October 29, 2008

Three's Company Had a Very Clean House

I just saw a news snippet about polygamy. I only saw a minute of it, but it appeared to be a threesome in some third-world country stating that their way of life is the only way they knew, that it was normal for a husband to have two wives.

Maybe I am just tired and my fingers a bit dried out from cleaning the shower, but I think it is safe to go on the record in support of multiple wives. Personally, I need to find a wife that can be the bathroom cleaner, the laundry washer, the floor scrubber, the cat handler, the grocery buyer, the dinner preparer, etc., and so forth. I can handle the couch cuddling, companionship, lights going out wifely duties, I just would like to interview a few Stepford Wives to handle the other duties I have.

I understand that from the beginning of time, women handled the household duties while men hunted, came home and sat around the campfire farting. No matter how I consider that women all across the world are doing more than men are at home, it doesn’t make me feel any better or less tired or less resentful that I am scrubbing dishes at 10 at night instead of curled up on the couch.

Years ago, yet in an incident I remember so vividly, I was with my parents handling the cleaning of a relative’s home after the mother had died. My mom and I scrubbed and swept, and dusted and mopped while my dad sat on a bench outside and stared into the sky. I asked my mom how she handled that all these years. She just sighed, and said, “Well, I got used to it.” I remember being mad at my dad initially, and then getting angry with my mom as the words settled in. She allowed it to happen. She allowed him to be lazy and not give his share. I told myself that I wouldn’t allow that, it was going to be equal in my house.

Oh, youth. How naive I was.

Or maybe it’s true, men marry their mothers, women marry their fathers.

Give me a woman who doesn’t feel that she does more around the house, with the management of finances or chores or the children. I want to meet her man. And kidnap him.

I don’t want to come across as too much of a Complainy McComplainer Pants. Not Craig is amazing. He is such a great man and I love him to pieces. He is wonderful in a million different ways. I would rather have him be all that he is, than merely a great housekeeper.

Thing is, I just wish that I wasn’t in charge of everything at home. I wish when I got home one night, the house would be clean, the laundry started, dinner on the table, the cats fed. I wish my weekends were spent carefree, not wondering where I was going to squeeze in a stop at the grocery store or wondering just how many days I can wear those pants before they start reeking.

It is one of those great axioms of life. To make a man feel loved, give him sex. To make a woman feel loved, do the dishes.

How about you? How are the household chores divided up? Do you feel that you do more than a fair share? Does your hubby help out willingly or just because you have threatened castration? How do you handle the anger/frustration about this topic? How often does it come up as an argument point?

Just tell me I am not alone here.

October 19, 2008

My Finds

I have posted before (and again and again and again ) how I love estate sales and thrift stores. This weekend was a good one... I took my chances at an estate sale advertised as having great stuff, despite being in a bad part of town. "You can find awesome knick-knacks while dodging bullets." Great marketing, folks.

If I was still Ebaying, oh how I would have spent so much money. As it was, I had to limit what I bought as I have a quasi-policy of buying only items I need or have an idea of exactly what I will do with my purchase.

So what will $15 buy you at an estate sale in Houston?


Books! An illustrated Bible story book published in 1939.

1960 printing - Why It's A Holiday

Oh look... a fitting holiday... Do I get that day off?


Do you remember when I said a few sentences ago where I buy only things that I have an actual purpose for? Forget that. This thing has no purpose other than to make me smile at its freaking adorableness. I love this! And I have no good reason to have it. It doesn't match anything at all in my house. So yea, this was something I just had to have.

And Kitten had to get in the picture. She is something that I did not have to have. She is completely Not Craig's fault.


I do have a problem with collecting coats, purses and small bowls that hold sauces. Granted, I use a lot of honey mustard, barbecue sauce and other dippables, but it doesn't really make any sense to have as many small bowls as I have. Nor does it make any sense why, when I live in a subtropical climate, that I own 14 coats.


Astroworld closed sometime ago. Any time that I spy any Astroworld stuff I get it. I will most likely sell them.


I love this shallow metal pan. I have no idea what to do with this either, but really, how could I not bring it home. I will probably either hang it somewhere or will use it is a catchall by the door.
My habit of collecting purses continues. Does anyone have a closet I can borrow? I am just not a shoe girl. Instead, I collect coats and purses.

(There is one other book I bought, but I am not showing you. If I ever get around to mailing things - ahem - Jamaica prizes - ahem - Kaytabug will have a present. So look for it sometime in 2011.)

October 13, 2008

Racist, Decapitating Elevators and Other Things I Make Up

This morning when I was in the elevator, the doors were closing and out of nowhere, this guy pops up, throws his arms between the doors, setting off the sensor and allowing the doors to reopen.

While ascending to the lobby, we have the standard banter about elevators, banter like I typically have with others who threaten amputation by elevator door. (Look, it happens). In my building, some elevators don’t respond to an obstruction in the path of the doors. They just keep closing no matter whose arm, leg or bag may be trying to set off the sensor so the doors reopen. You can trust your various body parts to some elevators, but need to be wary of others. (And I am not even mentioning how rude it is to force someone to wait on you when you were clearly not in time for that elevator. It is extremely rude, but I am not mentioning it.)

Personally, I respect the sovereignty of the elevator doors. If they are closing, I don’t try to get them to reopen by throwing my arm in between the doors. I wait for the next elevator.

I have strange fears - I refuse to put any item in the back window of my car because if I am in a car crash, I will be decapitated by the flying box of Kleenex. I once heard that in driver’s ed. Or somewhere. Same thing with the elevator, I just can’t bring myself to test fate and hope that the elevator I am trying to catch has a sensor that isn’t dusty and will definitely not crush my arm and then once trapped, will decapitate me.

Ok…so…. Moving on from the decapitation. Because I am pretty sure now everyone knows elevator = decapitation.

So this guy and I are talking about how some elevators you can get to reopen and others won’t reopen no matter how anxiously you wave your arm between the doors as they close.

Some elevators close no matter what.

And this guy says, “Those must be Republican elevators.”

I laughed, “haha, yea.”

Yet I have NO IDEA what that means.

How is an elevator either Democrat or Republican, how do we know it isn’t Independent or perhaps a Libertarian? I bet that elevator actually is all “Ron Paul 2012!”

I am so tired of the election, talking about the candidates, seeing their mugs all over the news, hearing all the allegations of who is being meaner, who will ruin the economy, who is the racist-ist. I am so sick of it all.

I want to say that as soon as I finish voting, on October 20th, the day early voting opens in Texas, that I will be done with it. That I won’t watch anything about it on TV, or read Drudge, or discuss it with my co-workers. Yet I can’t say that because I know it is a lie. I will. I will stress out for the remaining weeks wondering who will win. Although I am sure this election will have another Florida mishap and we won’t know who the President-Elect is for weeks after November 4th.

I am thinking that maybe I should just tempt fate once I have voted and see if my fear of decapitation by elevator is warranted. I consider it my civic duty.

October 3, 2008

The Bailout

I found this somewhere today. It speaks perfectly to where our nation has fallen.

From Bondage to Spiritual Faith

From Spiritual Faith to Great Courage

From Great Courage to Liberty

From Liberty to Abundance

From Abundance to Complacency

From Complacency to Apathy

From Apathy to Dependency

From Dependency back to Bondage

A Democracy will prevail until the populace learns that they can vote themselves entitlements. This leads to Governmental Fiscal Irresponsibility. And this leads back to bondage.

October 1, 2008

If Only All The Pundits Paid Their Two Cents

I rarely talk about money on here. If you keep an eye on the various links I post off to the side (which I have not updated in forever – but, Whatever), you will see financial things pop up quite frequently.

This bailout/credit crisis/end of the world gloom and doom being splayed all over the news problem affects us all. It affects our jobs, our homes, our credit lines, hell, it affects what I will be giving for Christmas.

I was completely against the bailout as it was presented in the House. I believe I will be against the Senate’s version as well.

I am against it, knowing full well that several of my family members and friends will probably lose their jobs and homes as a result of it not passing. I am against it in spite of that because if it doesn’t pass, they will still lose their jobs and then their homes. If they are in a difficult position now, that position is not going away due to a quick bailout.

We are in a recession. It is not going away. One article I read stated it simply, we are only in the second, maybe third inning of this ballgame. So if it is all going to hell way before the seventh inning stretch, why spend $700 zillion dollars. It will only delay the inevitable breakdown for a very short time. Injecting cash the nation does not have into a broken economy built on people living beyond their means is not going to fix anything.

The only thing that is going to get us out of this mess is what we should have been doing all along. Save money. Don’t buy things you can’t afford. Spend less than you earn. Don’t use credit. Dave Ramsey, Suze Orman, David Bach and countless other financial hacks had it right all along. Hope you aren’t sick of them already, they will be everywhere for the next few years. Because they have it right! Although personally, let’s get rid of them, because I would rather hear from Trent at The Simple Dollar.

During Friday’s debate, McCain suggested a spending freeze. To which I shouted, "Amen!" The government needs to do exactly what I do when I run out of money. Quit spending. No dinners out, no dry cleaning, no movies, no quick runs to the grocery store. I make do with what I already have. Why? Because that is what you do when you are broke. I don’t go and charge things in order to make it to my next paycheck. I stop spending money until I have more money. What a novel concept.

The government has to freeze their spending. Cut it down to the very bare basics. There is no other way. Spending more and more money will not get you or me out of this mess. It won’t get the government out of it. It won’t get the country out of it.

By the time this is posted, it may be too late to contact your congressmen regarding this bailout. However, keep in mind that this problem is not going away even if the bill passes, so keep their contact info handy. You need to vocalize your opinion. Tell your elected officials what you think. Don’t hesitate to let them know that you will vote them out of office for ignoring your desires.

Click here to find out how to contact your Senators.

Click here to find out how to contact your Rep.

On a more personal scale, everyone should be working on their own spending freeze. Save your nickels and dimes. They will turn into many dollars over time. Be prepared for the recession.

I loved these links:

http://www.bripblap.com/2008/how-the-bailout-failure-affects-us/

http://www.thewisdomjournal.com/Blog/back-to-the-basics/

http://www.wisebread.com/whats-the-big-deal-about-banks-refusing-to-lend

However, there are so many more resources to figure out ways to cut your spending, save money, do the right thing with the money you have. You can find a ton of blog posts on all possible personal finance related issues at pfblogs.org.

And that is my two cents.

 
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