Thursday Thirteen photos from my weekend

Wordless Wednesday: At winter's end

Blue hope

This was the sky this weekend.  It is the most perfect shade of cloudless blue imaginable.  To me, this is a sure sign of hope at the end of months of gray.  Just like when the tulips break through the ground, robins fly about happily or I hear a crack of the bat on opening day.  This blue gives me hope, despite the prediction for fog and rain the rest of the week.  It gives me hope for spring.  Hope for sunshine on my face.  Hope for happier days.

Happy routines

Monday mornings are filled with routines. Get up, make breakfast, listen to C-man grumble about eating his "HORRIBLE" omega vitamin, sing a funny version of Postman Pat's theme song (usually involves Pat eating Jess the cat), get dressed, brush teeth, grumble about getting all the winter gear on, and go wait for the bus. And then the bus turns down the street, at which point C-man shouts, "BUS!" and turns to hug me and then hug his dad before racing out to the bus with its door open and waiting.

In spite of all the grumbling and whining that happens every morning, I wouldn't change it for the world. Because I don't think we have those many days left of him being willing to hug us in front of his classmates. So as long as we've got them, I'm going to be happy about them.

A boy, his dog, and a beautiful day

Sometimes it smacks me upside the head that my life, in spite of its imperfections, is still pretty darned beautiful.

Underage brewing

Thanks to Middle Sis and Family for the super fun birthday rootbeer kit. The little one and big one went to town on it this morning. He can hardly wait the 3 days for it to be ready. And of course, they're also doing an experiment in another bottle. Don't ask. All I know is it involves a beer bottle and an inflating orange balloon, much to the thrill of C-man. We always said we'd have the only 5 year old teaching other kids how to brew at show n tell.

Wanderlust

I think in a previous life, I was a world explorer. Because there's something about traveling the world, learning new things, meeting new people, drinking new beer or wine, eating new food, and moving on to the next adventure that makes me so incredibly happy that just thinking about it gives me shivers. And when I'm home for too long, it's like a nagging itch inside of me; a little whisper saying things like, "Indian saris and Thai water taxis and Egyptian camel rides and Tanzanian spices and Antartic whales and Greek Island sailboating and Patagonian gauchos and standing in Europe and Asia at the same time, and mmmm... New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc." I love the stories we get to live, and laugh about so long after... (frickin' noisy ibis!) Maybe it's the weather turning spring-like. Maybe it's that we've been sick and are finally turning the corner toward health. Maybe it's the work bonuses burning a hole in my pocket with all the possibilities it could bring. Or maybe I just need to become a travel writer. Because I'm never happier than when we're making new discoveries, seeing things firsthand, or just getting a different perspective on what the world has to offer.

Unexpected beauty

One of the many reasons I love my camera so much is that it allows me to find beauty in unexpected spots. I mean, here is this ramshackled ice shanty out on the Wissota ice with its tacked on plywood for extra charm. The red against the white was kind of fun to play with visually, so I started shooting. I was totally engrossed in my camera and its settings and depth of field to try to get the shot just right when a car drove up right next to me. (I'm sure while wondering, "What in the hell is she doing taking pictures of our ice shack?") But out of the car came a really nice man with his young, probably 3 year old, son and all their fishing gear. The little boy was buzzing he was so excited, and proceeded to tell me all about what big fish ("Muskies and coppies and walleye and bwugill" he was going to catch that day. And to him, this little red shanty was the most beautiful thing in the world. And for that moment, it was to me too.

Springy

The sunshine changes my disposition entirely. And it's a good thing, because after a mentally-difficult winter, I'd like to feel a little hopeful. Because some days, hope is all we've got.

De-flabbifying

Dear March,

I've been incredibly stupid. I've given in to those precious little Girl Scouts and their uber-delicious cookies. I've taken an extra helping of delicious white flour pasta when I was already full. I've ordered the gooey-ooey irresistible giant cran-orange pumpkin muffin with my morning coffee. I've been on a cocktails of drugs that make me starving all the time, and have let those feelings rule me. And I've used winter as my excuse to not exercise.

And that leaves me incredibly ashamed, because I now have 10 pounds to lose. 10.Freaking.Pounds. I mean, really, what WAS I doing?

So March, you're going to be my bitch. I am going to kick you where it hurts. All 10 pounds of it. Consider yourself warned.

Jennifer

Happiness in spun sugar

Is there anything sweeter after a day of hauling wood than burning it with some marshmallows?

A wintry Chi Falls weekend

Yeah, that apology seems pretty genuine.

Because I was getting nowhere, the other day I sent an email to American TV and Appliance the complaining about the service response we've received to our ripped couch debacle. This was my message: In early December, I purchased a couch. We were told that it would be up to a 3 month waiting period because we were gettinga color that wasn't on the sales floor. So we waited. Finally, after 3 months, it was delivered. The couch came, it was set down in my living room, and the two delivery men raced out of the house. Before they were even out of the driveway I moved a precariously perched throw pillow that was placed in a weird spot, only to notice a 1" x 1" L-shaped rip in the middle of the back-right couch cushion. I immediately called your office, understanding that sometimes these things happen, and companies fix them. I quickly learned this was not to be the case. I was informed that I'd have to take another day off work at the day and time convenient of a service tech who would have to come and look at it or I'd be charged a restocking fee. (Remember, this was for a 5-minute old couch delivered ripped). When I said that was unacceptable, that I couldn't take yet another day off work for this, I was told someone would call me back the next day to see what could be done. No one called. 3 days later, I received an automated message, informing me that a service tech would be at my house on Monday between the hours of 8 - 5. I called again to cancel the appointment and follow-up on the phone calls I'd never received. I was told someone would call me the following day. I got another automated message confirming an appointment I hadn't made. A real person never called. So on the second day, I called again, with more excuses and promises of a call-back. Finally, later that day, I received a call from a technician who told me he'd order another cushion, but it would be quite a while before it came in. A week later, I receive a voice mail on my home phone informing me that the cushion would be in on March 5th and I'd have to take another day off work to let the tech in to repair it. And to this, I have to honestly ask, "Are you kidding me?" I paid for a couch that I then waited 3 months for, to have it delivered ripped, to then turn around and have to wait yet another month for the cushion to come in so I can take a day off work for it to be repaired? And to even get to that point, it took countless phone calls and days of badgering people who had promised to get back to me and never did. This has been the worst customer service experience I've had in my life. I've received empty promises, unreturned phone calls, and not a single "I'm sorry" in the entire process. To say that I'm disgusted by the service I've received would be an understatement. The only good part is that after this, I'll never deal with it again. In the meantime, I'll continue to share my story with anyone who will listen in the hopes of preventing another mishap with your company. *************

And the response via email:

Mrs. Rysewyk,

I am in receipt of your email from earlier this afternoon describing yourrecent delivery issues. Please accept this email as a response to your concerns.

I would like to start by offering my sincerest apologies for any inconvenience this situation may have caused you. It is certainly never our intention to inconvenience our customers, and I apologize if this situation has caused you to be frustrated.

I'm assuming you were initially pleased with your furniture purchase and can only imagine the disappointment you must have felt in noticing the damage to your product. Although our delivery and warehouse crews attempt to avoid damage by carefully prepping and handling the products, sometimes despite their best efforts, damage does occur.

Mrs. Rysewyk, although I understand your frustration with the damage to your product, as stipulated under the terms of American's Special Order Agreement(an agreement you signed prior to the ordering of these products):

"Special Order product in need of repair due to damage or defect will be repaired. Products will be replaced only if they cannot be repaired as determined by American."

With the above-information in mind, we believe that we are correctly responding to your furniture concerns in accordance with the Special OrderAgreement. Our records indicate that the necessary part for repair has beenordered, with an estimated arrival date of March 5th. In addition to this information, I have requested that our service center look into the possibility of expediting the part order with the manufacturer. However, as the part is being shipped from the manufacturer, we are subject to their production and shipping schedule, and expediting the order may not be a possibility. Rest assured that you will be contacted promptly with the results of our request. After how many of my phone calls this time?

Again, I sincerely the more you say sincerely, the less apt I am to believe you apologize for any inconvenience this situation may havecaused you. If you have any further questions, comments or concerns, or wish to discuss the matter further, I can be reached at (608) 275-7474 (608) 275-7474 or via email at

Rachel.Willadsen@americantv.com.

Sincerely,

Rachel Willadsen

Corporate Consumer Relations

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I don't know what's the worst: that she referred to me as "Mrs", that she essentially did nothing but quote their policy to me, that there's absolutely no mention of the lack of response I got over and over again or that their policies are ridiculous enough to set your hair on fire, or that I still had to pay the $50 delivery fee!

So now I do the one little thing I can do, and that's tell everyone I know. So thank you for reading. And feel absolutely free to share the my experience with your friends, either via word of mouth or a link to this post. Because American TV and Appliance is about the most unfriendly customer service I've ever experienced, and if I can prevent one more person from going there, then it would soften the blow just a little.

Morning views

I have to say that waking up with this sweet red-cheeked face next to me, just staring at me, waiting with a stifled giggle for me to wake up, just might be the sweetest thing ever. And yes, my camera was by my bed stand. Deal with it.

Thank you

C-man came home last night wanting to write a thank you note to Case (K5), because he stood up for him when Mary Grace (1st grade) was teasing him at the lunch table. It made me pretty happy to see him wanting to let someone else know how important their actions were to him. But it also made me think that there are people in my life that I haven't thanked recently.

Who haven't you thanked or recognized today? Let's go tell them.

The note says: Thank you Case for being nice to me at lunch. He wanted it to then say: when Mary Grace was taunting me, but I told him we probably didn't need to include that part.

When I grow up

And to think all I could come up with at that age was "nurse".

Doesn't it mean Saint Diego?

San Diego! So it's official. After a solid week of listening to the short one cry, "I really, really, really want to see Shamu too!" we're heading to San Diego over Easter as his birthday present. It's one of the many perks of being an only child, I guess. Now the trick is to keep it a secret for a whole month until his birthday!

Credit earned where credit is due

So my husband was named one of Milwaukee's Forty Under 40 this year. It's a pretty cool thing, and I'm quite proud of him. Even if he's all "meh, it's a free dinner". Anyhow, it's well deserved, and I think it's super cool, and wanted to brag a little. And on a totally unrelated note, here's a shot I like of something green I saw last week.

My weekend to-do list

Apparently someone in our house who is learning to write has a definite opinion about getting his hair cut this weekend.

Grasping

But he that dares not grasp the thorn Should never crave the rose. ~Bronte

Love day

What's in a blog

I've had this blog for a few years now. And it has been a fun place to write about little pieces of my life, leave some funny anecdotes, and share some of my creativity. After all, I really enjoy writing and sharing my photos. And an unintended consequence has been that I've met some really interesting, fun people with whom I have a lot in common. But in spite of all that, lately it's become more of a downer for me than anything.

For some reason, the things I post have become fodder for those closest to me to critique or criticize. Or worse, it has been a way for friends or family to check in on me, despite never contacting me any other way. And why would they? I mean, after all, they already know ALL there is to know about my life, right? And that, I just find totally depressing.

Admittedly, I've been dealing with a lot of heavy shit lately. Things that I would never put in this blog. One, because it's not what I want my blog to be about. But also, because right now it's just too much for me to honestly put myself out there just to get smacked alongside the head by those who are supposed to be my support system.

So I'm going on hiatus. Consider it a blog vacation. I don't know when I'll be back. Hell, maybe tomorrow after I get a decent night's sleep and this low front passes. But until then, you can find me around my usual hangouts.

Who can resist this little gem?

Happy Monday: The TV was hung on the chimney with care

This weekend we went to town on the living room. The couch is in position, the shelves and books dusted (holy balls, where did all THAT come from?), and most importantly, the TV is hung on the chimney, thereby realizing one of my dreams for 2010. (I really dream big, don't I?) It was a way bigger project than either of us had expected. But we now have a flat screen high-def TV with a high-def DVD player, on rabbit ears. Pure happiness. Swa-eet! (And yes, we'll get the cords tied up. One thing at at time) And C-man is in heaven, because now he has his own room set up with all his toys, a love seat and his own TV, DVD, and game system. What more could an almost 5 year old dream for?

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In ripped couch news, I finally got a call from the repair tech today. I emailed him the photos of the offense. He's ordering me a new cushion. And while it'll take some time to get a new one, at least I didn't have to take a day off work for them to tell me that! Nonetheless, I'm crossing American off my list. This service and lack of a discount for my pain and suffering sucks.

Holy productivity!

We've been painting and shopping and furniture rearranging until watching Karate Kid X actually looked good. But the good news is the livingroom is mostly set, with the TV on the wall and the (ripped) couch in place. Cman has his own area now with a TV and toys. We just have to get rid of the old couch now and figure out what to do with all these books. Then it's back full-time on the bathroom until it's finished. After that, it's kitchentime.

Now I'm going to watch the Colts win with a box of Kleenex while I try to endure my allergies that have gone into high gear from having dusted so much today. Sad, but true. Thank God the cleaners are here on Wednesday.

Downhill

Some weeks I'm on my game. And then other weeks are just a slippery downhill slope from the minute they start. The latter was most definitely was this week for me. But, as EB White said: Genius is more often found in a cracked pot than a whole one.

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PS Happy 16th anniversary!

Random Thursday Thirteen

1. I went to the rheumatologist on Tuesday. I still have arthritis and if it is left untreated will cause me to get heart disease.
2. If I do "treat" it, those drugs will most likely give me cancer.
3. My rheumatologist asked me why I was not smiling and seemed so depressed.
4. If I didn't hurt so much, I would have slapped him. Hard.
5. I once went to a therapist about all this crap because somehow I figured that's what I was supposed to do to make it all better.
6. I stopped going after visit #3 when he told me I needed to go on an antidepressant, which was a typical need for Tauruses. Yes, as in, my zodiac sign because I was born in May was determining my mental health and pharmacological needs.
7. I now firmly believe most therapists are much crazier than I am, which is why they go into the profession in the first place.
8. I've decided to use knitting in front of my SAD light as my therapy instead.
9. This past weekend I finally finished knitting the front of my sweater in the entrelac pattern I'd just learned how to do.
10. The dimensions were supposed to be 19" x 23".
11. Even though I cast on EXACTLY to the pattern with the RIGHT YARN it called for, mine came out 34" x 23". It could be a front of a dress. Or as Beerman pointed out, a sweater for him.
12. I swore. A lot. Because there's no fixing it.
13. I'm starting the front over again, but with my own dimensions to make it 19" x 23". It should go much quicker this time.

My couch is here

After too much money and 3 months of waiting, last night, my couch FINALLY got delivered. And I love my red cushions.About 5 minutes after the ridiculously quick "goodbye" as the 2 delivery guys ran out the door, and C-man got on the couch, dislodging one of the red pillows they'd perfectly placed, I noticed this. Seriously, are you catching that 1"x1" L-shaped rip right in the middle of the couch cushion that looks suspiciously like where a thumb would go when carrying it in and the delivery guy deliberately covered up and got the eff out of dodge in about 3 seconds flat?!? So I called up American TV and Appliance. The woman was calm and courteous, but informed me that they'd have to send someone out to see if it could be repaired or I'D BE CHARGED A RESTOCKING FEE! And then it got even BETTER. The only time they could send someone out to do this would be on a week day from 8 - 5. I told her that was outrageous, since I wasn't taking a day off work so they could fix their screw-up. After a serious back and forth where I almost threw the phone through the window at least twice, she said she'd call me back.

About 10 minutes later, the sales guy called me back, was super apologetic, and said they'd call today because they needed to fix it without me driving 40 minutes from work to let them look at something they delivered damaged. So we'll see how this goes. There's no way they're going to be able to repair this. And if I have to wait another 3 months for the right, unripped couch, I might lose it. But service is king, so I'm reserving official and final judgment on them until I see how this gets resolved.

In the meantime, I'll be over here, muttering and swearing to myself with a pen poised to cross American off my list.

Deep cleansing breaths

It started snowing overnight. That really nice, giant flake, fluffy kind of snow. The kind that silences everything, all the car noise and sirens and clatter of the world, and leaves behind all the good things, like chirping birds and a woodpecker hammering away at the tree.So Harry and I went to the park first thing before anyone else had messed it up with tracks.We gave the bunnies a pass on messing with our pristine snow. (The squirrels were a different matter entirely; Harry was not all all forgiving of them.) I have a rheumatologist appointment later today, and I never like what I hear, even though I know what it's going to be. So it was a real blessing to be able to head out into the snow this morning and have a rare moment of silence to myself.

Ahhh...

Happiness Monday: Hell might have just frozen over

Every marriage has its ups and downs. Every marriage has a sticking point - that one thing that IF it gets discussed, starts a fight or hurts feelings. And sometimes it doesn't get discussed at all. And sometimes, quite unfortunately, it doesn't come out until divorce court. If you're sitting there right now thinking, "Not me," I'm going to have to ask you to have a frank conversation with your spouse. Because there's ALWAYS something.

For example, we have our master bathroom. The room that has been left in some state of disrepair/remodel for 5 years. Yes, not a typo. 5.Friggen.Years. We make progress, then we disagree, and then we, quite literally, just shut the door. Yes, Oprah, I know we haven't been fighting just about the bathroom. There's been a lot of pride involved. Yet the door remained shut.

So what does this have to do with Happiness Monday? That's because this past week, the door opened. Because we're both doing a little lot of pride swallowing, and we're going to get this done, even if it's not the exact way either of us want it. (Now isn't that a nice metaphor for the difficulties in marriage?)

So the tile and walls are painted. The shower is caulked. (I even had a glorious inaugural shower in it last night.) And while the trim still needs a second coat, the ceiling needs new lights, and we need a new toilet seat, (not to mention window treatment and wall stuff) the fact that there is some serious tangible progress says something pretty important.

So if you felt the earth move this weekend, that wasn't an earthquake, it was hell freezing over. Because I swear, it WILL be complete by the end of February.

Immobility

My fingers are so swollen, I don't think I can get my wedding ring off. My back audibly cracks and creaks when I turn my head. And forget about sleep. The pain is so depressing, because even crying hurts. Although there's been no shortage of that in the last 48 hours. I had a massage last night. It helped for a couple of hours.

To say I'm utterly miserable and depressed would be an understatement.

The bright spot in my day is that I did manage to get out with the family for a slow beach walk.

Moving Story

So it was an incredibly sappy story. The bench in he picture is dedicated in memory of a baby who died last year. The family dedicated the bench to her, and they recently had a new baby. So the picture of the day today is the mother and new little boy on the bench.

If that's not enough to make you cry, I don't know what is. The link to see it is up here.

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I got an email yesterday from the Morning Blend producer:

I encourage you to watch The Morning Blend on Friday. Your picture submission deeply moved one of our viewers and we’re going to talk about it on the show tomorrow.

So if you're around, watch this morning. I don't know what the story is, so it might suck, but hey - they're showing my photo twice!

P.S. What do you think that says for my chances of winning photo of the month now?

Thirteen more random Thursday Things

1. One of my photos was selected to be Photo of the Day and is being shown on the Morning Blend, a local morning TV show, today.
2. 2 years ago I won the same contest from the same show with a picture of C-man catching a snowflake on his tongue.
3. That picture now hangs in front of a giant hole in the livingroom drywall that is leftover from trying to find the studs for the roofing project, that I'm told can't really be fixed without taking down all the window trim.
4. Last night Beerman informed me that it'd be good if I won again, because then we'd be able to cover up the hole entirely. You'd think we were destitute the way we live sometimes.
5. The word of the day from wordsmith is heliotropy. It means worshipping the sun.
6. I'd consider converting to heliotropism if I ever saw the sun.
7. Instead, I'll keep taking my 2000 IUs of D3 and biting everyone's heads off from this seasonal depression I have.
8. At a silly icebreaker at work this week, we had to mention something unique about us. For lack of something better to share in a work setting, I said I speak Portuguese. I've had 2 people approach me since who are also fluent speakers. Who knew?
9. I have my newly won TV in the bedroom, hooked up to a computer so I can watch all the View Instantly options from Netflix, and I am in love with it.
10. I've been watching a lot of teeny bopper movies that Beerman would NEVER watch with me, but I secretly love.
11. Our couch that we ordered in early December is finally in.
12. It can't get delivered until Tuesday. Do they really have those many freaking deliveries?
13. I really like ravioli and I'm craving it desperately.

More shameless self-promotion

My shot of C-man walking by the lake is going to be featured on The Morning Blend TV show tomorrow. If you're local, watch for it. If not, or you work for a living, you should be able to check it out later in the day at http://www.themorningblend.com

Politically minded

A dog's life

Today is our dog Harry's 8th birthday. The dog who was 49 pounds, most of it disgustingly dirty softball-sized mats of hair when we picked him up as a worm-infested, heavily abused, man-fearing dog from a tiny, ratty shelter in Watertown, South Dakota 7 years ago. On Day 1, he fell in our pool. Just walked right into it. On Day 2, he got shaved down to nothing to get rid of the gross. On Day 3, we found out he had a heart problem, which led to an expensive doggie cardiologist visit to find out he has a hole in his heart and an enlarged valve, but just like Monty Burns, it's such a precarious position of homeostasis, that it works for him. Oh yeah, and they told us he'd only live to about 5 as a result.

Happy 8th birthday, my hairy 75 pound dog of love. You just keep breaking the rules, buddy. Because I've never met a sweeter, more lovable ball of hair in all my life.

Happily Writing

It's so much fun to see C-man learn how to write. And how he practices over and over and over on his doodle and paper and cardboard and anything he can find. And answering the endless "How do you spell..." questions never gets old. Even when it's to spell something totally bizarre. It makes my heart happy every single time.