Category Archives: nostalgia

Ten Years Later

Yesterday was an anniversary.  

It wasn’t the anniversary of my wedding, or the day I found out I was pregnant.  Nothing like that.
Instead, it was the 10-year anniversary of the day my husband quit his job and, along with two friends, created a company.   My first son was 2 1/2.  My second was only two months old. 
It was a leap of faith to do this thing, to create a new entity, to rely on ourselves, with no “real” company to support us.  It was exciting, and it was scary.
We have marveled through the years at how this idea, these notes they had on pieces of paper, became real.  In the beginning, they worked in our homes, then moved onto Kinko’s.  Their first office space was a rented conference room in a large law firm.  We can laugh at that, now.
Over the years their business grew.  They quickly rented their own office space.  They outgrew that building and found a new home.  They outgrew that one, too.  They created jobs.  They supplied services.  They even made Inc. Magazine’s list of the 500 fastest growing small companies in America.
It’s been an up-and-down ride, this creating of a business.  But today, in a time when our country’s economy is faltering and our state is hemorrhaging jobs, the company he and his friends started employs over 100 people.  The idea that families are fed because of the idea they conceived amazes me.  It hasn’t been an easy road.  I admire all of them.  I’m proud of them.  And I’m thankful that they’ve persevered.  Very thankful.  
Happy Anniversary!

A Letter to My Neat and Tidy Friend

Dear Neat and Tidy Friend,

Congratulations!  I hear you are considering adopting a puppy.  Fantastic idea!  Who doesn’t want a cute little bundle of fur take on walks, cuddle with, and love unconditionally?

The unconditional part is important, you see, because this puppy will change your life.  You know this already, right?  People have told you about the night waking and the many walks, they’ve told you about how you’ll have to re-arrange your schedule and save bundles of money for vet bills.  But what about the fur?  Have they mentioned the fur?  Or, more specifically, the shedding of the fur?

Oh, right, you’re going to keep him outside in a dog run.  Good plan.  My Aunt Elaine had that plan, too, until her sweet little Gypsy got sick.  She came in to get well and never left.  Dogs are smart that way.  People are the foolish ones.  That fancy dog run became a lawn ornament and trellis for beans or raspberries or some such thing.  It sure didn’t see Gypsy again.

And when your puppy joins the household, it won’t be long before you sit down to a lovely dinner and find a stray dog hair in your salad.  Consider yourself warned.  Disgusting, you say!  You are cleaner than that.  You will sweep and vacuum and mop away the evidence.  Yeah, okay, good luck with that.

My favorite part, really, is how dogs can sense who loves them and who would really rather see them penned up on a farm somewhere far, far away. One day, your stylish friend will show up dressed in her sleekest black pants, strutting her trim stuff all over the place.  And your super-hairy, hugely-shedding yellow Labrador will be right there to greet her. In a fine example of the skills dogs have honed through the years, he will sense that she doesn’t want a single strand of that nasty dog hair anywhere near her swanky self.  He will bound up to her, tongue hanging, tail wagging, hair flying everywhere, just to show her who’s in charge.

Dogs are the smart ones, I’m telling you.

Have fun with your new puppy.

With much love,

From  your friend with the extremely friendly, unbelievably hairy 13-year old Labrador

This post was written for Parent Bloggers Network’s blog blast.  It’s sponsored this week by SC Johnson, who’s introducing the Pledge Fabric Sweeper for Pet Hair.  And as any dog owner will attest, this is an idea who’s time has come!


SC Johnson to introduce the Pledge™ Fabric Sweeper for Pet Hair.

A Sampling: Phelps, Guitar Hero, Madonna, Air Supply, and L’il Wayne

That title should get a few hits, huh?

Speaking of hits, this morning I was checking in with some bloggy friends, and I laughed out loud when I read Anne’s post “Don’t Phelps that Bong.”  I found her 3rd point about journalists particularly amusing, the best being the one who said Phelps was caught “taking tokers from a bonger.”  I’m still laughing.  Did someone really say that?  I don’t care how busy you are.  It’s worth a short click over for a good laugh.

Then I popped over to SusieJ‘s and read about how Guitar Hero has built a musical bridge between Susie and her teenage son.  Since just last year we suffered more than a bit of angst over our oldest son’s intense desire to fit in and download all of the songs his friends were downloading, I found this compelling.  Guitar Hero can help?  Perhaps we should relent.  I’ll take Fleetwood Mac over L’il Wayne any day of the week.
SusieJ mentioned Love Me Two Times by The Doors, so of course I watched the YouTube link.  Then I had to listen to this one, for really old times sake.  Well, you know what happened next, right?  I had stumbled onto Nostalgia Lane and I couldn’t leave.  I just kept clicking.  Madonna, The Eagles, and Tears for Fears all reared their heads.  I’m not saying for sure, but Air Supply and Journey may have made a quick appearance too.  Suddenly it was 1985 and man, I was young.
I even rediscovered Men at Work and their vegemete sandwich.  And hey, do you remember this one?
I had totally forgotten, but there it is, preserved better than I’ll ever be.  No wonder my dad hated MTV.  Between these guys and Madonna’s lingerie, I’m surprised we didn’t toss the TV and move to the woods.
It wasn’t all wasted time, though.  Ever efficient, I was able to learn something new during my foray into the past. Until today, I thought you could find just about anything, anything I tell you, on YouTube.  But apparently, Prince (of course I tried to find Purple Rain!) and his record label have a ban on posting his music on YouTube.  You can find a few soundless videos, but really, who wants to look at that?  It’s all about the listening, Prince.  No one wants to watch your 1984 writhing.  Okay, lots of people probably do, but I’m not one of them.
And then, Prince-deprivation notwithstanding, I began to come up for air. I surfaced from the depths of YouTube and my long ago musical past, and realized that I had doctor’s appointments to make, articles to write, a Valentine’s party to plan, a birthday cake to bake, and that none of my children have clean clothes.  So it’s back to 2009, where I am less young but oh, so busy.  And if I need a flashback, there are always YouTube and Guitar Hero to help me out.
Happy Thursday, all!  
If  you want to join me in wasting some time, enjoy these blasts from the past, courtesy of YouTube: