Time for a braindump post.
The kids had a busy week – they went to a local church’s VBS program and loved it. Denis and I enjoyed having peace and quiet in the house for a couple hours after work. It’s a nice way to decompress after a long day at work.
Speaking of work – my job has changed slightly as I take on more responsibility. One of our staff members went on an extended medical leave and in her absence I’m taking over one of her duties. It’s no small task – this new thing takes up a good 2-3 hours of my workday. And so my productivity on everything else has completely fallen by the wayside. My normally quick turnaround times on things is now atrocious. Before taking on this new task, I could turn things over within a couple hours, and as of yesterday I had three things in my inbox that had been sitting there for 2-3 DAYS. My co-admin took yesterday as a vacation day so I feel like I got nothing done yesterday because I had to do her deadline-specific task (which takes 2 hours) before I could do mine. And while I like being busy – I sure am glad it’s a 3-day weekend.
Last week I went to a baby shower for a friend of mine and it was hilarious. There was an older lady there who kept making comments not-so-under-her-breath that had me in hysterics (and not because she meant them to be funny). Every comment started with “In my day…” and as I relayed the story to Denis we agreed that this woman was a “Saturday Night Live” character just waiting to become famous. The winning comment of the day came as she relayed the information that her sister had three healthy babies even though she smoked and drank through all three of the pregnancies. Another woman responded in disbelief by saying, “And thank God for THAT!” This lady then said (insert heavy Brooklyn accent here): “Don’t you believe it. These doctors nowadays… you know what? Too much knowledge is too much trouble.”
Say it with me: Too much knowledge is too much trouble.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is my new motto. It’s absolutely brilliant.
I just started a new book yesterday, and as of July 1 I’ve read 17 books so far this year. I’m surprised I’ve read that many because a couple of them that I listened to on audiobook were really long. I suppose it helps that a couple of the books I’ve read thus far were on my Kindle and shorter than a typical novel.
Now that we’re in the latter half of the year, it’s time to start planning for our annual White Elephant party. I normally sent out my “save the date” reminder email in late July, but last year people complained that I sent out too many messages. So this year I’m not going to send out the first notice until the end of September. Practicing self-control, people. But we’re already talking about the menu! We’re going to re-do some of the best hors d’oeurves that we made last year, add back in some older ones that are popular, and then mix in a couple new ones. Denis said this morning, “We’ll only make ten things,” but I guarantee when the time comes we’ll make more like 13-14, because that’s what we do. Note to self: email the housecleaner and make sure she’s booked for the day before the party.
Even more exciting? The mere HINT of a possibility that this will be the last White Elephant party in this house, and that NEXT year we just might – just might – be in our new, custom-made just-for-us house. I’m not saying it IS going to happen, but it’s fun to think about.
Our next door neighbor moved out this week, taking her three yappy dogs with her. Hope the new neighbors don’t have three yappy dogs, or else the reprieve will be very short-lived. We’ve had luck thus far with new neighbors the past few years – here’s hoping the new set is just as nice!
Coming up for us: a quiet week, followed by an even quieter one as the kids head to camp for four days. Denis and I are making plans for every night to take advantage of not having to hire a babysitter. At the end of this month I’m going to the “American Idol” concert and then we’ll be visiting our friends The P’s in Virginia for a couple days. I think sometime in July we’ll have some canine company for a week while our friends go on vacation.
So there’s my brain dump. I feel so much better now.