Another Blonde Moment

I have been looking for a hall tree/bench for our entryway for what seems like forever now and finally, I found the perfect one! I bought an inexpensive piece on Wayfair that seemed to have great reviews and would look perfect in our entryway. I am always very good at building furniture like this, so when it arrived, I tore open the box and got to work. I just put together two night stands earlier this week and my husband was upstairs assembling a TV stand, so I had this one in the bag. I laid out all of the parts in order, opened the box of screws (careful not to mix them up) and began to read the manual. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. It was coming together nicely and I was almost finished when I called Anthony to help me lift up the bench part and screw it onto the top of the piece. That is when I saw it. When I flipped up the front of the bench (it had been laying face down while I screwed in the 4 screws that held it together), I realized that I had used the wrong screws. I was screwing the longer screws in and they broke through the front of the bench! I should have been using the screws that were half the size of the ones I used. I looked down and just slapped my hand against my forehead. Doh! I’m lucky I didn’t screw the piece into my hardwood floor! As Anthony came down the stairs he started laughing and asked me how I didn’t hear the screws ripping through the front of the bench. “I don’t know, I just didn’t!” What the hell was I going to do now? I looked on the front of the manual and they gave a number to call for replacement parts. But I clearly did it myself and it didn’t come damaged. What if they ask me for pictures or to send the part back first? Shit! I was the worst liar ever! There was no way I was going to convince them that it just came like that! I thought that maybe I could sand and paint it over, or maybe just put 4 stickers over the problem spots? Shaking, I dialed the number and sat there sweating, waiting for someone to answer. Please don’t ask me what happened, please don’t ask me…..When she picked up the phone, she simply asked what piece was damaged, confirmed my address and told me the part was on its way. Gulp. That was it? Ahhhhh deep breath out.

Tut Tut, It Looks Like Rain!

Earlier this week, I read that it was going to rain (which I was excited about) but so far, it was still dry outside. So at 5:30 AM this morning when I stepped out into the garage to get into my car for work, I was delighted when I heard what sounded like buckets of water coming down. “Nice, it’s finally raining out!” So, I went back inside the house, grabbed my rain jacket, rain boots and umbrella and got myself prepared for the storm outside. When I got back into the garage and pushed the garage door opener, something just wasn’t adding up as the door began to rise. The driveway wasn’t wet at all. (Door continues to open). I don’t see any raindrops coming down. (Door continues to open). Why do I still hear water? (Door now fully open exposing a beautiful morning and me standing head to toe in rain gear). I look over to the left and see that one of our sprinkler heads had busted and we literally have Old Faithful in our front yard. Dammit! 

What Am I?

I am sure everyone has been in this situation before…you are at a restaurant or bar and you have to use the bathroom. You get to the bathroom doors and have no clue which one to walk in! Am I a ‘Skunk’ or a ‘Sloth?’ A ‘Clover’ or a ‘Flower?’ A ‘Gypsy’ or a ‘Pirate?’ Can’t these people just say ‘Men’ or ‘Women’ already!? By the time you figure it out, your bladder is about ready to explode and you are ready to bust through the door with the ‘Rooster’ on it, forgetting that you are most likely a ‘Cat.’ And if you have had a few drinks? Forget about it- the signs may have well be in French! This exact situation has happened to me a few times (am I just not as witty and clever as I think I am?) but this time it was a whole different story…

We were at the Temecula Creek Inn for our friend’s 40^th birthday party. We had been wine tasting all day and when we got back to the hotel, we went to the bar to continue the festivities. I had a few martinis and then had to go to the bathroom. I asked Anthony where the bathroom was and he pointed behind the bar and told me the doors were to the left. I got up, walked exactly where he told me and came upon 2 doors next to each other. One said ‘Sage 1’ and one said ‘Sage 2.’ SHIT. Okay, this one was like a riddle- how the heck was I supposed to know what kind of Sage I am? Are they talking about the herb? Maybe these are gender neutral bathrooms and if you have to go number one you go to the ‘Sage 1’ door? Ugh. No, that wouldn’t be possible…..right? Not only did I have to pee badly, I was wearing a romper so the process of taking it off was going to take a while so there was no time to waste! Just as I was racking my brain for anagrams for the letters SAGE, I saw a few girls walk by me and head around the corner. I followed them and saw two clearly marked doors: 'Gentleman’ & ‘Ladies.’ Duh! I still have no clue what those 'Sage' doors lead to. Probably the electrical room or something….

Santa Claus is Coming to Town (in an Uber)

Last December, we decided to take Meyer to Santa’s Village in Lake Arrowhead so she could get a second shot with the big guy. The first time she met him with Grandma, she was NOT a fan! Although our experience at Santa's Village was not the best (it had just re-opened but nothing was fully operating ‘yet’) and we had to buy cables to put on the Tahoe to get there (I am from Maine and have NEVER had to use these), Meyer actually smiled for her picture with Santa this time! The best part? We got to meet him twice! First, when he was in his work attire (aka Jolly Old St. Nick) sitting in the sleigh, and again as we were leaving the park, as casual Santa. 

Before we got on the road, we had pulled over to the side of the parking lot to adjust the cables on the Tahoe. A baby blue minivan pulled up next to us and out stepped Mr. Claus himself, except this time he was in his regular clothes (but clearly recognizable). He asked if we needed any help and I thought, ‘what is this, Miracle on 34^th Street?’ We told him thanks but we were just adjusting the cables on the tires, yet he stayed and decided to make small talk. He asked if we remembered him (like he was Clark Kent and just removed his glasses)…umm duh, we just sat on your lap! I looked over at his van and noticed that he had the familiar Uber sticker on his dashboard and thought, holy crap! Santa is an Uber driver too? What else does this guy do? Can you imagine if you called an Uber and on the app and it said 'Nick' will be arriving in 2 minutes in a red Toyota sleigh? He agreed with us that it sucked about having to put cables on the tires to make it up to Santa’s Village and confessed that he was almost late to work because he didn’t have any and had to go out of his way to buy some. To that I replied, “why didn’t you take the sleigh?”

Thanks. I’ll be here all night. Ho ho ho.