TV

Here is the new one


As you may or may not remember, our TV has been busted for months. For a while it was on all the time because the on/off switch was broken. Just left it on. One Sunday morning, power failure in the neighborhood. Shit, the TV! Of course, it doesn't come back on. We push the button every so often hoping...Nope, doesn't work. Even though it sort of reminded me of Lost. You will not understand this unless you watched them pushing the button every 108 minutes in the hatch on the show.

I have been researching for weeks. The TV, officially dead for weeks too. Our TV is about six years old and Plasmas have come a long way since then. Lots to research. LCD? Plasma? When spending that kind of money it is good to do lots of research. At least know what the hell you are talking about when you step into the store. Right? Well, yes and no.

Consumer Reports rates Panasonic as the best Plasmas this year and last. I was all set, armed with new knowledge of big screens, which changes often by the way. We walk in, see the Panasonic and it sucks. The picture truly is the worst of the dozens of TVs we look at. Salesman says that Consumer Reports picks always suck. We see a Samsung, 42 inch plasma. Beautiful picture. And no tuner box like our old plasma. All the buttons are on the TV like our little LCD in the bedroom. One less box will be nice.

While ringing us up, I see the TV next to us has a crappy picture. I mention it and the salesman tells me it is because he has to use one cable for all the TVs in that row. I begin to wonder. Did they do that to the Panasonic so we would buy something else? Perhaps some other TVs they got better deals on and need to get rid of? Or they want to save the Panasonic's cuz they know that CR's says they are the best, those will surely sell after the holiday weekend.

I begin to feel quite manipulated. Much more so when I got home. So much more so, that I went online and read reviews for the TV we brought home with us. The reviews were encouraging. I wonder if I am on the edge of a good 20/20 story. It would make sense for then to show a poorer picture if they didn't want to sell a particular set that day. Or to make it beautiful to sell a lot. Manipulation.

We will know more when we get it on the wall next week. I could do the wiring myself. Putting up a 75 pound TV on the wall would not be wise. Towel racks and toilet paper holders fall down when I put them up. I use the screws that come with and I should use bigger stronger screws. Anyhow, for something that costs this much, a professional is in order.

Have a nice weekend.

HELLO OUT THERE

I haven't been here in so long that my auto speller in the browser window didn't work and I actually had to type out the whole Wifebear.Blogspot.com! I have gotten a couple of emails asking if I am okay. The last time I posted was Mother's Day...

I am fine. Super crazy busy. End of the school year, after school activities. Life. Girl Scout Registration which is my new volunteer gig. I am the new Registrar for our service unit here in town. I had a training class on Saturday because the Girl Scouts are moving into the new millennium and finally doing a pilot program to put all registrations online...Woohoo. Just think of the possibilities! Boring to you perhaps, but it is fun for me. Especially since I can use my Mac with Safari and was told it would have to be done on a PC...Wrong!! I would have been bummed if I could not do this because it was not Mac compatible.

I love paperwork and forms and things like that. When I was a kid I wrote on everything I could get my hands on. I would fill out those bothersome subscription cards that fall out of magazines. I would fill out the front of the school district's books. Any scrap of paper in range had "Nancy was here" written on it. When anybody in my family had a form to fill out, there I was! To this day, I enjoy the act of physically writing. I also enjoy typing. Typing I learned when I was eight. My father had an Army manual that showed where the home keys were, etc., and I practiced without a typewriter. Finally, my mother got out the old Smith Corona. I loved it. I got a Brother portable typewriter for Christmas that year and you would have thought I won the lotto...My brother (not the typewriter) mentioned how obsessed I was back then and I told him of my new position with GS and he laughed and said it could not be more perfect. I still wonder why my father had the Army manual that taught typing of all things. Odd. Looking back, learning to type at eight was no big deal. Kids today all learn early to become computer literate. Back then, we learned in Jr. High. I loved my typing classes, hated the teacher. Mr. Cox, military issued glasses, they had to be. He made me put my bubble gum on a board with my name under it for the whole day once. I was embarrassed, which was his point, he made it.

There was a dinner and award event tonight at a local Mexican eatery. Yummy. Margaritas were good too. I have not had much to drink since I quit smoking 93 days ago. It is to the point now that I forget exactly how many days it has been. I had to look it up. But, I didn't want a smoke at all and I was nearly ecstatic about that. It used to be that I would love bars where I could go out and have a smoke or I would start craving a smoke and would want to leave so I could get in a smoke between the bar and the car! All that is gone and it is such freaking relief.

I started walking with my neighbor a few weeks ago. We have lots of hills around here and they are not conducive to walking with my twice broken, shattered each time, ankle. We now go downtown after I drop off the last girl at school and walk on the flat lands and at the beach. It is nice to walk in the mornings, even with the fog and drippy low clouds we have hanging around this time of year. We actually got more than a half inch of rain last night and today. It is the first time since the 1920's that it has rained on this day. Exceptionally rare to get rain this late in the year, especially a winter storm or what passes for one here in So Cal.

Okay, lots to tell, lots going on. I am beat and want to go watch Prison Break! I finished, actually I am all caught up with Lost. Love that show. Our plasma still is not working. Nor have we replaced it. I use my computer and watched all of Lost. I have now downloaded Prison Break to see if I would like it and after three shows, I am hooked. I can watch til the wee hours of the morning.

Hope everybody is well and I have missed reading all of your posts! Be reading you soon. Nighty night.

Happy Mother's Day

I know this is a couple days early, but the lull in my hectic day of mostly running around to and fro, makes this the ideal time to write this.

Being a mom is the best. Not always easy by any stretch. Worth the job and the best job on earth? Absofreakinlutely.

As a mom of now teenagers, I see babies and try to remember when my girls were that little. I wrote a lot of things down. I took zillions of photos. Not nearly enough videos. I do remember many things, of course, but I don't remember more than I do remember I am afraid. There is just too much to remember. When something happens or I hear a story, I remember something from when the girls were little. I hadn't really forgotten it, I just hadn't thought about it in a long time.



I guess what I am trying to say is for those of you with young ones, take the time and make those videos of those adorable little voices just beginning to speak or saying or doing funny things. Take videos of those creative, colorful outfits that they put together themselves that a photo will not do justice to. You need to get the whole picture with words, signing, music, songs and dances. You can pop those in the machine when they are teenagers or just when you want a warm loving feeling in your heart. Just to remember.

Same thing goes for your mother. Do you have videos of your mother? I don't. My mother died seven years ago last month and I don't have any way to hear her voice. It makes me very sad and I hope that you will get that video cam out this weekend and film your mother with her kids and grandkids. I hope your husband, partner or child will film you as well.

Motherhood for me, has me beaming with pride, as usual. Zoe just got a letter informing her she got into Honors Chemistry next year! David said, "I never took Chemistry, I cannot help her." He, by the way, is the smartest person I have ever met, so I am sure they will both be taking Chem next year. I have no doubt that Zoe will excel at Chemistry all on her own. The other night they had an award ceremony at the high school and Zoe got two awards. One for Outstanding Student in Biology and one for Outstanding Student in Geometry. I am so proud of her. She is very smart. I would say she works hard, but she will disagree with that statement. It comes to her, she just gets it. In case you were wondering....I stopped giving out math help about fourth grade!



Katharine tried out for Narnia. They are putting it on in a one of the local theatres. It seems all her friends, well several, are trying out for the play. They did call backs on Wed. We could not go to the Thursday call back because Katharine had a showcase in LA. The showcase was from one of her acting classes. She has been going to two acting classes on Sundays. Anyhow, there was a casting director there to see the kids perform. It was also our second time up there this week. We met and are going with an agent we met on Tuesday. Very energetic and a good fit I think. Now a manager and an agent. Apparently, she will have a tag team. Agents for specific jobs. TV, movies, print and commercials. Anyhow, it all seems so real when we are up in LA with all the new or up and coming actors.

Being a mother right now seems to be mostly a taxi and cook position. I don't mind at all. I mind the gas prices, but I don't mind driving 65 miles, one way, twice this week. This is what we signed on to do. I was not happy with the schedules at school this year. Middle school and high school are off just enough for me to go up and down the hill four times a day instead of two. I figured it out though. The schools are about a mile apart. One is higher on the hill than the other. But there are only two roads that lead in and out. If the schools got out simultaneously, it would be a worse nightmare than it already is. So, I get it and I accept it. Zoe has journalism on Monday and Wednesday, so she could call for a ride any time from 2:30 til 5:30. Katharine has dance and guitar two different days as well. Lots of driving, but I am honored to be able to do it for them.



Happy Mother's Day to all you who eat that broken egg, or have to clean up the cat's hair ball or dog's mess, because your children gag at the thought. Also, to all of you who cry (without being noticed) when your child wins an award or scores a goal or brings home awesome grades because you do not want to embarrass them! And those you who fight the school boards/districts and or teachers to better the situation for years to come, long after your child has moved on. Finally, Happy Mother's Day for those you who are just there!

I hope you all have a wonderfully lovely day!

Asparagus/Prosciutto Appetizer

I am winging this recipe here. I have had these at a friend's home and I have made them a handful of times and they are simply delicious. You may omit the prosciutto if you don't do meat or you may substitute other things. I have done this with other veggies on hand, for instance, broccoli. I just eyeball the amounts but will try to be more precise. The recipe here will make about 15 appetizers, if you have 15 stalks of asparagus.

1 pack fillo dough (squares)
asparagus, cut off bottom inch
1/2 pound prosciutto
About 15 shavings of parmesan cheese
1/2 cube melted butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Melt butter for brushing on fillo dough
Roll small piece of prosciutto around asparagus stalk
Place on buttered fillo square (triangles are OK too)
Add a piece of parmesan
Asparagas will be longer than dough
Wrap dough around asparagus/prosciutto and parm
Put seam down on greased cookie (Pam) sheet
Bake for about 10 minutes in preheated oven @ 350 degrees

Done when light brown and flaky. This may be made with several variations. Use your imagination.

Geography Today

Have a go at this. It's fun!
Click here

Okay, how long has the little wheelchair been next to the word verification box in the comment section? I clicked it and it speaks what you should type! Hmm, what will they think of next?