Around The Valley

I am suffering from PSSS:  Post Semester Stress Syndrome.
It is ridiculous, I know, but I am really stressed out with school being over for the next several months.  It gives my mind far too much time to ponder and wander about in my own little world.
I will give you a glimpse-- if only to explain why I got to thinking about The Antelope Valley as it was in bygone days.
This is how it worked.  Two (TWO!!) longtime single girl friends are getting married in the next few weeks.  I am so happy for them.  I am impressed with the courage they have had to put their hearts out there-- a quality I just do not have.   But it got me thinking about my divorce-sary which was May 24th.  I have now been single 14 years.  I was married just less than 15 which means I have been divorced almost as long as I was married.  This got me thinking about my ex-husband and how we met and what things were like when I was young... and there you go... I am back in the 1970s.
And I am taking you back in time with me.  For some of you this is all new because I have readers from all over the United States and in the UK.  For some of you this will remind you of your younger years.
One of the things that has gone by the wayside were drive in movies.  We had several in our area.  We had a 3 screen drive in about 2 miles from where I sit right now.  On the edge of town with only miles and miles of desert on the other side to the north, I spent many an evening watching the latest movie.  When I was a child my parents would bring along lawn chairs and we would sit alongside the car in our jammies so we could be put to bed easily when we conked out halfway through the Disney flick we came to see.  Sometimes we would sit on the hood of the car, which was some enourmous barge like vehicle.  We always brought our own snacks of course.  When I was a tween I remember seeing the first Star Trek movie at that drive in with my uncle David.
On to my teenage years.  Same big cars.  Still sat on the hood-- sometimes.  If we were seeing a movie that charged by the person and not by the carload, kids would pack into the truck and sneak in.  Usually we brought treats but sometimes we went off to the snack bar and got popcorn or candy.  If we were really flush we got one of those horrible little pizzas.  Then you would have to wander around trying to find your car.  The last movie I ever remember seeing at the drive in was Amityville Horror.  I saw it with my best girlfriend Stacy and her boyfriend at th time.  It scared the bejeebers out of me.  I still remember trying to block out the sound with my fingers in my ears. 
By then the sound was broadcast through the radio.  You just tuned into the special station.  Earlier on you rolled down your car window, stuck a speaker inside and rolled up the window until you crushed your fingers and said bad words.  Then you rolled it down enough to extract your fingers and c-a-r-e-f-u-l-l-y rolled the window back up.
George Lucas sounded the death knell for the drive in.  Once we started up with all that THS and the special effects the days of the drive in were numbered.  I remember seeing Star Wars in a walk in theater.  The drive ins died a slow tortured death eventually closing altogether.  For awhile they served as movie sets and finally they were razed and the city transportation facility built in their place.
Long gone, but not forgotten.


Lancaster Drive In--- Glory Days Behind It

Speakers

  





SUMMER BREAK!

Whooop Whoop!  I took my last final for this semester this morning.  It is mathmatically impossible for me to get less than an A so it is time for all you people to pay up.  TWO A's this semester.  I will accept Starbucks gift cards in lieu of cash.

So...... I should be all excited about this but instead I am freaking out because I am all at loose ends.  I mean you set aside 10-15 hours every week for school and homework for 5 months and when you are done there is all this spare time just 'there'.  What do you do with it all?

Over the past two days I redecorated my bedroom.  I am not yet entirely happy with one corner area but I have to sit and ponder it for a few days before figuring out what I want to do instead.  Here are pictures.


After



Before





I also redesigned my blog.  What do you think?  I think it is more me.  I little darker. I little more mysterious.  I made a 'Label Cloud' so you can find favorite types of posts.

Here is some Big Blog News:  I hit the 6700 viewing mark which is very exciting to me.  It means you are out there looking at my stuff and that just means so much to me.

Have I mentioned that I am giving some thought to ditching the BS in Business and becoming a writer?

Hmmmmm  So many options. 

SEE WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I DON"T HAVE A LOT OF STUFF TO DO????

Pretty Pictures

These are some pictures I took at the Huntington Library last month.
If you want a copy just let me know. I think they are purty!

Dinner Theatah: A Magpie Tale

Oh, for the love of all that is holy, why do I put up with this crap?

Last month, for my birthday, it was Mariachis and a giant sombrero.

I guess that was just to warm me up for the Really Important stuff.

"Of course I would love to go to the park on Sunday and cheer you on while you practise swordplay"

Huz-zah

It is called Sarcasm:  look it up!  Seriously,  buy a clue, would you?

A  bit part in the local community theater production of Shakespeare does not make you a Master Thespian

Neither does scooping up horse poop during intermission at Medieval Times

You work at Best Buy for crying out loud

And the only reason I agreed to this date was so you would get me that plasma TV on discount

Hey, thanks for everything but I really gotta bounce.

(that sexy lute player wants to go to the Cinemark and see Pirates of the Caribbean)

Magpie Tales is a blog dedicated to poets and writers with the purpose of honing their craft, sharing it with like minded bloggers and  keeping their muse alive and well. For more stories inspired by this picture go to   http://magpietales.blogspot.com/

It Wasn't The End Of The World Yesterday!

Okay, so the Rapture did not happen last night.  No big surprise there.
You guys know about the Bible, right?
Did you know what B-I-B-L-E stands for?
Basic
Instructions
Before
Leaving
Earth

Yeah so it is a series of letters from God to HIs people communicating to us how we are to live and where things are going from the here and now.

According to my manual describing life in this phase, there is going to be a Rapture.  Someday. Sometime.  But the Bible make it very clear that no one will know when it will happen.  So I am not sure what made that guy think he knew what was going to happen and when, but he was clearly mistaken.
Still I have to give him some credit for trying to warn people.  It is kind of like knowing you have the cure for cancer but not telling people because you don't want to look stupid or offend anyone. 

I am not going to go through all the bits and pieces of what Christian believe will happen. If you want to see what I think is a great representation you can watch or read "Left Behind'.  In a nutshell we believe that God will call HIs followers home at some point (the Rapture) and everyone who as accepted Him as their God in a personal way is going to get to join Him in heaven.  The earth will not end right then, but things are gonna start to get nasty until eventually the earth will be destroyed. 
But to say anyone knows when this will happen is to say they know better than the Bible... pretty arrogent.

I like how Pascal's Wager wraps it all up:
“We can wager that God exists and live our lives based on this belief.  If we win our bet because God does in fact exist, then we will receive eternal life and happiness.  The only “cost” to us are giving up certain finite “poisonous pleasures, glory and luxury.” And striving to live our lives as people who are “faithful, honest, humble, grateful, generous, and sincere”.  On the other hand, we can wager that God does not exist and live our lives based on this belief.  If we win our bet in this case, we will “win” the opportunity to pursue our own pleasures and glory, constraints and without punishment in an afterlife.  However, if we lose the bet- that is, if God does in fact exist and we have chosen not to believe in God’s existence- then we may have forfeited the opportunity for eternal life and happiness

Regardless...   the world will end for all of us at some point.  It could end for me today when I get in my car and drive down the street.  It could end for me in the next 20 minutes when an anyerism in my head pops.  It could end in a couple of years when the Big One earthquake finally destroys Southern California.  I don't know when any of those things will happen either.  But eventually I am going to blow this planet one way or another and move along to the next phase.

So I figure best to me as prepared as I can as I go along.  I don't wait to tell people how I feel about them.  I don't wait to resolve issues.  I clear out my computer history so you can't see that I have been reading up about communism and anarchy and all kinds of wierd things for my college classes, lol.  I enjoy the realtionship I have with God every day. I try to find that balance between living for today and having things ready for if I live to be 97+ years old like my grandma. 

To me that is the lesson to be learned by the Great Non Rapture of 5-21-11

Proud Mom Tonight!

I am a proud mom today!
My youngest child passed the driving test for her license on the first try! 
She was scared and she tried anyhow and that is a big deal!
She also hates it when I get all mushy with her and if I were to give her a hug she would probably act like I am giving her mom cooties.  So in lieu of that hug I will share with you the Commemorative speech I will be delivering on Saturday for my Communications 101 class.
To my delight I have seen that other ladies whom I love are celebrating today good news of babies and adoptions and weddings so this seem especially appriopriate today.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

April 1st, 1992. I was in my office working when the phone rang. It was my (then) husband. “We have a daughter” he said. I told him that was not a funny April fool’s joke. “No really” he said “the adoption agency just called. We pick her up in two days”

Our journey to adoption started 5 years earlier when we decided to add another child to our family. Our son, Brandon, was 18 months old so we figured it was time to get started on number 2. What happened quickly and easily the first time didn’t happen again—I could not get pregnant. We tried everything we could do short of expensive medical treatment and hit a crossroad in 1989: we invest in infertility treatments or we invest in adoption. We knew we only had the resources for one or the other. We decided to try for adoption. We were so incredibly naïve about what that meant, which was a good thing because had we known we probably would have given up on the spot.

We spent a solid year doing all the things the agency we chose required of us to become approved. We took classes to be first aide certified. We had home inspections to see if we had an appropriate home. We were interviewed over and over. We had references. Our employment records were examined. Our credit rating was checked and our finances were reviewed. Finally we were approved.

Once we were approved we went to the park and took ‘marketing pictures’ to show that we were the perfect family; mom, dad, son and our trusty dog Jenny. We wrote letters to birthmothers telling her what great parent we would be to her baby. We told her what a great big brother Brandon would be. We talked about our family values. We described our personalities, our hobbies, our friends, and our church. We put it all together into a portfolio.

And then we waited. A week. A month. Six months. A year. Not a nibble. Not a word. Thirteen months. Eighteen months. Twenty months.

Around then we pretty much gave up and used our savings to buy a new car. Of course a few weeks later we get a call: there might be a baby for us. It wasn’t born yet. The parents are physically and mentally challenged. The mom has spina bifida so there is every possibility that the baby will have special needs. Would you consider taking this child?

What kind of question is that? We have been trying to have a child for 7 years! And now you ask if we want a sick one that could have all sorts of problems? Me? A caregiver for a special needs child? Me- who get nauseous just visiting people in the hospital? Could I handle that? Would God ask me to handle that? We think it over for a few days. It is crazy. What if this is our only chance? What kind of people does it make us for saying ‘no’? What are we volunteering ourselves for? What if this is our baby and we don’t accept him or her?

As usual I find myself wandering the baby aisles of the store. My heart hurts and I give up trying to hold back tears. I see the tiniest baby sleeper with little colorful animals on it. It looks so small! I check the tag to see what size this is. The name of the manufacturing company is “Hang In There” and has a picture of a little monkey hanging off a branch. I know this is a sign. I buy it on the spot. We call the agency. Put us on the ‘yes’ list.

A week goes by. No word. Two weeks. Six. We hear nothing. March goes by. We figure the baby must be soon to be born, but we hear nothing. We call the agency. They have no news for us. Then comes our April Fools phone call. “Come get your daughter.” They say.

We spend the next two days shopping. We tell very few people afraid the birthmom will change her mind. We are afraid to hope. We have nothing ready. It feels like tempting fate to get the crib set up. We do, however, have a very special sleeper to dress her in for her trip home. And we buy the most adorable pink and cream colored stroller. We realize we have spent our adoption money on the car--- we know we are going to have to pay for her with our Mastercard. It might be the first time she has cost us a fortune--- it would not be the last. The home health care provider brings over the monitoring equipment she will need. He reminds us of our CPR training and tells us what to do when she stops breathing. Not IF--- when. I am terrified. But already I know that it is my job and my joy to guard over this child. I will do it.

April 3rd 1992. We are excited. She is tiny- 5 lbs. at birth though full term. And she is considered a ‘failure to thrive’ so she doesn’t like to eat. I am terrified. Yet I know, more that I have ever known anything, that she is my daughter and I will do whatever it takes to be the best mom I can be for her. Though her birthmother calls her Elizabeth, we decide to give her the name we have picked for her; Lauren. After my grandmother Lurah. We want her to know she is part of our family- she has a family name.

We fill out all the paperwork. It is finally time to meet her and her birthmother and grandmother. I remind myself to pay attention to them even though I really only have eyes for my baby girl. She is beautiful and tiny and I am already irritated at the monitor and wires she is connected to. That mama bear protective thing is already in full swing. We make small talk. I just want to hold her. We exchange gifts. I just want to hold her. Finally Redi gives her a kiss and hands her to me. And I fall in love.

Here, finally, is that piece of my heart that was missing.

Things Are Not Always What They Seem

Carpe Diem
SEIZE THE DAY!
If you see a pair of shoes on clearance and you LOVE them and plan to come back later--- they won't be there!
It is like some kind of cosmic joke!
And it cost me an excellent blog picture the other day.
I drove by the wedding chapel marquee that supplies us with so many giggles and there was a great one up there. And I figured, I will get a picture later cuz I was a little late for work.
BUT WHEN I WENT BACK THE NEXT DAY IT WAS GONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am so sorry, Minions!
You are going to have to imagine it and trust that it was really up there.
Do you have your imaginations on?
Okay you know what the marquee looks like, right?
I dont remember the couple--- lets call them William and Kate
Here is a dramatic re-creation:

William and Kate
The Have What It Is

Of course this made me wonder what "IT" is that they have.
Is it an STD?
Is it a horrible gross hair ball in their shower drain?
Is it meal worms in their pancake mix?
Is it a mouse living under their refridgerator?
Is it rabies?
Is it BO?
What is it ????
The World May Never Know.
But whatever it is, They Have It!!
Congratulations William and Kate--- maybe you should see a doctor about that.

Meanwhile yet another exciting day at work--someone brought Kentucky Fried Chicken in around noon.  Plus all the things that go with.  Including bisquits and what I thought was little packets of honey.
Little did I know that those little packages are actually "Honey Sause"
What is Honey Sause????
Apparently a whole lot of things besides honey.
As you can see from the package----- this sause contains a whopping 7% honey.
So that is 93% of other stuff.
Wow.
Who Knew

Ummmmm I Forgot What I Was Going To Call This Post.....

The spring semester at my IRL (In Real Life) school is winding down.  Only two more Saturday classes.  I am starting to panic because I know I am going to miss school so much.  I am such a total dork, right?  WHAT WILL I DO WITH MYSELF??
The entertainment value alone will be sorely missed.  This past week in my Communications class we had the rest of the persuasive speeches.
So this guy gets up and he is going to persuade us that marijuana should be legalized.  Here is my summary of his speech.
"Good morning.  So I am going to talk to you today about why marijuana should be legalized.   Ummmmmm....   aahhh.......   I have been toking for, like, since I was like 14 years old and I am not addicted.  Marijuana is like that ummmmm..... ahhhh... what is that word?  Like  uuhhhhh  ummmmm.  Whatever.  Studies have shown that marijuana is safer than cigarettes and more satisfying too.  I know people who smoke like a pack of cigarettes a day and they still want more.  But I have like a small toke in the morning and one later and I am cool.  Unless I am bored and then I like to take a few hits and watch a movie because any movie is a lot more interesting when you have a few hits on, right?  (he looks up and the ceiling for inspiration).  So.... ummmm.... marijuana is a lot safer than alcohol  because you are not impaired to drive."
At this point I cannot tell if he is seriously giving this speech or if he is going the satire route.  I am trying not to snicker.  Either way he is seriously giving me a case of the munchies.
He stumbles around for another few minutes and then it is time to ask questions.  The teacher pipes up right away " So, dude are you FOR the use of marijuana or AGAINST it because you just gave a convincing speech that it makes you stupid"  LOL   The class cracks up.  The guy looks clueless.  There are more questions.  The guy is trounced.
I am seriously going to miss this class. I have bonded with two guys in particular.  Ironically Bad Hair Guy has become a friend.  We have spent a fair amount of outside time discussing God and Quantum physics and all kinds of other stuff.  His hair still drives me nuts though.  The other guy is this Philosophy major and we have had many conversations about all the various Ancient and more contemporary philosophers and all the theories.  Dude, you have no idea how SMART I can sound when I put my mind to it.  Who am I going to talk to when this class is over???? 

Aren't We Glad I Have Time To Blog Again?

Okay so I am sitting up here in my ivory tower (bedroom upstairs) writing a paper for my Com class about John F. Kennedy's Ich Bin Ein Berliner speech and I realize that I am freezing.

A few days ago it was 90 degrees.
Now it is cold again.
But really-- this cold? 

And I realize the cooler is running full blast downstairs.
And up here I now have my winter pajamas on.
Yeah, I could go shut the cooler off but.... then I would have to come back upstairs again.   And that is kinda like when you have a bad dream, but you aren't really sure it is a dream because maybe JUST MAYBE there really is a monster under your bed and if you get out of bed it will most certainly get you.

Even if it sees that your eyes are open it might get you.

So you just stay in bed  Or you just sit there in front of your computer in your winter pajamas and text your sister who isn't even home that you are freezing.
And she does not come home to turn it off

I know, right?

And my Blackberry is ding ding dinging that there are multiple emails coming in.  In my Philosophy Discussion Forum everyone is posting madly to finish up before the class officially ends at midnight tonight.  (Of course I did this days ago) And they are all "this class has changed my life" "I can't believe what I didn't know about life" "have a great summer--- B(est) F(riends) F(orever)...  Good Luck In Life!!   OMG SIGN MY YEARBOOK!!  etc etc etc.....  and I am thinking WHEN IS SHE GOING TO POST THE FINAL GRADES because last week or so when she last posted grades I was one point off of Tina's grade. ONE POINT!!!!   TINA!  I must conquer you Tina, Stealer of The Highest Class Grade.  But Tina is all like "Oh Dr Benvenuti, I just LOVE your instructional style I have already signed up for your Psychology class next semester".  BROWN NOSER!  I would never stoop to such obvious displays of Co-Dependent People Pleasing Competivity.  It is ridiculous!  I will earn my grade the old fashioned way--- by being amazing.
Right?

Dang it is so cold up here!

One Down: One To Go

I am finished with my Philosophy class!   Yay?
I really enjoyed my Philo class.  What am I going to do with myself now?  That frees up a good 5-6 hours a week of homework.  Also, an outlet for all my deep..... insightful..... musings.....
I guess I will just have to spend more time and energy blogging.
Yay?  Is that cheers or sobs I hear?
Com 101 continues to be, at turns, incredibly entertaining and excruciatingly boring.  The past few weeks we have had our Persuasive speeches.  Several of my favorites have dropped the class but there were a few high points.  We had Mr Player Guy who did his speech on why there should be sex ed in elementary school.  Yes, that is what I said.  Because we all know that 9 years old is about when 'everyone starts these days'.  Once I picked myself up off the metaphorical floor we had the next speaker who was apparently trying to convince people to read the Bible more. He did not make it sound tempting.  Talk about a 180 degree turn!  During one less interesting speech I heard someone softly snoring and I am afraid that it was me.  I don't know for sure.  The award for the best mis-use of the English language goes to the speaker who was trying to persuade everyone to take First Aide courses.  Among the many reasons she gave was the fact that someday you might need to perform "emergency child labor".  Ironically this actually came up less than 20 hours labor when I found a sink full of dirty dishes and tried, unsuccessfully, to get them to perform emergency child labor.  That is what happens when you don't get the proper training.
Let that be a lesson to you all!!
(In case it isn't obvious, I am fairly certain that she meant "emergency childbirth".)
Soon we will be working on our final speech which is to be commemorative.  I am seriously considering offering up an eulogy. 
Of myself.
"We come to bury the GeeeLoueez, not to praise her..."
I could make it pretty danged funny, right?
It is high time to bring back the funny.  I have been so immersed in my own head for the past 16 weeks examining my thoughts on life, liberty, reality etc.... that I have become decidedly less funny. 
I have to hurry because I think I died of rabies and we all know what happens to your brain when you have rabies, right?
That is right... you become a zombie.
Now I have 3 more weeks of my Com 101 class and then it is summer break.  I was thinking of backpacking through Europe.  Who wants to come with?
Anyone???
Anyone???
Hello???
After this semester is over I only need one more class before I can become a California State University Bakersfield Roadrunner!!!     Except now I am not sure that I still want to do it.  Accounting is so boring.  Maybe I want to switch majors and become a Philosopher.  Maybe I just want to endlessly wander the halls of higher learning...
Hmmmmmmm
What do you think, my peeps?

My Doctors Checkup: A Haiku

I need a checkup
Doctor visit means haiku
Poetry means calm

Nope, not logical
Not looking means not finding
Hello Denial

I try not to faint
Upon hearing my poundage
Hippopotamus

Recite litany
Of medical conditions
To new provider

Feel like an old fart
Being middle aged sure sucks
Wish I were 30

Before menopause
Before the high blood pressure
Not so big and fat

She sprays that cold stuff
On assorted locations
Meeting tomorrow

Blisters on my face
Lets hope they dont look too gross
Curling iron burns?

Lets get some blood drawn
Check you for more diseases
When last tetnus shot?

Looked inside my ears
Did she see any brains?
Or just many bats

How lucky are you
To hear of my physical
Descriptive haiku

Design My Yard!

I really would love to do something great in my yard.
Or even kinda okay.
Right now the front planter bed is mostly dirt clods and the back yard flower beds are all dirt.
I know some of you out there LOVE to garden and design landscaping so please feel free to offer advice.  I want plants that take care of themselves pretty much.
I did find some beautiful garden art.

Cats With Binoculars
"Who Me?  I am not stalking birds"

Arrrgghhhh Matey!
You be wantin a Pirate Kitty fer yer yard, do ye?



Dog & Cat Wind Chimes
For those days when the wind in the
Antelope Valley just isn't
quite noisy enough



Home, Home on The Range....
Where the dogs and the cats are at play....

I want an Angel Kitty to watch over me!
That doesn't make me weird, does it?
DOES IT??????