Yes I Know Spring Arrived - a While Ago

My few faithful blogging buddies have cajoled me into changing my banner to spring. I admit I am relying on an old banner as - SURPRISE - I have not had time to garden, clean, do any of the things I would like to do! Yes I am working full time now, travelling too much for work, and picking up stomach flu's on the way home from travelling too much for work. Which means I am behind on my work. Which means I should be working not blogging. Anyway...

We are less than a month from D-DAY. Or should I say G-Day - Graduation day. I know it's "only high school," but this is a huge deal for me. Yes I said for me. OK OK it's huge for them, too, but they won't realize it for, oh, 25 years. My babies are leaving, going off to great schools to do great things and someday have a great job and be totally self sufficient so that I can go tend bar in the Caribbean and not have to support anyone but myself.

But for now, they are just leaving. And I am going to miss them. And I feel some [probably silly] burning desire to make this send off as excellent as I can. I refrained from saying "perfect." Nothing is ever perfect. But family, friends, a cool cake, some good food, music, a slide show, a repainted kitchen, repainted hall, repainted bedroom, cleaned windows, uncluttered closets, weeded gardens, new flowers, seeded grass, new college-themed dog collars, cleaned carpets, that's all it will take to pull off graduation weekend.

What? Think there are a few extra things in there maybe? I am the kind of person who needs an "EVENT" to make the chores of life happen. Son's room has needed painting for a YEAR and has been spackled awaiting paint for A YEAR. The painters come tomorrow....

You get the picture.

Anyone else out there need an EVENT to get the ball rolling on household projects??

Oh right - I almost forgot to add to the list "Buy 100 boxes of Kleenex." I'm not the only crier in the family...

Dirty, Embarrassing Confessions

I didn't know about it. I swear. I'm not normally this naive. But somehow I missed it - even after all these years. It's embarrassing. And not just a little bit disgusting. My discovery horrified me.

But at least now it's clean.

And I'm here to save all of you who might not know.

That bottom shelf in the fridge - the one that holds the big drawers for the fruits and veggies -it comes out of the fridge AND it also comes apart.

I'm still sick and work is slow, so I decided to stay home today. I felt some energy kick in around 9ish and decided to tackle at least one big project. No kids this week means a fairly empty fridge, so what better time to clean the thing? It has been weeks, months, years a long time since I took everything out of the fridge and wiped it all down.

As I got to the bottom of the fridge, I took the big drawers out and began wiping the very bottom of the fridge. Somehow I bumped the shelf - the one I thought was stationary and immovable for eight years when suddenly it popped up somehow. And I realized I could take it out.

Then I became afraid. Very very afraid. What would I discover if I took it out?

Are you sure you want to know?

I discovered a little mini 4" shelf in the waaaaaay back of my fridge that this glass shelf sat on top of (the very back of the glass shelf being opaque so you can't see the mini shelf - stupid design). And red and black and blue and green things have oozed under and created quite the menagerie of disgusting, sticky puddles.

The puddles have been eradicated, and my fridge is so clean and happy.

If I have saved even one person, my personal shame and embarrassment have been worth it!

FOUND: PERFECT Cold Remedy

Sitting in my snotty bed, strewn with tissues, spare papers from the Complaint I was drafting for a client today, purse overflowing with pens and checkbook and things Son wanted, wallowing in my sickness, head still hurting, breathing worse not better, lamenting missing my indoor game, back hurting from sitting improperly all day, tired of being sick. [NOTE: Girl Next Door is a wimpy-assed sick girl. Cold? Oh no I am sure I'm dying of pneumonia - double pneumonia even!! ]

It's 7pm, my game has officially started without me, my Complaint is submitted, and I'm hungry. Sympathy Hungry. [iTouch diet? Shhhh he's sleeping in his charger and won't know if I eat something and can't log it on the LoseIt! Program! Besides, I'm S-I-C-K and these calories don't count!]

I have had 47 cups of tea and I'm sick of it. I don't do juice. I've had 32 Vitamin C pills. Cold pills. Snorted Saline. Looking for The Cure.

And then - Inspiration -Thinking about a cold day in Annapolis with the Captain and an evening drink: Hot Buttered Rum

Hot like Tea
Rum like Medicine
Spices like Herbs
Butter like...slippery Vicks Vapo-rub [oh shush so I'm going to eat it, not wear it, so what?!]

But I've never made the stuff. Enter the Lovely Internet, Google "Recipe: hot buttered Rum"

Emeril pops up first - of course. And his recipe? Awesome. But no time to let this sit in the Fridge to harden. I'm in a NOW kind of mood. Click, next
Rachel Ray - fast but still not quite right. I have to do math to cut it down to one serving. (because that's all the Rum I have left after the Captain's visit). Math Sucks.
About.com - of course . Just the right amount of everything:

• small slice soft butter
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• optional spices to taste: ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, allspice
• vanilla extract
• 2 oz dark rum
• hot water

Mix the first 4 in an Irish coffee mug [hey didn't I get 4 of those as a wedding gift and have never used them 21 years and a divorce later? Perfect]

Add rum and hot water.

Carry up to bed. Get under covers. Turn on Country Music being careful not to wake iTouch Mean Man Calorie Counter. Blog and sip Medicine.

I'm feeling better already.....