Wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving!!

Blast from the past…
Originally posted Nov. 20, 2008

On my honor, I will try: to serve God and my country….Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so….in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice…grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can…I have the right to remain silent, anything I say can be used against me….I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States….I promise to tell the truth, the whole truth ….forgive me Father for I have sinned….bad boy, bad boy, what’cha gonna do when they come for you…

With racing thoughts and that feeling of an impending doom, the second it happened my body went into anxiety mode.

I then caught a quick glimpse of my future…..

Fortunately, the logical part of me stepped back in, and brought me back to reality.

You know the little things you would hear as a child, “if you step on a crack, you’ll break your mama’s back.” You’re pretty sure that’s not going to happen, but err with caution just in case. As an adult you know it’s not possible….but occasionally that inner child kicks back in. You find yourself, secretly making an effort to step over that crack ahead of you…for old times sake. When you first start noticing these hideous little things growing on your skin.
“They are freckles honey.”
“Well I don’t want freckles.”
“You don’t? Did you know that every time you get a new freckle, it means an Angel has kissed you?” So now you feel like the most loved child on earth. You begin to make a conscious effort to see if other kids had freckles….and how many. Now older and wiser, you know the truth but sometimes finding a new freckle can still bring a smile to your face.

I remember playing with a pillow one day while visiting my grandparents, holding it by the “tag” and dangling it around. My grandma said, “Be careful Annie, you might rip that off.” (Annie was my nickname growing up. It means “our favorite grandchild.” Or something.) I didn’t really know what the big deal was, but as usual, I complied. (that is how I earned all those Angel kisses!) Still playing around, obediently, I happened to look at the tag. That’s when I saw it, and it all made sense; Under Penalty of Law, This Tag Not To Be Removed. My grandma knew, she new what would happen to me if I ripped the “tag” off, I would go to jail! I had already pulled the “tag” off my very own pillow at home and now I’m a little worried. What if my mom found out…what if anyone found out? I held this little secret close to my heart for awhile, not even out of grade school and I was already a law-breaker. I eventually confided to my best friend. She laughed hysterically at me until I showed her the “tag” on her pillow. We read it together, Under Penalty of Law, This Tag Not To Be Removed, in smaller letters underneath it said, Except By The Consumer
“What’s a consumer?”
“I don’t know, I don’t think I’m old enough to be one though.”
It took some investigating, but I did find out….I was a consumer. Still didn’t really know what that meant, but I knew I was one of ‘em! So much for grandma wanting to spare my future as a convict, she was just worried about her damn pillow!

But the little “what if’s” remain. What if…I stepped on a crack, what if…the neighbor had more freckles than me, what if….I pulled the tag off my pillow? See the pattern? See it? Something is telling me O.C.D. has played a bigger part in my life than I care to admit! So yes, today, when I ACCIDENTALLY yanked the tag clean from my pillow. The second it happened my body went into anxiety mode, with racing thoughts and that feeling of an impending doom. But, I’m O.K, Annie’s O.K. As fast as the anxiety came, reality set back in.

Now older and (so much) wiser, I know the truth. But occasionally I like finding a new freckle or secretly making an effort to step over that crack ahead of me. Apparently I’m still working on that consumer/tag thing though.

As I finish writing this, I’m kinda feeling a little anxious again. Just wondering…did I unconsciously pass this down to another generation? I don’t remember, did I or didn’t I ever tell my kids that their stuffed animals don’t really turn into Angels that watch over them once they’re asleep? Do they know that the dancing light in the car isn’t really Tinkerbell, it’s the reflection from my watch? Do they know that it’s not really a law that you have to brush your teeth first thing in the morning? You know…they may even still wonder if the sun really hisses when it touches the ocean at sunset.

XOXO,

This about sends me over the edge. Heartbreaking, yet heartwarming.

Estimated to be approximately 10 days old, Nipper was alone and injured when found. Injuries believed to have been caused by a fishing net, Nipper is being nursed back to health at a rescue center.

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A hit with the visitors at the rescue, Nipper has also sparked the interest of a Magellan penguin. What a tragic story on it’s way to a happy ending!

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It’s no secret to anyone that knows me, I love dolphins. Truth be told, I’m a bit obsessed. There is something about their presence that is both magical and calming, and their perm-a-grin simply melts my heart.
I have any and everything from wood carvings to jewelry to writing pens, key chains, wine glasses, to dolphin slippers. Let us not forget about my dolphin tattoo. They make me smile, they make me happy so it only makes sense to surround myself with them.
It’s also no secret to anyone that knows me that I’m a Sea Lion Whisperer, so I have a little experience rescuing our sea life…kinda. Had I found Nipper, you probably would not be reading about it, nor would the cute little penguin have a new friend. His name would be Huna and I’m afraid Huna would be next to me right now in a fancy Little Tykes Swimming Pool surrounded by baby size dolphin toys. I would make midnight runs to the store to keep fresh supplies of mackerel, herring, cod and squid on hand (maybe not squid) and I would continuously play 1 of the 3 “Dolphin Magic” C.D.’s I received for Christmas. I would be…in absolute heaven!

I‘m going to go out on a limb here and say the rescue center is probably the better choice for Nipper Huna Nipper. I truly hope there are follow up reports of his continued recovery and growth. It really amazes me, with all this little guy has been through already, his perm-a-grin is as big as ever. It’s no secret to anyone that knows me…that simply melts my heart.

Read the full story on Nipper here.

After reading the first page of Jay’s Opposition to Gretchen Rossi’s Motion to Strike, my jaw literally dropped. My thoughts? Wow. Intense. Concise. Could this be true? I then read Gretchen’s Motion to Strike and found it interesting that it is based on the word privileged, it does not use the words false or not true.

The showdown is set for Friday, November 19th, 2010. Recently, Gretchen Rossi’s defamation claims against Jay Photoglou were stricken…so November 19th should prove to be very interesting!! What are your thoughts?

If you have not read Gretchen’s Motion to Strike, you can do so here.

No matter how many time you try and rearrange the numbers, 2+2 still = 4.

Blast from the past,,,
Originally posted January 2nd, 2008

If The Shoe Fits! While out looking for a new pair of slippers, I came across a Mr. Potato Head slipper. I jokingly told my shopping companion, (no name, gave me $ and chocolate!) “too bad there’s only one of those…I would have gotten them!” A lady, slightly older than myself overheard me and asked, “if I find the other one for you, you’ll buy them?” Uh-oh!!! “well yeah, if they’re my size.” She gave me the look, you know the…try them on you idiot before I dig through 3,472 mismatched slippers to find the matching Mr. Potato Head.
I did. It fit. Long story short, I got new slippers.

Dumpster Diving! So I have my new slippers and quite honestly I grew very fond of them. I wore those little guys all the time. One night…one late night I, (living in an apartment complex at the time) took the trash out to the dumpster. I was, as usual on the phone. As I hurled the trash into the dumpster, so went the phone. What the….do I do now? (after a small conference with my ducks) it was clear I needed to go in after it. I went and got a patio chair from my porch. Hoping the person on the phone realized what had happened, I encouraged them to keep screaming my name so I could find my phone. After all it was very dark and I didn’t want to spend a second longer in there than needed.
I got in and got the phone. Just as I was ready to get out a car pulls in, next to the dumpster. O.K., be still, he will never see you… (I wonder how many rats are lurking below me ready to attack me?) I was grossed out. I was freaking out. The person on the phone, Deanna had hung up, the ducks were too smart to ever get in there in the first place. I was on my own. Just get out of your damn car already and go inside. I don’t know if he saw me or the chair outside the dumpster but something sparked his curiosity. “Hi” was all I could think to say. “You o.k?” he asked. “Yes, just dropped something.” Was the most intelligible thing I could think of. “Oh….” (so why on God’s earth are you still standing in there talking to me?) I knew I had to get out sooner or later…here it goes. Dignity? Pride? Gone! This man (and I would use his name if I knew it!) will always remember me as the 40ish year old lady who, in the middle of the night he watch climb out of a dumpster, clad in p.j.’s , one Mr. Potato Head slipper at a time!

I’ve Really Lost It Now! I loved my Mr. Potato slippers so much. But they had walked the depths of the dumpster. No matter how many times I washed them, I just couldn’t bring myself to wear them again. (they, were what separated me from the attack rats!)
Off to Wal-Mart I go to get another pair. None. Another Wal-Mart. Zilch. The next, nope. But check this out, they had….Mrs. Potato Head!!!!!! ONE pair in MY size. I snatched the babies up faster than…well, I snatched them up fast.
Tra-la-la-la la-la la! I got new slippers!
I continued my little shopping trip (doing the happy dance every now and then!!) then headed up to the register, anxious to pay for my new treasures….that’s when I noticed, IT was missing. The left Mrs. Potato Head slipper was gone. Breathe. It has to be here somewhere. I re-walked my path. Nothing. Re-walked it again, looking under, over and around the racks. Nothing. I am panicking now. I NEED HELP! I asked a kind associate in the area if she had found a sole slipper lying around. No. Bless this Wal-Mart associates heart, she saw my meltdown coming on and offered to help me look and even enlisted the help of another associate. “What did it look like?”
“Pink”
“Could you be more specific?”
“Pink and purple.”
We walked the store, than again. Honest to God, I was near tears. I think that is why they were so willing to go above and beyond to help me.
“These must be very special slippers,”
“Yeah.”
“Are they for you?”
“Yeah.”
The nice (but nosey) lady then gets a beep on her Wal-Mart walkie-talkie. Seems I need to be a little more specific about what these special slippers look like. Now, I have a choice…walk away NOW and never look back or tell these nosey associates my slipper business. I chose to tell. Hmmm mmm…she clears her throat. Amused and a little pissed at the same time, she relays the details on her Wal-Mart walkie-talkie. She assures me at that point they will keep their eyes open; they will call me if they find anything, yadda, yadda. What? Are they not helping me look anymore? Isn’t that their job?? It was right about then, I hear the announcement. It was loud, very loud and very clear. “Will the (annoying) lady who lost her (left) Mrs. Potato Head slipper (and had the whole flippen store searching for it as if it were a lost child) please come to the front of the store (so everyone can see who you are and laugh at you hysterically) we have found your slipper.
Don’t judge. Please.

“Gretchen Rossi has lost yet another court battle to ex Jay Photoglou reports E! Online.

The judge struck down Gretchen’s claims of defamation, libel and portrayal in a false light after determining that her lawyers hadn’t offered up enough evidence to prove that Jay was lying about the two of them being in a romantic relationship while she was engaged to Jeff Beitzel, who died of cancer in 2008…..”
Reality Tea has full story here!

Apparently, Gretchen did not produce sufficient evidence that the statements were false. Umm, imagine that!

I suddenly have the urge to go get a Bobble Head. Strange.