My Mom special ordered some personalized M & M's for me for my birthday. How cute. If you click on the picture, you can see that some say, Happy Birthday and the others say, Annette and Netter. I didn't even know you could do such a thing. I got 4 bags of these little suckers....yummy. I broke down and opened one. I figure if I have a picture of them, I won't feel so bad for eating them. Thanks Mom!

I'll figure out who you are...I will!

OK, OK.... Very funny! It seems to me that the hand writing looks farmiliar. I'll find out eventually who you are. I have started a list of possible people that have their hand in this.
For the record, I do not know any Canadians named Steve or Patrick. So, you got the names of the guys I did the belly button jello shots with wrong. Nice try! I know for a fact that I never agreed nor offered a naked shore lunch with anyone. I'm not even completely sure what the hell that is....but I have an idea.
By the way, it was mailed from Newport VT...and not Canada....goofs. You made my day, I have not been taken off guard like that in quite a while. I owe you one.

My birthday weekend....

I had a busy weekend, full of fun and good friends. Saturday I went into the City early and headed to the south Street Seaport to use a gift certificate that Michelle gave me. Talk about issues. First I could not find a store that would accept the g.c...even though it for the company that owns and operates that mall. Then I found a store that would take it but there was nothing I needed in that store. When Raine and Chris met me, I was telling her about it and since she was going to purchase something there anyway, she said she would use the card....WELL, the stupid thing wouldn't clear. The clerk said that it did have $50. on it but for some reason it would not clear. After that we took the bus to Jeeb for a little Thia food...yummy. I burnt the top of my mouth on some wonderful spring rolls. I mean I REALLY burnt it...the skin was coming off....ouch. After that we walked over to an ice cream place that is very interesting...and we had some lavender honey ice cream...which was good. We took a bus uptown and then went for a stroll in Central Park. Later we walked down to Lincoln Center and saw David Blaine...then we walked farther downtown to have dinner at Pigalle. After that we strolled down to pick up our tickets for the Tribeca Film Festival...we saw Alone with here. We had a while to wait so we walked over th Penn Station and then we ended up at a the Tir na Nog Bar and Grill, nursing drinks while we waited until they would let us into the show. Oh, about the movie..it starred Tom Hank's son....and it was about stalking. So, all I am going to say is that we were laughing at inappropriate times. I really couldn't help myself...some of the lines were just pathetic and over acted. We could have stayed for a Q&A with the director...but we ditched it and Raine and Chris waited with me at Penn Station until my train was announced.
I sat on the car that looked like it contained the least amount of drunks....but I was wrong. There was a whole lot of singing going on and the 6 kids that started it were taking requests. In the end, they had half the the car singing with them. It was loud but it kept me awake. I walked into my door at 3:10 AM. Talk about tired! I had a great time though....and I wish I could remember all the funny things that were said. I just knew at the time they would make excellent topics to blog about. I think the lack of sleep just melted all those memories away. Dang it! I'm sure Raine will remember some...she has a great memory.

Sunday I spent with Katie. We did lunch, went to the mall, saw a movie and spent some good quality time together. Then when I was dropping her off, Jim and Katie sang a lovely tune from Sound of Music for me....it was very funny. I was cracking up. After that I headed home and had ice cream cake with these guys and opened my presents.

I had a great birthday, lots of laughs.....but that was the condensed version.

What an idiot.

OK, I just don't get it. Why the hell would anyone want to do stuff like this guy does. I mean, more power to him but he sure isn't going to make a cent off of me. I won't be one of the people watching his big show. I mean the only reason I got these pictures is because we (Raine and Chris) walked by on Saturday after we left Central Park on our way to dinner. The line was really long to walk right by the tank and to see him up close. I had no interest in doing that at all. This was close enough. For his sake, I hope David Blaine pulls off his stunt and doesn't have any long term health issues....but, seriously, I think he is a dumb ass.

I knew she was up to something.

So, Raine asked me to take a picture of her and Chris in Central park. I took one and it was a great picture. Then she said to take another one, but to count to three....so I did...and she pushed Chris off the tree backwards. You have to be be on your toes around Raine....but that is part of her charm. Please note that Chris wasn't hurt in the process. 

Guess what!

Today is my birthday. I just got home a little while ago...so I am to tired to tell you about my wonderful day...later.

You made diet Pepsi come out of my nose!

KIM! You really have to warn a person about an e-card like the one you sent me. I wasn't expecting what I saw and the volume was cranked on top of that! HOLY CRAP, WOMAN! Once I stopped choking because of the bubbles in my nose...I really enjoyed the card...even though those evil little furry things are on it. LOL, thanks for the excitement. If anyone wants to see what I'm talking about check it out: The e-card

Days to my Birthday...

Let the cards roll in....

A big special thanks to Sue, MiYon, Michelle, and Trisha for being senders of my first batch of birthday cards. I was so excited when I got the mail and discovered them. Oh, how I love birthdays! I also got a package from Aunt Vickie aka Aunt Kinky, queen of the Las Vegas S&M Store....lol. Anyway, she was very evil and not only wrapped the present, but she wrote all over the place that I was not allowed to open it until May 7, 2006. DANG IT! I also got the package that Mom mailed off that includes my gift from Tisha. I didn't open it because I figured that the gifts were not wrapped inside...and I didn't want to get in any trouble. It seems that I actually do have some self control. I'm not saying I enjoy putting it to work but I do have some.

Thank you so much guys! Oh, and Michelle, I'm using that gift certificate tomorrow. I'm meeting my friends at the Seaport Mall. I'm using that sucker up and then we are going on a little adventure...involving FOOD...my favorite adventures always do. lol. I'll let you know how my Sat celebration goes...then Sunday I will be with the famous Katie.....should be interesting.

BEFORE I forget....Happy Cinco de Mayo to everyone and Happy Birthday to Jean...I had fun at lunch with you guys.

Ladies and Gentleman...LOOK OUT!

Katie is home from college for the summer.... She won't be bringing Jose and Kunal along, but you can bet good money that she will be making strange faces and ruining all your pictures. She is famous for that......but I still love her.

Days to my birthday...

I've got a burr in my bonnet...

Ok, not really, I just felt like I needed to write that. Don't ask me why, because I really have no idea why I do or say half the crap that crosses my lips or in this case, my fingertips.

Just so you know, I hate cocklebur.....those little suckers hurt like hell when you get stuck by them. It's true they do. Have you ever had to pick a few dozen off of your pants or socks? Worse yet, have you ever stepped on one bare footed? OUCH!

I'm sure Cindy will remember Grandma and Grandpa Kasters house up on the hill. They used to have a big garden on the lot to the south of the house. Well, we were bare foot children...as soon as the weather was nice, the shoes were gone, unless we were going somewhere...but must of the time...I'd lose those puppies. I'm still like that today, I get home, the shoes come off and I'm running around bare footed or with socks on. Anyway, if you were brave enough to walk down by the garden....look out, there were burs everywhere and they would get you. I think I knew from experience how far you could go before being attacked. It's like I knew where the invisible line was and stayed away from it at all costs.

I've met many people in my short time on earth that are like the human form of cockleburs. LOL, did that sound like I'm an alien or something....man, I'm such a freak....any way, you get my drift. Well, there are some people that remind me of burs. They look kind of interesting, they seem to have deep mysterious features and you just want to see what they are all about. They get you when you least expect it, sticking their little barbs into you and holding on for dear life. Later, you reflect on things and you can't for the life of you, figure out why you would ever be friends with a Cocklebur. Where you crazy or what. I mean you always knew deep down that is what they were. You can't really hate them for their actions, not once you get over the initial shock of it and the pain it caused.....nope, you can't hate them because its just their nature. You just have to accept it and now that you see them for who they really are...you have to avoid that invisible boundary where they dwell.

Did that make any sense? Don't answer that....lol. I'm just in a strange mood today.

It's postcard time.

Sam promised....I made him...and he came though. He sent me a post card from their April vacation.

SON OF A....

I just missed the first 16 minutes of the second part of HOUSE. Dang it! Dang it! Dang it!

Ok...lets see if this gets us anywhere...

I just sent an email off to WPLJ.....one of the radio stations that I listen to.

They are going to have a private detective on fridays show and if you have a lost friend or relative that you are looking for you can send everything about the person that is missing and they might pick yours and look for them for you.. Sounds simple enough.

I really hope they pick my email. I'm looking for my cousins. Its really a screwed up story but I have not see Richie for over 25 years. It's a really long story. Cross your fingers for me.....lets hope I get picked and that the guy can actually find them.

Ahhhhhh, take a long sniff....Ahhhhhhhh

I love...I said I LOVE the smell of blooming lilacs. I stick my nose in them and take longs deep sniffs of its lovely scent. I'm sure I have probably sucked up a bug or two in my time but it is worth every bit of it. I think it is my all time favorite scent in the whole wide world....its glorious, simply glorious. May, I love this time of the year......Ahhhhhhhhh....sniffffffffff......Ahhhhhhhh!

Get the string out...

I just don't want you to forget who's birthday is in four days. Don't play stupid...its mine. I've only mentioned it a million times. Sheesh! Also...just so you know, Sue and her hubbie have an anniversary to celebrate in one day. Pop over and tell her Happy Anniversary.

Make sure you go check out Danielle' changed site...she seems to think I did it. What~ME?! How could I do such a thing....How?!

I heard its only going to stay that way for a few days....so sad.

Has Danielle lost her mind?!

OK, someone needs to run over to Cindy's house and see what is wrong with Danielle. I think her eyesight has gone bad...or maybe its just that she has lost her friggin mind. What are they teaching those kids in her school?! Man.....I'm at a loss for words...and that never happens. Check out her site to see what I mean.

My new friends...

We have been invaded. In all the years that I have lived here, I have never seen a single water fowl in our yard...until the other day. I was standing in the kitchen when I saw Mr and Mrs Waddle Duck taking a stroll around the yard in search of a meal. The were so darn cute. I went out side and they tried to ignore me for as long as possible...then they flew into the bay. Well, yesterday after I had taken the power washer to the pavilion and before I trimmed the grape vines, I noticed I had company again. Can you see them in the shade? They were taking a little nap. I was actually able to get a little closer before I startled them. I backed off and they tucked their little bills back into their feathers and finished their nap. Cliff told me not to feed them or we will have duck doo doo all over the back yard. Personally, I want to feed them and keep them around for a while. They are so darn cute. I just love ducks....who can resist something that waddles?

role reversal

I think this is the cutest picture ever. That must be some passive cat. He doesn't look like he is struggling. Look at that belly on that kitty. He's huge and I want him....or here. They can keep the baby...I'll take the cat. Awwww.

You tell me...

Ok, I have been looking at this warning sign and I still can't figure out what the hell its all about. I feel like something is missing. What's with the tree balls? If there were two, I would have said it was a warning not to poke a the pigs because your balls could fall off....but, three!? Something has to be missing besides a leg...unless it is just ehind the other one. Maybe the three balls represent a fence and you are not supposed to lean over the fence to touch the animals. Isn't there a law about cryptic signs? There should be. I mean, how can you avoid doing something if you are not really sure what that thing is you are supposed to avoid or maybe it is more like, how are you supposed to know what you are being warned not to do so that you can actually do it. I tell you, being a rebel is hard work.

I think I am screwed....

Seriously, this isn't good. My little cousin, Skeeter, is on a mission. Yep, and unfortunately it concerns me. You see a while back she made a comment about me needing to get married and I said something about her Uncle Andrew not being married and I don't really have to worry about getting married until he does. Basically, I was just trying to divert her attention to some other poor shlump. Well, Uncle Andrew proposed to his lovely girlfriend Mandy, over the weekend.

YEAH! CRAP!

Now Little Miss Skeeter has turned her attention back to me. Lovely! Just lovely. Do you know what she said to me? She told me I better get busy. Like finding some guy to marry you is a pretty easy thing to do. "Just find someone." That is what she said to me. I was joking around with her and said, "Well, Skeet...you better get to looking for me because I haven't had much luck." I really thought she would laugh at that but the little turd didn't skip a beat and said in a VERY serious voice, "OK, I'll find you a cute guy but then you have to fly back her to meet him." That is when I realized she wasn't joking at all. She is serious...so I started laughing and told her we'd have to see about that...plane tickets were kind of expensive. She told me to start saving because she was going to be looking for me.

I have a funny feeling that she is going to give every single man between the ages of 19 and 80 the third degree in the pursuit of a possible suitor for me. The worst part of it is that I will actually be home in July. Knowing her she will have a date all set up for me. Just what I need a 9 year old match maker. Seriously, when she makes up her mind about something she is pretty darn stubborn.

I'm totally screwed. You know she is going to get way to much encouragement in this endeavor.
If I was really thinking I would have told her that Cindy has to get married first.......HEY, I have time to call her before she goes to school this morning......hmmmmm. Sorry Cindy, I think it must be done.

Happy May Day!

I always loved May Day as a child. Not everyone celebrated this holiday. Maybe it is a Midwest thing. Anyway, I always liked making little baskets with cups and pipe cleaners or ribbon as a handle. Then you would fill up up with treats and sneak to the front door of a friends house. You would try to hang it on a door knob or sit it by the side of the door...ring the door bell...then run like crazy. If they caught you they could demand a kiss or pinch you. It was always a so much fun. Kids would wait by the door or hide in the bushes...and ambush you so you had to be on your toes. Its just one of those holidays that gives you a chance to do something nice for no other reason than its the first of May. How perfect is that.

Please note, it is 6 days to my birthday....lol...I'm shameless!

Dang it!

OK...part of me is extremely annoyed. Cliff made me pick up a power washer for him so he could clean the deck. Let's face it..it really needed it. The thing was completely green on the south side. It was time.
Since they were going to NJ on Sat...they couldn't pick up the power washer. It had to be picked up between 3 and 5, any earlier and they would have charged me for that day. They took the van so I would have had to put it in the trunk of the honda but I didn't think I could get in in there. Jim was nice enough to drive me over in his van and help me take it home and unload it. So basically I had to work on Sat...and it was my friggin day off.
Now on Sunday, I wasn't going to get up at the crack of dawn to hook everything up for Cliff. I did get up at 9 and he was at tennis. So, I went outside and hooked up all the hoses, put the tip in the washer gun and had it al ready so all I had to do is show him how to get it running, adjust the choke and everything. Well, Sam had been busy working on homework, I had taken some allergy medicine and ended up taking a nap because it makes me sleepy. Sam came down and asked me if I could show him how to run the power washer. I asked him why he was doing it and not his Dad. He said that while they were on vacation his Dad had hurt his finger while he was on a horse. He had been playing tennis and his finger was really hurting and was swollen, possibly fractured. I got it running for Sam and Nancy came down stairs...she was funny...she said, "Isn't it amazing how he always wants to do things like this but he doesn't end up doing them himself." You know its true. The last time I had to rent one of those machines...Sam and I ended up doing the power washing that time too. Yes, you see...after a while, I went out and asked Sam if he wanted some help for a little while because I knew it was kind of cold out and very windy. I figured I would give him a little break. He didn't even have half the deck done yet. When I asked him if he wanted a little break to warm up and that I would take over for a bit, he said he was quitting anyway and wasn't going to do anymore.
So, at this point...I know that the machine needs to go back tomorrow and that we can't leave the deck like that. So, I take over and within 5 minutes, I run out of gas. In the mean time, Cliff had been lying on the sofa watching TV....at some point he went to the emergency room to have his finger looked at because both Nancy and I told him to earlier. So, I couldn't even send him out to get gas. Nancy was busy working so I had to do it. I then returned and worked until it ran out of gas again. By that time, I said to hell with it. I was wet and friggin cold. The wind of the Bay was gusting and my teeth were chattering. I did manage to get the rest of the deck and stairs cleaned.
Yeah, that was my day off. Now, here is my dilemma. Really, the pavilion needs to be power washed as well as the litte balcony above the deck. The patio could use a quick going over and the patio furniture too. I don't even want to go look at the top of the bulk head and the stairs leading to it. I have a funny feeling they should be hit too. Now, this is the way I look at this....its not part of my job description. I'm not sure if I would get paid extra for doing all of this...but it would be really nice of me to do it. Part of me says to just take the stupid machine back and live with it....but the other part of me says that I am going to have to look at everything back there and it will probably drive me nuts because I would know what it could look like.

DANG IT! It looks like I will be power washing all morning. I better get a REALLY NICE birthday present from them. REALLY NICE. Oh by the way, Clif has a little brace on his finger...he's fine.

Our little Danielle has grown up...

Yes, our little Dani Lyons has a monster crush on Don Vito. I think it is the use of eye make up as facial hair that really sent her hormones into over drive. We all know how she loooooves guys in make-up. Since D.V. is living so far away, she has branched out and is trying to pick up hot guys at Bingo. Yep, her Mom told me that she was getting all dolled up in hopes that some hot guys had returned for this weeks game. I mean she was pulling out all the stops. Cindy said she put on her best jeans, the one with all the holes in them and her hooker boots that hurt her toes. She also put on a shirt that, "wasn't to long." DANIELLE! Goodness girl! I'm sure your Mom will let me know if you hooked up and missed your chance to yell BINGO!