I bow to the greatness that is Wong's

Last night we indulged in one of the great joys of South St. Paul. Wongs take-out. There is no better! A meal of egg rolls, general's chicken, barbecued pork and broccoli, and of course the requisite pork fried rice.

Wong's is the master. And they are practically across the street. I think their presence alone raises my home value..................

If you have not yet experienced the wonder that is Wong's you must come visit. No matter how far away you live it will have been worth the trip. In fact, you may never leave............I think there is a cute little white cottage down the street from us that is for sale. :-)

Many Ribbons and Bows later...........

Ahhh, the after Christmas lull so to speak. We build ourselves into a frenzy and then whoosh, it's all over. Sigh, relax, and get ready to do it all again next year :-)

It was a marvelous Christmas though. I had an early celebration with my family in California which meant the world to me. Then we had a wonderful Christmas day at my in-laws.

Highlights of Holiday 2005:

1. Finding a cologne for my Aunt that has been discontinued since the 70's. They remade it through a catalog company and I sent her a bottle. She was tickled to say the least.

2. Being with my Aunt and Uncle, Mom and Dad right before Christmas.

3. Getting a 2 inch thick camping mattress from my husband (once it's inflated of course) Yippee! No rocks in the back!

4. Getting grown-up clothes from my in-laws. Now I have something to wear to my luncheon with the CEO. I am far too much of a business casual person for the corporate world.

5. Getting not one but TWO faerie tops. A tank top and a t-shirt.

6. The fresh new bottle of Bailey's that I broke in over the weekend.

7. Curling up on Christmas morning with Sophie in my lap and reading The Jester.

8. Ham dinner

9. Ham leftovers

10. A white Christmas

Tis the Season

Gifts that keep on giving all year:







My husband - he makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside (which is especially helpful in winter time)
My dad - for his calls from the park just to say hi
My mom - for her never ending thoughtfulness
MikerZZ - for making me laugh
Jessica - for being a great friend and bailbondsman
Sarah and Fred - for being my mall buddies
Jer - for being himself
Will - for giving me something to look forward to every other Thursday night
Greg - for fun chats on Thursdays
Heather - for inspiring me to listen to my muse
Marc and Elizabeth - For being the theater of my heart
Aunt Betty and Uncle Phil - for being the voice in my head
Sophie - for her undying devotion and love - Sophie Smiles
Max - for being my best friend on four legs
Soc's - for reminding me that life is more precious than furniture

Only 3 shopping days left

Ahhh, California. I have just returned from a week+ stay in the great sunny state. And let me tell you, I have become spoiled in God's country. I feel like the Indian in the old commercials about litter where he just looks out at the destruction of nature and a tear runs down his cheek. Yep, that was me for 8 days. I am appalled at what has been done to that state. The home I knew so many years ago is gone. And in its place is a fake plastic overcrowded mess. I get claustrophobic just being there, and I feel the need to tear at my throat to get air to breath. I know that things change, but dang. Sometimes you really can't go home again........

Aside from the tears on my cheek I had a wonderful visit with my family. It was so good to see them. To laugh, talk about the old days, and just enjoy each other. I truly valued my time with them. We don't get enough time with our families. It's never enough.......

Now I am home again. The snow blankets the cities and it truly feels like Christmas. I love Minnesota. It's good to be home..............

It's beginning to look a lot like a garage

Yep, it's a garage! Maybe someday soon it can have cars in it too! There is a snowstorm headed our way on Wednesday. Wouldn't it be nice to not have to shovel the car out from the street? And not get towed! And not get ticketed!

1 missing car, 1 fabulous dress, and two funerals

Well,

It's been an interesting 12 hours.

We got home from work last night and pulled up farther in front of our house than normal. We were also one car short of our usual line-up. Stolen? No, not that lucky. Actually the city towed it on us for failure to move it for a certain amount of time. And that's cause WE CAN'T - see previous blogs on our currently being constructed garage. In other words you're da**** if you do and da**** if you don't.

Well, last night was also mall night with Sarah and Fred. So, off I went. A little late, but I still got to go. And we had a marvelous time. Sarah needed to find a dress for a formal event. And did we find the perfect gown for her. She looks amazing. I almost cried she looked so good. Even the wonderfully helpful sales clerk at Bloomingdales was excited for her. It truly looked magnificent! I told Sarah it was the equivalent of finding THE wedding dress. It's just magical.

So, now it's Thursday morning. Off we go to spring the truck from jail. Which means we are late to work. Which is okay, it went smoothly. No big deal. And we do have the truck back :-)

Thank You Jerry for letting us squat at your car port :-)

Then this morning my cell phone rings. It's my mom. My uncle, who was married in October, lost his new wife to a brain aneurysm. She collapsed after dinner Tuesday.

And because I'm not quite done on the emotional rollercoaster I read my friends blog and find out that her dog died. We were roomies many years ago and I just loved that dog. She was also Max's first dog friend. I adopted Max while she and I were roommates. Malia and Max were very good friends and had loads of fun together.

So, there you have it, 1 missing car, 1 fabulous dress, and two funerals.

Help wanted

Apparently Mike lost his blog. Any ideas where lost blogs go to? I suggested they are vacationing with the "other sock" but maybe someone has a better idea?

Soon to be unemployed

Ok, not really, but I'm currently obsessed with a book a friend gave to me (Thanks so much Bruce). It is #13 in the William Monk novels. It's called Death of a Stranger and the author is Anne Perry.

After 12 novels we finally learn about Monk's past. He was in an accident and book #1 starts with him waking up in a hospital not knowing who he is. He gets tiny bits and pieces back in a few of the books but nothing truly enlightening. This one is supposed to reveal all.

So, needless to say I can't stop reading. And I wish I didn't have to work today. It's snowing outside. How much I would love to be at home, curled up on the couch, under my big comforter, Sophie sound asleep in my lap, classical music on the radio and a steaming cup of coffee on the table. Ahhhhh to read all day!