Shocking how the winter duldrums can really put a damper on sharing my menial life with all 1 of my followers. My apologies. In all fairness, nothing has happened to me worth sharing. However, I will share a new Christmas tradition my family started. We love it! It all started on Thanksgiving night, driving back from a relative's house in Wisconsin. My sister and I are well over the age of needing hundreds of dollars of presents for Christmas, mostly because I feel that, once you're out of college, you should be able to buy what you want and Christmas should be used to get people things from the heart. Apparently, my father totally disagrees and continues to spend entirely too much money on all of us. At almost 26 years old, and my sister at 29, we have tried to convince good old dad that his spending is a little excessive. So here was this year's solution:
My mom asked, "What was your best present last year for Christmas, quick in the next 10 seconds!"
None of us had an answer. We all sat in silence for awhile, and then my mom suggested a $50 limit. My sister said, no we tried that last year and dad doesn't seem to grasp the concept. I then suggested that we have a homemade Christmas, where each of us had to come up with something homemade to give all our family members. Thus, home-made Christmas emerged.
We only had a month to plan, but let me tell you, it was so much fun and we'll always remember what we got! I gave my dad and my sister's fiancee homemade snuggies (extra long because, let's face it, a snuggie is not long enough. I gave my sister a homemade jacket, and I gave my mom a necklace and earrings. I got an awesome leather belt and purse from my dad (thank goodness he was a hippie and into leatherwork), a refinished chair and pillows from my mom, a candle holder set (and teenage mutant ninja turtles t-shirt, not homemade but totally awesome), and a fantastic wine set (the "white trash white zin" and "shut the front door red" labels were homemade, the wine was not) from my sister's fiancee.
Tons of fun had all around, and I encourage all people who no longer have to supply children with the magic of Christmas to try it out! We're going to continue to do this year after year.
Also - I didn't step into a mall once this holiday. Sorry, economy. But let me tell you, as a former retail employee, I loved not having to wait in those lines!
Showing posts with label Holidays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Holidays. Show all posts
Monday, February 8, 2010
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Frustration Destination and a sad day on TMZ.com
Welp. Another day, another dollar... but ten times worse this week.
THANK GOD for MLK Day. A wonderful holiday, agreed - however I desperately needed the day off work (sidenote: not only is it the government and education system that has a holiday this day, but also non-profits!) before I had a meltdown and took someone's life or severely mutilated myself. (another sidenote: clearly, homicide and suicide are serious issues in today's society. however, this is not a joke, I was at my cusp of crazy.)
So back to work, and today was the first day within my wonderful organization that I have felt completely disposable. Backtrack: a crazy volunteer said this exact phrase to me last week: "And fuck you for not having the materials I needed!" When I spoke with my manager and director regarding this, the response went something like this...
Me: I'm not sure what to do, this is a pretty big account that I think I'm going to lose because this volunteer is crazy.
Manager: We will figure it out. It will definitely hurt you, but that's not something you need to deal with.
Director: Well, you really just need to suck up to her and make sure she still contributes. Granted, she was out of line in saying that, but we can't lose those dollars.
I was floored. In what realm of reality is it okay for a VOLUNTEER to get away with saying that to someone, then for my management team to basically say that it is okay for her to say this because we see money over the sanity of staff?
Maybe I'm crazy. But now I'm just sad. I guess I got into the "real world" post-college and expected a little bit of professionalism and concern for employees. And alas, I have been employed there for nearly 8 months and today was the first time I felt replaceable.
However, the real news today is the tragic death of Hollywood Hottie Heath Ledger. Extremely sad, and the hype around his death is even sadder. The sensationalism of it is just ridiculous - I mean come on! He has a little daughter, his family doesn't need to be hearing the rumors that he showed up in Mary-Kate Olson's apartment, or that Lohan is "distraught". The American public does not need to know this shit either - let's just let his family and loved ones grieve, then TMZ.com can fill us in on the ridiculous details later.
Secrest OUT,
Paula
THANK GOD for MLK Day. A wonderful holiday, agreed - however I desperately needed the day off work (sidenote: not only is it the government and education system that has a holiday this day, but also non-profits!) before I had a meltdown and took someone's life or severely mutilated myself. (another sidenote: clearly, homicide and suicide are serious issues in today's society. however, this is not a joke, I was at my cusp of crazy.)
So back to work, and today was the first day within my wonderful organization that I have felt completely disposable. Backtrack: a crazy volunteer said this exact phrase to me last week: "And fuck you for not having the materials I needed!" When I spoke with my manager and director regarding this, the response went something like this...
Me: I'm not sure what to do, this is a pretty big account that I think I'm going to lose because this volunteer is crazy.
Manager: We will figure it out. It will definitely hurt you, but that's not something you need to deal with.
Director: Well, you really just need to suck up to her and make sure she still contributes. Granted, she was out of line in saying that, but we can't lose those dollars.
I was floored. In what realm of reality is it okay for a VOLUNTEER to get away with saying that to someone, then for my management team to basically say that it is okay for her to say this because we see money over the sanity of staff?
Maybe I'm crazy. But now I'm just sad. I guess I got into the "real world" post-college and expected a little bit of professionalism and concern for employees. And alas, I have been employed there for nearly 8 months and today was the first time I felt replaceable.
However, the real news today is the tragic death of Hollywood Hottie Heath Ledger. Extremely sad, and the hype around his death is even sadder. The sensationalism of it is just ridiculous - I mean come on! He has a little daughter, his family doesn't need to be hearing the rumors that he showed up in Mary-Kate Olson's apartment, or that Lohan is "distraught". The American public does not need to know this shit either - let's just let his family and loved ones grieve, then TMZ.com can fill us in on the ridiculous details later.
Secrest OUT,
Paula
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Bitter with Baggage Seeks Same
Well long time no talk. I've missed you. Perhaps this will turn out to be much like my other "hobbies" - a dead end.
Only time will tell.
A few years ago for Christmas, my good friend gave me a fabulous book called "Bitter With Baggage Seeks Same". It is a coffee table picture book- bitter humor for the metropolitan single girl- my kind of dish. I came across this book on my shelf the other day and decided to give it a little page-turn. These hilarious little plastic chickens started to make me sad, and I thought- "Paula*, why so glum? Plastic chickens are too funny to be sad!" Then it occurred to me: my dear, sweet friend knows me so well, that she purchased this book, because I am, in fact, Bitter with Baggage.
Would you like my stats? Put it on a baseball card:
However, its times like these (Holidays, Tuesdays, freezing cold days, pretty much everyday) that I find myself realizing that I am still head-over-heels-hit-me-in-the-head-with-a-hammer-
because-it-feels-so-good-when-you-stop in love with Hammer. Too bad he moved on.
He is dating a cute little mouse of a thing who I really can't find any fault in (bummer) aside from the fact that its not me. However, Hammer feels it appropriate to share all her faults, stupidity, conservatism, and general bland-ness with me. I think this is what drives me into the ground bitterly with heavy baggage: Not only is he not dating me, but he's dating someone he's not really into and is just along for the ride (I chastise HJ's because I haven't done one since the late 90's, yet apparently she considers this a "treat".)
So the moral of this story is: It is Christmas time (or whatever holiday you celebrate or don't celebrate. Whatever, its snowing.) and my family has unfortunately moved on from chastising my sister about getting married to criticizing me. Pretty sure they have fostered rumors of my sexuality- but I digress.
But why should I ruin Christmas for everyone by changing the norm and bringing a boy home? This Christmas, I am giving the gift of selflessness by not changing our family traditions of scathing comments and ruthless jokes about my singledom. I sure hope they appreciate my deep concern for keeping our family traditions alive.
So Merry Christmas! Can I provide any selfless acts for you?
Have a wonderful day and don't crash your shit up in the snow.
Paula
*Paula: This is my introduction to my alter-ego, Paula Rubinowitz. She's a sassy cougar from Staten Island who drinks too much. We all know we can't use real names online!! Enjoy her musings.
**Hammer: His real name shall not be divulged (see above). Think "Why do I keep hitting myself with this hammer?" -because it feels so good when I stop.
Only time will tell.
A few years ago for Christmas, my good friend gave me a fabulous book called "Bitter With Baggage Seeks Same". It is a coffee table picture book- bitter humor for the metropolitan single girl- my kind of dish. I came across this book on my shelf the other day and decided to give it a little page-turn. These hilarious little plastic chickens started to make me sad, and I thought- "Paula*, why so glum? Plastic chickens are too funny to be sad!" Then it occurred to me: my dear, sweet friend knows me so well, that she purchased this book, because I am, in fact, Bitter with Baggage.
Would you like my stats? Put it on a baseball card:
- 23 years of age
- single straight white female
- numerous boyfriends/one night stands of which 3/4ths ending with said boy dating/falling for close friend or BFF and thusly .750 batting average for getting my heart broken
- Glamorous non-profit job that leaves little to no time for a personal life
- Size 36F rack. I'm an effing catch.
However, its times like these (Holidays, Tuesdays, freezing cold days, pretty much everyday) that I find myself realizing that I am still head-over-heels-hit-me-in-the-head-with-a-hammer-
because-it-feels-so-good-when-you-stop in love with Hammer. Too bad he moved on.
He is dating a cute little mouse of a thing who I really can't find any fault in (bummer) aside from the fact that its not me. However, Hammer feels it appropriate to share all her faults, stupidity, conservatism, and general bland-ness with me. I think this is what drives me into the ground bitterly with heavy baggage: Not only is he not dating me, but he's dating someone he's not really into and is just along for the ride (I chastise HJ's because I haven't done one since the late 90's, yet apparently she considers this a "treat".)
So the moral of this story is: It is Christmas time (or whatever holiday you celebrate or don't celebrate. Whatever, its snowing.) and my family has unfortunately moved on from chastising my sister about getting married to criticizing me. Pretty sure they have fostered rumors of my sexuality- but I digress.
But why should I ruin Christmas for everyone by changing the norm and bringing a boy home? This Christmas, I am giving the gift of selflessness by not changing our family traditions of scathing comments and ruthless jokes about my singledom. I sure hope they appreciate my deep concern for keeping our family traditions alive.
So Merry Christmas! Can I provide any selfless acts for you?
Have a wonderful day and don't crash your shit up in the snow.
Paula
*Paula: This is my introduction to my alter-ego, Paula Rubinowitz. She's a sassy cougar from Staten Island who drinks too much. We all know we can't use real names online!! Enjoy her musings.
**Hammer: His real name shall not be divulged (see above). Think "Why do I keep hitting myself with this hammer?" -because it feels so good when I stop.
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