The Crab Chronicles

Premium Rush the Blinys

Over at my movie review blog, Scribblerchick's Movie Dish, I posted a new post, Walking Out of Movies. Some of the "bad" movies my friends named, you probably loved.

Michael and I finished watching Premium Rush last night, and we liked it a lot. I'm sorry it died quickly at the box office, but I really hope it finds an audience and becomes a cult classic, if nothing else, because it's a fun movie. If you're into cycling, you will really appreciate it, I am pretty sure.

I urge you to see the trailer for Premium Rush, but this little featurette, below, is a lot of fun and gives you a good sense of the movie:

 

There's not much else to report. I beat Michael in chess yesterday, 2 games out of 3, but I told him, "Dude, I am NOT a good chess player. You lost because your attention was distracted. You kept looking at the iPod instead of studying the board." He totally was bummed out.

So I made blinys for dinner - some folks would call them crepes or blintzes. Same thing. He was partially mollified by that.I had some leftover rotisserie chicken and portobello mushrooms, and I made a white sauce and mixed in the chicken and mushrooms, and some sour cream, for a very yummy filling.

We had some batter leftover and he had breakfast blinys this morning - filled with scrambled egg and turkey sausage. Yum. If you want to learn more about bliny, click that link.

The Wow Factor

I was watching an old episode of Modern Family the other day and heard a character say "You gotta WOW me. There's gotta be that WOW factor there, or I'm not interested."

I keep hearing this phrase: "Wow me." Especially on the HGTV shows I like to watch.

Nothing can be merely good or excellent, it has to have The Wow Factor.

I Googled it and found Wow Me Photos. It showcases the fire department in Buffalo, New York.

According to InternetSlang.com, WOW stands for World of Warcraft. Wrong. Epic Fail. Only a gamer would get that. Ick.

There's a design company called Wow Me. I read several of the pages before I realized it's a British company. The phrase that stymied me was "shelf edging." I found a good explanation of it on a website called Shabby Vintage Mom.

Wait a minute. I myself AM a "shabby vintage mom." What a coincidence!

I read a few of the pages and then I found another term I've recently grown to hate: POP.

"It gives the room a nice pop of color!" she trills.

The AJC today has a photo essay about porches that "pop." Does your porch have pop? These do Um... nope. None of them popped for me. They looked like nice porches, yes. But they didn't WOW me.

Here are some things that WOWed me, made my eyes POP recently [for good or bad]:

• Mike and I saw a huge buzzard in the road eating a dead squirrel the other day. [ACK! Bad wow!]

• The movie Premium Rush that we started watching last night. Really fascinating and fun to watch.

• Ping pong. Mike and I played last night for about 20 minutes, and wow was I tired afterwards, mostly from chasing the ball all over the garage.

• Woke up with a sinus headache this morning that was intensely wow, in a bad way. I was snorting salt water at 6:45 a.m. - really made my sinuses POP.

Huge wow here - an article about Nia Vardalos [My Big Fat Greek Wedding] and her adoption of her daughter. Read this and try not to cry. I dare ya.

Wow.

Michael Tries New Sports

At the end of the day yesterday I finally had time to take Michael out to the driving range not far from our house, so he could hit some golf balls.

It was a first for both of us. I don't play golf - except putt putt, but that likely doesn't count. Michael wanted to use his new/old golf club. Unfortunately, we figured out it's too long for him. The folks inside gave him a shorter club and that worked fine.

He hit 90 golf balls, some quite wildly, some beautifully. The guy next to us gave him some tips. I told him next time don't wear sandals. I noticed if he planted his right foot and swung his hips he hit better.

My grandfather Hasty loved golf, as did two of my four uncles - Bobby Hasty and Bobby Thompson. Dad liked golf but he wasn't a good player, because he lacked patience. He was better at faster games like tennis.

I told Mike he couldn't go to the driving range until he did some laundry. As soon as we got the new washing machine, we put it to use. Michael did several loads yesterday, and still has another load to do today. I'm hoping it rains this afternoon so his tennis match will cancel, and he can study for a Biology test and finish his laundry.

Mother went with us to Kroger yesterday, for the first time in a long time. The weather was beautiful. She gets in her little motorized cart and zips around all over the store. The cart she got yesterday was awful, unfortunately. It ran out of gas and left her stranded in the meat section. I felt so bad for her. Michael went up front to get her another cart, but it took some time, because the store was crowded and a lot of the carts were out.

Michael got to play tennis with a friend of mine yesterday morning who has been playing for many years, and they had a good session. While he played I had a chance to talk to another friend of mine down in the tennis hut, a fellow writer, and that was so pleasant. I also just enjoyed being outdoors - the hut is open to the air.

I made this last summer in the tennis hut - Bart, Colton and a little buddy were watching Michael play tennis.

Michael talked to Alesia after dinner last night, for almost 30 minutes. She likes to call and talk to him and catch up. She doesn't like talking to me because I am incapable of keeping the conversation light, and invariably I blurt out Mama stuff like "When are you going to finish your GED?!" or "When are you going to get a job?!" Michael has more self-control. He doesn't like to talk on the phone a lot, but these conversations with his sister are good for him, forcing him out of his shell, making him express himself.

We finished watching Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Great film. Anyone trying to teach kids about the Senate and how it works should show them this film. Jimmy Stewart and Jean Arthur are superb.

My friend/cousin Lesleigh, who is out in Austin Texas studying acupuncture, sent me a link to a really interesting story, Ear acupuncture 'changing lives' of those affected by PTSD. I am skeptical, but I hope it's true, I really do. I would love for Alesia [who has severe PTSD] to get treated with acupuncture.

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Whether or not he ever becomes a great golfer, I love that Michael is eager to try new sports. He was in a good mood all day yesterday, looking forward to trying to hit the golf ball. There is no reason to think people with limb differences can't do sports.

I am reading Double Take: A Memoir, by Kevin Michael Connolly, a young man who was born without legs but has become a writer and athlete. We watched some of his new show on the Travel Channel yesterday. He is really a smart, funny guy, with a terrific attitude about his disability. Watch Meet Kevin Michael Connolly and I think you will be amazed.

Kevin gets stared at and questioned all the time. Michael gets some of that, but not as much. There was a 6 year old little brother of Mike's opponent watching them play tennis the other day, and the child said "Look, Mom! He doesn't have a hand!" and the mom shushed him. I debated whether or not to explain it, but decided not to get into it right then. It's Mike's story to tell. He won his match. I figure that's the best way to show the child that you don't need 4 limbs to play tennis.

A friend sent me an article in the paper yesterday about a climbing clinic sponsored by Catalyst Sports and I am excited about it. I signed Michael up, after showing him the information. He is eager to climb. I know Michael will have fun. It's wonderful the folks at Catalyst are doing this.

Winning Day

I am not an outdoors person. Never have been. Even when I was a kid, I mostly preferred being inside watching TV as I grew older, although as a little one I made a mean mud pie and liked to play football with the boys. [yeah, a tomboy who liked to cook]

Yesterday was one of those picture perfect days, though, that made even me want to be out and about all day. Sunny, highs in the mid 70's Wow.

Michael had a tennis match so I was able to sit outside.

Michael won his singles match, 6/1, 6/1. YAY!

We got our new washing machine. I am still ticked off at the repairman, because he didn't fix the old one, after coming out here 3 times, but so be it. We won't call him again.

I hate buying new appliances, but I went to the Sears outlet store and bought a deeply discounted one.

They delivered it before the tennis match was over, and Michael had to race back to the house to help Mother keep Coco out of the way and deal with the moving guys.

I took him to Play It Again Sports, a used sporting goods place, later. He traded in some skates and a couple of tennis racquets he never uses, and got a new ping pong paddle and a golf club. He happily went around the yard whacking at pine cones with his lefty golf club, an old wooden driver that was on sale for $2.

I wish I could afford to let him learn to play "big golf" but it's just too expensive. I told him I'd take him to the driving range, though, as soon as he finshes the enormous pile of laundry in his room.

We ended the day watching Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. What a terrific old movie, and still relevant today. They had started watching it in Mike's civics class but not finished it, which was making him crazy.

We laughed very hard at this video, because this guy is such an idiot. He can't deal with a poopy diaper so his buddy pranks him good.

 

Loud Music and More Ranting

Watch out. I'm in a ranting mood.It started this morning at 7:30 a.m. when Sears called me to explain they may be early to deliver our new washer. I had to buy a new washer yesterday because the old one is just done. DONE.

You may think, Dee and one child and Granny? Lots of washing?! REALLY?! Well..... yeah. We have Coco, who likes to keep me hopping trying to keep the floors clean because she was never trained to the puppy pads properly. So small rugs [all floors really] take a beating. They get washed.

So at 7:30 on a Saturday they call us. Grr.....

Beef #2: Those Crazy Kids and That Stuff They Listen To!

It always amazes me the lack of musicality of what Michael listens to- The kids today don't have any idea of what is good music. Most of it is garbage. There is the occasional song I like, but not a lot of it.

Mike likes to hear music when he's in the shower. The thought of showering without a musical accompaniment is just depressing, to him.But he has to crank up the tunes LOUD to hear over the sound of the water.

I am listening to a "song" that sounds like an old Chevy on a cold morning that won't crank.

There's another "song" that sounds like a group of monkeys took crack and started playing kazoos.

That's only a minor annoyance.

#3 White House Tours

Here's a major beef of mine. The president canceling tours of the White House. Don't blame the Secret Service. Nope.

I agree with Chris Stewart, Republican from Utah. This article should be on the front page of EVERY NEWSPAPER but the idiotic liberal press won't do it.

Stewart to President Obama ‘Forgo a Taxpayer Funded Vacation to Resume White House Tours’

Here's a quote from the article: "The Secret Service has estimated that it costs approximately $3.7 million annually to keep the White House open for tours, while each Hawaiian vacation taken by President Obama and his family costs approximately $4 million."

The White House should be open to every.single.American. It's OUR house. The president is a public servant, not a king. I hope TOURGATE gets a lot of publicity. It's just one more stupidity from this administration.

STAY HOME ODUMBO! DANG. All he does is go on vacations WITH OUR MONEY.

Sick Dude and Condo Woes

Michael has a bad cold and I had to pick him up from school yesterday, so the whole day was out of whack. He just has a bad cold, I am pretty sure. I had thought it was just allergies, since we already have trees budding out here, and pollen showing up on the windshield. However, the allergy medicine didn't touch it, so I knew there was more going on.

I am letting him sleep a bit this morning but then hopefully he will feel up to going on to school, albeit a little late. I figure he needs his rest.

Found another funny video, about cell phones in church:

 

I find these stories fascinating: Mideval Knight's Tomb Found Beneath Parking Lot. I think what intrigues me most is that all over Europe, buildings are built on top of other buildings and graves and all. It's like, if you just grab a shovel and dig, there's archaeology EVERYWHERE.

Here in America, we don't like like that, except in a few places.

Here in Atlanta, we have underground Atlanta. I remember going there once as a kid, fascinated to see the old section of the city, completely different from the modern city above. Then the area fell into decline in the 1980's. We should go there again, Michael and I, and look around one day. Maybe we can do that when he's off for spring break. We can take the MARTA train down there.

One thing that preoccupied a lot of my day yesterday was dealing with an issue with my condo.

My condo [where I lived for 7 years] is being rented. I tried to sell it after I moved into this house in 2005. I found a renter sort of by accident, in 2009, right before I got laid off from Home Depot. He's a great guy, never bothers me about anything and pays his rent on time and in full. Now the condo board is giving me grief. I was on the phone yesterday with my brother, my cousin, my tenant, and my attorney friend. I'm hoping a letter from an attorney explaining the situation and why I have to rent it out will work. I want to hold on to the condo and maybe move back there one day when Mom and Michael are not here any more and I don't need this big house.

Bill, my tenant, said a lot of owners are renting out their units and there are really trashy people in there now. That's why the management company is trying to enforce the No Renters clause. I get that. But my tenant is quiet and doesn't bother anybody. Totally different situation.

I don't make any money renting out the condo. The rent just covers my mortgages and the utilities and management company fees.

I'd appreciate prayer covering on the condo situation. If the board doesn't see things my way I will have to ask my tenant to move, and then the bank will foreclose.

I made potato salad last night for maybe the second time in my entire life. I don't like potato salad, the way most folks make it. Warm potatoes with mayo - yum. My taste is too bland for most, though. Michael loves potato salad. I looked at several recipes, then did my own thing. It included half a red onion, a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, and a couple of small pickles. Salt and pepper. Mayo. Mother said it was really good.

I've accomplished nothing on my To Do list this week, so I really need to get busy today.

That's all I know.

Test Drive

Lots going on in my world and I can't blog about most of it. Life is complicated at the moment - nothing dire, just busy. So I don't have time to write but I wanted to share this video, because it made me laugh. A lot. Then I felt bad [slightly] about laughing.

 

Meatloaf and Nose Hair

Michael asked me the other day, "What do you DO all day?"

I remember my dad asking my mom that once or twice when I was a kid, and getting an icy stare in response, and possibly some choice words.

Why do people think those of us who stay at home do nothing?! I have 4 big things and about a dozen small things on my To Do list.I also have part-time writing and marketing work to do. I am never idle.

Plus, I take care of Mom, do most of the cooking around here, and I shuttle Michael to tennis practices or matches just about every day. I also am co-captain of his neighborhood ALTA team.

I am also dealing with a washing machine crisis. Poor Michael, we both worked on the machine last night and it never did work correctly. We called back the repairman last night. He needs to get back out here and fix it, or give us some money back. This is ridiculous.

I couldn't think what to make for dinner last night, so I baked a pan of COMPROMISE - if only Congress would learn this technique!! Mother loves meatloaf. I can tolerate it. Michael and I love my homemade burritos. Mother tolerates that. So I decided to compromise: Mexican Meatloaf.

BRIEF DIGRESSION

I just went in search of an image of Old El Paso Taco Seasoning Mix, and I found a website that offered that very image. If you scroll down, there's a heading FREQUENTLY BOUGHT TOGETHER - and guess what? People buy taco seasoning and then they immediately want to buy...

Tylenol and True Religion Eau de Toilette Spray.The Tylenol I understand - you will eat enough tacos to get a headache. I get that.

BUT -

What does True Religion smell like?! If you put it on an Atheist will it convert them?! Does the pope endorse this cologne?! Would Billy Graham wear it? Some marketing genius came up with this. The bottle looks like it's been designed to contain holy water.

People who buy it also buy Tweezerman nose hair clippers, apparently. So religious people have long hair in their noses?! Or does True Religion smell so good the nose hair goes crazy trying to smell more of it?!! Inquiring minds want to know!

Anyway...

MEXICAN MEATLOAF [recipe]

Chop up a red onion and a red pepper. Throw them in a skillet with some canola oil, salt and pepper, and about half a packet of Taco Seasoning Mix. Stand there and stir until everything is soft - 10-20 minutes, depending on heat.

Feed children slices of pepper while cutting. Ask son to stir pepper/onion mixture. Inhale the delicious smell which clears sinuses. Mmmm...

While that happens, grab a mixing bowl and mix up your regular meatloaf, which for us is 1 lb. ground beef, about 1/2 cup breadcrumbs, onion and garlix powders, salt and pepper, a good squirt of ketchup, an egg, a tablespoon of baking powder, and a lot of water. Water is crucial, because otherwise it's too dry. Throw in the other half a packet of taco seasoning mix. Pat into a roughly square shaped mound in the center of a 9x13 pan. Put peppers/onions mixture on top and all around. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes, uncovered.

I also made cornbread [a/k/a "hoecakes"] in the skillet, and threw some broccoli in the microwave.

Michael ate a GOOD dinner.

NOSE HAIR

Sorry - couldn't resist - I had to see what the description for the Tweezerman Nose Hair Trimmer looks like. Doesn't look like a barbie-sized weed wacker, but it should. What puzzles me is the image of a brush right next to the nose hair trimmer. Do YOU brush your nose hair?!

I don't. Never knew it needed brushing. Important grooming information.

SUMMARY:

So if I am to believe the marketing correctly, all men need to smell like True Religion and brush their nose hair. Thank God for useful marketing...

Oh yeah -  and try the Mexican Meatloaf. It rocks! Will make your nose hair salute! [Unless you are a senior citizen. Mother ate the meatloaf, asked for seconds, then looked at me sternly and said "Next time, don't put any of this stuff on MY meatloaf. Make it separately."]

Brain Damage

Spent the entire day yesterday waiting on two things: the washing machine repairman and the rain. The repairman didn't show up until late in the afternoon.Then he didn't fix the washing machine. Grrr...

I was sure Michael's tennis match would cancel and it did, but only after I took his clothes and his racquet to him at school. As I was driving home, the rain started pelting down. As I turned in the driveway he called and said the match was canceled. I turned around and went back and picked him up.

Michael really didn't feel well. I am not sure if he's getting sick or it's allergies. Hard to tell, but he was not a happy camper yesterday. Said his nose itched.

It poured rain last night. Should've washed the pollen away but Michael said his head was still stopped up this morning.

MINI RANT

I had to actually explain to my son not long ago that I think people should get married before having children. When I was his age I was shocked when I found out girls were not married and having children. Truly shocked.

However, before I get a lot of hateful comments, I will say this. We live in a free country, last time I checked. Getting married should not be mandatory. I do think it should be encouraged, though.

Words and expressions like "hook up" and "baby mama" and "baby daddy" trivialize love and parenthood and they really bother me.

Both my children are the result of "hook ups" and their mamas were severe alcoholics. I've seen the aftermath of that, and it's not cute or pretty.

We are raising a generation of kids who don't want to take responsibility for themselves, whose favorite verb is "party."

Some kids at Michael's school were recently caught stealing freon out of air conditioners to get high, according to the local news: Teens accused of huffing freon from AC unit. That type of huffing can KILL you, the first time. I read with horror, Teen trend of huffing freon can freeze lungs, cause brain damage.

The article says: "Besides loss of consciousness, huffing freon can make your lungs freeze, cause frostbite to your airway, sudden cardiac death, and brain damage."

If you have a teenager or know a teenager, for heaven's sake, tell them this. Wow.

Altanta's Celebrity Hangouts

Sometimes I feel like Atlanta is a really big, very sophistcated place, and then sometimes I feel like we're living in Mayberry-plus-high rises. I opened the [online] paper this morning to see this headline:

Will Ferrell, Jake Gyllenhaal work up a sweat in Atlanta. So here's the big news: when they aren't filming, they work out. Sometimes Jake eats out at chi chi restaurants. Whoop de doo.

Slow news day, y'all?!

What always sort of amuses me is that none of the places ever mentioned as being celebrity hangout spots are EVER places where I go.

Now, if these folks would just frequent the Kroger on Lawrenceville Highway, the Publix on Shallowford, or the Tucker CVS, I'd spot them in a second.

A couple of months ago we learned that some equipment for the film was burglarized. That looked good. You stay classy, Atlanta!

I loved the 2004 film Anchorman. It had a lot of stupid humor but it was fun seeing all the 1970's clothes and retro interiors. After some idiotic films lately, I hope Will Ferrell is back to form and will make us laugh with the sequel.

On to other news.

I spent most of yesterday sitting outside, watching my son and his friends and teammates play tennis at a chi chi swim and tennis club north of here. Our singles players lost, but our doubles boys, including Michael, WON.

YAY!!!

Michael was a very happy camper last night.

The child with the hat over his face is new to the team. He's a sweet boy, but every time I tried to talk to him, or joke around a little bit, I got nowhere. Either he doesn't get my humor, or he just thinks I am weird. I don't know.

At one point, Matthew and Colton were slugging it out, and one of their opponents slammed the ball so hard it bounced over the 15 foot high fence separating the courts, bounced down behind a woman, then popped up and hit her on the fanny. She gave a little yelp. Bet she never thought she'd be goosed in the middle of a tennis match. LOL

All of us on the sidelines were giggling. The boys apologized and smirked, of course.

I am spending an exciting day waiting around for the washing machine repairman to come back and finish fixing our laundry. Michael's floor is so covered with laundry one can barely walk in there.