First Day

It's an exciting day at the Finnell's. Dave started his new job today. He has been a bit giddy about the whole thing and it's supercute. Dave will be working at Wells Fargo in their Corporate Banking Division as an analyst. It's pretty much his ideal job. To sum it up (because I don't understand most of what he will be doing), Dave will get paid to read the Wall Street Journal. And I'm sure he will do some other stuff, too, but that stands out in my mind.

This position is the culmination of a lot of hard work and sacrifice - working full-time, going to school, balancing family responsibilties - it hasn't been easy. But through all the stress, Dave has always handled himself with graciousness and gentleness coupled with a great wit. I'm so grateful to see all his effort pay off into a position that makes him excited about the possibilities and challenges ahead. Life is good.

Plus, he looks wicked good in his dress shirts.

You're the best, Munchie!!

Random Breakfast Musings

Carbs should not be touted as breakfast food. Cereal has been out of the running as a breakfast choice in the Finnell house for quite some time. Do you want to feel like you haven't eaten for three days at 9AM? Go ahead - you go for those Cheerios. Your attempt at early morning restraint will be shattered when you need that Egg McMuffin at 10. But for some reason I thought pancakes would deliver and carry me hunger free until lunch. Not so. I made blueberry pancakes this morning (and no, this is not a normal weekday occurence) and by 9:15 I might as well have eaten puffed air on a plate. Granted, we ate breakfast at 6:30 but surely pancakes have more staying power than that? Nope, they don't. This business of eating multiple breakfasts in order to make it to lunch is beginning to make me feel like a hobbit. From now on, carbs must be coupled with protein.

Bacon gets my vote.

Lucy's Musical Tastes

Many children love to hear their parents sing. In following the sage advice of most parenting books, we've sang lots of tunes - Old MacDonald, This Old Man, Where is Thumbkin - we've covered them all over the course of Lucy's life. In fact, singing Wheels on the Bus was the one thing we could do to calm Lucy in the car when she was a newborn.

Those days are over. And I'll tell you why.

During last season's American Idol, my dear friend Kristen made me a CD with a selection of songs performed by Carly Smithson. Lucy LOVES Carly. She could listen to Carly's performance of Blackbird by the Beatles all day long. In fact, if she's upset all I have to do is say, "Let's play the Blackbird song" and Lucy gets positively giddy. It's quite cute.

Here's the problem.

In a nutshell, if you aren't good enough to get a recording contract Lucy wants nothing to do with you. And I mean, nothing. It started off kind of cute. Dave would sing along with Blackbird and Lucy would vigorously shake her head "NO." I mean, who can blame her? Who wants their favorite song ruined by someone singing along in the car ? But this week I would sing to her some silly songs and she would shake her head "NO." I thought she might not be serious. Until yesterday morning when I sang The Wheels on the Bus and she began to shake her head and cry. And not like I-Want-A-Different-Song Cry. More like Mama-You're-Hurting-My-Ears Cry. Talk about your all-time confidence boosters.

I'm trying to comfort myself with the fact my daughter has distinct musical preferences. But I'd be lying if I didn't admit it's a little discouraging when your daughter prefers silence to the sound of your singing voice.

I'd Love Some Advice

Inflation pretty much sucks. We've been good about cutting our gas bill but our grocery bill is climbing higher and higher. I've tried different methods to cut down our costs: getting staples at Trader Joes, buying things in bulk at Costco, purchasing flour and spices in the bulk section at my local market. I've tried different meal planning methods like making a breakfast for dinner one night a week (cheap and fast) or making a pot of soup at the beginning of the week that will last several days. But I have no rhyme or reason to what I'm doing - I'm not even sure if my methods are effective - and I will be the first to admit that I'm not the best at creating a system. So I'd like to put this question out there to the blogosphere. Is there anything working for you in cutting down your grocery bill? If so, please share. I'm all ears.

Post-Pancake Vent

Yesterday morning we went out for breakfast. There are few things I love more than a bottomless mug of diner coffee, especially when our cupboards are pretty bare and we only have decaf. During the course of our breakfast, I couldn't help but overhear an interction of a neighboring table of patrons with our server. Apparently, our server forgot to bring out hash browns, which were included in their meal. He quickly apologized and brought out the missing potatoes and mentioned he thought they wanted something else. After he left, this couple launched into our server, complaining about his missteps along the way and how he should have known better.

Listening to them was ugly, which is a lame description but it's the one word that kept coming to mind. Ugly.They sounded so unattractive. And I couldn't help but think of times in the past where I've been uncharitable, which made me feel pretty low.

I was reminded of the book Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich (a great read, btw) where she writes about how Sunday mornings were the worst times to wait tables because the church goers were notoriously rude and cheap. Now I don't think church goers have a complete monopoly on rudeness to the service industry but it does make me wonder why that happens. Why can we be so gracious with our friends and acquaintances but so exacting and demanding to people in customer service? How is this okay, especially when many in this industry are probably struggling to eek out a living?

So to my companions at my local diner, I'd like to say that I know it's easy to be critical (see, I'm doing it now). Being gracious is hard when expectations aren't met. But regardless of how poor a job you may feel your server is doing, everyone deserves kindness and respect. So the next time your server forgets your fries, let your server know and leave it at that. There's no need for an editorial about his or her job performance. And repaying a mistake with kindness might even make you feel better about yourself, too.

Summer Favorites

I shared with you the Wheel of Fortune addiction. Since I'm in a sharing mood, let me share a few more of my recent favorites.



I can't get enough of this album. It's mellow and soulful and her songs leave me with a lump in my throat. And somehow it's the perfect album for the lazy days of summer. Lucy is beginning to be a fan and that's a very good thing. Oh, and I'm usually way behind the times so if this album is wildly popular and I sound like the kid who discovered Nirvana in 1995, indulge me.



Kettle Chips. Yogurt and Green Onion flavor, to be exact. These chips are fantastic. Granted, they give you the breath of death but it's so worth it. They've been on sale for the last two weeks at my local grocery store and I'm grateful they will no longer be on sale tomorrow. I may be coming clean but there's no way I'll tell you how many of these chips I've consumed over the past couple weeks. I will say that I will no longer miss hearing Dave lament, "Did you finish off another bag, AGAIN?" (And for the record, Dave, I much prefer, "Have you seen the Kettle Chips?" We both know I lost all self-control and stuffed my face but the latter sounds much more optimistic).

Get yourself some Kettle chips, a frosty beverage, download some Lizz Wright and enjoy a summer evening. You can thank me later.

Procrastination

Do you procrastinate? Are you one of those people under the false delusion that your best work happens the night before a deadline? If so, stop kidding yourself and read this article. Embrace your inability to work ahead of the game.

My 7PM Addiction

I have a confession to make. I have officially become my grandma. I am a Wheel Watcher.

It happened gradually. Putting Lucy down to sleep used to be such an exhausting process that Dave and I would melt onto the couch and need a few minutes to veg. Since we don't have cable, the choices at 7PM are pretty limited to celebrity news magazines and, you guessed it, Wheel of Fortune.

Guess what we chose?

I realize that having the official game show of the AARP on most nights hardly makes our living room a bastion of coolness. I mean, what about shows like Mad Men? Lost? The Wire? Those shows are hip while Wheel of Fortune is decidedly uncool. I mean, my grandma has been a faithful watcher for years. Remember the days of post-puzzle shopping where winners walked away with rattan dining sets and gold jaguar broach pins? Yeah, she watched it back then. So I recognize there is a low coolness factor. But I gotta tell you, it's so entertaining. On any given night you can hear either Dave or I saying things like:

"That Pat - what a kidder."

"Don't you know better than to pick "M" in the bonus round? C'mon, people, don't you watch this show??"

And before the final spin, "C'MON $5000, C'MON $5000!!!!" (seriously, every night this spews from my mouth - I really can't control it anymore)

This half hour we spend in front of the television has become somewhat of a ritual (did I just write the word "ritual" in regard to Wheel of Fortune??). I love the prize puzzles. I love trying to solve the puzzles before Dave. And I love it most of all when each of the contestants walk away with a nice sum of cash (I'm a game show socialist - share the wealth, I say). Wheel of Fortune is pretty unpretentious in today's greedy game show world. No one is going to be able to retire with their winnings or buy a house outright, but I think that makes me like it more as there is less angst when people lose. During the summer there are re-runs and I do draw the line at watching Wheel of Fortune episodes more than once. But come September, while others may be excited about new shows in prime time I'll be reunited with my old friends, Pat and Vanna, cheering for some "big money" as the wheel goes round. Listen to grandma, people. She's got good taste.

Washington Primary Reading

There is nothing quite like reading the WA Voters' Pamphlet before the primaries. Let's face it, the post-primary candidates are trying so hard to be moderate that they can come across as quite dull, which makes for boring reading. But before the primaries? The mix of candidates are eclectic and opinionated with candidate statements that make you sit up and take notice. I mean, where would Washington be without the candidate who wants to amend the Constitution so the War Power Act will be delegated by the state legislatures instead of Congress? Or the candidate who has invented an air engine that allows an automobile to operate solely on air? And don't forget the candidate who has taken to calling our governor, Christine"The Cover-Up Queen" Gregoire. But my personal favorite? Hold onto your spaceboots, people. My favorite is none other than Goodspaceguy Nelson. Yes, that's right, Goodspaceguy. And what is his platform? Ironically, Goodspaceguy wants to colonize space, starting with colonies in the Earth's orbit and moving later to the orbits of the Moon and Mars. Oh, and he also "wants tall buildings and more movies to be made in Washington State," but I'm sure that's secondary to the space stuff. I'm not sure he'll be a good fit for D.C. but I'm quite sure he would be the life of the party.

It's pretty significant that we live in a place where so many people can put their hats into the political arena. And even though most of the more unorthodox candidates have no chance in our current party system, I appreciate people who have the courage to go out on a limb when they know deep inside they can't win. So I gotta say to the more eclectic candidates out there running for office, thanks for putting yourself out there and making your not-so-mainstream ideas public knowledge. I may have had a chuckle or two at your expense but I sincerely admire your determination and conviction.

The moral of this post is read your state's voters' pamphlet if you haven't already. You'll be glad you did.