Family and Friends

Twin mistresses of Cheryl’s psyche.

One day Cheryl will read this entry and get angry. There are several, sure fire means of procuring an invitation to sleep on our old bed in the spare room (I knew it was a good idea to keep a spare, king sized bed). This entry may well become an example of one. Somewhere, there is a fine line between good old fashioned cleanliness, and obsession/compulsion. Poor Cheryl is nowhere near that line.
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Family and Friends

Giving thanks.

My wife is in the front seat. She looks back at Beth who has just said something. It appears it was amusing. Cheryl looks happy, a mischievous smile on her face. She says something to Beth that I can’t hear. Joe starts to laugh. Annette reaches a hand from the steering wheel and gives Cheryl’s knee a mock slap. We’ve turned the corner. The trials of the morning have been left at…
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Family and Friends

The scourge of Thanksgiving.

You’ve heard of tryptophan, the culprit long suspected of putting the turkey eating hordes to sleep on Thanksgiving. What I want to know is, why didn’t anyone suspect the alcohol? Come now, get a bunch of American families together once a year for a holiday “good time” – and you’re telling me no one is going to go heavy on the silly sauce? What’s more…
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Beth

A funny kind of angry.

We have a weekday evening routine. Beth comes home from school. One of us (me or Cheryl) gets out Beth’s allergy prescription and her vitamin and gives it to her. Beth holds her nose, closes her eyes, swallows her Zyrtec (for allergies), convulses once or twice, opens her eyes, grabs her vitamin, and runs into the other room to watch TV. On Tuesday Cheryl and I took advantage of the state…
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Family and Friends

Speaking of restrooms…

A while back I had a talk about mobile phone etiquette. I drew a line in the sand. I refused to answer my mobile phone from a public restroom stall. So this afternoon I’m listening to “Oh Christmas Tree” in the movie theatre men’s room and I hear a phone ring in the next stall. “Hello.” … “What do you want from me, I’m not at my destination…
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Beth

The sticky spot on the floor.

There are days when everything seems to go just great… and then there are all of the other days. There are those other days when things are not particularly bad, but certainly not good. You make progress, but it seems that it comes despite some invisible, dark force lurking around the corner. In a playful moment with your child, you slide in your stocking feet across the smooth living room…
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Beth

Not done yet.

It is well past Beth’s bed time on Halloween night. She has spent the evening foraging for sweets. The doorbell rings. It is another costumed youngster seeking treats. Beth darts to the door, eager to be the bearer of said treats. She hands out the candy with a grin of immense satisfaction. The experience leaves her hungry for more. She peers out the door, looking for more. Finding none, she…
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Beth

This is a test.

Did you know that doctors will prescribe medication for something other than it’s originally intended purpose? An example is the hypertension drug minoxidil. People taking minoxidil many years ago may have noticed one of the side effects: “… may result in increased hair growth…. ” Doctors later figured out you could smear some on your head… and the rest was…
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