What happened to our sorority meeting?

On our trip to visit Cindy in Tacoma, we were planning a sorority meeting of I ETA PI, the sorority we began in honor of the Betty Broderick story. Betty is up for parole in 2011, so we decided we should do something. We would like to have invited Meredith Baxter to the meeting since she played Betty in the TV movie, but since we don’t know her, we didn’t do it. But we had only one day there and not that much time. And Teri couldn’t find her shirt – she’s the Godfather so you think she would have it ready to slip into at any moment. But she didn’t. I wore my Housemother shirt and Cindy put her President shirt on for the picture, but no meeting was held. If you don’t know who Betty Broderick is, I’m sorry for you. I’ve written about her before, so if you haven’t kept up, too bad.

We visited Cindy’s friend, Sonja, who has a little shop selling lingerie, clothes, jewelry and much more. I love the shop! I have clothes that Cindy has bought for me from it. One time when Cindy was new to the area, she went in and tried on lingerie and walked around the shop like a model. She may have been wearing a tiara. Customers thought she was supposed to be doing that, but no, that’s just Cindy.

We had dinner at The Hub, a restaurant/bar owned by another friend, Carole. I had met Carole when Cindy bought her condo as Carole was the realtor, I think. She’s a kick and has been good for Cindy since Cindy was new to the area at that time. Now Cindy has Sonja and Carole to do girl stuff with. The dinner was great as were the drinks. One of the pictures is of Cindy and Carole at dinner at The Hub.

In the evening, we girls watched “Role Models” with Paul Rudd which was pretty funny! We were in Cindy’s condo with April, her mastiff, of course. April seemed to be farting a lot and the girls even accused me at one point! I would never admit it. Harry went with Nick, one of Cindy’s sons, to an outdoor band concert and beer garden. Harry was kicked out pretty soon, probably because he’s only 13 even though he looks about 20. But we all had a great time – Harry and his beer garden and we gals with the movie and our wine and beer. A good time was had by all.

Our time together was short, but it’s so infrequent that I get to spend time with my daughters and 3 grandsons all at once. Those are moments to be cherished.

We had the beds, but where was the damn breakfast?

Last week Teri and Harry flew in from New York and I took the train up to Washington to visit with Cindy which is always fun since we don’t get together that often. Harry stayed with Cindy in her condo with her two boys. I say boys, but they’re 22 and 24 so guess boys is not their thing anymore. April, Cindy’s Bull Mastiff, was also there so there really wasn’t any extra room. So Teri and I stayed in a Bed&Breakfast nearby which had sounded extremely nice. The picture is of Teri and Cindy in front of the B&B the day we vacated the premises.

I have been to other B&BS and there is usually a great breakfast included. There was this time, but it never appeared! The first morning the owner (hostess, cook) didn’t have table settings for the five of us who where were staying there at that time. Teri and I sat down at the two place settings that were there. When the hostess finally appeared with fruit cups for Teri and me, we asked for silverware. When she served the remaining guests, she plunked their food down and never said a word, looking glum all the time. She brought their silverware and put the forks on the right side. Don’t they go on the left or is that a new thing at B&BS? We were sitting with a very nice young couple and a lady from the east coast who’s been going there for seven years. She’s familiar with the hostess, so she went out to the kitchen and spoke to her, and when she came back she informed us the woman had gone to bed and wouldn’t be around anymore! She said something about her being on pain medication for her hip, but I figured she was just plain drunk from the night before. The hip story just didn’t do it for me. So the young couple went out to the kitchen, scrounged around in the fridge and found the makings for an omelet which they made. It was delicious!

The next morning we wondered what would happen. There was a new young couple who was also very nice and the same lady from back east. The hostess did bring out our fruit, but didn’t have coffee ready or even fresh cream for the coffee. We waited and waited and she finally brought out two plates for Teri and me. I think they were supposed to be omelets, but they were all runny and we should never have eaten them. But we were hungry, so we did, and they tasted pretty good. When she finally brought out the others, they looked like omelets should – HARD. The hostess disappeared as soon as we were served and was never seen again! Later on Teri overheard the hostess talking to someone who was berating her for her drinking and then taking medication to get over the hangovers. I think it was her sister or someone who handles the business end of things. The hostess told her no one had shown up for breakfast, and the other woman told her we had and that we had cooked it. She wasn’t aware of anything that happened.

When Teri and went to check out, she searched all over the place, calling the woman’s name. No one ever appeared. Teri tried to go down to her basement apartment, but it had a glass door and there was a huge black cat scratching at it from the inside. This all sounds like a bad TV show that usually ends horribly. I expected Tony Perkins to come screeching up the basement stairs in his mother’s wig and dress and do awful things to us.
We left without paying . . . to which I say Hallelujah! But Teri did leave a blank check with Cindy in case the hostess called her. Cindy should then demand a hefty discount for the crappy service we had.

It was quite a new experience for us, but our family always has an experience when we finally make it together! We are not dull.

Lottery Ticket Day

Yesterday I went to my hair guy, Steve, for my appointment. I do this every five weeks whether I need it or not. At this time, I always buy one lottery ticket. I never win, but I always hope. Yesterday I asked Steve to take a picture of me with what I hoped to be my winning ticket. Needless to say, I didn’t win, but I still went to bed trying to figure out how I’d spend the money. I’d give Teri and Cindy money but would have to be careful and give them the exact same amount. If I happened to give Teri a little more, Cindy would scream, “I knew you always loved her better!” and if I gave Cindy a tiny bit more, Teri would say, “I see you’re still taking care of baby first . . . blah, blah, blah, blah.” This would go on and on so I knew I’d have to be very careful with the dispersal. I tried to think of something I would want with my share, and the first thing I thought of was getting HBO so I could watch the new show “Hung.” It sounds funny and interesting. After that, I don’t know what I’d do . . . probably put the money in a coffee can like everyone else is doing these days.

Last night I had two couples over for hors d’oeuvres and wine on my deck. It was late afternoon, and the weather was perfect. They were hoping to see Larry, my sparrow, whom they did see through the window as they came into the house. But no birds came as we were sitting out there as we were too close to the feeding ledge. I had tried to clean up the deck and sweep all the seeds and bird poop away, but it just isn’t possible. The birds are out there all the time, and it’s not just Larry anymore. We still had a great time even though I dropped one of the hors d’oeuvres onto the deck floor as it slipped off my tray. We decided not to eat that one and considered putting it up on the ledge for Larry and his friends. But since it consisted of cheese, green onions and lots and lots of garlic salt, we decided against it. After a while, we all went out for dinner somewhere where there was no birdseed or poop around us. When I came home, the birds were back and I sat on my couch and watched them hopping around on the ledge and my deck. Guess I’m stuck with them.

I watch a lot of television – no surprise – and tune out the commercials. Some are really bad and others are sort of innocuous to which I pay no attention. But once in a while one comes along that actually makes me laugh out loud. The one doing it now is the one about Toby, the dog, sliding his butt across the carpet, and his mother (owner) screaming “TOBY!!” I don’t know what the product being advertised is, but the ad is great. But there is one ad that is absolutely disgusting to me. It’s from Kaiser Permanente and it shows several fat old ladies dancing around, boobs bouncing and a woman singing, “When I grow up I want to be an old woman.” I don’t see how that ever got aired. How could Kaiser put something that tasteless on the air? I guess because it’s Kaiser.

July 4th and Crop Circles

I read an interesting article in the newspaper the other day about wallabies. Wallabies are like kangaroos only smaller. They are both marsupials and carry their babies in their pouches. The article stated that “hopped-up” wallabies are snacking on Tasmania’s legally grown poppy fields and getting high! They hop around in circles and trample the crops. That’s not good at all as Tasmania is the world’s largest producer of legally grown opium for the pharmaceutical market. And no one wants to piss off the pharmaceutical market! Apparently they enter the poppy fields and get high as a kite after which they hop around in circles, trashing the fields. They eventually crash after they’ve made all the crop circles. Other livestock such as sheep have been seen eating the poppies after harvesting, and they walk around in circles. I’m wondering if wallabies would react the same way to marijuana plants. If they did, maybe we should look into importing some wallabies and letting them loose in the hills of California or Oregon where the DEA is always finding marijuana farms. If they ran around in circles and destroyed the plants, that would free up all law enforcement personnel so they could do the work they’re supposed to do . . . whatever that is.

I must mention the picture on this posting. I used a similar picture 2 years ago when Teri gave me her Volvo. That picture was of Teri alone, and I found this one of both Teri and Cindy celebrating in one of our many neighborhood 4th of July parades. That was when we lived as a functioning average American family – a mother and father, two children, two dogs, two box turtles, one bullfrog tadpole, one duck, one goose and many goldfish in the outdoor ponds. What could be more average than that? I think Teri may have been the Statue of Liberty and I don’t know what Cindy was. I don’t know where the bubble gum fit in, but it’s quite noticeable. Janis is also in the picture. Janis is Randy’s older sister. Randy was the one I called the “Doctor” because he and Cindy used to play doctor. But he isn’t a doctor now. Those were the good times.

We’ve had some very hot weather lately, and I just heard a health advisory on television. They said we should look out for people who are dizzy, nauseous and confused as that could indicate heat stroke or heat exhaustion. Well, I’m dizzy and confused most of the time, but not nauseous so far. So, as of now, I’m in the clear.

Happy Anniversary, Teri and Mark!

Why didn’t I just send a card? Cards all say the same thing which is rather boring, so I thought this might be a little more personal – just for Teri and Mark . . . and everyone who reads my blog!

Teri and Mark were married in a 1930’s-style wedding on July 2, 1993, in New York City at the Manhattan Penthouse on lower 5th Avenue. They were into all the kitsch and memorabilia of the ‘30s and ‘40s and it was evident at the wedding. Teri’s dress was cream colored and gorgeous. She bought it at an antique clothing shop, and with it she wore her best costume jewelry. She even had her hair styled like Claudette Colbert’s. Cindy was her maid of honor and wore a dress, also from an antique clothing shop, covered in ostrich feathers like some old movie star might wear. It was very Cindy. It was black. I wore black. All the bridesmaids wore black. Sounds depressing, doesn’t it? But it wasn’t. It was a beautiful wedding and everyone had a great time.

We could look out of one of the big windows and see the empire state building that was all lit up in red, white and blue lights for the 4th of July. It was quite a sight. This was a very special night and everyone enjoyed everything. We had good food, I think, but I can’t remember eating. I do remember drinking. There was dancing which was very much fun. Teri and Mark planned it all by themselves while both were working and did a fabulous job. I don’t know how they pulled it off, but they did. The entire night was a huge success. Teri and Mark were so happy which was as it was supposed to be.

They’re still married which is a plus. I think that wedding did it. They’re happy and have a son, Harry, who makes their family complete. I hope they have many more years of happiness together. I’m sure they will.