I LOVE MARGARITAS

I am supposed to be getting ready for work

I dropped my daughter off at pre school and came back home

I am enjoying my empty quiet house

I am supposed to be heading into work

I don't want to go to work today

I want to bask in the glory of my quiet empty house

I want to play on my laptop,watch my DVR'd shows,read magazines,paint my nails, take a nap,play on laptop more,read a book, read some blogs, sit in my bed, eat Lays potato chips, have a bowl of ice cream for lunch, enjoy this dreary weather in my QUIET EMPTY HOUSE!

Did I mention I am in denial of having a job? Sometimes I do that. I have worked there for 11 years, I kinda make my own hours, as long as I don't take advantage. I want to take advantage today!

I should be getting into my car right now and heading in, but my butt won't move from my bed. 

This is a random post! I just felt like typing something before I headed into work.

The work I don't want to head into.

Not because I hate it there.

Quite the opposite.

In fact I work with one of my Best Friends, and I actually enjoy my job!

But sometimes motivation steps away, and the need for a 'LAZY ASS ME TIME' day comes a knockin on my door!

Oh...

Why did I title it I Love Margaritas?

Well, cuz I do

And that is what will keep me going today.

That will be my light at the end of the tunnel.

That is what I will focus on (well, I mean I will focus on work, but.. well.. you know) 

I will think of the well deserved Margarita that I will get to enjoy at the end of my workday.

I get off at 3 today, but it'll be 5 o'clock somewhere

I really don't want to go to work today

I really do love Margaritas

No matter what you are doing today,

Have a good one!

Me is really smart! Ain't I? Just ask my BFF!

I am pretty lucky in the job department. I have worked for the same company for 11 years, and honestly other than wishing that I was rich and didn't have to work at all, this is the next best thing. (well, maybe the next, to next, to the next best thing. But still a great place to work!)

But one of my ABSOLUTE favorite reasons for loving my place of employment is that I actually get to work next to one of my best friends in the entire world. 

I met her when I started working there, and after we got over the hump of getting to know one another, we realized we were soulmates. 

In many ways we are different:

She doesn't take crap from anybody                    

I, on the other hand, take your crap, hold onto it for you, and tell you your crap smells like roses all the while smiling.I will nurture it, hug it, and keep it safe for you!

She does not get nervous in professional office situations. In fact she is calm and cool, and intelligence oozes out of her.

I on the other hand develop a horrible case of the nerves anytime we have important meetings with anyone other than our normal work crew! If my Immodium A-D doesn't take affect quick enough, the only thing that oozes out of me is diarrhea! 

On the other hand,she does get nervous in certain social situations. BBQ's, Parties, etc.

Social situations..........Pssshhhh, a breeze! Gimme a microphone, I'll even tell you some jokes!

When she gets drunk, you really can't tell.Other than a glassy eyed look, and a slight head roll and finger snapping attitude that decides to come out, she is never falling down drunk.

When I am drunk, you really CAN tell! I will just leave it at that......You really, REALLY can tell! 
REALLY, REALLY can tell!!!!! 

She has curly hair

I have straight hair 

(figured I'd throw that in there)

In alot of ways we are the same:

She can spot a bargain from 10 miles away. 

I can spot a bargain from 9.9 miles away.

(hey, close enough)

She has a buttload of kids

I have a buttload of kids

She grew up in our town

I grew up in our town

(I am a few years older than her, we went to competing high schools, but did not actually know one another when we were young)

She has stomach issues

I have stomach issues

(this alone made us soulmates.When you go to a Quickbooks class with a new co-worker, then ask for the bathroom key, and don't come back until 2 hours later. ...... well there is no room for embarrassment. You just gotta put it out there! "O.K. I get diarrhea ...... I mean ALOT"  When you hear back an "Oh my god, I have stomach issues too!" Well a friendship is formed for life!!)

We have the EXACT SAME TASTE IN FOOD

We have the EXACT SAME TASTE IN FOOD

She will tell a story, and I will know exactly where she is going with it

I will tell a story and she will know exactly where I am going with it

(in fact, we will keep a story going, embellishing it, making it more humorous and adding to one another's 'stories' to keep it all going)

I love to text her. Sometimes it is easier than a phone call. Stories, sentences, one liners, jokes, or just a stupid emoticon (like the piece of poop emoticon on the iphone. Immature? Yes. Funny? Yes)
She loves to text me. She understands it is easier than a phone call. 
(Sometimes we text each other until one of our husbands has to put the brakes on it, accusing us of sitting on our butts, laughing out loud to our phones, and forgetting we have dinner on the stove)
'Ooops, sorry honey! Just texting D.'
'Why don't you just call her. Or better yet, go down to her house, she just lives down the street?'
'Because I wanted to hang out with you tonight Babe! But hold on, let me text her back one more thing' "LOL       LOL         LOL      OMG           LOL       Husband getting cranky! I'll see you tomorrow at work! Bleh, can he be any moodier! Whahhh, Whahhh!! I burned the biscuits! 
Call a WAA-MBULANCE! LOL!! LOL!! Gotta go!"
'What are you laughing at over there?'
'Nothing honey! O.K. I turned my phone off. Now where were we pookie........'

Our differences are very different.

But our similarities are extremely similar.

So it was no surprise today when we were both at our desks

Checking our emails

Getting updated on our tasks for the day

Going over contracts, websites, paperwork

Filtering out stuff in our inbox

and

NOURISHING OUR BRAIN

to it's fullest potential.

We both believe that being smart is important.

How do we do this you ask?

Read books?

Study current events?

Attend classes at our local college?

No, we eat smart!

As I was chomping down on this

Smart Popcorn! I can feel the intelligence growing inside me.I won't be able to contain it!

She was guzzling this down

The bottle is almost empty. Somebody, QUICK,!Call 9-1-1, her brain is about to explode with Smarts!!!

Oh, and one more thing that we have in common.....
the way we think


As soon as it was pointed out that we were both consuming brainiac snacks, what did we do?


We both grabbed our phones out of our purses and took a picture......


all the while laughing, because we had realized we both grabbed our phones.


So now we were laughing at the Smart Food
We were laughing at our phones
We were laughing because we were laughing
And then
We laughed some more!






Soulmates!

When all else fails, fill em up with booze!

So one of my best friends had decided months ago that she was going to try her hand in home sales. Skincare to be exact. She knows how I feel about home sales. The feeling is not a positive one. Years ago I tried my hand in selling Mary Kay cosmetics.I was coerced! I will just leave it at that.

Well, actually I will leave it at this-

I bought stock to have on hand, because they told me to

They also told me I was going to have a pink car someday.

I had 2 parties.

I did not sell enough to get a car.

I was left with $1,500.00 worth of 'stock'.

It was not easy to get my money back.

In fact I never got my money back.

So yes, Home Sales has left a bad taste in my mouth. 

Real bad........

Like rotten sour cream, mixed with ca ca doo doo bad!

But.........

Because I am a supportive friend, I tried her product.

I am NOT a product person. 

I wash my face with whatever is around.

Sometimes splurging on Olay face wash for $8.99 a bottle, and Olay moisturizer for $7.99

I tried her product, liked it, and agreed to support her by hostessing a party.

This product is a bit pricey, but it really can sell itself.

Plus everyone who knows me well, knows that I won't hostess one of these parties unless I truly like something. So that was a selling point right there!

So I told my BFF that I would invite everyone I know, and if they come, they come. I can't guarantee anything.

But I did have a little trick up my sleeve to help her out.

WINE!!!!!

Who in the hell is drinking water?
Get those people out of here. We only want wine drinkers with credit cards.
This is only one counter. There was another counter with a couple more bottles.

And when wine isn't making them whip out their cash, checkbooks, or credit cards fast enough.

I pull out the big guns. 

Anything for a friend.

You know, being supportive and all..........

What? What do you mean you think you can't afford the whole anti-aging kit right now.
Oh, your husband would kill you if you purchase anything?
Oh my gosh, I totally understand.
Here, come have a shot with me.
Oh, and did I mention this skincare line really works wonders.
Oh yeah!
Here, another shot.
Oh my goodness, I can see your skin glowing already just from the demonstration sample they gave you.
Here, have another.......

From across the room, I see my best friend.

I give her a wink and a smile. As if to say

I got your back girl. I will get your business up -n- running in no time! 

* Party was a success. Shots were actually not needed.

Wine did the trick. 

She got a couple of good orders.

I was a supportive friend.

I have taken care of my hostessing duties for the year.

I gave my friend a little help in her early stages of what will hopefully be a successful career for her. Just because it didn't work for me, does not mean it won't work for her.

For as long as there are BevMo's, Liquor stores, or Backwoods Moonshine (depending on where you live)

There will always be intoxicated impulse purchasing.
And that, my friends, is my approach to marketing.

Hmmmm, maybe I should bring that up at our next meeting at work.

Me: "I have an idea for our marketing department"

Boss: "O.K. Let's hear it"

FEND FOR YOURSELF KID......MOMMY'S BUSY!!!!

O.K. Well I didn't actually tell my precious five year old little girl to 'fend for yourself', but I did NOT get my butt up from my chair when my daughter pleaded with me to make her something to eat.But might I add that I was working 
(Fridays are usually my day off, but we are in a rush to get a project finished)

She said she was hungry.

I said "I have one more email to send out."


She said "I'm super starving mommy"
I said "Hold on just one more minute"


She said "O.K. 1 !! There, I counted to 1 mommy"
I said "That is not what I meant!"

She asked if she could grab some crackers

I asked "can't you just wait 10 more minutes?"

She said "NO Mama I'm really hungry for breakfast"

I said "Fine, have crackers"
(and I did the mom shush, wave, go away signal with my hand)

She must have been confused by the word crackers.

I must have been confused as to whom I was trusting in a cupboard full of snacks.

She must have thought that I am a distant relative of Willy Wonka and believe that candy is an acceptable breakfast.
I must have been so enthralled with my email to not notice that she had slipped out of the kitchen and upstairs into my bed, where Sponge Bob awaited. 


This was her self made pre-breakfast snack

Saltines and Reese's Pieces
Breakfast of a 5 year old Champion
-or -a 5 year old 'deprived by her mom' little girl
-or- an Extraterrestrial that goes by the name E.T.

So I first walked into the kitchen

No Daughter?!?!?!

So I walk upstairs

She is happily playing in her room.

I smile, and go into my bedroom to get dressed.

I walk over to my nightstand to get my phone off of the charger and see the evidence.

Oh well, atleast the crumbs were on Daddy's side of the bed.


She must have heard me mumbling, or decided to come back in to finish her episode of Sponge Bob.

 I proceeded to lecture her on getting crumbs in my bed, and eating candy without asking.

She said

"But Mama, I was really hungry. Really, super, duper hungry!"

Then she gave me the sweetest look in the world, with her adorable buck toothed smile, and her strangely, unfairly long eyelashes fluttering.

"I'm sorry Mama"

Then came the hug! The strongest, tightest squeeze of a hug. I instantly melted. She has that affect. Maybe it is because I deal with the 3 teenagers so much, that she is such a refreshing dose of sunshine no matter what she does.
~but I have caught her practicing a very dramatic eye roll in the mirror. So not sure how much longer I will have sunshine. I see the rain clouds forming already. I have to remember to thank my older girls for teaching her that.~
Oh, I can't lie. She probably learned it from me.I am the QUEEN of eye rolling. I started young with my parents, then teachers(only when they weren't looking) and now my poor husband gets the eye roll at least 5 times a day, if not more. I will still blame my daughters though! 


Anyway, how could I go on with the rest of my morning knowing that little peanut butter candy's were floating around in her stomach, bobbing up and down in a sea of saltines.
~Is it just me, or does anyone else think of saltines ONLY as a Morning Sickness Meal???~
My 15 year old daughter loves Saltines, and requested I buy them. She is also obsessed with Teen Moms on MTV. 
That's it. Her and J-Man are breaking up this instant!!! Overreaction?? 
O.K. I will calm down
They are just Saltines!


O.K. So back to my mom of the year story; one that will surely go on to win a Mom of the Year contest in Good Housekeeping or Family Circle
or Jailhouse Mom's. 
As long as I win!!

So this is what Candy and Crackers Mom did next

"Thank you Mama! You are the best Mom in the WHOLE ENTIRE UNIVERSE!!!!"
(she did not really say that. But it's only because her mouth was full, and I have taught her to not talk with food in her mouth. She was definitely thinking it though!) 

I had to redeem myself somehow.


Then we sat outback enjoying the warm weather we have been blessed with lately, and I ignored her some more while I read the Hunger Games. 


Don't worry I made her lunch.
Snickers  Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich!

Some may call it "over explaining", I call it a big ol' run on sentence of entertainment!

This post is just going to be a whole bunch of sentences. I am starting off explaining why I started blogging, but I am not sure how I will end. Didn't really plan out this one.

Enjoy!

One of the reasons I started blogging was because I like to write. That is most likely the case with all bloggers, I am sure.

But my desire to write does not come from a place of sophisticated literature knowledge.
It does not come from a 4 year stint at a University, where I am now putting my degree to good use.
Not even a 2 week try at a Junior College, taking English, Art,Psychology,Math and Human Sexuality

I actually just like to tell stories. I love the feeling of being in a room full of people, whether it is at a party, a PTA meeting, work, or in line at the grocery store, and being able to feel connected to others because of the words that are flowing from my mouth. If words start trickling out, and those trickles turn into a steady flow, and that steady flow fills up into a large pool of sentences, words, laughter, feelings, emotions, and it is then reciprocated by whomever is near or listening, then I feel as though I have literally won a prize. An award, a Mental Trophy with my name engraved on it.

1st Place Award

J.R.

Most likely to connect with others through words and stories

I also love comedy. I love when I am flipping channels, and come across a good stand up comedian. My favorite type of standup is the type where you are literally slapping your knee, (or in my case, punching my husbands leg each time I laugh) and with each 'punch'line, you are saying outloud:

OH MY GOD!!

That has totally happened to me!

I know what he/she is talking about!

OH MY GOD! I know that feeling!

Uggghhhh, I hate that too, so Fricking Funny!

That diarrhea joke was INSANE,**but that HAS happened to me!

OH, My stomach hurts from laughing!

I want to be that comedian.

I want to be that storyteller.

I want to be the reason people are slapping their knees.


I cannot, in fact I think I am physically incapable, of writing a short story, a short post, a short text, a short comment, a short email, a short note. 
Even when I sign my credit card statement at a store, my hand starts trembling. 
IT JUST WANTS TO WRITE MORE!!!!!!!

 A short note. This is a good example. Sometimes my 13 year old daughter will come out of her room in the morning and ask me to write her a note for p.e., so that she does not have to do the Friday Mile Run. I always happily oblige. Why? My daughter is a go getter. She is a perfectionist at everything. From her outfits, hair and makeup, to her organized room, and schoolwork.My daughter is not a slacker, and she has straight A's, and awards up the you know what.So if she wants to get out of the run, it is for a good reason, which is usually because she stayed up too late studying. How could I deny her a note.

Her idea of a note:

Dear Mr. P.E. Teacher,

Please excuse K from the run today.

Thank you,

J.R.

The note I actually write, because my hands and mind won't STOP:

Dear Mr. P.E. Teacher,

Hello, how is your day? Great! Well, I am writing this note to please ask you to excuse my daughter, K, from running the mile long run today due to the fact that she had stayed up late last night studying for her History Benchmark tests. I am sure you are aware of what a good student she is, so I am sure this will be no problem. But I also wanted to mention, that I do not fully agree that late night studying is a valid excuse for missing your run, that is why I will also tell you that she seems to be fighting off some sort of upper respiratory issues. I can hear it in her breathing. I may even take her to the doctor today. If so I will keep you updated. 

Anyway, thank you so much, and thank you for being a great teacher. She told me that funny story about you explaining to the class how you became a p.e. teacher in the first place. I like telling stories too. 

In case K starts coughing.... *at this point teenage daughter grabs the pen from my hand, rolls her eyes, points to the clock and says "mooomm. I asked for a note! Not a book!God, so embarrassing!"

Sincerely,

J.R.

K's Mom

**Oh my god mom, he knows your'e my mom! Who else would he think it was? You don't have to write that! 

I went to a 6 year old's Birthday Tea Party yesterday. A daughter of a good friend of mine. Half of the people there I am extremely close with. Like BFF kind of close. 

Half of the people there I had never met until that day.

So I cracked a joke during a silent moment when I was sitting in the living room with half of the moms I did not know. I then realized, it may or may not have been considered funny to them. So I nervously laughed, and said "Oh, I'm sorry, I don't know if that was funny or inappropriate? I mean, I guess I just met you guys"

The silent milasecond, seemed like a silent 3 hours with crickets chirping. 

But then they all three laughed, and one, spoke up and said:

"Oh, it was completely appropriate!! 

And completely funny!

That was a good one"

*I can't remember her name, but she will now be called 'Cool Mom'

But that moment, that little tiny moment of connection with humor made my day!

"That was a good one"- Has seriously got to be my favorite compliment

Well,

that and 

"WOW! You look smokin hot!!"

-or-

"Oh my god, I cannot believe you are _ _ years old! You look 20!"

-or-

"WOW! You look smokin hot!!" 

*did I mention that one already?

-or-

"You are the greatest human being that has ever walked this earth"

I mean, those are all nice to hear also, but "That was a good one" makes me smile inside.

At work it is hard for me to write a short email.

Example: 

TO: jr@email.com

FROM:professionallady@email.com

Subject:Contract

JR,

I have attached the contract you requested. Please sign, or have your supervisor sign, then email back to me. Fax is fine also, as long as it is done before today at 3 p.m.

Regards,

Professional Lady

My Reply:

TO:professionallady@email.com

FROM:jr@email.com

Subject: Signed Contract

Hello Professional Lady,

Can you believe this weather we are having? Gorgeous day out today! Makes you want to skip the office, and head down to the beach.

Jane Doe has signed the addendum as well as enclosure A. I have scanned the signature pages, and will include that in this email. Funniest thing though! While I was scanning, I was telling my co worker a story, so I was distracted, and had  forgotten to check the scanner for papers left behind from the person who was previously using it. There was a picture of my co workers new baby in there. She is adorable!!! So along with the contract, you will also be getting a picture of a 2 week old baby girl. Just wanted to warn you. I was going to delete that from the PDF file, but figured what the heck, I'd leave it in there. Newborn babies can brighten a day! 

If you have any questions or comments regarding the attachment, or enclosure A, please feel free to call me at the office.But if you call after 2 p.m. I may not be here. I am off early today, due to the fact that my daughter has some upper respiratory issues, and I will be taking her to the doctor. 

But you can feel free to call me on my cell (555)555-5555. Please leave a voicemail if I do not answer, and I will return your call as soon as I can.

Thank you and have a great weekend. Although it is only Thursday, I say Have a Good Weekend on all of my Thursday emails, because I have Fridays off. So have a good Thursday! Also, I am joking about the newborn baby photo. It was scanned, that part was true. But I deleted it from the attachment.If you do want it, I can always email it to you. LOL! :) 

Best Regards,

J.R.

K's Mom

* ooops wrong note

Her Reply

TO: jr@email.com

FROM: professionallady@email.com

Subject: Contract

JR,

Received the attachment. Everything seems to be in order.

Regards,

Professional Lady

* Ugghh, she did not even acknowledge my baby pic joke. Did not mention that I accidentally told her I was K's mom. Did not say anything about the weather, the weekend, or Happy Thursday!

Hmmmm, should I reply to her reply? I could explain myself.

"Don't do it J.R.!!! Don't do it!!!Leave it be!!"

By the way, that is not my inner voice. That is my Co-Worker who also happens to be one of my BFF's. We share an office, and she knows me so well. 

Some of these examples may make me seem a bit obnoxious.
I can assure you, I do have tact, and I do know the appropriate times to let out the obnoxiousness, and when to keep it in.

But my obnoxiousness has actually turned around the most stick up the butt people, and made them smile. So it has to be workin for me on some level.

This "professional lady", after years of emailing back and forth, has her own silly side. 

The other day she started off an email with a :

Bwwwwaaaaa Haaaa Haaaa - evil laugh 

(had to do with an email we both mutually had to deal with)

Then a ;) winky smiley face- took me years to get one of those out of her.

Then she ended it with telling me about her vacation.

So I may not be bringing peace to the world,

Or curing world hunger

but my over explaining story telling has brought out 

the over explaining story telling of another human being.

And that,

 my friends,

brings me joy!

*also obnoxious is one of my favorite words. Literally! I use it a lot. I like the way it sounds. It can have negative meanings, or (sometimes in my case) positive.

My Son is ...gulp...Almost a Man!

My Son is the oldest, but still my baby. I am feeling a bit mushy about him right now, so if you feel the mush in this post, I apologize. It probably won't last long. That little sucker will probably upset me again in a week. 

Upset is more humorous than mush! 

My son will be 18 years old on Valentines Day. Yup, the day of love. And boy I love him! From the  moment he kicked me in my bladder and made me pee my maternity pants, I knew he was a keeper! Boys are great, they love their momma's like nobody else can. But little boys grow into big boys. Sometimes big boys are dirty,rude,lazy,disrespectful slobs who can play Xbox Call of Duty until 3 in the morning, but can't figure out the washing machine. They can eat a whole bag of Doritos and finish up the last bit of Orange Juice straight from the carton, but won't take the time to make a sandwich. But we love 'em!!
Yes, my little boy who was once the sidekick of all sidekicks, is going to be a man soon. Man may be to strong of a word though, and honestly I'm not quite sure he is ready for what being a man entails.

This 'little boy/man' had been slacking the last few months on looking for a job.His first job was awesome,but unfortunately he got laid off, and for some bizarre reason,he was under the assumption that he had reached his quota for the year as far as labor. The moment he was laid off, we started pushing him to find a job.

Job talk dialogue:

Adult: Hey how about after school you go to Stater Brothers, Albertsons, any grocery store for that matter. Fill out an application.There is the one right across the street from your school. It is a good place to get your foot in the door, especially for benefits and stuff.

Teen that thinks money grows on trees: Nawww! Grocery stores are kinda lame.

Adult: - speechless- (but inside thinking, really?? Did you really just say that?)

Adult: Lame? It's a job, what is 'lame' about it?

Teen that thinks Genie and his magic lamp are going to show up: I don't know. Ty and Kevin work at Stater Brothers, and they are always complaining about all the hours. They hate it there, like it's boring, and just Grocery stores are so generic.

Adult: Oooo.Kkkkk. Well, what about the restaurants that are all around dads house? You could be a busboy, make tips. One of my first jobs was hostessing at the restaurant on the pier,and even hostessing I made good tips.

Teen that thinks maybe he will meet a Sugar Momma soon: Tips would be cool!!! Yeah, I went into that coffee shop that my old English teacher opened up. They aren't hiring anymore,but I talked with him, and he said he'd let me know if they ever need anyone. So I've tried restaurants.

Adult: You have "tried restaurants" Sssss. With an 'S' on the end?

Teen that is just waiting for a long lost uncle to mention him in his will: Wellll, I mean I drove by a few, but they didn't have signs on the window. I'll go to some places tomorrow.

Adult: SIGNS IN THE WINDOW? What do you think this is, Mels Diner? People don't put signs in the window anymore.

Teen that maybe I breastfed too long,held too much, coddled to an extreme, waited on hand and foot,made sandwiches for because he 'didn't know how to', did laundry for,you get the point: Who's Mel? Is he hiring? Can you get me a job there?

Well,I am proud to say he is now a proud member of the high school student workforce.He has a corner office with an ocean view,and earns 6 figures a year. NOT!!! He is employed at a local city baseball field concession stand. At first I was a bit agitated, but kept it to myself. I mean Concession Stand? So you are going to sell candy bars and popcorn for Little League games? Way to go son!! How is their 401k option? Health Benefits? Wow !! Awesome.

But I did not show my disdain for his journey into the world of Hot Dog carts. I smiled, like any good mom, then shot my husband  a "just smile" glance from the other side of the living room. I could tell he was pumped about this new job. I have not heard him this excited since I surprised him and took him to see Weird Al Yankovich in concert when he was 9.I have not seen his face light up this much since a girl in 8th grade texted him a picture of herself in her bikini. ( which I then made him erase immediately, and proceeded to lecture him for about 2 hours on the dangers of sexting, and having respect for women, ALL women!  I said "you have respect for me right?"  Well, when I was a teenager they didn't have cell phones, but if they had, and hypothetically speaking, if I was the type of teen girl who thought she looked pretty cute in her fluorescent yellow bikini with the pink flower in the middle, and her matching scrunchi, and pink hoop earrings from Contempo to match, and I texted a picture of myself to a boy, who I use to drool over every day at the beach,and lets say that boy forwarded that picture to 300 of his closest friends. "Well how would you feel if someone did that to me?" He then asked to be excused, and went into the bathroom , where I heard faint vomiting sounds for about 20 minutes) I guess comparing 14 year old me with his 14 year old crush did the trick, or made him sick. Either way, hope it made a point!!

Our next adult question was how many hours are they going to be giving you?

Teen who may be doing his college thesis on the evolution of the hot dog: Well, I'm on a trial basis at first. But I will know more later.

Adult: - Smile -

Well, I decided to drive up to Orange County yesterday evening to check him out at his new job. He told me to come around 6, and maybe he'd be able to take a break and "hang with me".

I tell you what!! Popcorn & Candy this is not! Some of the items on the 'le menu' (trying to sound fancy)

• Teriyaki Chicken Rice Bowl
• Spinach Wrap
• Maui Teriyaki Burger
• Chicken Ceasar Salad

YUM!

A mothers bond with her son is almost unexplainable. It is amazing that someone can piss you off so bad, that you have hung up on him, almost wanted to wipe his smart ass smirk off of his smart ass face, almost wanted to spank his 'smart' ass,but you can't because he is now way taller than you. Hunted him down at a party, because he snuck out, and you know he is at that Vic kids house, where you know the parents are the 'cool' parents that let them drink. Dam those parents!!!! But I make cookies, doesn't anyone want to come to our house? 

All these things get washed away when you head up a cement ramp towards a 'Gourmet' Concession Stand and see a smile so big that it is visible even through the handprints on the glass of a walk up order window. All the ups and downs of the teen years are put aside, when you see your son grab the aluminum handle on that sliding window, shove it open, and stick half of his 5'11'' body out of the tiny opening.

"Hey Mom" 

I kiss the top of his head, and shove him back in the window.

He takes my order,and lets me know that he will come out in a minute to eat his burger and take his break with his sister and I.  He has a funny laugh as he writes my order down on his little ticket pad. Normally with a food establishment full of teenage boys, I would wonder if the laugh was an insight as to how my food was going to turn out, but then I remembered it was my son. Surely he wouldn't spit in my food.

He comes out a few minutes later with his cheeseburger and gives me a huge hug.I would have kept hanging on, but I composed my sappy self. 

"Look at you dealing with the public, taking orders and stuff!" 

"Ummhhhhchch YUP I mmlikemm working chhhheremmm" Scarfing down his cheeseburger, like a contestant who just won a challenge on Survivor Island.
"Where is our food C?"

"Your order will be called soon mom" - and again with the funny little laugh

So I watched him eat, listened to his story of the first customer that got a tad bit upset at him for not serving him fast enough, heard all about his new friends (both from school and work), and glanced around the fields. It is kinda a happening place. All lit up for night games. Skate park, toddler playground, and of course baseball/softball teams galore. The place was pretty packed from people in the stands watching their family members play, to families waiting for their C'est Magnifique food orders. 

Then I hear it, the reason for my almost grown man of a son to be giggling like he did when he was 5  watching the Rugrats. My name was being called from the loudspeakers, and I noticed people looking around.

"Mom"

"Order ready for MOM"

"Mom your orders ready"
"Tiki Tenders for MOM"

I look at my son, who in turn is looking up at the window to his buddies. They are inside laughing as well, and then I get a huge smile on my face. I didn't feel like an outsider. I didn't feel stupid, or as though they were laughing 'at me'. I felt like I was let in. Let in on a joke, let in on his job, let in with his new circle of friends, let in to his life.He wasn't embarrassed of me, but rather the opposite. He was happy I was there. I walked up, grabbed my Chicken Tenders from a nice boy who stuck his head out the window pronouncing 'Nice to meet you C's mom!', and sat back down next to my little boy.

The time flew by. I was enjoying his stories, as he was getting a kick out of mine.
Jumping up a few minutes later, he told me he had to get back to work. 

"I love you mom! I'm glad you guys came" 

"I love you too Boo"

One day that boy I call 'Boo' actually will be a man. A man with a girlfriend, fiance, or wife. A man that may choose a career that leads him to another state. A man that travels, and is only able to pop in once every couple of years. A man who marries a woman whose family takes precedence over ours. 

So for now, if I am his money tree (money 4 inch potted plant actually) then so be it. I will dust off my magic lamp, make him sandwiches when he is hungry, listen to him when he needs me,and help him with his laundry. I will always tell him to shoot for the stars, or chicken nuggets in the shape of stars. Whatever makes him happy.That's just what moms do.

Mom, order ready