This is the kind of thing that interferes with my blog-time

Now that my world traveling is over for a while, I’ve been trying to settle back into my routine- well, as much of a routine as we ever have around here. It’s been a little difficult, because as I mentioned, we have had an unusually hectic schedule, even for this over-extended family.

ÿThe first week back to work was not only the first of the month (a notoriously busy time in the accounting gig), but also saw the return of the NCUA auditor & the arrival of the Workers’ Comp auditor. Now, I’ve been doing this long enough that I don’t get freaked out of audits- I’m a rule-follower by nature & don’t take shortcuts with my work, so I don’t feel there is anything to worry about. My boss, on the other hand, is a perpetual worrier, the type who apologizes for everything regardless whether she had any involvement in the first place. The fluttering, dithering, excess of lists & checklists, & just general aura of guilt she was exuding whittled away my vacation refreshment in record time- I’m now counting the days until my next one (116 as of Monday)

ÿIt was a real treat to be able to meet a blogging friend for the first time- especially since she was my first blogging friend! Cara from In The Sweeney House mentioned in her blog that she was leaving to visit her best friend, who lives in the SF area- hey! I live in the SF area, sort of; a series of emails followed & what do you know, we were only going to be 30 miles apart. We arranged to meet at a new-to-me teashop just a couple miles from where she was staying; Cara, her friend Pam, & I enjoyed a pleasant couple of hours sharing tea, sandwiches & conversation. Here is a picture of us in the gift shop of Englund’s Tea Cottage

ÿThings have gone from bad to worse with my daughter; I won’t go into all the ugly details- I don’t need the stress. The condensed version: she defaulted on her loan & overdrew her account significantly; since her account is at my place of work & my name is still on it (I opened it for her 10 years ago) I had to cover the debt in order to avoid being written up for “financial irresponsibility”; she made a surprise visit to the house- while I was at work- & left in a hurry when Sam told her I was on my way home; we’ve since discovered that several things are missing, including my new camera; she is not returning my phone calls (no big surprise) but has been texting Sam, basically trashing me & encouraging him to “stand strong & fight back” since he is “a better person” than I am; & the icing on the cupcake, a collection agency & an attorney have been leaving messages for her on my cell phone & at the house. Verdict: we’re done. Very done. If she ever contacts us again (unlikely in the foreseeable future), she will be told not to show up again without a passably authentic apology, a clean drug screening, & cash in hand to cover the $1950 we’ve shelled out on her behalf in the past six months.

ÿLast weekend was packed full of fun; Saturday, we had the grand opening of our newest branch- to promote the event & drum up some new members, Sam & several other teenagers were hired to hang bags full of gifts & marketing material on 400 doors surrounding the new facility. I supervised one group, driving along with the bags in my trunk; Sam walked away with an easy $30 & all the pizza he could eat. That evening, we had dinner with my family to celebrate Chris’ 45^th birthday & to say goodbye to my sister, who was heading back to Kauai on Monday. As we were leaving, Mother handed us a huge bag of apples from her tree & a card for each of us; when we got home, we found that she had given us $600- she said it was “a little something to help replace what was lost”. Good woman- nutty, but very kind. Sunday was the annual Ravenswood Ice Cream Social; all three of us worked the event- the guys dishing ice cream & decorating, & me giving tours for 4 hours straight. It was a gorgeous day & the final count was around 1200 visitors for the day; some of our friends from church came at our break time, so we were able to sit & visit for awhile, before I took them through the cottage. Towards the end of the day, our good friends from dance, Sam & Tracy, came by for the tour & invited us over for dinner after we were done. We had a great dinner of flank steak, taboli salad, & grilled vegetables from their garden, before heading home for a well deserved rest.

ÿThe Pleasanton Highland Games are coming up Labor Day weekend, so we are in full rehearsal mode; the adults are practicing Monday & Friday evenings & the youths had an Adjudication Camp the week before last. The only problem- it was held from noon to 4:00 everyday. In Livermore, 22 miles from here. And Sam doesn’t drive. Oy! I drove him over on my lunch break & picked him up after work, hauling tuckus back to town for karate, quilting, &/or choir practice. By the third day, I decided it’s time for Sam to start driver’s education, even if I have to pay for the full school!

ÿMy passport finally arrived- after 16 weeks. The trouble makers across the street- they of the “nasty rap” & twice weekly loud parties that go on until 2 am- have packed up & moved out. And lastly, this arrived while I was in British Colombia:

After doing one of the Great Pretender’s photo games, this one about our favorite childhood toy, I started thinking how much I loved my Crissy doll; I cruised E*bay for a few weeks, when I found this lovely curly haired Crissy (known as a Swirly, made in 1973). I couldn’t resist- I invited her to come live with us (at a very reasonable cost) & she now sits with me while I sew. Laugh if you will, but she makes me smile.