Sunday, May 19, 2013

Just A Note

I'm back for just a few.  It's been a bit of whirl-wind in the last few days.  As I mentioned in a past post, after my mother was hospitalized last Sept., two weeks after she turned 90, all went to hell for her and my sister decided to return to El Paso to be her full-time caregiver.  I can't tell you enough how much I appreciate her for doing this, uprooting her life in Phoenix and returning home to care for our mom...she's a friggin' saint!  Anyway, due to my mother's deterioration, her needs have become more profound, making it an emotional and physical roller coaster for my sis, so she decided she needed to take off a every 2-3 months, just to reboot.

So she left for Michigan last Tues. to visit an old, dear friend who is terminally ill, but still enjoying her life at full throttle.  My mother was already complaining about feeling badly, again, but then what does one expect at 90??!??  My mother went up the road to Las Cruces, NM, to stay with my brother and we knew he and his girlfriend would treat her like royalty, which they did, briefly.  On Friday, Fred called and told me her bp was high, very high.  Long story already made long, I went to her house, picked up her living room on wheels (Buick) since it was more comfortable to drive her back to El Paso and take her to the ER.  She was admitted, eventually, and my brother told my sister of her hospitalization.  She was upset at my mother's condition, but not my bro and me.  You see, the last time she went out of town, Mom ended up at the ER the day after she left, same problem, her leg spasms.  However, we told her to stay put in Michigan, enjoy her time with Julie, her friend, and know Mom is in good hands...she knows there will be bigger challenges upon her return.

So my friends, please pray for Mom and Letty as rougher times are ahead for them. Of course, Fred and I will also be vigilant and there to help, always, but the bulk of that 24/7 is on Letty's shoulders.  Thanks.

Now for just a lighter little transition, we celebrated Mother's Day yesterday since my son, Ian, wasn't here last week on the official day.  Now my hubby was taught never, EVER, use gift-giving occasions to replace broken coffee makers, toasters or anything that deals with kitchen crap (my ex one year gave me those exact thing for a Mother's Day, plus, I didn't get a chance to eat my nice Mother's Day meal at our reserved table at the country club...had to take out a screaming baby, Ian, out to the lounge area since the little guy was hysterical, his autism was still unknown.  I thought that perhaps one of the 4 other adults, who were our guests would come out and take care of him while I went back to the dining area to enjoy a meal, but an hour later, they all came out to the lounge, bellies full and ready to go home...memorable!).  However, I told him I wanted a a cast iron skillet...yes, ladies, you read that right, a cast iron skillet.  During one of my visits to Austin last year, I was staying with one of my best buddies, Irene and she promised to show me how to make chiles rellenos.  Now Irene is not of Mexican heritage but one hell of a great cook and her chile rellenos are the bomb!  I suppose I wasn't paying attention when my mother used to make them and she didn't like making them very often due to all the mess of frying them up.  Anyway, Irene told me a good Southern woman always has a good cast iron skillet for such delectable dishes and I really never considered myself as a good Southern woman since I'm Mexican-American, but I'm also a Texan and this state did participate in that little war back in the 1861-65, so that does make me a "Southern Woman."   So last night, after a really nice steak dinner prepared by my honey, both Ian and he presented me with two cast iron skillets...told him he could purchase them at Academy and didn't believe me since it's a sports store...he was quite amazed at the variety of kitchen ware Academy carries!!  LOL  They're already pre-seasoned, so I don't even have to do that..Yay!!  So very soon I shall enjoy making chile rellenos in my new cast iron skillet along with whatever I can muster.

Well, time to check out...going to run to the hospital for my mother's lunch to feed her.  Take care all, and as always, peace out.

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Life in the Slow Lane

Howdy, all.  I know, I know, I said I wouldn't be such a stranger, but ya know what they say about the road to hell.  I told myself, "Myself, make time to blog and do some catching up," but myself sometimes can be a stubborn bitch!

I hope this post finds you happy, healthy and enjoying the upcoming warm weather, unless you live in Alaska or other cold places in the world.  Summer started here in March, but Winter decided it wasn't quite ready to say, "bub-by," so we've had a few colder days in the last 2 months, and I'm not complaining either.  However, all is on track and the temps are heating up and summer is in full gear to make things a bit miserable for some of us, especially those of us who still have evaporative coolers.  This area has been in a drought for many years now and causing great concern; the Rio Grande River down this way looks like the Great American Desert.  The rest of Texas caught up with those of us out here in far West Texas and the Southwestern U.S. and are they having some problems adjusting!  We're ol' pros at this drought stuff, so we can teach them a few lessons or two.  One of the things the city is asking it's residents, is to convert to air conditioning since evap coolers use a H2O and at times, can leak like a cascading waterfall when something breaks up there.  I say, great, city of El Paso, we'll do it, but are you willing to pay us a $6-8K for converting to that system???  Didn't think so.

Ok, here's an observation/rant.  In the last few years, well at the onset of menopause, I gained lots of weight.  I have always had a weight problem, but it became exacerbated by the Big M.  I now shop in the "fat chick" section of department and discounts stores.  Please don't take offense to fat chick, since I have always been a fan of the cartoon strip, "B.C." and love the "fat chick"  and the snake.  Anyway, the other day I was at Macy's and was looking at the regular size clothing and thought, "What gorgeous colours and cool flowing fashions!"  The racks were bursting with beautiful, cool Spring and Summer colours, linens and lose fitting, flowing tunics and pants.  Then I looked across at the WOMEN section, just a matter of 2-3 feet away from the regular fashions, and asked why is it that designers of large sizes think we big girls like the "English Garden" look, bold horizontals or the friggin' graphics as big as the Aztec calendar emblazed on our chests!!!???  REALLY!!!??  I shall also add that the tight, short skirts, the width and length of a 4'x4'' is not appropriate wear for those younger fluffy types or the older fluffy types who think she's "stylin!"

Now I will say that my mother had a lot to do with my attitude about colours, designs and all that is fashion.  Like I said, I have always been fluffy, on and off throughout my life, but never as I am now.  My sister, who is 4 years older, was a picky eater as a child and according to my mother, didn't really start eating till she was 10 years old, after her tonsils were removed, or so the story goes.  I, on the other hand, was a very enthusiastic baby, toddler and child when it came to food...no problems here.  However, as I got older, the "baby fat" wasn't melting as quickly as she preferred, so at age 12, she took me to a diet quack and there, he gave my mother all kinds of colourful little pills, which I obediently swallowed every morning and during the day.  I recall in the dead of winter, I perspired, no, sweated in class, looking as if I had just run a 20 mile marathon in the Amazon Rain Forest.  Well, in less than 2 weeks, I had dropped 20 lbs., hadn't slept in those 2 weeks and was completely miserable...she gave the pills to my aunt instead who wanted them.  My weight was always being scrutinized and eating became a game...what can I sneak and eat and won't get caught.  In the summer of my 15th year, my braces came off, my hair was cut in the Sasson short style, I lost weight and this ugly duckling had become a swan, but I didn't know that.  All my young life, all I saw in the mirror was that fat 10 year old.  My sis also suffers from weight problems and was also under the same scrutiny as I when we were young.  We're both amazed at seeing pictures of ourselves of those days of yore, and can't believe what beauties we really were, but neither of us could see it.  I recall a knit shirt I bought at 18 and it had pastel horizontal lines in lavender and my mother told me it wasn't a good choice, made me exaggerated my hips.  Later, I found a picture of me wearing said shirt with a pair of white pants, standing next to my now ex when we were dating, my arms were skinny and the pants were hanging off of me...I looked as if I were wearing a wire hanger...I was a bone!  But that wasn't the message I was getting.  I don't blame my mom, she was watching out for us and didn't want us to suffer, plus, it was just a thing of her generation since many of my friends were also under the same sort of  fat watch,  but it taught my sis and me a lesson, accept our children's body no matter.  Encourage when needed and always tell them they're wonderful.  Case in point, my daughter has lost 70lbs. in the last 8 months.  She was told she was on the road to an early grave and she had just turned 34, so she changed her lifestyle, began to run and looks wonderful and better yet, feels wonderful.  She has to be on her best physical shape with five children, ages ranging from 13 years-20 months.  I'm so very proud of her, but I was always proud of her.  She knew what she looked like, no one needed to tell her or ridicule her, her mirror worked just fine, but she needed that scare to get her in motion, physically and mentally.  Now she's one of those obnoxious runners!!  LOL

Wow, sorry about that..sometimes I just get on a roll and go with the momentum, as I should be doing soon in my studio. For those of you who do not prescribe to  FB, you haven't seen some of my latest  creations, so here they are.  I have yet to open up my new Etsy shop, so if anyone is interest, let me know.  For the exception of the chicken, donkey and yellow headdress doll, who all have new homes, everything is up for grabs, so please "grab!!"  LOL











 Well, it's time for me to get motivated and get my arse up and out of this office and do some fun work in the ol' lab.  Have a great week, take care and as always, peace out.  Oh, P.S., I know I mentioned a Giveaway...still working on that, folks, but I'll get back to you  later.