Obsessing About Obsessive Obsessions (Are you kidding me?)

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So I am behind, as usual. Not surprising, but I always get tied up doing something or other & then things get forgotten or get done when I "get around to it". Of course, I will drive myself crazy with all the stuff I have to do or should do or meant to do. Pieces of paper & notes are everywhere. It's Post-It Pandemonium!




It is time for me to get one of those things done that I have been putting off. I have not forgotten.




Over a week ago, I received a fabulous award from a fabulous friend of mine. Here it is:



I would like to thank the fabulous Mom Zombie for presenting me with this award. (I'm not worthy, I'm not worthy!) It's a stunning award & I am proud to add it to my blog.

The requirements for this award are to post the award on my blog, linking it to the presenter. Next, I must list my 5 (yes, only 5) biggest obsessions. Lastly, I must pass this award on to 5 other worthy bloggers. So, here are my 5 biggest obsessions, not in any particluar order:



1. The Detroit Red Wings. I really don't care much for sports. I don't watch sports on tv except for hockey. I've been to a few local sporting events in my life just to say I've been there, I guess. But when it comes to hockey, or more specifically, the Red Wings, I love watching the games on tv. I'd much rather go in person, but they're so expensive. I collect anything Red Wings. I have 3 game jerseys, one red, one white & one black. (not authentic, worn game jerseys but they are the "Starter" brand) I have shot glasses, regular drinking glasses, & a frozen mug, pajama bottoms, shorts, jackets & too many t-shirts to count, not to mention other miscellaneous items that normal(ly) people would not have.



2. Reality TV. I think it started with Survivor or Big Brother. In any case, those are 2 shows I still watch to this day. Even though I know that these shows are NOT completely reality, I still like to believe the premise of the show. A few others that I have come to enjoy are: SO You Think You Can Dance, American Idol, Rock of Love, LA Ink. I even liked Paris Hilton's BFF shows-GACK! There are some I just can not handle though like most of the ones on MTV & VH1. These are usually spin-offs from another show & & are just terrible & somewhat disgusting at times.



3. Office Supplies. I think this is the obsession I have had the longest. I can remember collecting pens & paper clips when I was in grade school. Put me in an office supply store & I will have boxes of stuff I just "have to" have. In fact, just last week, I received a couple of special pens in the mail. They are a dark green click pen with a rubber grip & write very smoothly. Where did I get these cool pens from? From Nanny Goats in Panties (N.G.I.P.)! They are my favorite pen of the moment.



4. Shoes. Need I really say anymore? Yes, I think I will! I guess I am a typical woman in this way. I love shoes. I love shopping for shoes. My feet don't change size when I gain a few pounds. I really couldn't say how many pairs of shoes I have because I have them all over the place. There is no "one" place I could store this many shoes. I laugh at shoe racks & bags. I guffaw when I see the "Shoes Under" commercial. I ROFLMAO when asked to pack shoes "for the weekend". I wonder if I am related to Imelda Marcos.



5. Blogs. Last, but not least, I am obsessed with blogs. Not with blogging, though I wish I would post a bit more. It started with reading just one. And as I decided I wanted to start a blog myself, I started reading & subscribing to more. Then, somehow, I found the Blog Catalog & signed up there. One day, I read "Crotchety Old Man Yells at Cars", loved it, & checked out Humor Bloggers Dot Com. From there, I started reading blogs from everyone's blogrolls & subscribing. Now, I have so many that I probably couldn't read them all in a week. I'm so obsessed with them that if I don't read some for awhile, when I finally get to them, I have to read all the previous ones just to "catch up" on what's been going on. It drives me crazy, which isn't a long drive for me at all!

So, those are my obsessions. I hope you got through them somewhat sane. And seeing that I have to name 5 bloggers with fabulous blogs, I shall present them to:

1. Kelly at Chains of Yesterday. Just recently started reading this one & love the openness she writes with.

2. Chrissy at I Shoulda Been A Stripper. Her blog is fun & entertaining. Oh okay! It's because I love Bernie!

3. Reffie at Confessions of a Reforming Geek. Geeks (reformed or otherwise) are fun people!

4. Quirky at Musings of a Quirky Loon. The lovable antics of a looney quirky mom & her family.

5. Moooooo35 at Mental Poo. I never know what to expect when I open this but am never too surprised.

Thank you for stopping by & sharing my award with me. Awards are never as much fun if you can't brag about share them.

Polishing the award with my babushka,

Collette

Menu du Jour-Turkey-Spam & Turkey Jello

Image by keltickelton via Flickr

OK! It's been over a week. I figured I had better get in here & do some posting before anyone misses me! LOL! So...Did ya? Miss me? HUH? I thought so! Well, I missed you, too! (((HUGS))) Wow, that was a big hug. Thank you. I am much better now. That last post was a doozie, wasn't it? If you didn't read it, please, check it out now here.
Anyway, school started back up on Tuesday, September 8th, which means the cafeteria is OPEN! harumph! grumble, grumble. If you don't know the reason for my grumbling, it's because I work in our high school's cafeteria.







Yes, I am a lunch lady cafeteria aide. Contrary to popular belief, I do not wear a dress or support hose. We wear black pants & a maroon polo shirt. I do wear a black apron so I don't get food all over me & because I keep all my crap in my pockets. If I don't have a purse, I must have pockets. Like my purse, I carry everything including the kitchen sink only the essentials. We can wear tennis shoes or black non-slip shoes, but I just wear my comfy, black clogs. Although, somedays I feel the need to wear steel-toe boots. Those pans can be very heavy & HOT! On our heads, we can wear a white paper bonnet (UGH!) or a hair net. The nets aren't too bad because we get them in 2 colors: dark brown or dark blonde which pretty much matches my hair color. I prefer to wear the net over my perfectly coiffed hair ponytail rolled into a bun. It's much cooler.
Now I know everyone has seen the stereo-typical, slop-serving lunch lady behind the counter. There are days that I have stood & served food from behind that steam table. I have also run the cash register, which is actually a computer on a steel cabinet with the cash tray in the drawer. But, my job this year is to work the deli area or what we call "Sandwich Central". We make fresh sandwiches on a variety of breads. Since the school consists of around , maybe, 70% Muslim kids, we rarely use any pork products. Pretty much every meat is turkey-based. The only pork we use daily is pepperoni on the pizzas. This angers quite a few parents because the school district, well, pretty much the whole city, caters to the foreigners immigrants. But I digress, & that is another story within itself. So to continue...The lunchmeat we have is roasted turkey, turkey-ham, turkey-salami & turkey-bologna. Uh yeah, a little turkey overload. It's really not that bad. The taste is pretty similar to the "real" stuff. Then, we have cheese, lettuce & mild peppers.
Our cafeteria is pretty much your typical, dated public school lunchroom. It's on the 2nd floor, which makes it terribly hot during the warmer months here. We do have an elevator, thank goodness, to transpot our stock from storage or deliveries downstairs. Fairly often, we have to bring our own supplies upstairs ourselves as we don't have a stockboy. Sometimes, if we're lucky & he's having a good day, our delivery guy will bring things up. It really is part of his job, until they can find someone who will deal with crap & his attitude, but he believes he works too hard already. He delivers the food already prepared to the other 6 schools in the district. Mind you, our city is only 2.2 square miles. But, here I go, off on a tangent again. I hope you don't mind. It does tend to give a boring old story little bits of flair, I guess. All the school buildings are fairly old compared to many schools around nowadays. Our building was formerly the middle school until 1970 when it became the high school. I don't know what year the building was erected but my babcia went there when it was the middle school & she's 92. Now, my daughter is a junior there.

I suppose the job isn't too bad in itself. My hours are from 8 am to 1 pm. School lets out at 2:48 pm, so I get a little time in between to check in on babcia. I usually go back later on to bring her anything she needs picked up, take care of things she can't do, or mostly just to visit & talk. I absolutely love the stories from when she was growing up. Do you remember the picture of Rosie the Riveter? The woman in the blue jean shirt, raised fist, with the red bandana on her head? My babcia was one of the women who did the riveting on the planes! I am so proud just to say that she was Jessie the Riveter!

Back to job part of post...So, the hours are great, but the pay is awful, compared to other districts. We started out at a little over minimum wage, which went up to what we were starting off at & caps at less than $2 more, no matter how many years you work there. Now you know that a lot of lunch ladies are lifers so this blows a big old horn, to put it nicely. That's what you deal with when there is no union. But, I try to remember that I am blessed to have a job these days. It is within walking distance if the need should ever come up.

Once again, this is not the post I was going to write. But work can provide wonderful blog fodder. And, if you didn't notice, once I begin rambling, on & on & on, I can't seem to stop the force.

I hope you enjoyed the post. I hope you will visit again. And, if you have any comments, questions, or just want to shoot the shit, ramble on!

Thinking of using my babushka as a work bonnet,

Collette

P.S. Please scroll down to the bottom. I have some pretty cool stuff down there! Like an xtra comment box in case the usual commet section isn't working correctly. Thanks!

Warning: Tears May Short Out Your Computer

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Don't be afraid! Everything is just fine. Calm down. Chillax! Whew!
Now that even breathing has been re-established, I can begin.
I would like to apologize for freaking anyone out. I know that I don't write posts this close together, but I was inspired earlier today by a post from Mom Zombie . This post was about sisters & it really brought some feelings to the surface for me.
Usually when I write, it's about things that are going on in my life, but nothing overly personal. Maybe I'm just starting to feel more comfortable about sharing feelings online. In reality, I am a pretty emotional person. Not that I cry at the drop of a hat (like I used to do), but lately I have been crying a little more, being irritable, moody, etc. I don't know if it's peri-menopausal or that summer is ending or something totally different. I have been peri-menopausal, I suppose, for a few years now, I think. I have to make a doctor appointment to get my hormone levels checked. I guess that's what they do to determine peri or full-blown menopause. I have been on the depo-provera shot (birth control) for a long time & I do not get a period since I'm on it. So I have no way of telling with my periods. Also, I have been on medication for anxiety for over 10 years. I am now on Lexapro & it has worked the best for my panic/anxiety attacks. Unfortunately, I have almost ZERO sex drive! Not that I mind but, my poor, dear hubby (ok, I feel a little bad for him...lol) will not leave me alone. Sorry to those who want it more.
Hmm...that was not what I wanted to post about. But, once I started typing, I guess I felt I should give a little bit more of a behind-the-scenes TMI info. So, I might as well share that...drum roll please...I am a recovering alcoholic that on November 21st will be sober 8 years. I had to toot my own horn a little there. I don't give myself a lot of credit most of the time. I'm a very self-conscious person who would rather put herself down than take compliments. And after being in many relationships where I was cheated on, put down or dumped, I still, after almost 17 years of marriage to a good man, have serious trust issues. I say that it's not him that I don't trust, but other people who would drag him down into something, immoral or stupid. But in reality it would be up to him to make the choice, wouldn't it? He has never done anything to really make me mistrust him. I think, hope, pray, that it's my own mind & past that brings these feelings up way too many times.

I have shown my insecurity with him many times over the years & he just gets pissed off most of the time. It's always the "You don't trust me?" thing. And, I say, Yes, I trust him, BUT... Then I hand him the same old excuses. He can't understand why I still can't get rid of these old insecurities when he wouldn't do that to me. In my mind, I feel it can happen. There have been a few instances where he has been a little more than just friendly with others. Not anything that anyone would construe as wrong, except me. Because I know him. I know that it takes him a long time to get comfortable with people. He is not a very warm or open person on the outside if you don't know him. Lately, he is becoming more social, if that's how you want to put it. I don't go to the bar & hang out anymore. He goes to the bars around here. My dad & other guys are usually hanging around. He has always liked to people-watch but lately it seems that he is getting a bit of a roving eye & when I am not around, I fear the worst. I feel like I'm not good enough or ugly & he sees something better. He tells me, "I come home to you". Ok, but when does that stop anyone from doing anything?

I'm really should take my primary doc's advice & see a psychiatrist. She wants me to go so I can get checked on my anxiety meds. She is a doc that does NOT like to prescribe meds if she doesn't have to. I think it would just be a good idea for me to go for me.

I really don't have anyone in my life that I can truly open up & share with. Not since I stopped drinking. I've become more of a stay-at-home person. I'd rather be on my computer, or reading, gardening, at home than out with people. I have 2 sisters but even though we are close, I'm not comfortable talking to them about a lot of things. And if either reads this, (one of them subscribes here but I don't know if she still reads) please don't take it personally. I love you but there are some things that can only be shared with a person not so close to the situation.

WOW! That was NOT the original post I had in mind. I guess the post I read opened more old wounds than I thought. Also, I have been reading a lot more blogs that have been so open & honest. I just felt that maybe I could get this out. Somehow. I know it's going to take a lot to make me a stronger, happier person, but maybe this is a start to helping myself as well.

Thanks to all of you who have read this far. And those who couldn't read it all, I'm sorry. I didn't expect to do this. But, I am glad I did!

And, if any of you, ever need to talk or just say hi if you're having a rotten day, let me know! Misery loves company, right? Just kidding. I am here! Just being me!

Squeezing the tears out of my babushka,

Collette

Time to Stop Procrastinating!

The procrastinator is back! I don't know how many times I told myself that I should just write. I have had ideas & thought "That would make a good post.", but did I do it? NO! Till now anyway. Oh, I've written a few comments here & there, but just couldn't commit to writing a post. Why? I could make a million excuses. But, I won't. I'll just say it straight out...I've been lazy. I've been reading blogs & email. Then something would come on tv. And then there's always the pretty, shiny things that distract me...LOL! Yup! Of course, dozing off at the computer is always something that comes up as well.

So, I am here & it's time to write! Onward!

Image by kudzuplanet via Flickr

Being that it is the Labor day weekend, we have our annual Hamtramck Festival going on. I think it's the 29th year. The city blocks off Jos. Campau, our main street, for about a 1/4 mile. There are 2 stages for bands & other acts. Rides, games, all kinds of booths with things to sell, drinks & lots of food. You should always come hungry to the festival because you will find something that you can't go home without eating! It used to be a mostly Polish area but now we have a very diverse crowd & something for everyone.

Our firemen make the best chili for festival. This year our local ABC affiliate is advertising the festival & had 2 of our firemen on tv to make the chili. Of course, when it came to adding the "secret ingredient", it was kept secret!

On Friday, my hubby, our dd & I did our usual walk-thru. We start at one end, walk down to where the rides block the other end, turn around & walk back. As we do every year, we stopped at the Fireman's booth & got our mugs. Then, we just strolled around a bit & people watched. It's always a great place for that & for meeting up with people you haven't seen in awhile.

Today, the festival started at noon. I took my babcia to the beauty shop early & to get some lunch meat. When I dropped her off, I wasn't feeling too well, so I stuck around the house today while my dd went with a friend so they could get the all-day ride bracelets. When they got back, they were a little sun-burned, but still full of energy as any 16 y/o girls. My hubby came home from work to chill for a bit & then headed off to the festival to meet up with my sis & bro-in-law. I have been sitting here, relaxing, watched a movie, & decided to buckle down & say hi to all of you!

Sunday after church, I may go to the festival to get my chili. The Sunday of the festival is my hubby's annual pub crawl day with people he works with. My dd spent the night at a friend's so I should have time for myself to have more peace & quiet. I definitely need it before we start back to school on Tuesday.

If I decide not to be lazy or get distracted, maybe I'll post again. Wouldn't that be a treat? Well, you may have to comment & beg for me to write again so soon...LOL! I tried to fix my comment box, so please let me know if it's working properly. I don't want to miss any of your wonderful comments. So, till tomorrow...maybe, I will be...

Wiping my mouth from all the delicious food with my babushka

Collette