Today, is NOT Ground Hog Day.

That title is a bit of an inside joke. If you want 'in' on the joke, just go over to the EFFbooks and 'friend' PrissE & me. The both of us. Then, just read the public texting we did last night. It's funny.

Happy Birthday PrissE!

Believe it or not, I knew that without a test.

Also? I knew it without you constantly reminding me this whole past year.

So, one question. Will today be done over and over and over..... you know, like that movie, 'Ground Hog Day'?

Back to School -- Pros & Cons

Oh yeah, baby. Back to school.



Pro - Back to routine. Back to normal. Back to some body else being cruise director for my busy boys. Blissfully quiet house.

Con - Setting my alarm clock every morning.



Pro - Friday Night Lights! Football fun! Band crazies! Pep rally mania! Blissfully quiet house.

Con - 95% of my laundry will be green/black.



Pro - Coffee meetings with friends. Lunches with friends. Shopping with friends. (Only on the days I'm not enjoying my blissfully quiet house.)

Con - Sub days (a 'con' that I will enjoy this year!) **fingers crossed**



Pro - Did I mention the blissfully quiet house?

Con - Well, that turns into a con at about week 15.



Adios boys! I want all the details when you get home!

"Almost" 40--It's a Magic Number

Blog-stalkers, breathe.  PrissE is baaaaaaaack!  It's been a loooooong time since we've talked, so naturally I've forgotten everything I have to tell you--after all, I am "almost" 40.

I've decided that "almost" 40 is a truly magical number.

Let me demonstrate:

Scenario % (that's right.  since I'm almost 40, i don't have to use typical labels...like numbers.  you should hop on my train of thought.)  HA!!  Too much too soon??  I'll go slower....

Scenario 2 (better?):
When my knowledge of Cher is being debated by my 7 year old, I say:  I am almost 40 years old.  I believe my knowledge pool is a few feet deeper than yours, dear 7 year old (i love summer.  don't judge my metaphors).

Scenario 3:
Telling my parents I'm almost 40!  Stop 'parenting' me.  FYI:  this is not a response for the week--or the flip-flop wearing.  Almost 40 year old women in flip-flops may be able to run fast, but almost 66 year old dads can sometimes run faster.......

Scenario 4:
Feeling compelled to show off that big fancy college degree--the one I got back in 1993--when my supervisor of less than a week informs me that she'll "instruct" me on how to put a new liner in the giant plastic trash can.  Let's just say that, did I not earn the appropriate degree to change trash can liners? is not the most accepted response to an offer of instruction.  Stooooopid college degree.

Tonight, The Trophy Wives Minus One Club had dinner & movie night (because we do that whenever we get the chance, get a wild hair, or whenever we want).  It was fantastic, like it always is--mad props to the gorgeous salad bowl at McCalisters!

And, I'm gonna go ahead and give some Golden Globe & Oscar nods to "The Help."  FAN-FLIPPIN-TASTIC, this movie is!!!!  And nobody's paying me to say it, either!  It's just about the best movie I've seen in forever!

I laughed.  I cried.  I gave a few "witnesses" with some out loud 'Amens.'  Even the heavy-nose-breather-man sitting next to me shed a few tears and laughed till I thought he might pass out.  The movie was just that good.

And I even learned a lesson...a 'moral,' if you will:  Tell the story.


Tell the story.  Don't be afraid.  Don't worry.  You can change the names all you want.  Just tell the story.

Tonight, I learned that I'm probably really not the "high society" snob in the hierarchy of life...I'm really more like "the help."  I've got stories to tell.  Some of them are difficult, and some of them make me laugh so hard I nearly cry.  Some of them I've been afraid to tell.  I didn't want to make anyone mad, hurt anyone's feelings, or rock certain boats.  But guess what?  Keeping my mouth shut and marching to another's beat was never really one of my "gifts."  

Almost 40 has been a magical number.  It's given me a feeling of almost freedom.  I'm so close to that freedom my typing-fingers can almost touch it.  

Yep.

I'm almost 40...................................but not for much longer..........

The Substitute Nail Place

I pledge allegiance, to my original beauty shop, the one and only good place to go.

Except when your sister in law forgets about you.

There have been only a couple times in the last 25 or so years that I've been forgotten at the beauty shop. Those times always have two accountable parties. Me. and She. The both of us. One time we blamed the 'force'. A temporary disturbance in the 'force' made us both forget.

Is a forgotten nail appointment by two people even an appointment at all? I digress.....

We're both doing a lot of different stuff, and family members, close friends and an occasional on-looker CLAIM there's some issues involving early onset dementia, so.... sometimes really important nail appointments get forgotten. And, as she will tell you, 'Family gets you nowhere around here.'

I'd like to raise my hands with an Amen to that statement. Sorry... digressing again.

So, because of a whole lot of un-fore-seen and forgotten reasons, I had to go to the substitute nail place. Twice. Whatever.... the second time is the funny story.

I arrived at the substitute nail place only 30 short minutes after it opened. Several, if not nearly all, of the chairs were already filled. This is the really good substitute nail place. PrissE recommended it for emergencies. I'm safe here.

I step to the counter, and request an acrylic nail fill. Tim (name changed to protect his innocence) says, 'Let me see you nails.'

I obeyed.

Tim has a furrowed brow as he says, 'You wait 10 minutes.'

Again, I obeyed.

Sure enough, 10 minutes later, Tim says, 'You sit chair 2.'

I obeyed. While placing MY OWN POLISH I BROUGHT FROM HOME at my station. Tim sits down, motions for me to give him my hands..... I obeyed (this is not my first nail rodeo). Tim then tells me that it's going to cost $2 more because of my solar nails.

Me: No, they are a-cry-lic nails. (I speak louder and slower when conversing with the Vietnamese.)

Tim: Oh. You do them yourself?

Me: No.

Tim: Oh. You friend do them?

Me: No. (Because, I'm not at the substitute nail place to let every person in the universe know my life story. Or, from whence other beauty shop I came.)

Tim: Oh. Still $2 more.

Me: Alright, but they are professionally done. They are acrylic nails. Premium Powders to be exact. The pink and the white.

Tim: These nails bad. Very bad. All crooked. Lines no good.

Me: Thanks. My regular nail girl will be excited to know your opinion of her work.

Lady beside me laughs out loud. In a big LOL fashion, as we both make faces.

Tim: You go chair 4.

I obeyed.

New nail guy has very little to say. Fills in my acrylic nails, buffs and shapes them, tells me to wash then, new nail guy leaves.

I return to chair 4, where the new nail lady polishes my nails, WITH MY OWN POLISH I BROUGHT FROM HOME, then begins to tell me that the polish doesn't look good. She recommends I use something else. I explain to her, in my slow talk, that I want this specific color because it will be pretty at my sister's wedding.

She's quiet for a moment, then with her most ugly wrinkled up face tells me that I 'need brows done, look too bushy.'

Now, I'm smiling because I think PrissE is having me 'punked' at the substitute nail place, so I decline a wax ripping off procedure and leave.

Later that day, in the car I reflected on the genius of the substitute nail place. They basically insult you until you concede to their procedures. It totally worked! Nail lady ripped 3 sets of eye brows while I was there, just by telling the gals they looked bushy.

It's fascinating.

Ya'll please don't tell my sister in law to insult me. She'll forget what she said, and I'll leave with the wrong procedure. No one wins in the insulting-dementia relationship.

Trying Something New.

I've never participated in one of Shelli's challenges before. Shelli is the fearless leader of Stampin' UP! Most of the faithful blog readers know that I've been a demonstrator for a happy 8 years and counting. I love my job!

This month's challenge was to create something to send to a friend, neighbor or family member to encourage them. A 'thinking of you' type card (that sentiment not required for the challenge.) I immediately thought about one of the samples I created for a recent card class. During the month of July, Wendy and I hosted 'bring a new friend' card classes. Classes intended to introduce more people to card making, while increasing our customer base. (This is our business!)

The classes were an overwhelming success! I'm so thankful to every customer that brought a new friend to card class. (And all friends that came without friends too! Love ya'll!) All you beautiful people are helping me SHARE my love of stamping and paper crafting, while we build beautiful friendships.

Now, my entry to the creative challenge from SoShelli:



Ingredients:
Pool Party, Basic Black, So Saffron & Very Vanilla Card stock
In Color dsp, First Edition ssp
Basic Black Ink
'My Friend' Stamp Set
Eyelet Border punch, 1 3/4" Circle punch, Decorative Label punch
Rhinestone jewels

This card makes me think of all the friendships I've formed during these years as a demonstrator. Best of all, it makes me so excited for all the fun we're going to have making new friends while we SHARE and craft together!!

Thanks for reading today! I hope you enjoy this card, but most of all, I hope it inspires you to create something to SHARE with someone!