The World didn't end... now what???

I attended this awesome party the other night. Tune in REM's 'It's the end of the World as we Know it' The theme of last night's party was It's the End of the World, Let's drink Wine! David, the host, a very knowledgeable connoisseur of wines, partier, and courageous man who is not afraid of risk, opens his home to many on a regular basis. I had met David's girlfriend for a drink the week before and she had indicated that she is always helping David prepare for his events, so I offered to help. I arrived early to help set things up, but when I arrived there was absolutely nothing to do. So I tried to be as comfortable as possible and await the arrival of the many attendees. But, there was really only one person I was excited to see....

Dreams and Aspirations

Dreams. Do you remember day dreaming about your future when you were young?  Did you plan your dream home?  Did you imagine your family and children?   Did you tell your parents you were going to be a fireman, a stewardess, a singer?  What happened to those dreams?   My opinion?  Life took over.

Condom Star

First, let's talk about the title.  Think of the Psy song Gangnam Style and replace the words with Condom Star.  A friend of mine thought those were the words to that song so I thought this was a fitting post title.   funny!

So I went to have drinks with my friend Pete the other day and he told me the most hilarious story.   He's recently separated and discovering the ins and outs of being single in your 40's.   First order of business?   Buying condoms.   Have you been to the condom counter lately?   We used to have a choice of lubricated or non-lubricated.  These days there is an entire 6 ft by 8 ft section of selections.  

Tryptophan, Turkey and Tired Afternoons

Every year my family gathers together to gorge themselves on artichoke dip, deviled eggs, a variety of peppers, olives and carrots followed by a bunch of cheese and crackers all before we finally sit down for the long awaited Thanksgiving feast.   Now we've spent at least a week preparing for this monumental moment. Planned the dishes, determined who was bringing what, went to the grocery store to get the ingredients and  then spent a few days preparing the pies, casseroles, etc.  When the moment finally arrives we sit down and eat for approximately 20 minutes... total!   All of that preparation and we are done gobbling it down in less than 30 minutes?  REALLY!? 

Lynn

Today is my sister's birthday.   She would have been 45 today.   There is so much to say, yet, my fingers are frozen.   So, my entry today is:

Lynners.... I miss you.   I wish you would have allowed us to love you. 

HARVELLE'S!!

I had the pleasure of entering into the underground nightlife of Long Beach, CA recently.  I have been taking business trips to Long Beach pretty regularly for the last four years.  The group of co-workers usually sticks to the same venues, i.e. the Irish Pub, the Yard House, and the Rock Bottom.   You can bet we will be in one of these places sometime during the trip.   Well, we had some new comers with us and decided we needed to find something different.   We tried a few new places, but everything was pretty dead.   Finally, we found a new place!  Harvelle’s!  We had passed it many times on our treks around down town and never noticed it.  We knew we had left the hustle and bustle of the standard night life of Long Beach, left the younger crowd of patrons in the Congregation above, when we descended down the steep two level staircase to the bowels of the building. 

Selfish Responsibility

I was reminded the other day of a revelation I came to several years ago.   I had recently moved to a new town, had two very small children and started a new job while my husband had stayed in San Diego to finish out his nursing school year.  I was miserable, exhausted, alone and full of resentment.  I felt like I had all the responsibility of the finances, children, daily household chores while my husband just had himself to care for with little or no responsibilities.  While this was a temporary situation, nine months or so, it was such a difficult, stressful time for me that it impacted my entire view of life, relationships, family.  But most of all, it changed how I viewed myself.    

Retirement Planning

So, my friend, who is 19 years younger than me, invited me to a conference this past weekend.   This conference was sponsored by International Living and was basically to learn how to retire overseas, somewhere outside the U.S.  What a concept!   Just the thought of doing something like this is crazy, right?  Well, I have to admit, after attending the conference and workshops... maybe it's not so crazy afterall! The conference also focused on investing in property in other countries.   It was VERY interesting and informative.   We forget there are other options to the lives we are leading.   It was eye-opening, for sure. 

Just Dance

September 30, 1960 was the year my sister was born.   She lived to the age of 42 when she died of breast cancer.   She was the utlimate Mom, always making sure her kids were having the childhood any child would cherish.   She worried about every little detail of every day.  She wanted everything to be perfect...

Friends....You gotta have them!

Interesting week!   I have great friends!  I have friends of both sexes.   I have friends who are there for me when I'm low.  I have friends whose sole purpose is to challenge me.  I have friends who love me no matter what.  I have friends who give me sexual satisfaction when I want it.   I have friends who are more than willing to listen, to whatever I have to say.   I have friends who encourage me.  I have friends whom I can talk to about anything.   I even have friends who don't agree with me and

On line Dating...ugh!

While I get that 'on-line' dating seems to be a perfectly acceptable way to meet people these days, it is an awfully painful way! I have been single for a few years and I've attempted this method of dating a few times.   It's a cycle.  I try it for a few months, get disgusted, then take a break for a few months.   Then out of some desperate act of loneliness, I try it again, go on a few dates and again get frustrated by the lack of integrity out there. 

There are many things you need to consider before attempting this method of meeting men.   First, you need to choose the site. 

Judgment

Well, it's been an interesting couple of days.   The one thing that stood out this week was the fact that I have been told, on two separate occasions, that I am 'Judgmental'.  I looked it up to make sure I understood what exactly it was that I was being labeled. So, I voice my opinion. Isn't that all we are talking about here?  

Of course I don't consider myself an 'authority' on anyone, but I definitely have my opinions about some people.   Don't we all?   Come on, don't we all take in the appearance of people and

Casual No More....

Well, I had a completely different topic to discuss, but decided I would share my week with you instead. 

I have been seeing someone for the last few months.  Because he lives several states away, we have only been able to see each other once a month.  Between visits we have talked and emailed, texted, instant messaged, etc several times per day.  The problem is that the friendship started out as very casual and neither of us expected anything serious to come out of it.

However, as life sometimes goes, as information flows and the onion begins to peel back, original intentions change... morph into something else.   It turns out this guy is very cool.   He actually

I am a feminist.... who wants a man?

There's been a lot of discussion lately on the changing men in our country.  I've linked to some articles below for you.  I thought I'd give you some of my thoughts on this.  

First I had to define 'feminist'.   At it's basic definition a feminist is one who supports equality of women in social, political and work place settings.   I am a full supporter of this!   However, I do not support the feminist movement that supports the feminization of men and the masculinization of women.   The crosswalk article below discusses the masses of men who have been raised in divorced families leaving many boys to be raised solely by women basically removing the male role model from his childhood.   While I agree that this has caused some 'feeling' men to emerge into society, I do not believe it is the major culprit.  

We women have been striving so long and hard to become equal to men that we have overstepped our

Choices: Stay, Cheat, Go?

Today's entry discusses marriage, affairs and divorce.  It seems everyone I have talked to are struggling with the same issue.  All are in long term marriages.  All have found someone who has piqued their interest and all are questioning whether they should stay in the marriage, have a fling or leave the marriage.   This is some pretty tough stuff!   But I guess I have been in the right place at the right time because I have been asked my opinion on four, yes FOUR separate occasions just this week!  

It is a long entry, but I hope you all get something out of it.   Please comment your opinion or situation.   We are all in this together and the more information we have to figure this stuff out, the better!  Read on....

He should be shot!

Today, I was talking with, Adam, who is recently separated and entering the dating scene after a 16 year marriage.  He has been meeting women on match.com and has recently been seeing a woman named Karen.   She, too, is newly separated after a 13 year marriage.  Adam and Karen have been talking and texting regularly and have been out together a few times.  Adam has reported that she is witty, friendly and fun to hang out with.   Because their jobs and children come first, scheduling time together has been difficult.   In fact, in the three months since they met, I believe they have only been on three dates.  

Back to Basics

Well Ladies, it's been a while since I posted to this blog.  I even tried to change its content.  But I've determined that it's best to go back to the basics.   I'm just going to write about my everyday life and conversations and let you decide whether or not it is entertaining.