some of these, with chocolate added to it, of course.

Dodo I too think that your idea of going there in person, and being calm and firm is the best thing to do. Sorry that you have had all this run around. They should be, IMO, ready to snap you up before someone else does, as it's obvious that you can bring to their company qualities that not everyone has.

Thinking of Yogi and sunflowers. :)

Got a full weekend lined up here, catching up with old friends, and really looking forward to it! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Hildy!! Add me to the growing list of praisers! Way to go!
So, nothing much is happening around here. Wait, I lie! I finally got license plates for my car! Only took me 6 weeks! First thing that happened in the delay of getting the license plates was Washington State's fault. They gave us a paperless title(Don't ask me what it is. It's paperless, that's all I know), which Oregon doesn't recognize as a legitimate proof of ownership. So my dad and I had to go back to Washington State Patrol and apply for a title. They said it would be 4-6 weeks before we would get it. Took 5 weeks to get here. Then, my dad takes the car to the DMV again to get a VIN inspection. The door number and the one under the hood matched. The one on the dash did not. So we had to make a trip to Portland (1 hour away) on a Saturday to get the VIN inspected so they could stamp the title so we could take it to DMV so I could get plates. Turns out the reaon why the number didn't match was because the previous owner ripped out the intire dash and put in a new one. So the Oregon State Patrol, after waiting 3 hours in line, took 15 minutes to tell us it was fine, give us a stamp, and send us on our way. So it was a wasted Saturday. So finally, FINALLY, today I got my plates. It was about time. But now I can drive it (legally), so I suppose there is a silver lining to all this mess.
Then went I got back from DMV, I saw a cat hanging around my garage. It looked like the cat that had lived down the road, but the owners had moved and I assumed that they took the cat with them. Well, this cat looks and acts like the other cat, but it's female, so I assume it's one of the other cat's kittens. So I fed it, being the complete sap that I am, even though I'm very very very allergic to cats, but it just looked so cute and sad. So of course I petted it and fed it tuna and milk and a really old can of cat food from when I cat-sat. It ate it all. Poor thing. I'm such a sap.
Hope everybody has a good weekend!!

Hey Gang at Meet Market!

It's true, skagirl, I was awake quite early yesterday as Mr. Yogi and I had an apt. back at Little Yogi's school, and I was a bit apprehensive after our last meeting two weeks ago where his teacher lied and yelled at me after a year of hell. But very, very good news! The principal met with us for two hours, and though we focused on the future, she started the meeting by admitting mistakes had been made. She is a genuinely amazing woman turns working with children into both a joyous and spiritual experience. She is the reason we chose the school for Little Yogi in the first place. This time, I left the meeting smiling and full of hope. This time, when a few tears fell, it was sheer relief after this very, very difficult year. I know that next year will be better.

So your advice about the IEP was right, Ricci, but UWWE, cicadas. I'd have to move. One in the ear? Oh my lord, sounds like a horror movie!

I would have fed the cat too, PiP!

Today is a busy, busy sunflower filled day. And I will definitely share photos, birdlady. So happy to see you. I was worried you flew the coop - snort, chuckle, chortle... ugh

But I couldn't let the day pass without wishing Last Dodo my very best with the job situation. And since you asked, I will throw my two cents into the mix. I sincerely hope that you get the job, but whatever the outcome, I also hope you realize that your value is in no way dependent on having this new job or not having it. You are such a talented, sensitive, intellegent, witty, and from the photograph handsome person, and you will be all those things with or without this particular job. Truly, this job will give you no more value than you already have. There are so many variables that decide these things that you just can't even imagine and almost none of them have anything to do with you. Please don't let the spurious judgements of strangers effect your sense of value. We see you, and we think you are great!

And with that, my flowers have arrived....

Thanks, all you nice people, for all your kind words. I can't believe I actually got to write about something I care deeply about. It was so much fun.
At any rate, Dodo, I'm thinking of you, and hope your situation resolves itself harmoniously. Yogi, Hope your party is the last word in festivities!
Hope you all have a great weekend. I'm off to my reunion. Whee!

Dodo - what dear yogi said about the job situation and you in general. Chin up!

yogi, yay! for sunflowers and parties in general. Have fun! And glad to hear about the good meeting with the principal.

Good news on my other NY friend's front - her husband has consented to looking at moving. They can't go very far, but will be looking, it sounds like, outside of their present school's area so their son does not have to go there. Probably won't happen soon, but at least there is light at the end of the tunnel.

PiP - congrats on getting that arduous car licensing thing done. Yuck! Oh, and even if you are allergic to kitties, you can have an outside cat, right? Obviously you love animals, and I am sure this kitty appreciates your generosity. We have two inside/outside cats, plus one has been hanging around our garage for the past month or so. We haven't fed it, it looks healthy, so I think it eats at the barn next door (the farmer puts out a bowl of raw milk and dog kibble for his barn cats every day). It's nice to know that we have offered a haven to a cat that obviously feels safe on our property. Well, our two cats don't much like it, but one is too fat, and the other too small, to actually do anything about it other than sit on the deck and stare.

Awwwww....thank you so much, yogi! And you too, birdlady, AussieGirl, Hildy, and heidihug as well. I really needed to hear that...sometimes it's hard for me to keep that in mind, I think partially because I'm an actor, where you are the product, basically, and sometimes things can get pretty harsh.

In any event, things went a lot better than I thought, although I still don't have an answer. The HR receptionist is a total sweetheart and helped me out. I didn't actually meet with anyone, but she basically relayed to me that the problem is that the two managers haven't made their final selection yet, so the HR guy has no idea what to tell me. But he's going to call both of them and ask them what's up, and she had me write down my contact info...I also wrote that if he could touch base with me either way by the end of the day just to let me know where things stand I'd appreciate it. I told her I was sorry for being so pushy, but she said no, she completely understood and she was very sorry no one was returning my calls. So it's frustrating that I still don't have an answer, but at least now I know exactly what's going on and I made an ally in the HR receptionist.

Still though...I mean, this isn't electing the new pope or inventing the wheel, managers!!! Come on!!! (Oops, I accidentally channeled Diana DeGarmo.)

Dodo, I'm so happy that you got someone to tell you what the heck is going on! I would be fusterated too. But listen to Yogi. Smart lady there.
Ahh, I'm so happy today. It was the last day of finals! Now I get to laze around the house, sleep in, watch movies...not. More like clean, clean, clean, then relax. But I guess I'll deal with it.
Heidi, I would have an outdoor cat, but I think this one's just a stray. It wasn't really skinny, so I think someone else was feeding him or her. I think the cat used to be an indoor cat because it kept trying to slip in the sliding door. I didn't see it today, though. I hope it's okay.
Happy, happy, happy Friday!!

Congrats on the end of finals, PIP!
Yogi hope the preparations are going well!
Dodo way to go!
and good weekends to all.

Dodo hang in there, even if you don't get this job, remember you have at least two other irons on the fire. And having the HR person on your side certainly can't hurt. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for you!
pretty in pinki we got "adopted" by a stray cat about three years ago. I think someone actually dropped her off at our house (we used to live way out in the country on a dirt road and animals were always getting dropped off in the area). She's such a sweetheart and she's given us so much happiness that I'm grateful we found her. She started off as an outside cat, but she's got us so thoroughly wrapped around her paw that she pretty much goes anywhere she darn well pleases, inside or out now. Keep us posted about your new little friend, I sure hope it's okay too.
heidihug I hope all goes well with your friend. I can't imagine being in such a scary situation. It makes me kind of mad though that she has to give up her home to feel safe.
Yogi I can't wait to see your pictures! It sounds so pretty and cheerful and elegant, all at the same time! I'm so happy for you that things went well at LittleYogi's school, what an enormous relief that must be. And this:
made me laugh so hard! I'm such a sucker for silly jokes.
Well I hope everyone has a great weekend!!

Hi everyone!

Yogi I am so glad to hear that the meeting at the school went so well. That's great news and now everyone concerned with Little Yogi's schooling can move forward, and that is what is important. I must say reading that made my day! Well done mate, for persevering with what you know to be right - these children can't do it by themselves and they need us to stand up and insist on their rights being met.

PiP your story about the cat reminded me of a stray that showed up here - we rent a house where we are not allowed to have pets - and I fed it. Of course, it hung around, and the next thing we knew she had kittens (we didn't know she was pregnant) and we went from being a no pet household to having 9 cats. We ended up having to take them to an animal shelter.

Dodo I have to echo what Yogi said to you. And it's great that you have as an ally the HR receptionist - that can only help. I hope that it all gets resolved to your satisfaction soon.

heidi really happy that your friends moving, my God, with what they have had to live with, it's really the best thing they can do.

Hildy - how did your reunion go? Sounds like a lot of fun. Did you rent the convertible?

Waiting to hear about the sunflower shower...

Hullo ALL - I'm back. I've spent the past two months moving from Los Angeles (West Coast/USA) to Florida (East Coast/USA). I'm now a small town girl! And I'm loving every minute of it. But I'm still on the West Coast because I'm on the Gulf Coast of Florida. I drove cross-country in my little pick-up truck with my three cats in the back (a shell cover). I'm staying with my folks, so we're a 7 cat family now. Dad says he's achieved a life-long ambition - doorman in a cathouse!

The trip took 10 days, and was a wonderful drive, California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and into and down Florida - all absolutely beautiful.

The only problem is that now I can't go into TwoP to see who won an episode before I watch it. But, there's no waiting either. I'm in on the EST brodcast time.

Hi skycatcher, welcome back! Sounds like you had a great trip to Florida. How did the cats handle the journey? I've done a fair bit of driving around the US, but only a few states at a time. My dream is to do what you did, drive from the West coast to the East Coast, and I've never been to FLA, so I'd head there too. Your dad's statement made me laugh!

Little Aussie has a cough and cold so it's no school today. Actually, I'm relieved, I feel like just having a day at home without the mad rush off to school. Wel, gotta go make brekky, (it's Monday morning here), so see you all tomorrow!

Thanks for the news about the Christos, iMissEthan. I misread something - they're having an exhibit about the project at the Metropolitan Museum, and I thought that it was up, but now I see it won't be until next winter. Have you done your stand-up gig yet? If not, good luck, and, if so, hope it went well.

yogi, my dear, I can't wait to finally meet you, be it here or there. I've already decided that when I come to TARCon I need to see Wicked and at least one other play (Avenue Q?) and have lunch at Aquavit.

Dodo - I hope for good things for you. I have to confess to feeling a bit nervous about this particular job because, if they're being so unresponsive, it might not be a place I'd like to work. Kind of reminds me of your date not getting back to you a few months ago. I have faith that something great will come your way, though.

Glad your son's IEP went okay, AussieGirl. When you said he's not going to school today, I thought, "Of course he's not - it's Sunday!" and then remembered about that pesky time difference thing even before you said it was Monday. My sister is a flight attendant and flies between Honolulu and Guam all the time (as well as to Palau, Truk, Tokyo, and other Pacific destinations), and I don't know how she can keep the days straight - sometimes she'll have two birthdays or Christmases and sometimes she won't have any at all.

Yeah, the time difference is funny, Babalu, especially when I fly from here to the US. I leave Australia at say, Wednesday at 4pm, and what time do I get to the US? Wednesday at 10am. So I get there before I leave! And coming back here, leave the US on Tuesday, totally miss Wednesday, get back Thursday. The International Date Line really throws you out for a while.

Hey Meet Marketeers! Welcome back Skycatcher! You sure covered some ground. I've made that drive several times, but never with cats. No doubt they added a whole new dimension to your odyssey. Fun.

I Survived the sunflower shower! In fact, it was fabulous. Maybe too fabulous. I think folks were a bit overwhelmed. I guess they had never seen 250 sunflowers in cascades and bunches all together in a few rooms before. It really was beautiful. I took oddles of photos (acutally I took no photos, but for the first time in my life, I made sure someone did, so I will have oddles of photos to share by the end of the week. With less humility than I should have, it looked beautiful, from the place cards with hand applied suflowers to the different place settings chosen to compliment each different course and food, all the details turned out so well.
Highlights:
1. The woman who RSVPed three days before the shower turned out to be my favorite person at the entire party. I'm so glad I took the sage Hildy's advice and was as kind as could be. We got on like gangbusters. (What the heck does that expression mean? Tracey Bee? Anyone?
2. Everyone cleaned their plates with every single course, and in a room filled with gormet Italian cooks, that is saying something! Mr. Yogi's cooking was incredibly tasty. And the menu was perfect. Hurray for husbands who cook!
3. My favorite moment was giving the bride her memory book. She was so moved. Then, I walked over and handed her mother a beautifully wrapped gift, a copy of the memory book for her very own. Her mother was so moved, she could barely speak. Nothing in the world gives me more joy than giving a gift to someone I love, especially a gift that they love. It's almost a selfish pleasure.

Now, I don't know what to don't with all this wonderful time I have! Today I slept. Wheeew, I'm so worn out. But I'm so happy to hear that my lovely meet market friends have such good news.

Hurray for a day off for Aussie Girl. The whole one day ahead thing kind of freaks me out. I don't think I would ever travel again. Wheew. Messing with the time space continuium!

Heidihug, I'm very pleased that your friend and her husband are at least contemplating a move. Moving a few blocks in the city makes an enormous difference, so fear not, one doesn't have to move far to change everything. I sincerely hope they make this change soon, for their own safety and their son's.

I'm so pleased to hear that you had a good experience with the HR receptionist at the agency, Last Dodo. Babalu makes a good point though. It's important to take into consideration the way the others at the agency are treating you. I don't understand why they can't offer you the courtesy of answering your calls, even if it's just to say we are still interviewing people for the position. That is just unreasonable. You deserve to be around people that recognize what a good thing they've got in you!

Congratulations on finalizing your finals, PiP. What a great feeling. Are you going to play softball this summer, or just drive around in your newly plated car? Fun!

I can't wait to meet you too, Babalu. I've got a date put into my calendar already, and well before TARcon ;) But having you in NYC is going to be such a treat. We will do all that on your list and more. Be prepared to be constantly surprise by joy and fun!

Speaking of joy and fun, I hope Hildy's reunion was all that. I have no doubt it was!

Miss suctionprints, I was perusing a thread regarding a TCcon and saw it mentioned that you had a birthday. Congratulations and Happiness to you. Are you and our Heidihug born on the same day? Astrological sisters so to speak?


Me too, birdlady, me too!

Yogi, happy to see that the Sunflower Shower party went so well! The whole thing sounded just fantastic, and I can't wait to see some pics. You truly are a wonderful hostess, and what you wrote about the bride's mother says it all. Good on yer, mate, as we say here... :)

I watched the Tonys last night, and now my new dream is to go to NYC and see all the Bdwy plays. Going out this morning to buy lottery tickets, 'cause that's the only way it'll ever happen.

And.......Hugh Jackman.........need I say more??????

Yogi! so glad that the sunflower shower went well - sounds like a smash hit & very memorable for all involved. A total inspiration for other shower host(esses)s.

I had a very low-key weekend. Some laundry action, a few movies like "Freaky Friday" & "The Last Samurai", both of which I enjoyed, and saw "Saved!" yesterday in the theaters, which I really got a kick out of. Also caught up on sleep, and that was probably the most appreciated part.

Hey everybody! Went to see Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban yesterday. It was a bit of a disapointment for me. I've read all the books and I just thought the movie should've been better. But I always think that books are better than movies, so maybe it's just me.
Not next weekend, but the weekend after I have a softball tourny in Centralia and the weekend after that is our last tourniment! Then an end-of-season party, then we're done. I'll miss playing, but there's always next year...
Yogi, sounds like you had some fun this weekend!

Thanks! I appreciate the concern, but I've actually finally started to calm down about it! The way I look at it now that I know the situation is, the 2 managers aren't sitting around eating bonbons. The one is preparing to open a new office, and the other was being pulled in six different directions while I was in his office interviewing. So hiring people is just one of a lot of different irons they have in the fire, although I do wish they'd get on with it. But I felt comfortable with both of them in the actual interviews and feel like I could work well with them, which is the important thing. I felt uneasy with the people at both the other companies where I had interviews. Plus I do think this will be the best in terms of amount of training and opportunity/volume of business. I do think the HR guy is being a bit of an asshat in not checking in with me, but once I'm hired, he's not going to be part of my work world on a regular basis.

So yeah, if this company were a boyfriend, I so would have bailed by now, but for right now, I still think it's worth it to hang in there.

Glad to hear everyone's weekends seemed to go well!

Yogi, your sunflower shower sounds as if it was the last word in showers! I'm so glad that everything went well, and that your labors were not in vain. And I hope the late RSVP'er brought you a fabulous guilt gift.
Had a glorious time at the reunion. We yakked in the car all four hours to Maine, Yakked with friends all through dinner out at a pub we used to frequent (amazed that it was still there, and still the same), yakked our way through Saturday, complete with a visit to the local granolahead store to get our printed Indian Tee shirts like we used to wear to Dead shows, yakked through cocktails in our room, and the class dinner, and the yucky 80s band. (We graduated in the 80s. That doesn't mean we liked the music!) Fortunately, the class of '69 had a GREAT band playing better music, so we went down there and flung our hair around like mad women for about two hours.
My body, she is broken. sore in many places, including a stiff neck from the aforementioned hair flinging, and a case of laryngitis from shouting over the band and singing along. Then we slept for a couple hours, got up and had breakfast, and yakked our way home.
Ahhhhh. Good times.

ETA: I forgot to mention that speaking of Broadway and the Tonys, I went to high school with Donna Murphy, who I believe was up for a Tony. She was the big star of all our theatrical music productions back then, too. It always cracks me up when I hear about her Broadway career, b/c I can remember her singing "Fan Tan Fanny" in Flower Drum Song.

Wow Hildy, let the good times roll!

Hi everybody!! Wow, it sounds like everyone is doing great. How wonderful!!

Welcome back Skycatcher, your trip sounded like a lot of fun. I love to travel, but I've never tried it with cats. And your dad cracks me up, that was really funny!

Yogi your Sunflower Shower sounds so fantastic!! I can't wait to see some pictures. It sure sounds like a great time was had by all. How very creative and thoughtful and generous you are!! Oh, and I hope you and Babalu have a wonderful time. I wish I could meet you too!

Hildy I wanna party with you! Wow!! I know what you mean about the achy muscles the next day after you've had too much fun the night before. My husband just told me that Aerosmith is playing later this month (on a Friday, hurray!) and if we go I'm sure I'll be pretty sore and hoarse the next day.

How's your LittleAussie doing Princess Peachy? Is his cold all better? Is it starting to get cold down there? We've had a lot of rain here, but it's finally starting to get hot and sunny. We're almost ready to open up the swimming pool, I can't wait!!

PiP have you seen the little stray cat around lately? I feel so sorry for the poor things. There's a pretty black & white stray cat that lives in the ally behind the building where I work. I see him trying to eat out of the dumpster out there alot. I wish I could bring him home with me, but Birdman has already let me know in no uncertain terms, NO MORE CATS!!

Dodo I'm glad you're feeling calmer with the job situation. I really do think that great things are coming your way. Whether it's in real estate or acting, I'm sure that something fabulous is just around the corner.

And I want to say hi to pixie dust and MrsKarateKate! Where are you guys? Haven't heard from you in quite a while, I hope all is going well!!

Okay, birdlady, since you asked, here's a cat update. The little bugger is living under our boat trailor and of course I'm feeding it. She's so pretty, a little tiger striped kitty. Problem is that she yowls. Loudly, in the middle of the night. But, on the other hand, she catches mice in the field, so I guess I can deal with it. And she's just so sweet. What a softy I am.
Hildy! Who knew you were a wild partier?!

Hildy I was so worried the "yak in car" meant, well, not holding your lunch...then I realized you do not speak like I do and actually meant yakkity yak (don't talk back!). What an awesome time. I love that you crashed the other reunion too! You are a total rockstar!

PIP, I wonder if the cat is in heat? I know nothing of cats besides they make me itch, but I've noticed a lot of dogs in the mood for love in my neighborhood. Do cats get that way?

Heh. That kind of yakking would be known as 'hurling' in our old fashioned collegiate vernacular, skagirl. Just as making out/hooking up was known as muckling, a very quaint and useful term. In fact, I was rather shocked at all the muckling going on at the reunion, considering that most of the mucklers were married to other people.

I must admit that while I used to be a wild partier, I am older and creakier now, and just this one flashback weekend has sent me into a tailspin. My voice? Still hoarse. Not pretty, folks. and PiP, I too was wondering about the heat thing. That yowling tends to give it away. Can you capture that little one and take her to the vet for a quickie procedure? If she's going to be stray, at least she doesn't have to create more strays. Vets will frequently give deals for spaying strays, so it might not be as expensive as you might think.

pretty in pinki that yowling in the night certainly sounds like a cat in heat to me. (By the way, is she an orange tiger or a grey tiger?) Years ago, a stray cat adopted us, and for about two weeks she yowled like a banshee while she was in heat. We kept her inside all that time (I don't recommend that, unless you happen to be deaf). After she finally quieted down we let her go back outside, and she promptly got herself knocked up!! Four kittens later (which she insisted on having on my son's white bedspread) we took her to the vet to be spayed. It only cost us $50 back then (probably 1987 or '88), but it was well worth it. By the way, have you pulled up her skirt to see if she is indeed female? If it's a tom, he might just be inviting all the other cats in the neighborhood to come and have a glorious fight, and that's always fun to listen to when you're trying to sleep! Anyway, I sure hope everything works out ok for the poor thing. And I hope you aren't subjected to the feline operatics for too long!

The thought of her being in heat never really crossed my mind. She only yowls if you go outside, like to feed her or get the mail, and go back inside. I thought she just yowled because she missed me. :( Oh well. I would love to bring her inside, but...no. And we're still not sure if the cat (who by the way is orange striped) is a girl or a fixed boy. I still think it's one of the neighbor's cats. I tried to get ahold of them today, but to no avail. I'll try again tomorrow. If I ever get ahold of them and they tell me it's not thier's, I'll take the cat to the vet. If it's thier cat I'm not taking it anywhere. I already went through that with a dog and it's not pretty.

Yes, our Hildy sure knows how to party! As much as Yogi knows how to throw a good party!

Birdlady big little Aussie is better, though still not at school due to his cold and cough being infectious. But littlest Aussie is sick too. High temps, crying, not wanting to eat. And speaking of hurling, today I had a house inspection and managed to find time away from two sick kids to actually make the place a little presentable. When the lady got here, littlest Aussie (who's only 3 and has no idea of what is socially acceptable), promptly threw up everywhere. She beat a hasty retreat, which is just as well I guess, as I didn't have to answer questions like "How did that mark get on the wall?" etc. He's since thrown up again, but a couple of hours ago insisted that he wanted some porridge, so I made it for him and he ate it and kept it down. He's sleeping now, so I hope that's it and he gets better. Fingers crossed, I absolutely hate seeing my children ill, but the good news is that they do improve much faster than us adults seem to.

The weather? We had a very cold day early last week, but that was it, really. Warm sunny days, though it gets a bit chilly at night and early mornings. We really only get a few weeks of cold weather, well, what we here in the tropics would term "cold" - it got down to about 4 C - that's about 40 F I guess. The days are so warm that my youngest son got a little sunburnt last week - you don't think about using sunscreen in the winter, only in the summer.

PiP we're going to take the boys to see the new Harry Potter film on the weekend, if they're both better by then. Big little Aussie said a few years ago, if we have a Mother's Day and a Father's Day, why can't we have a Kid's Day? So we do, in June every year. We get them each a present and take them somewhere nice, and make all their favourite foods etc. So it looks like Harry Potter and/or Sea World. Ah, the joys of being a parent!

No, we're close. My birthday was on Monday (which means I didn't get my golden birthday until I was 31, and didn't care anymore.) Me and the lovely belsum are, though. And Clint Eastwood and sexy Lt. Bayless Kyle Secor, although that would make us fraternal astrological triplets. (Teeth sweat as suctionprints ponders this.)

Per popular, well, Hildy's request, the Zebulon Pike article is now online complete with rockin' Dan Corrigan photo. (He photographed many Replacements and Soul Asylum album covers, among others.) You can see a teensy bit of me in the left corner. Yes, it was as loud as it looked. By the end, I was wearing headphones over my earplugs. They are the nicest guys, though.

Suctionprints! You are a great writer! Thanks for that article, it was eye-opening.

Thanks, Hildy! Getting high praise from a pro such as yourself is unbelievably ego-boosting. Thanks again.

Oh, and I'm back in the blogging business.

Christa Miller, the actress who played Kate on the Drew Carey show and who is now Jordan on Scrubs is my exact age, born May 28, 19...er, nevermind. I just wish I was as purty as she is.

Yeah, that was a great article, suctionprints! It's so nice to go see a friend in a play or hear their band or read their work, etc., and have it/them be good! Because otherwise it can be really awkward. "Well...I really liked the scenery..."

Speaking of which, details aren't finalized and I have no idea what sort of a part I'll have, but it's looking extremely likely that I'll be in a show in the Fringe Festival this year. If so, I'm psyched! It'll be the first thing I've done in almost 2 years (by my choice...I just had a lot of other crap I needed to sort through).

Hey Meet Marketers!

Join Little Yogi to the growing list of those born under the Gemeni sign. Today is his most auspicious thirteenth birthday. It's not surprising that the most eloquent suctionprints (great article!) and heidihug are both born in this sign as communciation is one of the Twins' strengths. I always found it a bit ironic that Little Yogi finds himself a Gemeni, as he was mute all those years, yet he has always found so many creative ways of expressing himself, that perhaps he is born exactly where he should be.

So for his thirteenth birthday, Little Yogi got to stay home from school. We started the day by having breakfast at a nearby hotel. We go there for breakfast for every special occasion. They have watched Little Yogi grow up, and they love him. Then, we went to see Harry Potter III at the IMAX theater. You are going to love it, Aussie Girl! Oh my, it was fabulous on the enormous screen - Thirty foot dementors! Also, I really felt like I was flying on Buckbeak - it was ... magical! Visually, this is a very, very gorgeous film. Because it was on the big screen, I saw many details that I probably would have missed on the first viewing of a regular screen that really add to the experience. There were so many alchemical details in the sets this time around that captured the magical atmosphere of the books so much better than the first two. Though this film was shorter on the character details (I missed the Weasly clan, but I was happy that we didn't have as much Dursley,) the story moved at a nice pace. I can't wait to see it again! We rounded out the afternoon with a tasty Chinese lunch at Shun Lee. Yum, Peking Duck!

My mom and dad are coming tonight. Little Yogi requested dinner at home with a Veniero's cannoli cake (a heavenly confection that the Yogi men love.) Tomorrow, we are off to see Fiddler on the Roof at my mom's request. We know someone in the play, and so we get a backstage tour, which should be great fun.

I am terribly, terribly worn out still from the shower. I am sleeping at all sorts of wierd times. Exhaustion. I totally understand about your aches and pains Hildy, though I didn't dance to get mine. I have to say, that your kind of sore, the kind that comes from dancing your heart out like there is no one watching and like there is no tomorrow is a pretty wonderful thing - you must have had a great, great time. Not to mention all the Yakking (not in the skagirl sense of the word, though I must say, I was reminded of the Skagirl propensity to Yak with great abandon) the talking sort of all day and night yakking is the very, very best!

I can't add to the cat discussion except to say that the yowling all night would really irritate me. I thought cats were nice quiet clean pets. Ugh.