I have now been in this apartment for about 29 days. It’s hard to remember exact numbers because I was between bouts of near-vomiting when I moved, but that’s pretty close. Yet, I am still not completely unpacked and my bedroom looks like it belongs to someone on “Hoarders.” Does it bother me? No, because a hideous dachshund taught me a valuable lesson in my younger days that…
Right up there in Dante’s 9 circles of hell should have been moving. Moving can only be made worse by: 1. Thinking you can save money by renting a truck and moving with a few friends and some guys you heard are pretty good at moving. 2. The “guys” not showing up, and not even calling, even though you call repeatedly, begging for a response.…
Breakfast• Italian Dad Stories• Italian Mom Stories• Thoughts on Life
Dreaming of Spring
February 22, 2014
If you’re in a state that’s not Florida, California or Hawaii, right now you’re probably dreaming of spring. I live in California and I apologize up front. It just happened this way, I didn’t really plan it, so don’t hate me. I never gloat over the weather because I could be killed at any second by a terrifying mother of an earthquake. That pretty much evens things out…
I went to a party this week where I ran into an acquaintance who has had –since 2010 — relationships with at least three or more men and is engaged to be married in July. My mouth hung open in amazement when she told me. I just kept thinking, How the hell does she do it? How did she run into all these men who want to date…
These were the names on my street in New Brighton, Pennsylvania when I was growing up: Pfeiffer, Schaeffer, Smeltzer, Pfleghar, Anderson, Golbertson, Tunno. It’s like those second grade quizzes where you pick the one that doesn’t fit. The 50’s and 60’s were not the diversity-loving present. I was born only 10 years after WWII ended, and back then things like internment camps were a reality. My parents wanted…
I was walking my dog at about 9:30 tonight when I ran into a neighbor with her two dogs. Since we’re dog people we usually exchange mindless pleasantries, try to keep the dogs from killing each other or mating, and move on, but tonight she asked me something that surprised me. As our dogs happily sniffed each other, she asked how I was doing. I said I was…
I had no energy this morning. I also had no espresso this morning. Therefore, I felt sort of depressed because I didn’t want to do anything and didn’t feel like I’d accomplish anything all day. I dragged around like a slug and finally went to Starbucks to get a tall latte. In a matter of moments, I had a flash of brilliance. Not that Einstein needed me to…
A “Mommy Meal” is a meal that makes your kids look at you like with the kind of affection you can only count on from your dog. I’ve never won a beauty pageant but I imagine it’s like the adulation beauty pageant winners and CEO’s get all the time. Although it’s not enough to make me put on a bathing suit with heels, or run Walmart (I’m sure…
Baking• Cookies• Desserts• Thoughts on Life
The Best, Easiest Lemon Cheesecake Squares
January 15, 2014I get excited about baking and cooking, like some people get about shopping or vacations. It’s a sickness; and my two brothers, two sisters-in-law, several nephews, a niece-in-law, and my kids, share it. Nuclear annihilation could be imminent…and all someone has to say is, “I could go for a little more of that pasta we had for dinner, wasn’t that good?” And the floodgates open: “Yeah, wow the…
Not every Christmas gift has to be one a child craves… some can be symbolic, like the one I just left under the tree for both my kids. My daughter was having a crisis of confidence a few weeks ago, before finals and holidays. She burst into tears over an avalanche of schoolwork she put off, and put off, until it became overwhelming. She didn’t want to tell…