Thanks to Patrick for another episode.
THIS WEEK'S QUESTION:
Name seven foods that you wouldn't consider your Thanksgiving dinner complete without.
1. turkey
2. mashed potatoes and gravy
3. Yankee dressing (for my mom)
4. Southern dressing (for my dad)
5. brussel sprouts
6. homemade rolls
7. real butter
What a blast! It was standing room only in the multiple rooms that crowded around to hear Patrick, Gregg and Vivian announce the VIVI Award winners last night. I had so much fun "working" the rooms and meeting the nominees, the winners, the whiners and the wannabes.
Everyone looked lovely in their various styles of dress. Some with the latest couture and dripping with jewels on loan. Others in comfortable sweats and pjs. I, of course, was decked out in the lovely outfit you picked for me. The hot pink, spaghetti strapped number. I accessorized with Hello Kitty slippers, a Princess Fiona clutch, and a tiara on loan from Horton's House of Honors. Not sure if one of the many photographers in attendance captured me for posterity but check the next issue of People for all the fun.
It was a photo-op extravaganza. I did not even mind (too much) when the paparazzi knocked me over trying to capture Brian, The Love Train's every move. He was amazing! Krissy (Sometimes I Think), her husband John and Michael, the cat, were all in their award winning finery. Karen's (Musings from Mavarin) shopping paid off and she partied the night away after her win. Carly, the ever gracious OndineMonet/Ellipsis, was stunning in her red, slit all the way up to there, number.
For the complete list of winners, go here
Fun was had by all and I look forward to next year's awards. Maybe I will even get a nomination in 2006 but I cannot imagine I will enjoy it any more than I did this time!
Patrick was able to get us the Saturday Six in addition to all his duties for the VIVI Awards this evening. Way to go, Patrick!
Here are this week's "Saturday Six" questions. Either answer the questions in a comment here, or put the answers in an entry on your journal...but either way, leave a link to your journal so that everyone else can visit! If you don't have an AOL journal, you can still play, but of course you'll at least need an AOL screen name, which you can get for free with AOL Instant Messenger, to be able to leave a comment here. Enjoy!
1. What is the last big "gift" you bought for yourself...either for your birthday, Christmas, or any other holiday?
Last year I bought myself two 16" x 20" signed and numbered Mary Engelbreit lithographs with money I got for my birthday.
2. Of the official Vivi Award Categories, if you had to nix one of them, which would you choose?
I do not have one I would eliminate.
3. Which category would you add that isn't on the list this year?
Best use of Comments.
4. Take this quiz: Which soap opera does your life most resemble?
Your life most resembles:
The Young and the Restless
Your life mostly resembles those of the characters on the Young and the Restless. You are not very melodramatic, and your life is pretty normal. What makes you cool is that you can turn the ordinary into the extraordinary.
5. Have you ever heard a song and thought, "Whoever wrote that must know me?" If so, what song was it, and do you still feel that way?
Nope. That has never happened to me. But I do think Randy Travis' song, "Diggin' Up Bones" has definite possibilities.
6. If your birthday had to fall on a holiday each year, which holiday would you choose and why? (For this question, assume that holidays like "Thanksgiving," which fall on a different date each year, would fall on the same date to accommodate the question.)
I'd say St. Patrick's Day so it was not serious competition to any gift giving. I would not want to become a financial burden for anyone. LOL
Thanks, Betty for the link to this fun and insightful entry. This meme is from Confessions of an Angel Waitress.
I wish...
1. I wish I had a million _dollars_. Then I would... have fun trying to decide where it needed to be spent, shared and donated.
2. I wish I had one true love because........ it would make the journey more fun.
3. I wish I could be like my friend, Susan . This person is special because she is genuinely sweet and seems to have her act together.
4.When I was small I wished to be a teacher so I could have lots of papers to push around. (Funny how our little child minds work! LOL)
5. I wish there was a law that said dieting was illegal This would be a great law because I am a law abiding citizen.
6. I wish I could forget about the time I spoke to my kids in anger because it hurt them and me.
7. I wish trees could grow around telephone and power lines because then they would all be full and beautiful, arching over streets.
8. I wish I could see the world because I enjoy traveling.
9. I wish I could learn how to paint portraits because I think that is a wonderful talent.
10. I wish there really was a Santa Claus If there really was then people would watch out, not cry, not pout. (Think about it!)
My life has been going along rather placidly. No big highs and no real lows. But things have changed in the last few days and today was a winner!
It turns out that Vivian aka The First Lady of J-land, lives close to me. As big as AOL's Blog world has become, it is very exciting to actually live near "royalty." I have found two other friends here in the metroplex through reading their journals and I decided to try and get us together. So, tomorrow emmapeeldallas/Talking to Myself, jtuwliens from Mirror Mirror on the Wall, viviansullinwank/NwanyiomasJournal and yours truly, Dust Bunny Protector will be gathering for a VIVI Award pre-announcement brunch. We are all eagerly looking forward to meeting with folks we have come to know so well through our journals. Vivian has promised pictures and a special entry about our little extravaganza!!
Another highlight today was an afternoon at the dentist. You think I am joking, don't you? No - I am very serious. I'm a straightlaced, law abiding, good ol' Southern gal who just loves the feeling I get from nitrous oxide. It is the closest thing I have ever come to "getting high" and mama has a monkey on her back!! Want to hear the really crazy part?? While I am sitting in the dentist chair for almost three hours today enjoying my little buzz, I actually found myself trying to figure out how to verbalize what was happening to me, for my journal. [Now before you get concerned, much of the time in the chair was waiting for x-rays, impressions to harden, napping, etc. Dr. W. was only willing to let me enjoy the gas for limited periods while he was giving me shots, drilling, etc. Not a 3 hour buzz, I assure you!!] I have decided that I cannot adequately describe the nitrous oxide experience without using my hands in a finger-wiggling/ hand waving exercise. Suffice it to say, it feels good and I wish it could be bottled. Oh, duh! It is bottled. I just can't purchase a six-pack!
And, then, when I got home tonight I noticed I had an unusual number of new Comment Alerts in my mailbox. I had not posted anything new so that seemed odd. (Maybe all the lost ones were finally arriving?!) Imagine my pleasant surprise to learn I was an Guest Editor's Pick this week. How exciting is that?? Thanks to Terra at 8 is Enough for this honor. Since I am having lunch with three VIVI Award nominees, the timing couldn't be better!
It has been years, but I remember it like it was yesterday. Their plaintive little cries. Their oh-so-soft little bodies huddled together, pressed against the corner. They skittered around the floor in a dance led by the wind. Each gentle breeze brought rhythmic movement to their journey. They knew their fate but, by their futile actions, I could tell they thought there was strength in numbers.
How could I be so cruel to try and force my will on them? It was not their fault I felt compelled to show my dominance. It had been part of my training; my manifesto as it were. Nothing could stop me.
But I was wrong. In that moment, ready to sweep away any signs of their exhistence, I was overcome by feelings of compassion. Tears welled in my eyes as I realized their future was at my mercy. No more could I foist my archaic ideals on them. But, my sentiments were deeply rooted, based on time honored traditions of well-meaning ancestors. How could I turn my back on what they held so dear?
No! I had to take a stand on what truly mattered to me! I realized, in that very moment, the annihilation of those helpless to help themselves was no longer going to consume me.
I stood up, shoulders back in proud defiance. This was a defining moment. I realized my destiny.
I had truly become the Dust Bunny Protector!
Thanks to Brian, The Love Train, for requesting "the rest of the story."
Something happened to me yesterday I can't get off my mind. My company is opening a brand new office and there are so many details to be considered. My boss was at the new facility yesterday working with the surveillance contractors on the placement of the cameras and waiting for several deliveries. When he had to leave for another appointment I went over to relieve him and to accept the remaining deliveries we were expecting.
I was sitting in my car eating my lunch, since there is no place but the bathroom to sit down inside, when the Westway truck pulled up. The driver of the big rig said he needed to pull around to the dock so I went into the building and opened one of the warehouse doors for him. The warehouse is huge and totally bare. It is actually space for future office growth so currently it resembles a concrete basketball court.
There were two pallets of boxes to be off loaded and the driver needed a forklift. We do not have a dolly at this point, much less a forklift, so I was not able to offer much help .... or so I thought. The driver said he did not have a dolly either and all he was supposed to do was bring the pallets to the facility and we were supposed to be prepared to accept them. Okay ... what's your point?
The next thing I knew he was tearing off the plastic wrapped around the boxes and moving them to the end of the truck. He let me know that he would get them that far but it was up to me to get them unloaded. I was stunned but he was adamant. So fat, beer-gut, driver guy stood on the back of the truck and watched Rubensesque, Business Manager haul 28 boxes of equipment into the office. Actually, I only got 22 of them done before my back gave-out and he grudgingly unloaded the final six.
What galls me is the attitude of some people that they will do the bare minimum in a job and be satisfied with themselves. What ever happened to going the extra mile? Of doing the "right" thing? Of following the Golden Rule? And, maybe this is my own "attitude" showing but I cannot help but think, had I been a cute, young thing instead of a middle-aged chubette, he would have been much more accommodating. What do you think?
[Note: When I relayed to my boss what had transpired, he was very sympathetic and sent emails to all parties involved letting them know our limited capabilities at this time and to make appropriate arrangements when sending us future deliveries. Oh, yes. Purchasing a heavy-duty dolly is on his To Do list for today as well.]
