L is for Look Alike's, Quest For Spotting The Rich And Famous

So my husband is one of those people who always thinks someone looks like someone else.  He will be watching a commercial and from two rooms away will call me. "Mary Ann is this Julia Roberts?" I glance at the TV and see a woman who looks nothing like Julia Roberts and why would he think that she would be in a commercial calming that she is less embarrassed about being incontinent since using Depends.

He could be watching a ballgame and the camera will pan the bleachers. "Mary Ann quick come here. look who's at the game isn't that Nelson Mandela?"  Well since he was in a hospital about million miles away yesterday I am thinking that he would not be at a Met game in Queens NY.

 We will be in a store and he will say, I just saw a guy who looks like Stephan King.  He will drag me up and down the aisle stalking the poor guy so I can see if in fact by some crazy chance it is Stephan King.  When we finally find him, to me, he looked more like Larry King and nothing like Stephan.

So in 2009 the movie Place Beyond The Pines was being filmed in upstate NY a few miles from where I live.
On the news every night they talked about star sighting.  So this particular day we had gone to an early appointment  and my husband wanted to get some breakfast at Denny's.  As we were being seated I saw a group of people to my left but paid little attention to who they were.  I sat in the booth with my back to them.  My husband sat facing the group.  Throughout the meal my husband kept glancing over at the group and saying  "one of those guys over there looks familiar", I paid no attention and told him to stop starring and thought OH NO HERE WE GO AGAIN..  I never even made and attempt to turn around.  After the large group left the waitress came over and asked if we got to see him?  Him, whose him???  Well Ray Liotta was sitting right over there she said.  So for once my husband did see the real deal but for whatever reason he could not place him.  OMG  Who would think that Ray Liotta would be eating breakfast at Denny's on a weekday.


So I guess from now on when my husband says he just saw Pamela Sue Anderson in aisle 6 at the grocery store it just might be her but then again, hmmmmm probably not.

Mary Ann

K is The Story Of Crazy Kitty

Crazy Kitty the cat came to us when she was 4 years old, she had been abandoned by her owner. She had never been sprayed and she had a horrible case of ear mites.  I had her fixed and got her healthy.  My intent was to find her a home since I already had two cats.  I was very lucky to find someone who was willing to take her and I breathed a sigh of relief as I drove away Kitty free that day.  It was short lived because 24 hours later they wanted her out of their house ASAP.  Apparently Kitty had bitten her new owners and would not come out from under the bed.  Poor Kitty was a bit of an odd ball and I was not sure if I would be able to find her another home, so I kept her.  YIKES, what was I thinking?

For the first 5 years with us, Crazy Kitty lived in a room.  No matter what I would do she would not leave that room.  A number of times I would carry her out to other places in the house and she would end up being so scared that she would throw up or pee on me. Not pretty!  She ate, slept, and pooped all in the same room.  She would come as far as the door and then would run back to the safety of her fleece bed.

Then one day out of the blue Crazy Kitty just came out of the room into the kitchen.  I was shocked and excited thinking she was finally coming around,  but no matter what I did she would only go as far as the kitchen.  So for another few years Kitty slept in a corner on a kitchen chair on her fleece bed until one day when I wanted to paint the kitchen,  I  moved her chair and bed into the living room.  She decided she liked the living room so she started sleeping on a chair in the living room on her fleece bed.

Crazy Kitty is now 13 and has lived with us for 9 years. Kitty's world had expanded over time and she was now going from living room to kitchen to her old room and back but she still would not venture beyond those few rooms.  Well 6 months ago I woke up in the middle of the night and found Kitty laying next to me sharing my pillow. Crazy Kitty had decided it was time to move from the living room to our upstairs bedroom and since it took her 9 years to get there she must have been exhausted and needed a little nap.  Kitty sleeps with me every night now thankfully not on my pillow but curled up next to me.

Poor Crazy Kitty's one ear is deformed from her untreated ear mites.

Life with Kitty has had its ups and down and at this point I am not sure who is crazier me or her.

Mary Ann

J is for Johnny The Anti-Santa

The Christmas my daughter was a year old, my brother-in-law Johnny decided he wanted to play Santa.  I was not that keen on the idea since I had taken my daughter to see Santa at the mall the week before and she would not go anywhere near him. She was petrified just at sight of him.  Johnny said he had already bought the Santa suit and really wanted to start a yearly tradition.  He got my mother on board and between the two of them they wore me down, so I reluctantly agreed.

Christmas morning, early, my daughter and I were sitting under the tree when we heard the first sounds of Santa.  It started with the jingling of bells, followed with lots of HO HO HO's and then an indescribable sound like glass cracking.  The glass cracking sound got louder as it got closer and the HO HO HO's and the bells seemed to fade into the background.  Johnny rounded the corner into the living room covered from head to toe wearing something that looked like a giant red garbage bag.  My daughter screamed in horror at the sight of this loud, plastic Santa, that had just invaded the room.  He sat down lowering her onto his lap. As her tiny body clashed with his plastic garbage bag body the glass breaking sound loudly erupted,  she screamed louder wanting no part of him.  Needless to say, the Christmas tradition of the Red Plastic Bag Santa ended that day.

                                      

I is for Married To An Insomniac

I am person who loves to sleep.  I was the odd child who would ask their parents if they could go to bed.  Weird!  So how lucky is it that a sleeper like myself would marry an insomniac?  Very unlucky I would say.  I first learned of Insomniac Ken on our honeymoon.  We were stuck in a small space and he would sit up and watch TV for hours in the middle of the night.  I was in first married, starry eyed love, so I was not bothered at all with his pacing and grumbling all night long.

With that said it makes sense that Insomniac Ken would father, Insomniac Son.   Insomniac Son would keep me up for hours each night for years.  Funny that Insomniac Ken found deep sleep during those years.  Never waking up while Insomniac Son had me walking the floor every night.  To make matters worse I am an early riser so when Insomniac Ken finally falls asleep at 3:00 AM he is not interested in getting started with his day until hours after I do.

Well years have passed and Insomniac Son has married and moved on to stay up all night in his own house.  I unfortunately am still stuck with Insomniac Ken who continues to walk the hallways nightly grumbling, humming, and turning on lights.  Most nights I can sleep through it but some nights his insomniac ramblings keep me up.  And so that's how life with an insomniac goes.

Old photo of Insomniac Ken and Insomniac Son getting a few Zzz's in, probably so they could stay up all night.

Mary Ann

H is for Hotel, Haven or Pitri Dish of Germs?

I  admit it I AM A HOTEL GERMAPHOBE.

I leave for vacation happy to be on my way.  Look forward to trying new things, visiting new places and eating good food.  All is good until I enter the hotel room.  My body seizes up, I feel like I cannot breath and I get light headed.  Visually the room looks perfectly fine.  Curtains and bedding match and a nice big TV sitting on dust free furniture. The perfectly vacuumed rug has no stains  Beautiful coordinating chair with an ottoman.  Bathroom shiny and bright.  One would think that I would be OK and could relax but its what lurks behind the picture perfect room that scares the heck out of me.

In my mind I look at the perfect bedding and think about strangers doing who know what on it.  I see that nice comfy chair that may have been sat on by someones big hairy bare butt.  YIKES!!! my toes are curling just thinking about it.  I look down and see the hidden germs in the carpet.  The bathroom is the worst for me
even though the towels look fresh and clean to the naked eye, there is no amount of bleach that can wash away the hundreds of other people who have used them.

So I revere all the people who have come before me who can sit on the bedding with abandonment or friends who can go on vacation and stay at below par accommodations and not care about the sticky substance on the curtains

I will continue to work on my hotel phobia and hopeful, one day, I too, can embrace life among the germs of a hotel room.

Mary Ann

G is for Growing Up After Abuse

Today I am departing from my usually light banter and writing about my friend Riley.  Riley was born a beautiful, perfectly healthy, baby girl.  I worked with her dad Brad and very often he would bring Riley into the office. I always looked forward to her visits. She was such a special baby with tons of personality always very social and smiled very easily.  At two she was so used to coming by for visits she would prance around without any trepidation.  She was talking up a storm by then and would make me smile with her cute little baby conversations.

Riley prior to March 27, 2007

On March 27, 2007 I remember being told that Brad had to leave because he had gotten a call that Riley had been found in her crib by her daycare provider, unresponsive. She was being air lifted to Albany Medical Center.  OMG I was sick thinking of Brad and his wife Lisa and Riley, poor Riley what had happened?  As the days progressed the pieces to what happened to Riley were exposed.  Riley had been assaulted by her daycare provider.  The very person that Lisa and Brad had left Riley with to protect her each day from harm had turned on Riley in a fit of rage.  Riley's condition was serious she had suffered a traumatic brain injury at the hands of this monster.

Riley was not expected to survive even though she made it through that first surgery.  If she survived at all she would never, ever be the same.  Riley fought hard to stay alive with  Brad and Lisa at her side day and night.  They prayed for her survival no matter what, they just wanted their sweet Riley to live.

Riley did survive, but life for Brad, Lisa and Riley has changed forever.  Since that horrific day in 2007 Riley has not walked, fed herself or sat up without assistance.  She is legally blind and takes daily doses of seizure medicine.  Riley is a fighter and is making progress with her eating and potty training and just the other day Lisa Brad and Riley celebrated her taking a few steps on the treadmill.   Riley has endured more hardships during her short time on earth then most people endure in their entire life but through it all  her big bright happy smile lights up a room and touches all that come in contact with her.

Riley is growing by leaps and bonds so transporting her and her wheelchair in a traditional vehicle gets harder and harder each day.  As part of National Mobility Awareness Month, Riley has been entered into a contest to get her a van that would be wheelchair accessible but she needs votes.

I am hoping that all my fellow A to Z challenge bloggers will take time each day to vote and forward this to anyone and everyone that you are in contact with so that  Riley and her family can get the van that will help make their lives just a little bit easier.

Get Riley a Van

click here

http://www.mobilityawarenessmonth.com/entrant/riley-gilbert-schenectady-ny/

Please take a few minutes to vote and play it forward to help Riley.  Thank you

Mary Ann

F is for Fig Newtons

For my F word  Fig Newton kept popping into my head so why not, I went with it.

The Fig Newton was invented in 1891 and have been Nabisco's third best selling product with sales of more then a billion bars a year. .WOW!!!!  Since their invention there have been many additions to the product line besides the popular fig variety, including strawberry, raspberry and mixed fruit.  The newest Newton products are the Newton Fruit Crisp and Newton Thins.  There is even a National Fig Newton Day on Jan. 16.  WHO KNEW!!!!!!!

So who the heck is eating all those Fig Newtons.  I can honestly say that I have not bought a Fig Newton since hmmm......NEVER.   I think back at all my millions of grocery trips and I can't even remember seeing one box of Fig Newtons in anybody's cart.  I see plenty of Chips Ahoy's, Oreo's, and even a few Lorna Doone's but never one Fig Newton in sight.

I think my dislike of a Fig Newton began back in my childhood.  My mom loved to bake so she rarely bought any boxed cookies except for Fig Newtons. When she had no time to make us her delectable chocolate chip or melt in your mouth butter cookies we were offered a Fig Newton.  What a let down.  It was either a Fig Newton or nothing.

OK so it must be the a nutritional value of a Fig Newton that draw people in.

Two Fig Newtons serving size is 110 calories, dietary fiber of 1.0 and fat of 2.0.

Three Chips Ahoys serving size is 160 calories, dietary fiber of 0.7 and fat of 8.0.

Per serving Chips Ahoy is higher but your getting one more cookie.

If you break it down to eating only two, better tasting, Chips Ahoy's its only 106 calories and fat content is under 5.0.  Even with the additional fat content, hands down I would always pick a Chips Ahoy over a Fig Newton.

Bye By Hydrox

So when cookies such as the Hydrox (like an Oreo) and Marshmallo Sandwich cookies (Mallows) have gone to the big cookie heaven in the sky, the Fig Newtons remain a favorite, to whom I do not know.

 Any Fig Newton lovers out there?

Mary Ann