Moving Sale (NOT A Review, Cleverly Disguised As One)

By now, most of you know about the lovely jewels created by my good friend, Annie, over at Beadiful Things. Although it took me months to stop calling it Beaudiful Things (which is stupid and makes NO sense at all), I knew from the get-go that I would be a lifelong customer. She is amazingly talented and her craftsmanship is impeccable. She creates pieces that just scream 'me' (a little bohemian, a little rustic), but she also makes quaint, ladylike pieces and chic, sophisticated pieces. Now that I have a haircut that I loved, but now hate, I have been pinning my bangs back daily with her cute lil' bobbies.

And I say all of this, not because it gets me any entries into a contest, but because she is someone I sincerely believe in, whose work I love, and I want to make the world a prettier place by dolling up as many of you as I can! 

She has a new storefront here. And I am going to plagiarize now (or cut and paste, to use a more politically correct term) so I will be sure to get the details right. She's having a sale, and here's the scoop, in her very own words:

And, in celebration of the fact that I can now accept discount codes and you can enter them in at checkout and get the discount taken right this minute rather than waiting for me to refund you, here's one that you can use until Friday 4/17/09 (at midnight): BLOG10. That's good for 10% off any purchase.

Oh, and she's really funny and smart, has gorgeous kids and a wonderfully honest, straightforward outlook on life. So, even if you're not in the market for cool new jewelry, you may want to check out her blog here.

Hear Ye, Hear Ye...

I have an announcement. A proclamation, of sorts. And please believe me when I tell you that I mean this with the utmost respect and sincerity, and truly do not want to upset or offend anyone... 

I hate everyone and everything involved in the airline industry (except pilots. hi! i love you! oh, and the air traffic controllers! love you, too! don't do drugs!). 

I have never been a huge fan of flying. But there used to be these nice people involved that at least pretended like they wanted to make my travels tolerable. And I swear I am not making this up, the counter people would not only greet you nicely and check you in... they would take your luggage from you! Was it all just a dream??

Now everything is self-serve. So I have to check myself in, weigh my own luggage, and then haul it over to the belt to be whisked away. And the one or two people that are actual employees have clearly been instructed to either ignore everyone or bark condescendingly. By the time I am at the gate, I am a sweaty, stressed, defensive mess, ready to take out my frustrations on the vacant, uncaring woman telling me my flight out of that hell hole is going to be so late, I am sure to miss my connecting flight! 

It's all so demeaning and depressing because they have finally figured out that they can treat us anyway they want, because we are trapped. There is no alternative. Trains have their own set of nightmarish issues. Cars are limited by time, distance and gas prices. And it's darn near impossible to get your hands on a covered wagon these days. 

So we're at their mercy. And they know it. Which, I suppose, is fine. But I guess what I am wondering is, where is fundamental human decency? The smiles? The "pleases" and the "thank yous"? Are people too busy to be pleasant? I'm not even asking for something as outlandish as nice. Is it really too much to ask?

 

Home

Oh, the tales that I could tell. However, a mild case of jetlag, eight days of laundry, and some serious cuddle time with the dogs are standing in the way. Here's a quick preview for any of you who may be curious (or extremely bored)...

Here we have a photo of the boys before I decided they need to be shipped off to boarding etiquette school. Although I didn't want to kill them yet, the groundwork had already been laid.

And here, a photo of hubs and me after the traumatic boot incident of '09, but before the wipeout that resulted in a disturbing eye injury and the end of my burgeoning professional stunt-skiing career.

And finally, a glimpse of the last meal of the trip. Why did it take me so long to start drinking?

Lots of fun and adventures were had (not necessarily by me) but glad to be back...

A Sense of Belonging...

No, I am not back from "vacation" yet. I am missing you all terribly and, although I am surrounded by mountains, snow, nature, and needy family members, I can't wait to get home! 

Since I have nothing of value for you to read here, let me take this opportunity to introduce you to some of the smartest, funniest, and decidedly imperfect women in and out of the blogosphere. 

Head on over to Moms Without Blogs, at your convenience, and be prepared to be welcomed, reassured and, validated. These gals are the real deal, and somehow I have tricked them into including me!

My first post is up, but if you get plenty of me here, poke around and check out the other ladies. You will be amazed... As am I.

Thinking of you all,

Vacation Sneak Peek #2

There are people that I travel well with... and then there's my family.

Vacation Sneak Peek #1

There is simply no better way to start off a vacation than to have to unpack (and repack) all of your luggage on the floor of a crowded airport, at the command of a rude and completely useless airline worker, in order to redistribute the weight of all your crap to avoid a $125 overage fee.

Wish you were here!

Kisses,

Wanted: Rose-Colored Glasses and Advil

I had begun a worthwhile, thoughtful post about sportsmanship and parenting, but, I am sorry, I just have to get this off of my chest...

If my headache doesn't go away, today's travel across the entire lower 48, and up into British Columbia will be a huge nightmare for everyone involved (including innocent bystanders). It feels like a migraine, but I am sure it is just stress. Why do I do this to myself? We are all packed, we all have legal, current passports (by the skin of our teeth, as you will recall), and the pets have been whisked away to their caretakers. So what gives? Why can't I just relax and roll with it? 

Part of it is the actual traveling itself. I am not big on flying, and I have cut back on the drugs I take after the Great Overdose Incident of '97. I, personally, don't really remember too many of the details, but my husband has still not recovered. If he's telling the story accurately (and not simply employing hyperbole to shame me), it involves the boys (then toddlers) running loose on the plane while I'm sprawled out on the floor, alternating between singing and puking. 

Another part of it is my children. Although they have been traveling fairly well now for a few years, I just never know what will come out of their mouths, or when they will get into a giant throw-down over, well, anything and everything.

Oh, and of course we have somewhere between 8 and 85 pieces of luggage. Not only is skiing expensive, it requires way too much (heavy) equipment. 

My immediate plan is to continue to blog while away. I am counting on my mood lightening and presenting you all with fun-filled, snow-laced posts of a perfect family get-away. Cross those fingers...