El Pollo Poco II

Did you all see the "El Pollo Poco" advertisement tonight where the Latino sings his song and shows you all the food you can get on the dollar menu? The loco salad was not only filled to the top, but it was spilling over. What a joke!

Standing on the shoulders of my sister

Last night when I was talking to my sister we were joking around about having massages/facials when I go to N.Y. in two weeks. (We won't do it, but we were just talking about it.) So my sister said that every time she goes for a massage, the masseuse tells her to relax her body and relax her shoulders. She returns with,"But I am relaxed." The masseuse tells her she's not relaxed enough. Which is one of the reasons I never have massages, because I can't stand some bitty telling me to relax. My first date told me to relax, my friends tell me to relax, my co-workers have always told me to relax etc. Hey everyone, this is it. I don't get any more relaxed than how you see me. My state of being is perpetual fluctuation and that's the way it is. It's inherited! So I added to my sister's comments that every time I have a new grandchild and one of my kids takes a picture of me holding the new baby, my shoulders are never "at ease." They're always up by my ears. It's pretty funny to see in pictures. You'd think that after giving birth to 3 kids and having 4 grandchildren, that my shoulders wouldn't be standing at attention anymore.

El Pollo Poco

Well, my heart is hardened enough like the Pharoah that I think I'm through with El Pollo Loco! I have been buying dinners from that take out restaurant for close to 20 years now at least a few times a week. But the last two times I've been there, their wonderful chips have been stale and the four Loco salads I ordered last night were only 1/3 full! Granted they are each $1.00 and it makes a nice accompaniment for a main course or for lunch the next day with tuna fish in it. But I feel like a got a quarter's worth of shredded lettuce. My salads last night and tonight were finished with 2 1/2 bites.

So bye bye Pollo Poco. If you are "loco" enough to scrimp on your salad and take advantage of a drive by consumer, I am "stoico" enough to find another take out restaurant donde "poco" esta un chiste y "grande" existe.

American Air Times

Yesterday I booked a flight to New York to visit with family and friends. I'm thinking,
"I'm going to get through this process online 123." I know how to do it; it won't take me 3 hours like it takes my sister; I've become a pro at this." Except this time I'm trying to use my rapid rewards with American. I decide on the date and times and go to put in my Aadvantage number and find out that I'm too late. Those dates with the times I want are filled on the rapid rewards program. So I say to myself, "yipee...I've got enough miles saved up...I'll fly Business Class." Not so fast, lady." American wants to charge me 100,000 miles worth of reward mileage to go Business. (It should only be 50,000 earned credits.) That puts me 48,000 miles in the hole. My choices after 30 minutes of this: I can go back to the beginning, see how I can maneuver all these miles that I have even if I have to leave my house at 4:30 a.m. to get a seat on the day that I want, or...I can CALL AA and let them figure it out for me. Well after the agent got me the exact times that I wanted on the days that I wanted using up more miles than I cared to but not 48,000 extra miles, my choice came down to: I can let her book it for me for $20.00 plus $5.00 in taxes, or I can hang up, go back to the computer and see if I can be as creative as the agent and put in all my info for no cost at all. I took the road less traveled these days and let the agent do it. LIFE'S TOO SHORT.

Bye bye, m'am

I'm sitting at work now ready to meet the world head on and make whatever sales are possible on a post July 4th Sunday. A very young woman comes in with two adorable little boys, Mateo and Marcus. They are acting just like my 2 adult sons used to act when they were together in a store. I naturally relate some of the horror stories that I can remember of my sons when they were 2 and 4. And, of course, it was like it was yesterday when they used to hide behind the clothing rounders in the department stores and cause havoc there. So by now I'm "back in the day" and am enjoying a comraderie with this lovely woman. And then it's time for her and the boys to leave. In a very loud and charming voice she says: "good bye m'am" and I am shattered. I've come back to earth. I'm probably 35 or 40 years older than she is!

The British 'r coming, the British 'r coming!

I'm trying to catch up on my bills and my email and FaceBook and Twitter (yes, I do all those things now) and the cannon right outside my window is deafening! I've now jumped out of my skin about 6 times and ran to take cover the 1st two times. I should have realized it's just past 9:00 p.m., the sun is down and the bloody fireworks to celebrate our country's freedom have gotten out of control. Every time I think they're over and I start concentrating again, another blast of fireworks begin. Wish I could close the windows, but it's about 80 degrees in the house. I shall make this short and enjoy the sounds of liberty and others' right to pursue happiness!

Answer: Blue Skies, Blue Caps and Gowns, Blue Lips, Pomp and Circumstance

Question: What Did Friday, June 25th have?

My 4 1/2 year old grandson graduated from Pre-K on Friday along with 23 other adorable preschoolers in blue caps and gowns. When I saw the actual gowns lined up on a table in one of the classrooms earlier that day,I knew it was going to be a 5 hanky afternoon. Because along with caps and gowns comes the Pomp and Circumstance march; I have never made it through that song without a few tissues when each of my kids graduated. But this was a first for a grandchild. I mean, he was just born a few years ago! And here I was with wet eyes and cheeks as Pomp and Circumstance played throughout the classroom.

I was standing in the back of the room right near the door where the kids would come out in their caps and gowns and walk down a short aisle to take their places in little chairs up in the front of the room. My little one caught my eye and he smiled as I clicked a whole bunch of pictures to send to everyone and carry around with me. Of course, having never used a digital camera, I didn't realize that the flash had to go off, and before that, a red light would come on. So 7/8 through the ceremony and exercises, I realized that I had nothing to show. Luckily my daughter and son-in-law have a record of this momentous occasion.

The commencement exercises were very adorable along with a slide show as a record of each child's 2-1/2 years at the Wonder Years Pre-School. Pictures were taken of all the graduates and then it was on to another classroom where parents, grandparents, younger toddlers and friends all indulged in delicious cake and drinks. It didn't take me long to spot my little 2 year old toddler sitting in a chair, minding her own business and devouring the blue icing of the cake all by herself. She was her own picture of blue: blue lips, face and hands. What a delicious day for her and all of us!