Canteen Exhaustion

I am exhausted! I just spent the entire morning and afternoon feeding meals out of a Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Services canteen. The city asked us to respond on the South Side because there are peace rallies going on on the streets where two young girls had been shot and killed in the last couple of weeks.

I was there today. Asking if anyone wanted some beef stew.

Ryan comes home today! Yippee!! Yippee!!

He was in charge of bringing a "side dish" for lunch on the mountain. Can you picture him skiing with a container of potato salad in his coat pocket?

License Branch - Known to most as the DMV

Throughout our marriage so far, there have been many instances when I say something that Ryan thinks is HillBillyish. For example, in my family, we call the License Branch the License Branch...not the DMV. A pot hole has always been referred to as a "chuck hole" and Poo, when found on the ground in the woods is known as "Skat."

Since moving away from home, I agree that my parents have some accent going on, but I do not recogonize this in myself.

All of that is to let you know that I just got home from the Licence Branch, which closes at 5:30pm. So I left work 10 minutes early (at 3:53pm) in order to get there on time. The Illinois DMV that I go to is located 28 miles from where I work, and yes, it took me an hour and a half to go 28 miles in chicago Rush Hour traffic. Actually, I did'nt even think traffic was too bad today at all!

So I am rushing to get there because I simply need to switch my plates from my old Honda to my new car. Of course, I take a wrong turn and have to turn around, but then find I am going the wrong way down a one-way street. I finally find the place, run to the front door, and explain why I am there. The lady asks "Do you have the titles to both cars?" To which I resond "Yes" and she says "you have the titles to both cars?" and I say "yes" again. She then hands me a form to fill out and sends me away.

The time is now 5:23. I am rushing as fast as I can to fill out the form, and realize that I don't know my license plate # by heart...and my plates are on my Honda, which is parked in Michigan at my parent's house! I call them...they are on their way to church, but kindly turn around to read my my plate #. I love my INCREDIBLE parents!! I fill out the paperwork while all around me I hear DMV employees saying that "Its closing time" and "hurry up" and "you better pay your taxes." A few different people came up to ask me if I needed help...what I needed was less pressure.

I was trying to write so fast that not just my hand, but my whole arm and shoulder were getting cramped up under the stress these people were placing on me! Ahhhh! So I finish the forms, and head over to the other line that I have to stand in to talk to an actual person. I get there and she says "Just relax Kathleen, everything is fine, we won't leave until you're all taken care of." Uhhhh...Im Amber, not Kathleen...

"This is not your name on the title?"
"Uhhh, I guess not...That is the girl who owned the car before me."

"So you have not paid taxes on this car?"
"Uhhhh....."

So I had to go get another form from the first lady I talked to...the one who asked me "You have the title to both cars?" And this time she is mad at me because she told me at the beginning and I told her I had both titles. She takes the form i just filled out and gives it a big WRIP down the middle.

The next thing I know it is 5:33 and people are getting hostile. They are filling out my forms for me, telling me "sign here" SIGN HERE" and telling me "write a check to the State of Illinois for bla bla bla" "now write another check to the Illinois DMV for bla bla bla."

So I am frantically writing checks, signing papers, and then suddenly I was being herded toward a mean looking lady in a polka-dot sweater who was 3 minutes late from getting off of work. She took my money and showed me the door.

I guess we will have to wait and see if I actually accomplished what I went in for, which was simply transferring my license plates from my Honda to my Mazda.

I am horrified.

SpoonNoodler

I know I am on a Craig's List kick, but Im telling you, it is impressive how well it works! I listed my Honda for sale, and got 3 responses in one hour! I am about to list 20,000 SpoonNoodlers as well. Myabe later Ill list my wedding dress. :o)

Are you wondering what a SpoonNoodler is? Well, they are purple extendo spoons that have the cat in the hat on them. Each comes in a macaroni and cheese box...since they were a donation of "official movie merchandise" for Cat in the Hat. If I had my camera here at work, I'd show you a picture. When I get home, Ill add a SpoonNoodler picture.

It is probably a good thing that I never got into the e-bay kick. Judging by my reaction to Craig's List, I would for sure be an addict.

Anyone want a SpoonNoodler? How about a hundred? I have been calling hospitals, schools, and childrens places...but Craig's List is the best way for me to give these away.

Ceramic Molds

You know what is amazing? First of all, Craig's List is amazing. Most big cities have Craig's List - where people can search for all sorts of things - Its GREAT!

This morning, I posted a simple note on Craig's List "Hundreds of CERAMIC MOLDS - FREE!!" and within 5 minutes my phone started ringing. Eight people have called me and 5 have emailed about the molds in the last 2 hours. What I have learned is that Craig's List works like a charm!

A couple of days ago, some semi-trucks pulled up with a donation of thousands of ceramic molds for The Salvation Army. Unfortunately, we don't have a kiln...or any other ceramic-type equipment, so we have been looking for someone to give these molds to. I called tons of schools...but had trouble connecting with the right people because all Art Teachers seem to be on Spring Break right now. So, I decided to post on Craig's List.

Yippee! Two more email just popped up! I gotta get rid of these molds!

Why is it that....

I just stole these from my brother-in-law Johnnie. Thanks John Boy :o)


-Why do we press harder on a remote control when we know the batteries are getting weak?

-Why do banks charge a fee on "insufficient funds" when they know there is not enough?

-Why does someone believe you when you say there are four billion stars, but check when you say the paint is wet?

-Why doesn't glue stick to the inside of the bottle?

-Why does Superman stop bullets with his chest, but ducks when you throw a revolver at him?

-Whose idea was it to put an "S" in the word "lisp"?

-If people evolved from apes, why are there still apes?

-Why is it that no matter what color bubble bath you use the bubbles are always white?

-How do those dead bugs get into those enclosed light fixtures?

-In winter why do we try to keep the house as warm as it was in summer when we complained about the heat?

-The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four persons is suffering from some sort of mental illness…think of your three best friends…if they are ok, then it's you.

Multiple Streams of Income

Ever since I read the book "48 Days to the Work You Love" by Dan Miller, I can't stop thinking about multiple streams of income. That is the best idea Ive heard all week. How brilliant is it to set up a system that could not fail. Individual parts of the system could fail at different times, but the system as a whole would not fail. There would always be at least one successful income source at any given time. Why don't I just take a second to get myself a few more streams of income?

I do have my Mary Kay business, which will always be there whether it's a drop now and then or a raging river.

It seems to me that somewhere deep inside I have a few great ideas that could change the world.

Now that I have identified that, I just have to figure out what those ideas are.

Sun & Snow

This morning Ry Face took the earliest flight out of Midway to Colorado. I didn't realize he had booked the flight so early when we were hanging out in Michigan until 9:00 last night. Luckily, we made it back to Chicago in good time and got in almost 4 hours of sleep before I took him to the airport.
Our marriage is the coming together of two people who have opposite interests. I could spend weeks doing nothing but laying on the beach...and he will never tire of snow skiing. We have tried our best so far to accomodate eachother's basic needs for sun and snow (as you can see from the picture below). However, I was more than happy to let him go on this particular ski trip without me holding him back.

You see, I have never been a fan of winter. I did do ski-club in 8th grade, but two trips to Swiss Valley didn't really get me hooked on the sport. I remember sitting on the bus on the way to Swiss Valley one Wednesday night trying to figure out what in the world I was thinking when I signed up for ski-club. I decided that it wasn't for me on the day that I crashed into a bunch of really cool snow boarder guys who were in high school. They were sitting right in the middle of the hill I was trying to ski down. I tried to tell them to "LOOK OUT! Please look out, I am coming and I NEED YOU TO KNOW THAT I CANNOT STOP!!", but I guess they were too cool to get out of my way. So I creamed them.

After that I didn't go back to ski club.

Ryan's family likes winter sports. His parents took us to Breckinridge over Christmas Break...which was quite an experience for me. I was most afraid that we would all start at the top of some mountain and I would end up at the bottom miles away from everyone else. That is why they gave me a walkie-talkie. Because no one could be sure that I could stay on the path.

Ryan's dad tried to teach me how to turn. I only biffed really bad 9 or 10 times, so I was pretty proud of myself. On the 2nd day, I started getting a little over-zealous and decided to try weaving thru some trees...which did not turn out to be a good decision. Luckily both skiis popped off so I could roll down and out of the forrest where I found myself.

All in all it was a successful trip...we all came back alive.

I miss my Ryan terribly already. He just called to let me know that he landed and the flight was great. He will have a blast this week in Colorado. He is awesome at skiing, and the fact that he is doing something that has nothing to do with medicine, well, I think its healthy.

Florida Anyone?

My family is HILARIOUS! Currently, all three of us kids are trying to figure out a way to get off of work, without any vacation days, to go to Florida for 3 days with Dad. he just called us up (except for Angela, he chased her down in a parking lot) to ask if we want to go. Spontaneous fun. Thats what we do in our family.

The goal: Do not lose your job
The other goal: Do not encourage your siblings to lose their jobs...eventhough you want them to go to Florida too.

It is highly likely that none of us will be able to go.
Mostly just fun to think about.

This is my family:

A Quick Re-Cap

Ryan is my Handsome Hubby.
Here we are...enjoying the Spring.

When we moved to Chicago, we heard that our church in the city was going to take a trip to the Apple Orchard! We were pumped, so we signed up immediately, not knowing where an apple orchard could be in Chicago. In Michigan and Indiana apple orchards are expansive and glorious havens for apple cider, donuts, and the occasional bumble bee. When we pulled into the parking lot of the Chicago orchard we couldn't help but laugh. It was literally 6 rows of skragly trees, none of which had a good selection. The picture reflects how many good apples we could find. The only problem was that the orchard had a 10 pound minimum...meaning we were paying for 10 lbs whether we could find that many good apples or not.

We did buy some honey, which is currently stuck in my cupboard. Honey can be like glue you know.

May I Have Your Attention Please!

And so it begins...

Six minutes ago I decided that I've been in read-only mode for too long. I find myself absorbed for hours in the blogs of my friends. I laugh (especially when reading Corey Mann's blog), I cry, and I just got the itch to start my own while reading the blog of my dear friend Katie Holt.

Last night I did something I never thought I would ever do. I slathered tons of lotion all over my hands then put some socks on them. That Right Folks, I SLEPT WITH SOCKS ON MY HANDS! Which brings me to the title of this post. Dear Spring, can you please please come to Chicago. I am drying up over here while I wait for you!

I am nervous...my first post! Here goes...