Alpha Dog On The Block

One of the reasons I like where I live is because my neighbors aren't very friendly.

And I mean, unfriendly, even.

Seriously unfriendly. The lady next door had a husband when we moved in and we used to see him around occasionally, but then he wasn't there anymore. He was a pretty cool old guy. He said the dude that built our house was an asshole with a capital A. He's the only one I liked talking to. She is a bitch, but I kinda like her anyway.

I haven't had but two or three conversations with her over the years. Her kids are always coming to visit, and a while ago, they used to bring the grandson, who is about Sean's age. They will come over and borrow stuff to help take care of her, and that is cool, too. Jumper cables, a screwdriver...stuff like that.

My neighbor across the street. Goodness, where to start. First of all I have had exactly 2 conversations with him and they both involved the same subject. The first conversation was thirteen years ago, the very second we moved in.

We're at the top of the hill and on a dead end street, first of all. Second of all, coming in to the driveway with a big rig is a bit of a trick. There just isn't really enough room to get it done. So, the moving van guy Accidentally put a rut or two...very small ones...on the very edge of the guy's property. I mean, he went 6 inches off the road. So, the guy comes over and says something. Rick apologized and assured the guy that as soon as we unpacked the yard tools, we would fix it for him. The yard tools were about 3/4 of the way into the truck. We had just pulled them out, when up drives the county Sheriff. No shit. The Senior Chief is standing there ...with the rake... talking to the Sheriff, telling him what we told our neighbor. The Sheriff was pretty cool.

Welcome to the neighborhood.

We have never spoken to him again until today. I'm sitting there with the kiddos watching some tube and there is a knock on my door. It's my neighbor, lo and behold. I had noticed earlier this morning that someone rutted his yard and I was thinking about how pissed he would be when he found it. Yep, that's what he wanted to know. I laughed at him. I told him that I noticed them and it sure wasn't us. I was real sweet to him, and he knew I hadn't forgotten his welcome. I honestly don't know who did it. Probably someone that went off the road a little from the snow. I'd be looking for one of those trucks that hauls equipment that runs up and down the road.

He said "Well, I thought I'd ask y'all since you're my neighbors." That just makes me giggle. Maybe he does feel a kinship with us after all these years. There's a couple of rowdy kids that live on the street now. When we first moved here, it was all older people. We were the youngest people on the block. Now, not so much.

There's some younger folks that live 2 doors down and we can hear everything in our backyard, through the backyard of our next door neighbor.

Then the ones across the street and to the right have a SWEET sound system. I mean, it can get loud. They did a sound check one day and I was in my backyard, and it was clear as a bell. Shoot, we could have had a block party. They only had it on the one time, though, for which I am grateful.

The guy right across the street, though...he's a hoot with that whole yard deal. It's not even like he has real grass. And he cuts it with a tractor for crying out loud. A real tractor..not a riding lawnmower...a tractor, with the yard attachment on the back of it. He's got every bit as much yard as we do, maybe more, because he doesn't have a bunch of trees. He's real cool about anybody cutting through his yard to get to the neighborhood, I gotta say that. The kids have been using his yard as a shortcut, and we have too, occasionally, for all these years, and he's never said a word. But boy, howdy, don't you leave a rut in his yard.

He is the alpha dog on the block when it comes to that.

Whew...

Merry Christmas and all that jazz to y'all. I'm kinda glad it's over. Now I can clean up the mess and move forward with plans for the New Year.

I don't do resolutions. I do reflect upon things that I would like to do differently and make a bit of a plan to affect said changes, but it isn't about the resolution. Sometimes those thing you implement as change, are not what is needed. Then, it's time to go back to the drawing board.

Life is kinda like that. If what you are doing isn't working..try something else. Hell, it can't hurt, really.

It was quiet this year. The guys came over, but not for long. The Senior Chief and I even managed to squeeze a date in on Christmas Eve.

I have no idea what we're doing for New Year's Eve. Staying home, for sure. I doubt we'll have a big party, as the boys are sure to have one at there house.

They took the dogs to live with them Christmas Eve. And, they got a new puppy. I met her. I wasn't all that enthralled, personally. So now, it's just the cat living here and I'm liking that, let me tell ya.

I have plans for the extra rooms. I am so excited that I can have a craft area again, you have no idea. And a real office.

There's a lot of cleaning to do. They have toys still from when they were little. I am hoping to have it all done by New Year's day, then I can rest a little.

Maybe.

Another One Of Those Things

So, this year better be better, dammit. I don't want anybody getting blown up, which just might be an impossibility since my Army boy who said for the last 4 years, he was getting out...reenlisted again. And, I'm good with it, except I have this whole getting out of the Army party planned and he won't be there to attend it. And that was a pretty sucky Christmas present from him. Just sayin'.

Another one of those things that happened this year, besides Yabu Jr. getting blown up and the Senior Chief having a huge hernia. Man, his scar is bigger than my c-section scars, and babies aren't small.

So, we had to have a new heater put in and we had to do some work on our septic tank. We had a pipe that needed to be replaced. It was old. It was one of those concrete pipes and it just rotted out on the bottom. It only took 30 years for it to happen. My house is a little older, so some of those things are going to break. It's all good, for the most part.

What wasn't good, was that the Senior Chief was walking in the backyard near the big hole and looking at the roof. Naturally, he fell in the hole. I feel fairly lucky that we got by with a dislocated shoulder. But, seriously. Enough is enough already.

That drive across Atlanta to the VA hospital was not fun, let me assure you. And then the parking...ugh..it's just awful. At least most of the people there are cool, actually. You can usually hear a pretty good story or two. And then there's those guys who are so obviously bad off, that you feel good for being you.

This year better be better, that's all I'm saying. I want "another one of those things" to become like jewelry or something.

Games

Games are a harmless pastime to while away some rainy days. For some, anyway.

Not for me, baby. I play to win. I am competitive. Very.

Seriously, though, I like to be the best at everything I can. I will practice and practice, even.

I'm a pretty good loser, because the person I am in competition with is myself. You learn a lot by losing, really. Maybe simply because it feels so bad to lose. Pain can be a great motivator.

In some things I am used to losing. Horseshoes and pool. I have never beaten the Senior Chief at either.

It's hard for me to play a game just for fun. It's just not in my nature to play without being competitive. I guess I'm just hard wired that way.

I think it's some kind of innate survival instinct or something.

Shopping

Shopping is one of those things that is a necessary thing to do whether you like it or not. I have my moments where I like it and then there's other times that I'm not so keen on it. I love shopping online. You don't have to deal with people that way.

Now, let me explain to you a typical trip to my local food club. There's a lot of affluent older women that live near there, apparently. Those are actually the pretty cool trips. You'll have a random lady look in your cart and tell you to pour a coke on your ham if you want it to be good.

Then, there's the gals that are around my age and younger. Those gals are something else, let me tell ya. They will stand there and chat...blocking the whole aisle. Now, when I go to the club, I'm spending a couple of bucks feeding a bunch of people. I still go for my bulk meat.

Sometimes it's a convention of the alpha female. When I'm in my right mind, I just laugh. There are the ones that hog the aisles. Then there's the ones who will just run you down with a cart. They will be coming along and you better get out of their way. It's like playing chicken with the shopping carts. Y'all know what I mean.

They will stare you down, even, DARING you to say something. I usually win those because my cart is so full and I am so small, it really is about momentum.

The ones that really get me are the ones who come running up with their one thing and ask if they can go in front of me after I just got done unloading 2 weeks worth of groceries for 8 people.

Oh hell no. That just is not flying with me. Grocery shopping for that many people is just not fun. There is no part of it that is fun, so I'm crabby to begin with. And then, people just want to be that way.

When I want to go and enjoy my grocery shopping experience, I have a couple of stores that I frequent, just for the relaxing atmosphere.

Can y'all tell I'm looking forward to shopping?

Sunday Morning

It is Sunday morning, breakfast is made and I'm still in my pajamas.

My 20 yr old son and my daughter are at church. They are pretty religious..haha..about going.

After I eat, take a shower...do all that jazz, I'm off to brave the masses at the store to finish up my Christmas shopping. Woo hoo. I hate shopping. Next year, I'm doing it all online. It has a lot to do with hating people. I really do hate to be out and about among people. I love individuals, but I swear, people just piss me off.

It's hard to shop for 7 people and get that perfect gift every single year. I think I have it for most of them. I am having a hard time with one or two.

That's where going shopping helps. You walk around and you wait for that one gift to reach out and grab ya.

Happy Holidays, everybody.

Quiet

A couple of the boys moved out and it's been real quiet around here. That makes half of them moved out, although the one adult kid that still lives here, really doesn't count because he's either at college, at work, or at church.

So, it's just me, the Senior Chief, and the two younger kids, who are rapidly becoming adult kids. My daughter will start high school next year.

I am very happy about them moving out. Mostly for them, but for me too. I have big plans for some of those rooms. It means less cooking, less cleaning, and more time for other stuff for me. They only moved a quarter mile away, anyway. It's the best of both worlds, really. I can see them frequently, and not have to clean up after them.

They even took the dogs with them. So, now all I have to worry about is my cat, which is alright by me. She's an outdoor cat in the warm months and an indoor cat during the winter months. She's always easy to find in the winter because she's always asleep on the Senior Chief's pillow during the day.

I am happy for them, really. There is so many things that you learn from being on their own that they need to learn. They have a buddy who had to move back in with his parents. Then his parents had to move in with their parents to take care of Mom.

So, that left their friend living in a 4 bedroom house all by himself. So, since his parent's are only trying to make the mortgage, the rent isn't very high and they can all probably live pretty well.

No sooner did they get moved over there, did number 3 son's truck break. However, I haven't had to take him to work much and when I do, they live so close that it's really no big deal.

I have enough time to take an afternoon nap again. And it's that time now.

Where The Hell Did My Ass Go?

So, I've lost a ton of weight, which I'm real happy about. I had gotten too big to be comfortable anymore. My joints were aching and all that jazz.

What I'm not happy about, though, is the loss of my ass. I considered it one of my best features and it's just not there any more. Well, it is. It's just hanging down to my knees now.

I'm pretty sure they make shoes for that, though.

Sucky Stressful Year or Two

It has been a very sucky year or two, with all kinds of stuff from every arena of life causing stress.

I'll be glad when it's a return to the good times again. They do come around every so often. Meanwhile, it's just trudge, trudge, trudge along.

This is where books keep me sane. For an hour or so at the end of every day, after everyone is asleep, I read. I let myself be taken away to a fictional world and immerse myself in the characters, setting...all of that.

Then I read myself to sleep. It's therapeutic. It alters my dreams and relaxes my brain so that I can dream.

That allows me to approach each day fresh and able to deal with whatever comes up next time.

One day at a time.

First Post With My New Computer

So. I am an idiot. A really smart idiot, but an idiot nonetheless. I know better than to have sodas and whatnot near my computer, let alone overnight. But, I did it anyway... and a glass of soda got set right next to it. It was barely on the cord and tipped over enough just to spill a little bit in the exact wrong place.

So, there I was...on my birthday, no less, and my computer broke. I was a sad sad girl, let me tell ya.

So, I shared the Senior Chief's with him for a day or two, and that just wasn't really working for me. He was real good about sharing too. Not like women get with their computers. Woo boy, women are bad.

I do not know a woman alive that isn't possessive over their computers. There are rules and regulations and we'll stand over your shoulder to make sure that you don't...say...leave a soda sitting partly on the cord and break it broken..