I was standing in line at Starbucks when I overheard one of the Harley dudes talking to a young woman behind me. The Starbucks near my house has patio tables outside where customers can smoke and get their Chai on. Every day without fail a group of elderly, Harley riders gather ‘round to talk, smoke and look at the pretty girls go by. I always thought that was a cool concept, having a meeting place “where everybody knows your name.” Maybe what’s even cooler is the fact that these guys don’t seem stressed out about getting to the office on time. I figure they’re retired, enjoying life.
Today I learned that my good friend was going for a tattoo consultation. She told me recently what she wanted to get inked on her bikini area and the reasons why. She is honoring her fit, lean body with a symbol that is near and dear to her heart. After knowing her for 30 years, I’m not surprised by this decision. What’s surprising to me though is the hesitation. She’s the type of woman who may wake up in the morning and decide, “I want a new car today,” and by sunset she’s riding off the lot with a brand new vehicle. She’s decisive and strong; the kind of woman that’s not afraid of risks. I don’t think she’s afraid of much, so I wonder what the hesitation is about. Beside the fact that getting a tattoo is a big commitment, I wonder if she maybe apprehensive about the pain. After all the pain you feel when getting a new car is only felt in your pocketbook and not actually in your body. Interesting and not so surprising is that her tattoo artist told her that women have a much higher tolerance for pain. He told her that through their discomfort they’ll carry on conversations and ignore the torture as much as possible. Continue Reading »
I was born on May 5th in the suburbs of Philadelphia far, far away from any Cinco de Mayo celebrations. And even though Californians and Mexicans have been celebrating it since 1863, the year after the Mexican army defeated the French at the Battle of Puebla, I’d never heard of it until I moved to California in 1979. And even after 30 years of living in Southern California, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a “display” set up in a grocery store like the one I saw in Gelson’s in Westlake Village. It was set up where they have other holiday displays. They do the pumpkin pie cans with other baking stuff starting in October, turkey pans and boxes of stuffing for Thanksgiving, stocking stuffers and candy canes for Christmas, noisemakers and champagne for New Year’s Eve, you get the idea right? Well, I’m sure I’ve seen displays for Cinco de Mayo before, where the chips, salsa, margarita mixers and tequila are set out to entice shoppers to get “loco,” in the San Fernando Valley or maybe even at Jon’s in Simi Valley. But I was quite surprised to find such a huge display in Whitelake Village, I mean Westlake Village and of all places, a Gelson’s. But then again, Cinco de Mayo is a drinking holiday and we do live in the United States where Super Bowl Sunday has become as big of a holiday as Mother’s Day. But I digress, I was actually excited to see the big “Cinco de Mayo” sign hanging down from the ceiling and recalled a time where I’d want to own that sign. It would have gone rather nicely with the life-sized, cardboard, Mariachi player I used to own and hang up at my annual Cinco de Mayo parties. Continue Reading »
Charlene Ross’ Blog on skirt! asks the question, should we pay our children for good grades? I believe in praising not only children but anyone who does a good job. Positive reinforcement; reinforcing positive behavior, by definition can’t be negative. A few weeks ago when Matthew brought home an excellent report card, I told him I’d take him to the store to get a treat. I knew his father was already thinking about putting some money in his Easter card for the holiday and for the good grades but I still wanted to give him a prize. I instructed my son to start thinking about what he wanted so that we didn’t have to wander the isles aimlessly once we got to the store. Continue Reading »
I wasn’t surprised to find a call tag on my doorknob that read, “Sorry, you were out when truck called.” I wasn’t supposed to be home but I agreed to have a pile of goods at the end of my driveway for the charity truck. A pile of too small, too big and too boring clothes and shoes had been growing in my garage over the last several months. At work, several co-workers read the horoscope in the L.A. Times. The majority are Capricorns, so they read that one and pass it on. I’d stopped consulting horoscopes but will still listen in when a fellow Tauraen shares what’s up with the “Bull.” One day, our horoscope talked about removing clutter, getting rid of old things and making room for new. In this season of renewal, I heard a voice telling me it’s time to clear out. So I called the charity I normally donate to to tell them that I had a pick up. Continue Reading »
A very interesting thing happened this week on the “Biggest Loser.” An eliminated contestant had the opportunity to return to the ranch. There was a weigh-in and the person who lost the most weight at home was able to come back into the competition. Nicole, who was eliminated early in the game, was the one who lost the most weight. She lost a whopping 87 pounds, on her OWN! She was so successful that her weight loss percentage was second to Tara, one of the strongest athletes in the house. At the weigh-in, the remaining contestants were shaking in their tennis shoes. As soon as they had the chance to get Nicole’s ear, they all dumped on her. People frantically filled her in on the drama and tension of the house. They talked to her about strategies, alliances and broken alliances. In addition to winning the opportunity to enter the game again, Nicole had immunity for the week unless of course she gained weight. Everyone vowed to step up their game to compete with someone who didn’t have the luxury of nutritionists, doctors and trainers and was still able to lose almost 90 pounds. Continue Reading »
