Dear Mother Nature: Quit trying to mess with my Disney trips!

After 18 hours (or so) and two days of driving and some rain and two crying children and one screaming mom...we are finally in Orlando, ready to start our Disney vacation.

A little backstory...

We were supposed to leave town today and arrive in Florida tomorrow.
And then we saw the forecast for today for Kentucky, Tennessee and Georgia.
And it was full of rain, severe storms, tornadoes and probably swarms of locust.

So, yesterday morning at about 8 a.m. we decided to leave early.
As in, at noon yesterday.
We drove SEVEN hours to Knoxville, TN.

And for the record, I'd like to state the following:

1. I hate driving through Dayton.*
2. I hate driving through Cincinnati even more.**
3. Mountains are evil.
4. The next time I will pay the $100 bag check fees for four suitcases so that we can fly to Florida.

So, this morning we left Knoxville hoping to avoid the worst of the rain. (Thank you Weather Channel BlackBerry app....you saved my sanity several times today).

We hit ONE horrid patch of rain (read: pouring deluge of rain in Biblical proportions) right outside Atlanta. I nearly cried.

Then, I watched the radar and decided we were stopping for a 'real' (non fast food) lunch so we could "allow" the STORMS to pass over I-75 and we could drive the rest of the trip in peaceful weather.

I'd like you to know: that totally worked. We had a minor shower but no storms, no tornadoes, no need to build another Ark.

And...the sun came out. Before we hit the Sunshine State.

That being said, I hate driving to Florida.
No one knows how to drive (except my husband...and sometimes that can be questionable).
Rest areas creep me out.
It is not enjoyable.

However....there is a bright side to this story....

I am in Orlando.
I drove through Walt Disney World property today and it was like being HOME.
I nearly cried from the sheer joy I felt.

We made it safely.
And for that I am thankful.

(Yes, this is the second time in three months that I had to leave EARLY in order to avoid bad weather on my way to Disney. I think Mother Nature is trying to tell me that I should just move down here so that I don't have to deal with the weather and travel!)

Oh, and I should add this:
We stayed at one hotel last night.
We are at a different hotel tonight.
Tomorrow we are moving to yet ANOTHER hotel for 1 night.
And finally on Monday we are moving to our Disney resort.
Yeah...four hotels in 4 days. Oy.

*I don't have anything against Dayton.
**Or Cincinnati.
It just sucks to drive through those 2 cities, in my opinion.
You are free to form your own opinion.

Doing a happy dance

This morning I was stressing ... I had this odd feeling that I was going to get some news today about the job. And being the cynic that I am, I just KNEW it would be bad news.

I was wrong.

I was offered the job today.
And, of course, I accepted.

And so, on May 4th I will once again be gainfully employed.

I cannot tell you how happy I am about this.
I can just feel the stress of the last 10 months disappearing as I type this.

Unless you've actually experienced it, I don't think I could make you understand what it feels like to be unemployed. It's a hard pill to swallow. When you WANT to work and there isn't any work and you just keep getting rejected over and over again....it really takes a toll.

But now, there is light at the end of the tunnel.

And I am so thankful for that.

Wait and see

I had my second interview today.

Overall, I think it went well.
I hope.
I'm trying to remember if I said anything really stupid.
I'm also hoping I didn't sound as dumb as I felt.

I'm sure you can understand when I say interviewing for jobs is kind of like visiting the seventh level of hell.

I hate interviews.
I fear that I always sound like a complete and total moron.
(Who knows? Maybe I DO sound exactly like a moron and that, my dear readers, is why I am still unemployed. HA!)

I think (no, I know) it's the questions they ask.
And the answers I try to give.

My favorite: "What are your strengths and weaknesses?"
Really.
Strengths? That's easy peasy. I like to tell them that I'm a good writer and editor, that I have a killer attention to detail and I'm a perfectionist.

But weaknesses? This I'm not so good at answering. I don't like to think about being 'weak' at anything. So I tend to say that sometimes I'm too much of a perfectionist (and we all know too much of a good things can be troublesome, right?). Oy. It's a STUPID answer, I know. But I can't very well say that I have a weakness for Starbucks and chocolate and can never pass up either of those things, now can I?

Another one I love is when they ask what I would bring to the job?
Obviously my mad skills are at the top of the list. (LOL).
Oh and my charm and wit and the overwhelming hilarity that ensues whenever I tell a joke.
DUH.

I'd like to say "What do YOU think I'll bring to this job?" But you can't really turn the tables like that can ya? (Not unless you want to keep collecting unemployment).
So I say something about creativity, fresh thinking, mad writing/editing skills, etc. (For the record ... I also bring a candy dish that is ALWAYS full of candy. Good candy. I think that is VERY important, don't you?)

The whole process just makes me queasy.
But now it's over and done and I just have to wait.
And wait.
And wait.
And maybe, if I'm really lucky, I'll get a phone call at the end of the week telling me that I have a new job.

One can only hope.

Feel Good Friday - Today is a GOOD day

Let us revisit the last 10 months, shall we?

I have been unemployed since June 30, 2009...and yes, I realize that many of you know this because I NEVER SHUT UP ABOUT BEING UNEMPLOYED.

Whatever.
Sue me.
Unemployment, for those of you who have never been here, SUCKS.

It sucks a lot.
I'm talking major suckage.

So...I blogged the other day about "oh my gosh...someone liked my resume and no freakin' way...I have an interview on Friday!"

That one simple phone call right there could have been my 'one happy thing' for Feel Good Friday.

Until today at 2:30 p.m.

Because that's when I GOT A SECOND INTERVIEW for this job.
Yep, that's right kids...

The person interviewing me said this:
"You're the second person I've brought in for initial interviews and I'm only bringing back the ones who really impress me. And for the record, I'm very impressed."

And then we talked a bit more and then she said "So, how does Monday at 12:30 work for you for a second interview?"

Oh yeah.

Second interview for what has the potential to be a kick ass job.

And that folks is the HAPPY event that makes this a Feel Good Friday.

Oh happy day!

OK....as most of you know, I have been unemployed since July 1, 2009 thanks to budget cuts at my former employer.

It has not been easy.

As much as I enjoy being home with my girls, I want to work.
I want to earn a paycheck.
I want to feel productive.

I have sent out so many resumes that I've lost count.

Yesterday morning I sent out another resume, thinking "well, here goes one more and it'll probably be ignored just like all the others."

I'd like to report that I was wrong.
It was not ignored.

I have an interview on Friday afternoon. It's a 'first' interview with the company's HR person - but if (when?) I get a second interview it will be with the owner of the company next week.

I cannot tell you how excited I am.

I have an interview!
Someone thinks I might have talent!

Oh. Happy. Day.

The ducks are back in town!

And by ducks, I mean....real, live ducks.

We have lived in our house for 5 years and each spring we've been visited by a 'duck couple' - they show up in mid-to-late April and stay until (presumably) their babies are born. We've never had a nest in our yard...but I am thinking that might change this year.

See those two cuties up there? Well, I'd like you to meet Donald and Daisy Duck. (Yes, we gave them Disney names this year...WHY does that surprise you?)

They've been here since Saturday and rarely leave our yard. (Granted that might have something to do with the fact that I am continually feeding them bread and crackers....but I digress). They drink out of the basketball hoop stand. They spend HOURS every day just sitting in our side yard, under the bushes. Donald seems very protective of Miss Daisy....so I'm thinking she might be laying eggs soon. In our yard. (Of course I could be totally wrong about that....we'll have to wait and see).

Donald the duck is very friendly though...as ducks go. He walks right up to me and quacks - as if to say "hey crazy lady...we're hungry...how about some more bread?" It's rather cute, I have to admit. I've also been known to 'escort' them across the street - so as to prevent any crazy drivers from running them over and squishing them.

What can I say? I'm a full service duck lady - I feed, I water and I assist in street crossings.

[Oh and for the record, we change the duck names every year. For the first couple of years they were "Tony and Carmella" from The Sopranos. And then last year they were 'Edward and Bella'. This year the girls decided they were Donald and Daisy.]

See here , here , and here for a few past duck posts.

Feel Good Friday - Back in the saddle. Again.

Well what do you know? I actually blogged more than once this week.

It's darn near a miracle, right?

Oh yes. I'm back in the blogging saddle again.

So without further ado....my Feel Good Friday Top 5 things that made me happy this week.

1. Green
Normally, green is bottom on my list of favorite colors. Except during the early spring when all the brown, dead things in northwest Ohio start turning green. The grass is greener. The trees are sprouting leaves. Everything is turning green and it's lovely.

2. Spring Break
Olivia has been on spring break all week...which means we've been "sleeping in" (until 7:30!!), lounging around all morning and generally just chilling out. It has been a very relaxing week. We even made it to the zoo - despite Mother Nature's attempts to rain us out.

3. Countdowns
We have a tradition of creating countdown calendars whenever we have a family trip planned. And according to our current countdown calendar we have 15 days until we leave for Disney World. I cannot wait.

4. Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs
Chocolate. Peanut Butter. Need I say more?

5. You
Yes, you my dear readers. Thank you for sticking around even when I don't post for a week. Thanks for commenting and saying witty things (because you always do!). Thanks for visiting. :)

OK that's all for this Friday .... join in the fun, won't you?
Learn more about Feel Good Friday here.

Sometimes you just have to call 'em like you see 'em

For the record, I think both Jon and Kate Gosselin are attention whores.

That being said, I think Jon is the bigger attention whore.

(Wow. I just used the word 'whore' two times in the first two sentences of this post. And then one more time, just for 'effect'. I'm sorry. Sort of. And I might swear some more. You've been warned.)

In case you missed the "news", JG is suing KG for primary custody of their eight children (who will all be in therapy before they're 20 years old, by the way).

He claims that because KG is "working" on Dancing with the Stars, she is an 'absentee mother'.

I'm sorry, but WTF?

I thought I heard Mr. Unemployed-but-still-sporting-Ed-Hardy-T-shirts say that because Kate works she's an absentee mother. I beg to differ, asshat.

Kate is working to support her eight kids, which is more than I can say for The Mayor of Loserville.

What has he done lately - other than (1) force the cancellation of the family's main 'money maker' "Jon and Kate + 8", (2) flaunt several VERY young 'girlfriends' around the country and across the pages of Us Weekly, (3) made the front page of every tabloid/trash magazine out there - usually in stories about how his 'girlfriend' of the minute has dumped his sorry butt, and (4) sued his ex-wife for various things.

What has JG done lately?
Oh that's right.
He hasn't done anything.
Dude doesn't have a job.
(Yeah, neither do I...but I'm not a tabloid TV star suing their ex-spouse for child custody, so don't go there, OK.)

So instead of getting a JOB, he's suing his ex-wife for having a job.
And for wanting to work.
And for supporting their kids.

Memo to Jon Gosselin: None of those things makes Kate an 'absentee mother'. It just makes you look like a bigger ass than you did before. (Who even thought that was possible?)

And yes, I realize that she's in Los Angeles every week for DWTS - but, from what I understand she rehearses at her house in Pennsylvania so that she's with the kids most days each week. And where is JG? Holed up with his flavor of the week, probably.

I find him truly disgusting and his actions reprehensible. How DARE anyone claim that someone is an absentee mother simply because she is working and supporting her kids with a job that happens to take her out of town a couple days each week. While I don't agree with most of what KG does/says, I do think she is doing the best she can in this situation. Granted, her 'job' isn't a traditional job - but they both chose to be in the limelight and these are the cards she was dealt. (Pamela Anderson and Niecy Nash are also single moms who happen to be dancing this season - you don't see their exes suing them for custody, do ya? Nope. You don't.)

Ponder this: do you think if KG had been (mercifully) voted off on Tuesday night that JG would have filed this suit? I think not. He waited until she was "safe" to make his move. And what if KG had merely gone back to work as a nurse (her 'real world' job before becoming a reality TV star)? What if she was working a late shift a few days a week? Would THAT JOB also make her an absentee mother, according to JG? Doubtful, very doubtful.

As much as I dislike both KG and JG, as a mom I have to side with Kate in this 'battle'. She might REALLY suck at dancing, but she's doing what she thinks is right for her and her kids.

[And, did you see that KG has a new gig? I won't be watching....but I think the title is rather witty...."Twist of Kate"...oh and what does JG have planned??? That's right....a whole lot of nothing.]

Second memo to JG: You are a loser. Throw away those Ed Hardy shirts, take out the diamond earrings and get a freaking job. You'll need the money to pay for your kids' therapy.

Apparently, my blog went on vacation for a week

Well now, that's interesting.

I haven't blogged in a week.

Funny, I guess I didn't have much to say.

And, last week was just one of those weeks (you know, the kind I seem to have every other week). I was not feeling the urge to blog. I was avoiding Twitter (shocking, I know).

I guess maybe I was regrouping.

Admittedly, I was in a bit of a funk.

One of my very good friends even called me last Thursday to see if all was "OK" because I was 'too quiet' on Twitter.

Yes, dear readers, I am OK.

So, what was going on?

Well, the biggest thing was this - I had to give away my cat. I had to give away my great Gatsby. I am not going to get into the reasons for it, but after loving her for nine years, I had to do it. I feel horrible about it. I feel guilty. I feel like an awful person. I miss her terribly, but I know we did the right thing. And I know that someone else will love her just as much as I do.

And that's all I'm going to say about that.

And now, I'm back.
I'm blogging.
I'm loving this spring weather.
I'm eagerly counting down the days until we leave for Disney!