The Great Minnesota Get-Together

The smell of grease permeates through the air, mixing ever so delicately with the smell of manure.

Mullets and bellys can be viewed far and near.
It's an ocean of people, unlike anything you've ever seen. Truly one of the wonders of the world.
But there's also a multitude of animals abounding.
We saw a baby lamb come into the world.

We shared curds of cheese and a roasted cob of corn.
Dining on local wine and the delectable ice cream of honey.
Ah, the tastes of once a year!

Our legs grew tired and weary.
Our dad tried out an acupressure machine.
I signed up for many a home-improvement sweepstakes (goodness knows how many calls all get in the next month for "free estimates!"


The sun kissed our skin.
We saw heads carved out of butter.
Fish swimming in the pond.


Once again, it was a glorious fest, but one I can only handle once a year.

People Still Smoke?

Today after work, we had a small little happy hour in honor of me being the in the department five years. (In Sept. I'll have been at the company for seven.) At the table next to us there were three old men smoking cigars. It. Was. The. Most. Disgusting. Thing. I've. Ever. Endured. What makes me angry is the fact that we were at our table first, and they could have had the courtesy to ask if it was okay. They smelled wretched. They had absolutely no consideration. We may have been outside, but they kept blowing their smoke in our direction and we had to smell it. Yes, we could have moved, but why must I endure the nasty habit of others? I don't force my bad habits on to them, do I?

Sorry for any smokers out there reading this, I just detest the habit. First off, your harming yourself by sucking in a number of carcinogens, but your also harming so many others who don't ask for it. Nancy Reagan had it right. Just Say No.

On a positive note, at same event, we had a psuedo celebrity siting. Good ol' politician in the making Al Franken. The table of liberals that we are, we were only slightly giddy. But I have to say, he looks a little different in person than what I thought he would. Thankfully, due to other people calling him over to a table to talk, we could confirm that it was actually Mr. Franken.

It's Official - One Month to Go

Until FALL!

Emotions

This morning when I log in to my computer at work and pull up my e-mail, I'm greeted by a subject entitled "Prayers for V". Immediately, I wonder what is going on. V is my grandpa. My strong as a redwood, lived through all of life's challenges, grandpa.

I read the e-mail to find out that he is in intensive care due to an infection that has entered his blood stream. I am immediately overcome with concern for my grandfather, great anger that I am reading this in an e-mail, and a feeling of helplessness. I call my mother to ask her what the hell is going on. She tells me that she forgot to call me, because she had so many things go on, but she didn't realize he was not in intensive care - she knew he'd had surgery. but SHE FORGOT TO CALL ME!! And the only reason my one sister knew about it was BECAUSE SHE CALLED HER ABOUT SOMETHING ELSE!!

The anger builds. I work in communications for a living, but clearly, my family has no idea how to communicate. The frustration builds. I have to leave for a meeting... I take the 7 block walk to calm myself. Wiping the tears away and composing myself before I sit down.

The meeting is a two hour training, that I helped review the scripts for the online module portions, so it's important that I be there. I end up having to sit at a table with some higher-up muckity mucks. Now, I know they have my best interest in mind, they want to help me shine, but my mind is not on this interactive training and making sure I come across as a know it all. After sitting through an hour of listening to them try to wax ecstatic, we get a break. I look in sea of 200 people for my boss and her boss. I find them. I go to tell them that I am planning on leaving early... but then I begin to lose it. I can't keep my composure, what is wrong with me?? My boss' boss tells me that I am not staying at work, to leave now and do what I need to do... she gives me a hug (bless her, she doesn't know that I hate being touched, but from her, it's okay).

My boss drives me to my car. It is here that I completely lose it. The fear of losing my grandpa, knowing that my grandma won't be able to handle the despair... it overcomes me. I'm consumed with grief. I pick up K and we drive the 60 minutes to the hospital.

K lifts Papa's spirits as they laugh together and play patty cake. It's hard, the nurse (or maybe it's medical assistant) keeps coming in and changing tubes and taking blood) but my grandpa looks well, considering, and he enjoys the time with his great grandson and we talk about various things and I know that my grandpa who's beat all of life's other challenges will continue to be a survivor. Please keep him in your prayers.

The Last Days of Summer

The heat beats down on us ferociously every day. The humidity so thick we can hardly breathe. Of course, the best way to beat the heat... water. Last weekend, K got his first boat ride and his first dip in the pool. He's an outside, summer kid. D and I might both be in serious trouble there. I take great pleasure in walking into my air conditioned nest. I just can't take the heat. I don't know if it's because I still have a ton of weight I could afford to drop or if as I age I become allergic to heat. But...

The sign that the end is near... the Minnesota State Fair. I love the fair, but not for the same reason that I think most people love the fair. True, you can't get in a better dose of people watching, or have an excuse to be a glutton of food that is so bad for you (all the walking does burn all those extra calories, right?). No, the reason I really love the fair is because it signals that fall is just around the corner. Autumn is the most beautiful time of year. The colors burst around us, vibrant, passionate. The smells - the air is full of fireplaces, a crisp breeze. The tastes - pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin pie, butternut squash ravioli. No this is the time of year that I live for.

Elevators

I work on the 36th floor of my building. There are three elevator banks. The first elevator bank goes to floors 4 - 13, the second 13 - 26, my bank 27 - 37. In the mornings, I secretly pray that no one else gets on the elevator before the door closes. Sometimes, if a bunch of people get on it before I do, I patiently wait for the next elevator and do my prayer that no one else will come. I just hate it when my elevator ride takes 15 minutes in the morning.

At the end of the day, I once again enter a religious state and furiously pray that I will have an express ride down to the main floor. Someone once said that if you keep pressing the "close door" button, it will skip the floors and go stratight down. I tried it. It didn't work - and of course, the person who got on the elevator looked at me all funny, like what was I doing?

There is only thing that bothers me more than knowing I'll be on a long descent because the elevator stops on every floor because everyone else decides to leave work at the same time I do... It's the lazy, incompetent fools who only go up or down one story. We have stairs!!! Take the damn stairs for one flight!! Now, there are some exceptions - clearly, if you are on crutches, 9 months pregnant or otherwise physically unable to use the stairs you are exempt from my snide comments. The HR floors are also secure, so I totally understand if you get off on one of those floors, you had no choice - so you are forgiven. Everyone else -- NO EXCUSE!

I have been known to make a comment or two loudly when people act upon their laziness. "Oh, the stairs must be closed for repainting again." "Hmm, the stairwell must be blocked on their floor." Usually, I always have anyone else in the elevator agreeing with me. I have no shame, and I always say it when the elevator is still open - so that the offender can hear it.

I wish I worked on the 3rd floor - then I could just take the stairs all the time.

A Bridge Collapses

"Thank god you answered." My sister's voice was shaking.

"Why?" I asked, giving K his after school snack.

"The 35W bridge outside of Minneapolis just collapsed."

"Oh, I had the day off from work today."

My sister just escaped being on the bridge when it collapsed by 10 minutes. Normally, I'd have already left work anyone, but lately, I'd been working a few later nights, so I could have been on it when the catastrophe occurred. Things like this make you grateful to be alive, frightened for the unknown, and keeps phone lines tied up as everyone tries to check-in with their loved ones to make sure they are okay.

They'd been working on the bridge this summer, and how many times did I look out the bus window at the construction and get a little nervous, wondering how safe is this bridge that they are drilling big holes in and patching up. Tonight I got my answer, and not an answer I wanted to hear.

May your God be with you and your family tonight and every day. May tragedies like this be avoided always.