Stop'n Smell The Roses

My Baby's Rasberries.

2011-04-19T12:20:00.001-04:00

HAPPY UPCOMING NEW YEAR!!!

2009-12-24T16:50:00.003-05:00

May it bring everyone something special!

Salute!

2009-11-11T11:35:00.007-05:00

I remember it like it was yesterday. Mike was only about 10 weeks old when my USN husband was called to duty in Iraq. This was almost 7 years ago, when it all just started, he was one of the first ones out there. He left in February for what was supposed to be 6 months.

I remember boarding the plane in CA to go stay with my parents in NY while he goes away to fight a war. I had our baby in my arms and all we could muster was a hug and a "see you later", it was too painful to say anything else, he gave Mike a kiss and left.

I tried to keep my mind occupied and care for Mike as best as I could, went back to school nights, and tried to be as positive as possible about my situation. It was nearly impossible to do with the news constantly running stories about killed or missing American soldiers, and with every missed phone call or email, it was even more difficult to do.

He came back 9 months later, he returned about 50lbs lighter but, that weight was in his heart, the weight which I think he will always carry with him.

He did his job, he served his country whether one agrees with the war or not, please remember these men and women are someone's children/parents/siblings.

Happy Veteran's Day Vadik!

BIG NEWS PEOPLE!

2009-09-16T10:55:00.004-04:00

I am the proud aunt of Rozalee Gordon born 9/12/2009 weighing in at 7.1lbs and is 20in big :)

My sister had an easy delivery and all is well.

I pray that wherever Rozee's brother Danny is, he gets an incling.

Mazel Tov Lana & Phil!

Probably one of the funniest conversations I've had in a while

2009-08-07T11:12:00.018-04:00

So, I need a power adapter for my laptop. Easy enough, step one: find the store online, step two: find out hours and directions. Easy peasy. Right? Wrong!

I locate the little chat thingy at the top of the page to ask this very quick simple question.

It went something like this: (copied and pasted directly out of the conversation window) :

YallStore.com Service: hello
angela: Hi what are the store hours?
YallStore.com Service: 8.00am to the 10pm
angela: every day? and address please
YallStore.com Service: business day
angela: what?
YallStore.com Service: brooklyn NY
angela: what bout weekends?
angela: ADDRESS not borough please
YallStore.com Service: Monday to Saturday
angela: no Sunday?
YallStore.com Service: ebay is not include the sunday,i don't know the website
YallStore.com Service: Sorry.
angela: EBAY?
angela: I need the STORE hours, the address to the store and I need to know if the STORE is open on Sunday?
YallStore.com Service: we only have warehouse on the NY
YallStore.com Service: And we don't support the pick up
YallStore.com Service: Sorry
angela: I can't go there?
YallStore.com Service: yes,because the shipper is too busy
angela: WHAT?
YallStore.com Service: SO i think they don't have time to service for you
angela: is there a phone number?
angela: Hello?
YallStore.com Service: yes
angela: may I have it pleasE?
YallStore.com Service: 518-632-6888
YallStore.com Service: sorry ,because i am so busy now,
YallStore.com Service: sorry for the late reply
angela: Thanks.
angela: THis is the funniest conversation i ever had
angela: I'm not going to bother you with the fact that the phone number is not working..
YallStore.com Service: sorry
YallStore.com Service: maybe the phone is too hot,could you try it again
angela: HOT?
YallStore.com Service: hot line
angela: OK, never mind! Thank you. Have a nice day.

After I ask if this is available in their ebay store ( I send her a link ):
Laptop AC Adapter for Sony VGN-S150

She sends me a link for this:
AC Adapter/Power Supply for Sony PCGA-AC16V8 VGP-AC16

US? REALLY? Could have fooled me!

Back from the Holy Land

2009-07-22T16:59:00.004-04:00

I have always wanted to go to Israel, but, was hesitant because of safety issues, not to mention that it's a pricey trip to take.
But, I finally went with a group of very energetic fun bunch of people 45 to be exact.
I have to admit I had my reservations about taking this trip, I went alone, meaning I didn’t know anyone, with the exception of my cousin with whom I never really hung out before. But I quickly made friends and I couldn't imagine doing anything there without them.
Upon arrival to Israel it quickly turned to party central for the most part, and the party pretty much continued for the next 16 days NON stop. We had some great lectures and trips along the way and our schedules were jammed packed for the whole 16 days with the exception of one span of 24 hours when we could go to Lebanon for all they cared as long as we came back in time for the next lecture.
I mostly fed myself on shwarmas and was hoping to not overdose on them. I also re-learned how to drink the nigh before and still get up the next morning at the butt crack of dawn ready for the new torturous walk/hike/climb/roll down/up the hills of Jerusalem that they had planned for us.
I also pretty much learned the whole plot line to Bruno and Zohan without ever seeing either movie - courtesy of some of the guys on the trip who made it their personal mission to turn everything into an episode of one or the other with a little Borat thrown in. U Vil Nevaar Gets Zeees!
It was comical at times to stand aside and watch what very often turned into a full blown circus complete with clowns and what could only be described as a hot mess.
One can only imagine letting 40+ drunk Russian 20 somethings roam around. It was a blast to watch and also part take at times.
It was sad at times as well for me. We got to spend Shabbat at a family's home in the Old City and while sitting at the table the fireworks went of somewhere in the distance. There were 2 children at the table who must have been around my son's age - 6 or so - who started to cry because they became scared thinking that it were guns going off. What kind of life is that for a child? If my son had heard this, he would probably run out to see what it was, not be scared that he'd get shot. Amazing.
Hevron - is another story. Barefoot children running around amid ruined buildings and snipers on the roofs.
The Holocaust museum took about 5 years of my life.
Over all I met great people, saw an amazing country made friends, and learned once and for all that I am a sympathizer and am very grateful to those who stay and fight for their land and I support them, from here.
G-d Bless Israel.

* I will write more later * and post some pictures here and on my fotki page *

RIP King of Pop

2009-06-26T12:59:00.008-04:00

Whatever you chose to believe about him and the allegations and the wackiness and all that he done or not done. He is an icon and his music truly was that - music. That is undisputable. Compared to some of the trash that is being belted out today and being passed of as music.

There will never be another Michael Jackson.

I'm super excited!

2009-06-12T09:53:00.002-04:00

I leave for Israel in 2 weeks and I have lots of reservations about it. Starting from how will my son do while I'm away to with WHAT will my husband do while I'm away to how will I do while there alone. Well, not really alone, there will be other people there, mostly college age and mainly strangers to me.

But, all that is overshadowed by my sheer excitement to finally make it Israel. I know I will feel the connection to the land that I have been longing for and I can't wait.
Raje is the organization sponsoring my trip and all expenses are paid. I am very grateful to be a part of this experience.

Front page news:

2009-06-11T15:22:00.004-04:00

Obama declares time to fix health care is now.
Wow!
Like I said before I tend to not get into political discussions, but we've got ourselves a winner here folks.

Final Destination.

2009-06-11T12:45:00.001-04:00

So, I haven’t written in a while and I couldn't think of anything that was worth mentioning ( no news is good news ) until now.

Flight AF447 - everyone heard about this. Tragic. Unfortunate. Sad! There were children on board, one 11 year old reported to have been traveling alone. I can not imagine those last moments of his life. No mom or dad to comfort and hold his scared little hand in that horrific plunge.
I pray for them.

But, what happens when you say "There but for the grace of G-d go I"? You should have been on that plane but miss it for whatever reason and make the next one to make it home safe and sound only to die in a car crash the following week? What is that? What forces are at hand here? How creepy is this situation?

I think this whole thing begs for a whole new debate about being destined for certain fates.
I always thought that we had our destinies predetermined for us before we are even able to make a single decision for ourselves.
This idea just moved up a notch in my mind.

I couldn't make this stuff up

2009-04-08T17:52:00.001-04:00

Colo. woman's tofu license plate request blocked

DENVER - Kelly Coffman-Lee wanted to tell the world about her love of tofu by picking the letters for her car's license plate. But her tofu fondness ran into a snafu at the Division of Motor Vehicles, which blocked her plan because they thought the combination of letters could be interpreted as profane. Her suggestion for the plate on her Suzuki: "ILVTOFU."

courtesy of AP

Ugh!

2009-03-27T15:26:00.010-04:00

This face offends me, I can't, I just can't!
Something about this girl is just, for lack of a better word, "eww"..
I can not believe that some people actually think that this face is attractive.
I'm not even going to get into her decision making skills.
I'm sorry, ( no, I'm not ) I know that she's a child, but you know what, she's in the spotlight and fair game for criticism as far as I'm concerned.

One word. Foo.

The value of paying attention

2009-03-25T15:38:00.005-04:00

My not-so-hands-on self decided that I would like to try something new. Follow a recipe. I never follow recipes and I rarely try anything new. What can I say, I'm a creature of habit.

With that said, I would like to note that I can obviously read as well as follow directions, but, things happen sometimes and your mind wonders and you're tired from work and you have a 6 year old asking you what wood is made of and all you are trying to do is follow a recipe and decipher the difference between tbs. and tsp. (given all the aforementioned factors, it is no easy feat).

This is how it all started: I am reading my Cosmo on the bus on the way home when I come across what looks like a very simple to make yummy truffle treat, and I think to myself, I should treat my family to something yummy and I can actually have my son help out since he loves to help with everything, we can make a thing out of it right?

So, all I need is Oreos, cream cheese, chocolates chips, powered sugar and voila! Not so hard right? So, I make a stop at the store pick up all of the above, and I figure I'll figure out the proportions when I get home. Anyway, we get home and we start…

Now, here is the tricky part - the instructions are about 5 sentences long and I think oi-vey people need directions to make something so simple? dumb people. Then I begin to read.

… blah, blah, crush Oreos - ( 8 oz. so I figured half the box, since it's about a lb. ) - done
… add cream cheese - ( 4 oz, but it doesn't seem to want to mesh with the 8 ozes of crushed cookies ) - kinda done
… make balls, put on sheet, put in freezer for one hour - problem.
I notice that I have an enormous amount of goo that doesn't seem to look right, so I go back to the recipe: 8 Oreo cookies. That's right! 8 Oreo cookies, not 8 OUNCES of Oreo cookies! Big difference.

Ok, Problem averted - double the cream cheese - done
… make into balls put into freezer - done

Next step says to melt the chocolate in the microwave for 1 minute, OK, done, but then it says to stir and NUKE for 30 seconds. What the hell is nuke? ( So, l go to look it up online of course - definition: "to attack somebody or something with nuclear weapons", totally useless in this instance to me ) All the while my son demands to know what "Nuke it" means, because he's in charge of the chocolate.

So, we just melt the heck out of that sucker and begin to lather the "truffles" in it… we realize that we better hurry because it's hardening and well, the recipe doesn't say what to do when that happens. Given this, the last few looked less like a truffle and more like a puffer but, we didn't let that faze us.

So, once this step in complete, we finally move on to the last and final step, all the confusing and unnecessary language behind us. Until we learn that we have to put the powdered sugar in a "sieve" I don't know, maybe it's just me, but I have never heard of this word before. Mike suggests that we put it in a sleeve and that didn't seem to make sense either. So, we decided to use common sense and just dusted these things with that thing and stuck them in the freezer.

Mission accomplished! They were yummy btw. :)

Back to 2008 for a second.

2009-02-27T14:15:00.010-05:00

I remembered for some reason my son's letter to Santa last year.
Since he regularly cracks me up and I tend to talk about him a lot, I figured why stop now?!
So, I decided to share this funny piece of information here.

This is a picture of the letter that he wrote:

1 Mario Game - $25
1 2009 calendar - $3
1 Wii - $$$
Money - Priceless

This is a picture of the envelope in which he sent said letter.

THE SECRET TO BEST WAY TO LOSE WEIGHT HAS BEEN REVEALED!

2009-02-27T13:36:00.003-05:00

Some studies suggest avoiding foods with high fat, sugar, etc. will do the trick.
Some studies have even gone as far as suggesting one must exercise regularly in order to lose weight.
But, finally the New England Journal of Medicine, published an article by a Doctor/Professor from the Harvard School of Public Health suggesting something else. Incredibly they have finally revealed the answer to losing weight!
They say you have to EAT LESS!
I have to say, I never thought about that.
Where have you wonderful people been all my life? Don't know what I'd do without you.

Article here

Oscar Fever.

2009-02-23T11:08:00.008-05:00

I've got it and I'm gonna share it.
I have some faves, and some not so faves. Mostly, not so faves.. But, one thing I do know is that I must see Slumdog Millionaire.

And now without further ado..
Some faves:

Even though I am on team Aniston, even I can't deny that Jolie's dress was very appropriate and black is always more "her":

Another fave: Virginia Madsen, I think her dress was original and I like the way it looked on her:

Not so faves:

Now this is just pure wrong, Jessica Biel should have replaced that oversized bath towel with a dress before she left the house here is the monstrosity:

And lastly you may remember her from single white female, but, after this disaster all I want to do is forget. She must think it's still 1992. Bridget Fonda:

Oh and by the way, I thoroughly enjoyed Ben Stiller's impersonation of Joaquin Phoenix.. what a weirdo he's become.
Photos by WireImage.com and Getty Images

I know you are! But, what am I?

2009-02-17T11:57:00.002-05:00

We were enjoying a dinner the other night, discussing of all things Math - one of Mike's favorite subjects. He tends to ask things like how much does 10 quarters make and 99 dimes... etc.

When out of nowhere he informs me that I am odd.
I immediately take offense to this and demand to know why I am odd??
He proceeds to tell me that he's not sure, but thinks that Papa is even.
That's right! I am apparently odd and his dad is even.
There you have it. Logic a la 6 year old.

The grass always looks greener on the other side.

2009-02-12T13:25:00.002-05:00

Doesn't it?!
I have single friends who are well into their twenties, and not married yet. GASP!
They want to be married, they try to meet someone to marry, they just can't, for whatever reason.
There seems to be an abundance, or what seems to be so, of single men and women out there. So, what's the problem? Why can't they just marry each other?
That aside, apparently they don't know that being married is not all that's it's cracked up to be either. It's not like your life magically turns into this fairytale and you become happier instantly. A good marriage like any project takes effort obviously. I say enjoy being single, coming and going as you please, and having only yourself to worry about, and stop complaining. You want to trade places for a day? I didn't think so!

I'm not saying that marriage can’t be fun too, and the comfort of having someone there you can rely on, and spend the REST OF YOUR LIFE with isn't an appealing thought.
I'm just saying enjoy what's left of your singleness before the mortgage payments, child care payments, and general oldness kicks in!

Couldn't afford Law School?

2009-02-12T13:04:00.004-05:00

Well, now you can.

According to an article by Scott Allen published in Mental Floss, you can now get a free ride to some top schools in the country.
In return some schools have you work it off, and grade you on your job performance as well as academics. Sweet, education and life experience all rolled into one. Anything that teaches responsibility, I'm all for that!
Law school not your thing? How about Engineering? Music? You have options, well, assuming you get in of course. But, options are good, we all like to have options.

Here's the Article

A resturant in Forrest Hills is offering a hard-to-beat recession special: pay what you want.

2009-01-30T15:45:00.004-05:00

A Queens restaurant, located on Queens Blvd. is offering an ineteresting "Pay What You Want" menu.
Every Tuesday starting Feb. 3, the Tierra Sana restaurant in Forrest Hills will offer customers this special - meaning that patrons can pay as much money as they think their food selection deserves.
The restaurant - whose name means "healthy earth" in Spanish - serves Spanish-style cuisine that uses mostly organic and locally grown ingredients. The menu also features vegetarian and vegan options.
Unfortunately, alcohol is not part of Tierra Sana's Tuesday deal, so boozing patrons will have to spring full price for a glass of the restaurant's organic wine.
For more information about the restaurant or the "Pay What You Want" Tuesday special, visit http://www.tierrasana.com/.
Source: DailyNews

You're Welcome!

I am the last person to make fun of Bush, but... lol

2009-01-28T11:59:00.002-05:00

“Amigo! Amigo!" --George W. Bush, calling out to Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi in Spanish at the G-8 Summit, Rusutsu, Japan, July 10, 2008

"I remember meeting a mother of a child who was abducted by the North Koreans right here in the Oval Office." --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., June 26, 2008

So long as I'm the president, my measure of success is victory -- and success." --George W. Bush, on Iraq, Washington, D.C., April 17, 2008

I want to share with you an interesting program -- for two reasons, one, it's interesting, and two, my wife thought of it -- or has actually been involved with it; she didn't think of it. But she thought of it for this speech." --George W. Bush, discussing a company that improves access to clean water in Africa, Washington D.C., Oct. 21, 2008

Yesterday, you made note of my -- the lack of my talent when it came to dancing. But nevertheless, I want you to know I danced with joy. And no question Liberia has gone through very difficult times." --George W. Bush, speaking with the president of Liberia, Washington, D.C., Oct. 22, 2008

He's at it again.

2009-01-28T11:47:00.007-05:00

Funny little man I am raising. Last night during a tickle fight he yells out "OH hit me with a frog! Hit me with an orange!" I don't know. Really. I have no idea why he says such things, it's just funny. He amuses me so.

He always enjoyed a good laugh. Even at 1 he would laugh so hard that he almost fell of the bed

Dating Guide: 40 Things You Can Learn About a Guy in 10 Minutes

2009-01-28T11:38:00.005-05:00

Well, let me tell you! 30 years of male interaction, my eyes were finally opened!

I love this article for it's very insightful info such as : "A man who hogs the wheel -- even in your car -- is sweetly old-fashioned at best and, at worst, could be a control freak."
you decide…

Also, this one: His Birth Order
"The oldest child is usually a responsible, take-charge kind of guy, ...If your babe is the baby of his brood, "he's likely to be creative and a little rebellious." As for a middle man: "He's a sensitive soul who needs loads of attention."
aah - what about the only child? I got one of those!

Even the idea of learning 40 new things about someone in under 10 minutes is amusing.
Needless to say I was entertained, and now you can be too!

Full article.

Ok, There I said it!

2009-01-20T11:28:00.001-05:00

People get a grip. It's just another politician taking office. It happens every four years or so.

He was in the right place at the right time.
That's all I'm going to say about that.

Ever since news of the plane crash..

2009-01-16T14:44:00.002-05:00

I can't help but think about all those people seeing their lives flashing before their eyes.
What were they thinking? Especially after 9/11. At least one person had a child with her, a 9 month old. I can not even imagine the things they must have felt when that plane was dropping helplessly.

How scary.

I am glad that everyone is safe and that it was just an accident, because frankly I don’t think that I can handle another attack without running away to Iceland.

Turning 30 this year!!

2009-01-12T15:14:00.000-05:00

Apparently according to my 6 year old I am " like a dinosaur ".
I am actually not excited, I was wondering at what age do you start lying about your age? I think it's 30.
People say that I don't look it, I certainly don't feel it. But, the "WOW reallys?" make me feel like I've crossed over into middle age.
So, here it is. It's been a somewhat exciting journey thus far, I hope the next 30 will be this much if not more exciting for me.

I've been gone for a while, don't think anyone noticed…

2009-01-12T14:52:00.003-05:00

Anyway Happy New Year to everyone!

My NYE was really nice. I spent it with my closest friends and they say that you're stuck for the rest of the year with the people/person you spent New Years with. I hope that's true :)

Wishing everyone a great year!

Some pics of NYE by Irka

The after life accroding to Mike

2008-12-19T09:40:00.005-05:00

A very sweet little voice wakes me up this morning, as it sometimes does, but usually to the tune of "I want breakfast" or "I wanna go outside".
Today, however was different. Today the conversation went like this:

Mike: when I die, will I go up or down? ( as is Heaven or... )
Me: up
Mike: what about you?
Me: I don't know, I hope up. What do you think?
Mike: I think you'll go left
Me: what?
Mike: left, no maybe right.
Me: what? Left or right? What?
Mike: If there is an up and down, there has to be a left and a right...

Yes, really, this is what he has on his mind when he wakes up.

The Ultimate retirement.

2008-12-17T11:09:00.001-05:00

A 60-year-old man who was thrown into the air in celebration at his retirement party died after his colleagues failed to catch him and he fell to the floor.

Not that I don't feel bad for his widow and all, but, she was quoted as saying "No matter what I say he won't come back, but I want to find out why this happened."

Uhm, because he was thrown into the air and no one caught him on the way down?!

full story

They've officially run out of ideas!

2008-12-15T16:51:00.002-05:00

Obesity Tax: You Drink Regular Soda, You Pay More

This is the ranting part

2008-12-15T09:55:00.002-05:00

Why is that once you feel an ounce of happiness, karma seems to rear it's ugly head and decide that too much happy for one person is not good, and yanks the rug right form under you? Is it the "too much of anything is not good" thing, and so there must be a balance of happy and sad, kind of like there is no light without darkness and no good without evil or something? It could be that I just simply demand too much happiness.
I have tried to make lemonade from lemons, and all that good stuff, but, I get rotten lemons sometimes, and so, I feel like instead of drinking rotten lemonade, I'll just throw the lemons out. I have no energy to sort through them. I just toss the whole bunch. Yes, kinda like giving up…
How do the "positive people" do it? I mean really, don’t you feel trampled on sometimes? Don't you want to just rip someone's head open when they wrong you? How do you do it?
I want to learn to be a more positive person. Perhaps I shall try it as my New Years resolution. But, I really wouldn't expect too much.

Really?

2008-12-12T16:48:00.005-05:00

Someone on facebook kindly suggested that I look like this girl:
Marisol Nichols.com

I always thought that I look more like this girl:
Winnie Cooper.com

Hm.... thanks! I guess.

These things never happen to me. Why?

2008-12-11T15:39:00.003-05:00

Man handcuffs his wife to the bed, but loses key

An Ode

2008-12-11T13:26:00.003-05:00

I just wanted to share one of my favorite pictures.
This is my husband, it was taken when he was in boot camp about 7 years ago.

He thinks I don't appreciate him, but I do.
And his service to this country is also appreciated.

Where does he come up with this stuff?

2008-12-10T10:08:00.002-05:00

I had my page open last night on my laptop and my very curious six year old wanted to know what I was doing. He became very computer savvy in the last few months since starting first grade, and so must always ask me what "www dot com" page I am looking at. Anyway, I said I was blogging, he repeated his question with a weird look on his face which I chalked up to something he just hadn't heard of before, so I said again that I was blogging to see his reaction this time, he replied that we are not allowed to use bad words.
I sat for a minute trying to contemplate what blogging could possibly rhyme with for him to confuse. It didn’t seem to sound like his usual insulting 'poopoo face, or kakamouth', or even his very rare outburst of 'shithead' that he must have picked up certainly not from my side of the family, but, there I sat- at a loss for words, and decided that I needed to let this one go for fear of finding out what he thought I actually said.
On a brighter note his school is having a food drive today and he, God bless his little heart, ransacked my kitchen Monday night looking for 'things that don't need to be in the 'frigerator', and said that he must bring food because someone needs it. He also put aside some of his unopened toys to give to children who don't have any. We plan on donating them to http://toysfortots.org/ or something like that. Of course his kind spirit doesn’t stop him from asking for new stuff because he gives away old stuff, but, the kind gesture is there, and that's what matters.

Genre

2008-12-09T16:21:00.005-05:00

I have not yet decided what I will be putting down here, but, I am sure that with all that is going on in this world, not to mention my own life, I will find something to rant or rave about.

I will attempt to be as articulate as possible, but I am an immigrant - so that will be my excuse for any further mistakes, grammatical or otherwise.

I am not a professional writer by any means, I never really liked to write except for the occasional heart break poem in my teens, but I would love to try and see what pours out.