A handful of dimes....

We've been hearing a lot about the economy lately, haven't we? A couple years ago, America was obsessed with losing weight, becoming more healthy, living longer. These days it's all about saving money. Yahoo news is constantly running stories with headlines like "Top ten ways to save $200 a month" and "How to get the most out of a tank of gas." People everywhere are tightening their belts, forgoing those vacations, trading in their SUVs... I haven't changed a thing. Granted, I did get a new, more fuel efficient car earlier this year but it wasn't for reasons pertaining to the failing economy...My point is: I've always lived frugally...sure, I buy myself unnecessary things when I get a large sum of money (like the giant TV we bought with our tax returns) but day to day, we're very simple people.

I don't feel we live beyond our means like so many Americans do. While people are whining and complaining about not being able to afford manicures anymore, or not being able to spend $100 on dinner and drinks, Sean and I are going about business as usual. In fact, having the rest of the country (figuratively speaking) down at our level has been a refreshing experience. I'm not trying to wish ill on people, I'm just saying maybe a little financial humility will be good for society. Hopefully it will teach people not to be so wasteful in the future and to make more responsible decisions when it comes to money. I don't know. Probably not.

I don't have much debt. No credit cards or loans other than my car. I'm still paying stuff off from when I was a dumb kid, but other than that... My bills are pretty strait forward: Rent, utilities, car, insurance....I have a prepaid cell phone and we don't go out much. We pretty much do what we want, even if it takes us a while to get some money together. We're very happy. I did go through a point in my life I like to think is over, where I stressed out about money so much it literally made me sick. Seriously, I have ulcers. I was convinced that I was the only one out there paying my rent late and making arrangements with the electric company...I was so distressed thinking about our future bills and how we were never going to get caught up. Then one day, I looked around and realized I was not alone at all. I see "rich" people freaking out and I smile to myself knowing that I'm an old pro at the "Money/Stress game."

One thing that bothers me is how ungrateful some people can be. Once a person is used to having a certain amount of money, anything less becomes worthless! I don't understand it! I know as people make more money they generally make more bills, so when they're salary gets cut they find themselves in a tough spot. Know what I have to say? SUCK IT UP! Do people really go around in life thinking that things are just going to get better? Did they not take history in school? oh no.... I just got myself started.

WHY are people still buying GIGANTIC ass trucks when fuel prices fluctuate as much as California weather and our environment is in peril? What purpose do they serve? There are smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles that can hold up to 7 people, I don't see the need for an F350 King cab. Sorry. Don't want to hear about your $600 car payment or how much you pay for gas.

WHY do people buy boats and trailers when they only take them out once or twice a year? You know there are places you can rent that type of stuff? When your family is eating mac and cheese with hotdogs for the 4th day in a row, just remind them how much fun they're going to have at the river next summer. If you can afford to go.

WHY do people buy ridiculous accessories for their pets? Muffy does not like his new fur coat. In fact, he's pissed and he's planning on shitting in your kitchen while you're asleep. Meanwhile, your kid needs new shoes and you're bitching about how much they cost.

That's just the tip of the iceberg, folks. Here's the kicker. The thing that made me write this half-assed attempt at a post in the first place:

I make $15 and hour. That translates to $600 a week, $471 after taxes. So, I basically live on $1884 a month, plus my husband's pay which is even smaller than mine. It's more than enough for us to live well. (thank God we don't have children) Hear that people? $2800 is MORE THAN ENOUGH to support two people and 4 cats-WELL- even in California. I'm not saying there aren't sacrifices to be made, I'm just saying it's possible. Easy, even.

I do payroll for the company I work for and some of these people make TWICE my salary. Business is slow, so a lot of people aren't getting a full 40 hours a week like me. BUT their paychecks still come out to more money, even when they've worked half the hours I have. It kills me to give these people their checks on Friday just to hear them say "My measly little paycheck" or "This will hardly cover my bar tab!" It just makes my blood boil. I want to shout "Listen you ungrateful fucks! I LIVE on less than that, so if you've got a fucking problem with your check, you can just pass that measly sum of money my way and I'll make sure to fucking appreciate it and put it to good use!" God DAMN people can be so insensitive!

I realize how self-righteous this post might sound, and I apologize if I've offended anyone. You know I like to keep the 4 or 5 readers I have coming back...lol I guess I just needed to vent. Thanks for reading.

PS. The title comes from Five to One by the Doors... "Trade in your hours for a handful of dimes. Gonna make it baby in our prime..."

Pretty much sums up how I feel about having a job. lol Cest la vie....

Thanksgiving

Until I became a stoner, I never fully appreciated Thanksgiving. My mom never cooked a turkey because it was "too dry" but we had a ham and all the trimmings of a holiday meal. It just didn't hold any significant meaning to me. Then, November 2002, everything changed. It was before my dad and step-mom moved to Kansas, and they asked me to watch their house while they visited her sons for Thanksgiving. In return, they left me a little feast: A large rosted chicken, stuffing, mashed potatoes and a cranberry apple pie. All I had to do was warm it up in the oven and enjoy. I had just started smoking that summer, and decided to invite my stoney friends over to share in the bounty. It was an amazing day! Smoke, eat, smoke, eat...ahhh good times.

The following year, my husband and I were living in our first apartment together (without roomates) and I decided I was going to make us a turkey dinner. I enlisted the help of my SIL and the results were......AMAZING!!! I can't believe our first turkey came out so well! Once again, we smoked and ate to our hearts content and that was it for me. Thanksgiving became MY holiday. I will not go anywhere; my place on the last Thursday of November is in my kitchen, then on my couch. NO EXCEPTIONS! I've got T-day down to a science now. Weeks before the day, I print new copies of my recipes, make grocery lists, and make room in the freezer for the guest of honor: the turkey. I even write out a prep schedule to keep myself on track while I'm cooking and ensure nothing gets left out. It might seem a little stressful, but truth is it's a blast for me. I get to cook all day, smoke all day and then share the fruits of my labor with friends.

I never really know who's going to join us, but it doesn't matter. Anyone is welcome at my place on Thanksgiving. I haven't had the exact same group of people twice. I think any cook loves to hear their food is good, but I can't describe the pride I feel when someone who spent a Thanksgiving at my house recalls the day lovingly. Tsk, I'm getting all choked up thinking about it, what a sentimental fool I am!

One thing that makes a feast more than just a meal is the meaning behind the occasion. I loved attending Passover Sedars with my Jewish friends because the whole tradition and ritual surrounding the meal is so appealing to the foodie-philosopher in me. Thanksgiving is a celebration of the Pilgrims' first harvest in the new land. Think of all the things on your table this time of year: Pumpkin, potatoes, squash, corn...... Know what else is harvested the month before this glorious celebration? That's right. WEED! It's only fitting that it be part of the ritual on this day. Plus, who doesn't like to gorge themselves shamelessly when they're high?

I hope all of you out there in the blogosphere love Thanksgiving as much as I do, and I hope the things you are thankful for last forever. With that, I leave you with my 2008 Thanksgiving Menu:

Herb Roasted Turkey
Country Sage Dressing
Creamy Mashed Potatoes and Gravy
Baked Sweet Yams
Smoked Gouda Mac & Cheese
Classic Green Bean Casserole
Taffy Apple Salad
Sourdough Rolls
Pumpkin Cheesecake

All I Wanna Be is a G, HA!

My friends and husband will agree that I think I am a Gangsta. Well, a wannabe Gangsta anyway. I like to act all tough and talk big. I bump rap in my Hyundai Accent Hatchback...(not all the time, but sometimes I'm in the mood) I get teased, but I don't mind. It's all in good fun and besides.... One day, I will be a G. Mark my words. If you saw me in the grocery store or something, you might mistake me for a Mormon. I'm a plain Jane, jeans and t-shirt white girl from Southern California who likes to pretend she's hard. Hey it's all part of my charm. I can whip up a batch of brownies while bustin' out some NWA.

Last night, I was a little down and I confided in my husband that I was worried I was turning soft and I needed to toughen myself up or I'd never make it to Gangsta status.... He probably could tell I was being serious, because he didn't really laugh, he just nodded his head in agreement. SO, this morning I find that my husband added a new ringtone to my phone:

Natural Born Killaz by Ice Cube.

Talk about support from your spouse! I guess I'm not the only one who wants me to be a G. lol

Superpower Friday

It's Friday!!!

Drunk Stoned Guitar Hero ACTIVATE! ;)

Just a little something for Election Day

I am 25 years old and I have never voted. EVER. I figured since I live in California, the delegates in this state will vote the way I want anyway, blah blah blah... basically I didn't want to register and get stuck with Jury Duty. Which I have had 3 times despite the fact that I barely registered to vote in September. SO! This year being all historic and whatnot, I decided to go ahead and do it. In honor of my first voting experience, I wrote a little poem:

I'm going to the polls today
to stand in line and wait,
I'll cast my vote for president
and help dissolve Prop 8.

I'll sit and watch the TV screen
when all the votes are in,
And if Obama doesn't win
I guess I'll be Canadian!

YAY DEMOCRACY!!

Me from A-Z

I got this one from Sarah's Blog. I thought it was an interesting twist on the usual survey.


A - Age: Twenty five

B - Band listening to right now: Muse

C - Career future: Proprietor of a self-sustaining community for hippies.

D - Dad’s name: Michael

E - Easiest person to talk to: My sister in law

F - Favorite type of shoe: cheap flip flops

G – Grapes or Grapefruit: Grapefruit

H – Hometown: Riverside, CA

I – Instrumental talent: Bassoon, Clarinet.....do video game drums and guitars count?

J – Juice of choice: Cranberry

K – Koala Bear or Panda Bear: Pandas... not a big fan of their restaurant, but they're sure cute!

L - Longest car ride ever: Bus trip to San Francisco and the busses kept breaking down.

M – Middle name: Ranae

N - Number of jobs you’ve had: 10

O- OCD traits: spider checks. I check EVERYTHING for spiders.

P - Phobia[s]: Spiders, Government, Law Enforcement...

Q - Quote: "I've got a joint in my room..." Lauren Hynde, Rules of Attraction

R - Reason to smile: My cats doing cute things. My husband flirting with me after being together for so long.

S - Song you sang last: A theme song I made up for one of my cats.

T - Time you wake up: 20 minutes later than I should. Always.

U - Unknown fact about me: I can drive a Zamboni, very poorly

V - Vegetable you hate: okra

W - Worst habit: Tardiness

X - X-rays you’ve had: teeth, neck, finger.

Y - Yummiest food my belly likes: Sausages!

Z - Zodiac sign: Aries

Knock Knock, Go the fuck away, please!

A few weeks ago, I roll up to my apartment and there is a cat chillin on my neighbors patio wall so I reach up and pet it and say "Hi, kittie kittie." God knows why I stop to pet strange cats when I have FOUR waiting for me inside. My neightbor stands up and says "His name is Mouse." Shit, I didn't even know he was out there! My husband and I don't really go out of our way to meet our neighbors becuase we're private people and we've had bad experiences in the past. Anyway, so they guy goes on and on about his cat, who is from the same little as my newest cat, so we talk about that a little bit and I go inside.

Next thing I know, there's a knock on the door. I look through the peep hole to make sure it's not the cops (lol, it's always the cops in my mind) and it's my neighbor, I'll call him Don. Don says his cat is in my patio and can I please get him because he's afraid he'll run away. Well then keep him inside you fuck! Whatever. I grab his cat, hand it to him over the wall and go back inside. Half an hour later the same thing happens again. A little while later I go into my patio and the fucking cat is back there AGAIN. Okay, this is fucking annoying. I scoop up the cat, take him next door and return him to Don. Don asks if I think Mouse will run away and I said cats know where to get their food, and I'm sure he'll come back. He asked if my cats go outside, I said "No, they are strictly indoor cats." That may seem cruel, but it's for their own good, I assure you.

Later on, about 10, my husband comes home from work and we're just about to indulge in a bowl when there's a knock at our door. I made a face at my husband like 'it's fucking crazy Don from next door.' Look through the peephole and there's Don holding Mouse. It's 10 at night!! So I open the door and he says: "He wants to see his sister." and I give my husband a look like "are you fucking kidding me?!" so I bring Bella over, who hasn't seen this other cat in 4 months and then I get clawed the fuck up because she's angry there's another cat in her space. DUH! Don is obviously retarded. You don't bring an animal into someone's house. They aren't children, they aren't going to play, they're going to fight to defend their territory. Not to mention I spent a shit load of money getting Bella de-nastied from being outside, and he brings over this grubby cat who I'm sure is crawling with fleas and worms!

We spend a few minutes in the doorway (I will NEVER let this guy inside. EVER) and he saw our other cats and we talked a little bit and when things finally were too weird he leans in and says "Can I be froward? Can I get a little weed off of you?" ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?! So we oblige "just this once" and he leaves us the fuck alone for the rest of the night. We don't hear from him for a couple days and then one night.....Don's knocking on the fucking door again!

My husband stays up late because he works evenings and he's kind of a night owl, so he hears what goes on around the complex in the wee hours of the morning when he's out on the patio having a smoke. From what he can tell Don, and his brother "Danny" are crack heads. Literally. Greeeeaaaaat. Now I will seriously NEVER let him inside. Don knocks on the door every few days looking for weed and we tell him we don't have any, shut the door and smoke a bowl...We have friends drop by through the weekend, and you know you can smell it coming from our apartment. It doesn't matter! I'm not this guy's friend! We just happen to live next door to eachother.

One morning, at 4 fucking 30, Don knocks on our door and rings our doorbell over and over like a, well, like a crackhead would. We didn't answer the door. I heard him say "What's up, man!" through the door. What's up?! It's fucking 4:30 in the morning you daft fuck! Even if you see my husband go outside for a smoke, dont assume you can come knocking on our door! CHRIST! What the fuck is wrong with people?! I think this dude's got the wrong idea...

ANYWAY.... the knocking still hasn't stopped, despite us ignoring it repeatedly....I think I just need to tell him not to knock on our door anymore. I don't want to be rude about it, but shit! Love thy Neighbor only goes so far.