Happy Birthday to Me!

Last weekend my hubby planned a "surprise" birthday party for me. He made spaghetti, the girls all brought something and then we had one of our great game nights! Being my birthday I was allowed to choose the game. Trivial Pursuit-ancient edition. It had such questions as; What quartet inspired the creation of turtle-shaped pasta? and What book was used by 90% of US lawyers who advertised in 1990? The kids were only 14,12, and 9 in 1990. Victory was a shoe-in! Great fun was had by all- I think.

Yes...No...Maybe...

I spend a lot of time in my car driving to work. My commute is anywhere between 40 minutes to 2 hours, depending on traffic and weather. Usually I listen to books on CD or my own music CDs. Indigo Girls, Billy Joel, and Kenny Rogers wear out first. Once in a while I listen to NPR. But mostly this year I have played the Sign Game. I am an undecisive person. I have been known to change my mind over and over and then do nothing, because I can't decide what to do. Should the yarn be blue or green? Should I work on my vacation scrapbook or organize old photos? Should I take the dog for a walk or ride my bike? The Sign Game has helped me with the boredom of my ride and the dilemma of solving life's most pressing questions. Don't know who to vote for? The sign saaaays "right lane must exit". Should we stay in Iraq or get out? The sign says "Work area ahead- left lane rides berm". What about all those aliens trotting over the border? The sign saaays "Jaywalkers will be prosecuted." Don't know what to do with that wild and crazy hubby who wants to do another home improvement project? The sign saaaays - "yield". There are some signs that I look at and wonder, hmmmm...what would the question be for that one? Like..."traffic light activated when lights are flashing", "no left turn 7AM to 9AM", or "detour half mile ahead". And then there are some that I don't even want to think about- "gross wt. 3 tons", "bridge out ahead", and "dead end". My very favorite signs are "duck crossing" and "deer crossing". As you can see, I may not be able to make a decision, but I can certainly waste a lot of time pondering what to do.

"Creighton-Barrow"

"Creighton -Barrow"...Housewares answer to Abercrombie and Fitch. They have something for everybody, even Inspector Gadget could find a cool tool here! However,there were no crates and no barrels! I had heard so much about this wonderful store that I was eager to see it. I must admit, there was one point in our venture where I was heard to say, 'All this cool stuff makes me want cook, almost." Wow! That's saying a lot, because I love to eat, but hate to cook. Another thing that surprised me were all the inventions that I didn't know existed. I felt like The Ice Man after being thawed out. There was an egg timer- that drops in the water with the egg and turns different colors for a soft, medium, or hard boiled egg, there were special tongs for picking up asparagus, and all sorts of glassware. Does anyone know-what's the purpose of a roly-poly shot glass? From a functional point of view, I appreciated the store being small enough to look through completely without my roller blades. Everything was color coordinated so I would have no problem putting together things that match. (Austin Powers will be glad to know that turquoise is groovy again.) For someone who's "fashion-challenged" not having to think about stuff like that is a plus. I'm particularly fond of my new toys: a bendable ice cube tray that makes long cylindrical cubes, a steamer WITH a tall handle, and mini-plastic fruit ice cubes. I'm currently working on my list for my next fun trip to "Creighton-Barrow".