annie blog

August 20, 2007
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Arsenic Hour

Arsenic Hour
Arsenic hour is the hour preceeding dinner on any particular day when your children are unravelling and you don’t know whether to take some arsenic yourself or give it to them. This is a joke, of course, I mean, who would take arsenic when beer is so available? Years ago, a friend from church told me that she called that time of the day arsenic hour and it fits so well that is how I’ve talked about it since.

So, on Saturday, during arsenic hour, the boys were really stirring things up. This is the last week of the summer vacation and I think that we’re all wearing emotionally a little thin. Dinner was going to be ready in half an hour, and they were all bouncing off the walls, so I made a dire threat. I got their attention and I told them, “Listen boys, if you don’t calm down and stop messing with each other, then I’m going to make you sit on the couch with me and watch Emma.” Oh, the look of terror on the face of the nine year old, “Mom, not a Jane Austen movie!” I replied, “Oh, yes. If you don’t straighten up, I’m going to make you watch it with me.” And I gave him my you had better believe it look.

They were angels until dinner.

August 20, 2007
by
5 Comments

Arsenic Hour

Arsenic Hour
Arsenic hour is the hour preceeding dinner on any particular day when your children are unravelling and you don’t know whether to take some arsenic yourself or give it to them. This is a joke, of course, I mean, who would take arsenic when beer is so available? Years ago, a friend from church told me that she called that time of the day arsenic hour and it fits so well that is how I’ve talked about it since.

So, on Saturday, during arsenic hour, the boys were really stirring things up. This is the last week of the summer vacation and I think that we’re all wearing emotionally a little thin. Dinner was going to be ready in half an hour, and they were all bouncing off the walls, so I made a dire threat. I got their attention and I told them, “Listen boys, if you don’t calm down and stop messing with each other, then I’m going to make you sit on the couch with me and watch Emma.” Oh, the look of terror on the face of the nine year old, “Mom, not a Jane Austen movie!” I replied, “Oh, yes. If you don’t straighten up, I’m going to make you watch it with me.” And I gave him my you had better believe it look.

They were angels until dinner.

August 20, 2007
by
5 Comments

Arsenic Hour

Arsenic Hour
Arsenic hour is the hour preceeding dinner on any particular day when your children are unravelling and you don’t know whether to take some arsenic yourself or give it to them. This is a joke, of course, I mean, who would take arsenic when beer is so available? Years ago, a friend from church told me that she called that time of the day arsenic hour and it fits so well that is how I’ve talked about it since.

So, on Saturday, during arsenic hour, the boys were really stirring things up. This is the last week of the summer vacation and I think that we’re all wearing emotionally a little thin. Dinner was going to be ready in half an hour, and they were all bouncing off the walls, so I made a dire threat. I got their attention and I told them, “Listen boys, if you don’t calm down and stop messing with each other, then I’m going to make you sit on the couch with me and watch Emma.” Oh, the look of terror on the face of the nine year old, “Mom, not a Jane Austen movie!” I replied, “Oh, yes. If you don’t straighten up, I’m going to make you watch it with me.” And I gave him my you had better believe it look.

They were angels until dinner.

August 17, 2007
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0 comments

Copy Shop Man

Copy Shop Man
Have you ever met someone who seems to have the job that they were just made to do? I’ll give you an example.

Yesterday, I made a quick trip to our local copy shop to send a fax. One of the employees is a 60something man. He is great. While nearly everyone else who works there slog along behind the counter with uninspired looks on their faces, he is out with the customers, greeting everyone and cracking jokes. He knows how everything works. He talks about the weather. He seems genuinely interested in everyone and everything. While I was sending my fax, he was reeling off joke after joke to the woman at the neighboring copy machine. Clearly, he enjoys working there.

As I was filling out the cover sheet for my fax I remembered that I didn’t know the date and so I asked him. And, even though he had probably told it to at least a dozen people already that day, he seemed delighted to tell me that it was, “August 16, 2007”. And then, he added, “Yep, this is the anniversary of Elvis’s death. Thirty years ago, today, he died sitting on the toilet.” I replied, “Get out! Seriously, thirty years ago?” “Hard to believe it’s been that long,” he said.

Not really the conversation I expected to have. He is a hoot.

August 17, 2007
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0 comments

Copy Shop Man

Copy Shop Man
Have you ever met someone who seems to have the job that they were just made to do? I’ll give you an example.

Yesterday, I made a quick trip to our local copy shop to send a fax. One of the employees is a 60something man. He is great. While nearly everyone else who works there slog along behind the counter with uninspired looks on their faces, he is out with the customers, greeting everyone and cracking jokes. He knows how everything works. He talks about the weather. He seems genuinely interested in everyone and everything. While I was sending my fax, he was reeling off joke after joke to the woman at the neighboring copy machine. Clearly, he enjoys working there.

As I was filling out the cover sheet for my fax I remembered that I didn’t know the date and so I asked him. And, even though he had probably told it to at least a dozen people already that day, he seemed delighted to tell me that it was, “August 16, 2007”. And then, he added, “Yep, this is the anniversary of Elvis’s death. Thirty years ago, today, he died sitting on the toilet.” I replied, “Get out! Seriously, thirty years ago?” “Hard to believe it’s been that long,” he said.

Not really the conversation I expected to have. He is a hoot.

August 17, 2007
by
0 comments

Copy Shop Man

Copy Shop Man
Have you ever met someone who seems to have the job that they were just made to do? I’ll give you an example.

Yesterday, I made a quick trip to our local copy shop to send a fax. One of the employees is a 60something man. He is great. While nearly everyone else who works there slog along behind the counter with uninspired looks on their faces, he is out with the customers, greeting everyone and cracking jokes. He knows how everything works. He talks about the weather. He seems genuinely interested in everyone and everything. While I was sending my fax, he was reeling off joke after joke to the woman at the neighboring copy machine. Clearly, he enjoys working there.

As I was filling out the cover sheet for my fax I remembered that I didn’t know the date and so I asked him. And, even though he had probably told it to at least a dozen people already that day, he seemed delighted to tell me that it was, “August 16, 2007”. And then, he added, “Yep, this is the anniversary of Elvis’s death. Thirty years ago, today, he died sitting on the toilet.” I replied, “Get out! Seriously, thirty years ago?” “Hard to believe it’s been that long,” he said.

Not really the conversation I expected to have. He is a hoot.