The Wonderful World of Nancy

Its been so long since I've written anything, but I seem to have gotten out of the habit.  I've been trying to be consistent with reading my neighbor's posts, but I'm afraid I'm doing a half-assed job on that too.  It just seems that I'm not on the computer much in general these days.

So...a few random updates..

*    Ziggy:  Since Easter, we've been having some health issues with the poor Zigman.  Ever since we brought him home, he tends to obessively lick his paws before he goes to sleep.  Its almost like a soothing thing...similiar to a little kid sucking their thumb.  The problem came when he got a scrape on his stomach and started to focus on licking his stomach skin.   After turning bright red and raw, we brought him to the vet who prescribed topical steroids, an Elizabethan collar and instructions to not let him lick.

At his follow-up, the vet decided he has food allergies.  This was not determined after any tests, just an hypothesis (after plastic allergies, behavorial issues and a skin infection).  So, she sends Zig and Dan home with antibiotics, instructions to keep using the steroids, the collar and prescription food.  No treats, no snacks, no chewies, nothing.

Personally, I don't buy into her diagnosis because she keeps "suggesting" new ones every time we bring him in.  But yet, she never follows up with the previous one.  He's eaten the same food and the same treats for almost a year and a half.  His skin got better once he stopped licking and he has no other food allergy symptoms.  I think she hasn't a clue what's wrong with him and she's too eager to prescribe drugs, as opposed to getting to the root of the actual problem.

I'm not putting him on doggie anxiety pills, I'm not pulling every plastic item out of his life (especially after she gives him a plastic cone to wear over his head) and I'm not forcing him to eat food that he can't stand.

He's going to a new vet...my old vet who took a holistic approach to treatment.  This woman is a quack.

*  Hillary vs. Barack:  I'm sick to death of this.  Although I'm sure I'll get some snarky comments because I'm a Hillary supporter, I just don't understand Obama's appeal.  I was impressed with him early on, I read his book and I think he has am amazing political career ahead of him.  But he is simply not ready to run this country at this point.  He does not have the experience to lead us out of a endess war, a recession, a housing crisis and to get the economy back on track.

I'm fearful that if (when) he gets the nomination, he will not have the strength to deal with the Repubican machine.  I think he's quite comfortable being the media darling that he's become, but when he is criticized at all, he seems to bristle at the mere suggestion that someone may disagree with him.  I'm sad that this election has become about race...and not about talking about racial issues because we need to talk about and address those issues, but that the election itself seems to be taking this horrible path where a person's political preference labels them racist in some way.  It offends me. It offends me as much as if someone assumed I support Clinton because she's a woman.  I'm not ignorant and I don't use my vote frivolously.  I hope with all of my heart and I believe that there WILL be a woman president AND an African-American president in my lifetime.   But just because I believe that Clinton is the right candidate for me and for the country at this time, does not mean I don't want an African-American president.

As much as I hate to believe it, I think he will get the nomination and sadly, I believe McCain will win the election.

Minnesota Weather:  Why do I continue to live in Minnesota when I despise the weather so much?  I'm not a good rainy-overcast-cold-snowy weather person.  Its much too cold for May and as I look out the window, I can see the clouds rolling in to dump more rain on us.

Family stuff:  Patty touched on this briefly, but my dear, sweet, kind dad has been quite sick lately.  He's 83 and has congestive heart failure.  It seems to have come on rather quickly and its been a tough time for everyone.  In my mind, my dad is still young, active and strong.  Getting old stinks.  Watching someone you love get old stinks too.

I hope all of my fellow Voxers are doing well and enjoying Spring  (unless they live in Minnesota where its still winter) 

OK....I've gotten tagged by a couple of people (albeit weeks ago), but here are my 8 random things....

1)    I have some weird issues with lists.  I'm obsessed about writing to-do lists, to the point where the first item on the list is to actually write the list.  I divide my lists into sub-categories.  For example:  my grocery list is divided by:  Fresh, Frozen, Shelf, Refrigerated and Misc.  My home list is:  Upper Level, Main Level and Lower Level.  Once the list is written, I go a little nutty until I can get things crossed off of my life.

But the worst issue with my list is my TiVo list.....I can't wait to delete things.  I've tried to explain it to Dan, but when I see a big list of shows on the TiVo list, I feel like I have to get through them.  The list kind of beckons me.

Personally, I think it means I'm goal-oriented......others think I have OCD.

2)   I have very vivid dreams and I remember massive amounts of details in them.  I've been this way since I was a child.  I remember my first dream...it had to do with the McDonaldland characters, Where the Wild Things Are and my sister Patty leaving me at school.  It was terrifying.

I wake up laughing, moaning, crying most nights of the week because of the weird, graphic dreams that haunt my sleep.  I had one this weekend that terrified me.  Its too long to explain, but it had to do with my niece Laura's birthday, running out of desserts and Nazis.  Seriously.  I dream about Nazi-Holocaust-related things a lot.  That's another story.

3)    I'm embarrassed by my handwriting.  I've always known it was really sloppy, but once in college after I turned in a paper, a professor asked me why I didn't sign it "BFF Nancy".  It took me a minute to understand what he meant.  My handwriting is so bad that when Dan and I got married, we made mailing labels with a handwriting style font and he wrote on the inside envelope.  His handwriting is quite nice.  Mine is hideous.

4)  I can't drink ice water.  It hurts my teeth and I don't like ice cubes smashing into my lips.   Whenever I'm at a restaurant and ask for a water with no ice, I get the strangest looks.

5)  One-uppers make me crazy.  You know those people who always have a better story than you?  You tell them that you made a really great pasta dish and they tell you why the one they made was better.  Or you talk about a book you read and the book they are reading is superior to yours.  I have a few of those people in my life and I just have to bit my lip and say nothing when what I really want to do is bash their head in.

6)   I have a lot of guilt about what I have in my life.  This isn't meant to sound Pollyanna-ish, but when I read or hear about people who are struggling, losing their homes, have sick children, etc., I tend to feel very guilty about the good things I have in my life.   I always want to be someone with empathy and an awareness of the world beyond my four walls, but sometimes the guilt really gets to me.  The good thing about this is that it motivates me to try to do good things for others.   Dan and I regularly grocery shop for food shelves or donate small items to a church in our neighborhood, but I always wish I could do more.  I struggle with the guilt on a regular basis. 

7)    I have no technical skills whatsoever.  I've signed up with Facebook, but for the life of me, I can't figure it out.  When someone sends me a gift, good karma or a plant for my garden, I have no idea what I'm supposed to do.   I want to add certain fun applications, but again...no clue.  When the computer malfunctions during the day, I call Dan at work.  When the TV acts up, I throw the remote.   I have never used a lawnmower, a snow blower or any yard implement.  The strange thing about this is that I can figure out pretty much everything else.  But if it has to do with a machine, forget it.

8)   My mailperson pisses me off.  Why do they have to walk through the yards?  I understand its more convenient, but when you can see that a person is tending to their yard or just recently re-seeded, why do they insist on traipsing through it?  It seems like such common sense, but there she is....clomping across my new baby Spring grass.  If Ziggy wasn't such a puss, I'd send him to the front yard at mail delivery time to send a message. 

Thanks to all of my thoughtful Vox neighbors who sent me messages wondering where I've been.  I'm alive and well....just distracted lately.

I have so much to write about:  vacation, my friend Carrie joining Vox, Hillary Clinton's win in Pennsylvania, Top Chef...but I've been just "not in the mood" to commit to sitting at the computer for any length of time lately.

I'm behind on answering emails by about 3 weeks and I just haven't felt like doing it.   I feel guilty that I haven't been keeping up with my Vox neighbors until last night when I managed to get caught up from now to April 16.

I've read a number of things in my neighbor's posts that make me feel even worse about being absent.   My plan is to spend a little time each day through this weekend getting caught up.

So if you get a comment from me from a month-ago post, you'll know why.

If you're not in the mood for a little sap, please stop reading now.

My hubby knows that I've been deprived of my "girl time" lately....it probably has something to do with living with a husband, a male cat and an alpha male dog.

So, he surprised me with a week-long, all-inclusive trip to Cozumel.   (the site of our wedding and one of my favorite places in the world)

He plotted and schemed with my BF Donna, so she and I are flying out tomorrow to surprise two other girlfriends of ours, who will be there for the week as well.

Not only did he surprise me with the trip, but he arranged for first-class airline seats and spending money with strict instructions to use the money for massages and other assorted spa treatments.

I'm going to miss my three fellas something awful, but I'm so looking forward to a tropical getaway.

Its possible that I just might have the most thoughtful husband in the world.

The movie kick that Dan and I have been on lately continued this weekend.   We really should be doing things around the house, but its been so fun to get through our Netflix and TiVo lists, we're kind of ignoring most other things.

We did run some errands on Saturday and used up some gift cards we got for Christmas.  We got a great lamp at Cost Plus World Market (thank you Patty...picture to follow) and I got a bunch of useless girly things at Ulta.  I must admit, I love that place.  Put me in Ulta or Sephora and I can be occupied for hours.

The movies this weekend were:

Away from Her (very good...sad, but a great performance by Julie Christie)

Tell Me You Love Me (2 of 4 discs, so far.  Not very "entertaining", but realistic)

The Boys from Brazil (never saw it before....not bad. Seeing Gregory Peck as Josef Mengele was a little disconcerting)

Ordinary People (one of my all-time favorites, but Dan had never seen it)

Rashomon (another favorite that Dan had not seen)

Suddenly Last Summer (Katharine Hepburn at her most crazy)

The Legacy (late 70's Horror movie with Roger Daltrey...the movie didn't age well)

I also tried a new recipe:  Ginger Glazed Chicken, which was fabulous.  But we were such pigs, we didn't take a picture of it before we shoveled it in.  Next time I'll try not to be such a glutton.

Dan and I have the 3-movie plan at Netflix and tend to have movies at home for 3+ months or more.  But with the writer's strike, we've been on a Netflix frenzy lately and its been great.

Every night, we eat dinner, clean up, I take a nice long bath and then we snuggle upstairs for "movie night".  I'm sure it sounds wildly boring, but its been great.  Ziggy and Jake snuggle up with us and Dan gives me a great backrub all while watching good movies.

Lately, we have watched:

Dexter - Season 1 (LOVED it!)

Margot at the Wedding (so-so)

Vacancy (scary...not bad)

Little Children (LOVED it!)

Gone Baby Gone (Not at all what I expected, but VERY good)

Next up is Season One of "Tell Me You Love Me"....the first two discs should be here Saturday.

I've also been trying out some new recipes.  The best of the recent bunch was a Smoky Chicken Chili.   I must admit, it was fabulous.  I'm not a bean person, so instead I used cooked barley.  Yum, yum.

Another winner was Sesame Chicken Skewers with Ginger Slaw. 

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 Not much else new going on here....just enjoying time at home with Dan and the boys.  Its amazing how such happiness can be found in life's quietest moments.

I hope all of my fellow Voxers are doing well.....

What's the meanest thing you've ever said to someone?

Since I've been told I'm at my most articulate when I'm angry, I'm sure there are a few zingers from my past, but one in particular stands out.

I should start by saying that I said this about 15 years ago when I wasn't as tactful as I am now AND I'm by nature not a jealous person at all.

OK...that being said.....

I was dating a guy who was a naturally charming guy....flirtatious by nature, I guess.   One night, we went out to eat and ran into a girl that he knew through mutual friends.

The girl was relentless in flirting with him, even after he introduced me as Nancy, his GIRLFRIEND.  She kept it up...grabbing his arm, laughing a little too loud at everything he said, telling him how much she'd just LOVE a ride on his motorcycle, etc.

After about 10 minutes of standing there, listening to her and watching him squirm, but not say anything, the conversation took a rather downward turn.

It went something like this...

Nancy:  Can I ask you a question?

Shameless Flirty Hussy:  Yes, what?

Nancy:  Were you in a fire or did you pay someone to do that to your hair?

Embarrassed Boyfriend:  Jesus Christ.

Yep, she got the hint and skulked away.

Cue evil laughter.....

Other than the frigid cold weather in Minneapolis for the last few days, its been a really good time in the Mitchell-Culhane household lately.

After wrapping up my most recent freelance project, I took most of last week to regroup and unwind.  This past weekend, I tried a new recipe which turned out to be a hit with both me and Dan. 

Its Coq Au Riesling, courtesy of the lustiest celebrity chef alive, Nigella Lawson.  Its her take on Coq Au Vin and it is quite possibly, the most delicious thing I have ever eaten.  Bacon, garlic, leeks, boneless skinless chicken thighs, a bottle of Riesling, chopped fresh dill = yum.

I took photos of the entire process, but below is one of the final product.

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Dan and I spent the weekend catching up on our Netflix and TiVo and made it through "Little Children", the 1st 2 disks of Dexter Season 1, all 3 episodes of Breaking Bad and my guilty pleasures "Rock of Love with Bret Michaels" and "Scott Baio is 46 and Pregnant".   Yeah, yeah, I know....give me a break.  Its mindless entertainment.

We snuggled in the bed with Ziggy and Jake and just generally had a nice, quiet unproductive weekend.  It was wonderful.

Dan was off for the President's Day holiday and we decided to be a little more productive, so we started cleaning out closets and the guest bedrooms.  About once a year, I go through everything and purge.  My sister is having a garage sale in May, so I am now filling up large plastic bins with items that we no longer want.  I love that feeling - out with the old and not necessarily in with the new.

In other news, I received an email from a dear friend from high school who I haven't heard from in years.  He found me on Reunion.com and found me on Vox as well.   Scott is one of the funniest people I've ever known and his email didn't disappoint.   He's now living in North Carolina with his partner of over 10 years and seems to be quite happy with where he is in his life.   The sad part is that in the recent years, he lost both his mother and his sister to pancreatic and breast cancer.   Hearing that made me realize how blessed I am to have both of my parents, all 3 of my sisters, both my parents-in-law and more.

Finally, some incredibly happy news.....the week prior to my event, Dan's daughter Cori and her boyfriend Jake were in town from Vietnam.  They moved to Vietnam for Jake's job almost 2 years ago and we have not seem them since, so it was wonderful to be able to see both of them.

We had a great time together just hanging out, catching up and visiting.   They came with the most wonderful gifts for both of us:   I received a photo album with photos from their adventures, Dan received a wall hanging and together we received a hand-carved wooden box with 8 sets of chopsticks and holders and a CD with even more photos.

Cori and Jake are such great people and they are a perfect match for each other.  For a long time, Dan and I have been saying that Jake is exactly the kind of young man that anyone would hope their daughter would end up with.  He's attentive to her, he's thoughtful, bright, caring, friendly and when you see him look at Cori, you know he's wildly in love with her.

After they left, Dan pulled me aside and told me that Jake asked for his blessing to propose to Cori.  It was hard for Dan to say without getting choked up and yes, I admit...I starting bawling too.

A few days later, Jake proposed and she said yes.   I'm so happy for both of them....and happy for us too as Jake will be a wonderful addition to the family. 

Cori is such a lovely young girl and I am delighted that she has met such a fabulous young man to spend the rest of her life with.  I can't wait for the wedding.  I don't know when or where it will be, but in about a month and a half, they will be leaving Vietnam and moving to Zurich.  I think a Swiss wedding would be lovely!

Hope all is well with my fellow Voxers......

How do you keep calm? 
Submitted by L33tchica.  

I don't really keep calm lately.  I tend to fret and worry....and vent.

BUT...usually I take a hot bath, I snuggle with Jake and Ziggy and I read. 

If those things fail, I make lists.  What I need to do, buy, organize, etc.

That's usually a fail-safe method for me.  It clears my head to put things down on paper.

What's your favorite hangover cure? 
Submitted by Soup.

Since I'm an old lady, I don't get hangovers anymore.  (I probably would if I drank more....)

BUT...my all-time favorite hangover cure started in college and I swore by it for years.

Eat a banana and drink a Dr. Pepper.  If you can, lie down with a cold rag over your eyes/forehead for 15 minutes.  Longer if you can. 

Instant cure.

(I don't do caffeine anymore, so I can't partake anymore....but I swear it worked for any and all hangovers.  But you must do both and the cold rag just helps speed up the recovery process.