Today, I was on the edge. It wasn't a million degress. Blair was gone. So I had a choice. Go out to the "country", a mere hour from the Loop, or watch Valentini's show....no contest! So, here's my entry for the day: Ten Things I Enjoyed Today More than Watching the Suckfest Called GH:
1. Driving Over the Skyway Bridge:
There's a relief you feel when you now that the stress of reality is gone for a time and you're headed on vacation. You know it. It's the "ah" factor. My momnet for that is when I go over the Skyway Bridge between Chicago and head over the border to "lovely" Hammond Indiana. Truly a nauseating sight for the unaware. For me, and many others, it's like hearing the wail of the Harpies as they beckon you forward.
Today, as I headed East, I picked up the phone and called my friend, Phoebe, to share the moment. I told her I was going over the bridge and she responded as she always does. "Bitch!" That means "I'm so happy for you and wish I were with you, as well". It's just said in another way.
2. Driving Through Gary, Indiana on the Indiana Toll Road
Yeah, I said it!!! Who wants to know??? Gary, that's right, the most depressing, empty, smelly, burned out city on the planet. Gary makes Flint or Detroit look like Paris. It's always been the spot where my mother would say, "roll up the windows, kids" as the smell in my childhood was overwhelming. The orange sky, the stench of spoiled eggs, the black soot coming out of the smokestacks, highlighted with the open flame, of the Steel Mills, all reminding us we had to get through the bad part to get to the good.
Now, it's not as smelly but just as ugly. And, as I age, I must admit I almost miss the stench and the wails of tortured children in backseats of station wagons as they drove by. I almost miss my father's threats of "If you don't stop fighting. I'm going to light a cigar" and I always wondered if opening the window may not be as bad. But, rather than tempt fate, we'd stop fighting.
3. Driving Down Route 12 Headed into Town
It may not look like much but it's the first sign of home. And I was pleased that the people on the street were all smiling and happy and not nauseating harpies and thugs. Plain old Indiana folks and Chicago implants. Not a boxing ring in sight.
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4. Paying less than $4 for Gas at the BP on Franklin
5. Going to the Beach
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| Not Me but Mini-Me In All Her Fabulosity |
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| The View From Lake Shore Drive |
Once again, just showing how sunny and nice it is. Unlike GH which is dark, dismal, and depressing. Tell me, Frank, why would I go inside to get depressed and watch that drab show when I could be here?
See this path, Frank? I used to walk up that path every day around Noon and watch AMC and OLTL. It was a pleasure and really broke up my day. Know what I didn't do today? Well, I did walk up that path but it wasn't to watch your show. Know why? It sucks!!!
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| The Path |
Okay, I'm one of those people who likes to get a deal but also wants to get what they want. If I don't get what I want, I'll walk. But I want it on my terms. So, I'm shopping for a new house. I made an offer. It wasn't accepted. I'm not pleased. I don't get why 25% of the asking price isn't acceptable? Haven't they seen the market tank? I go to the office and argue with my realtor, who I've known since I was six months old. That, Frank, was more fun than watching your show.
BTW, both my realtor and I are sure we'll get the house in the Fall. It's a matter of waiting....get it?
7. Going to the Bank to Kiss Ass
I hate bankers. I hate big bankers. I am a Frank Capra fan. However, today, after arguing with my realtor, I went to the bank- this is one of them- and kissed as much ass as I could. I was so disgustingly charming, I made myself sick. I was trained by Adam Chandler, after all. No amount of watching GH prepared me for that- know why? No one's charming or smart. Just depressing, dull, and boring.
8. Going to my Grocery Store
Everyone has the old standby they love. I love my beach, my town, and my grocery store. I just do. It rocks. I know all the people and where everything is and they have a great, clean bathroom. Now that's important. I would usually go to this grocery store after I watched OLTL and had been to the beach. Now, I went to the beach and went to the grocery store....what didn't I do? Guess...
9. Going to Pick Blueberries
Everyone has things they enjoy that maybe others don't. I enjoy driving down Route12 into Michigan to 1000N to the blueberry farm with really loud, obnoxious music playing. I prefer silly Southern Rock in this instance, like The Allman Brothers, or go another route with some Mellencamp- it is Indiana, after all. I am determined to paint my new house pink for just that reason! But, again, I digress. I've gone to this blueberry farm to pick since I was a kid and my sisters and cousins would throw blueberries at one another and my aunt would yell at them. I was different. I was focused and clear and had a job to do.
Stateline Blueberry Farm, if I can shamelessly pimp them, is a vital part of the summer experience. The owners are nice and the fields are clear and the fruit kicks ass!! It's almost like being in the country...which I guess it is. But it's really being at the beach and the city at the same time. So much fun, so little time. Yet, look, there's more now that I don't have to watch soap operas...
10. Heading back Down Route 12 with a Tan, XTC, and a Cooler of Bonnie Doon and Blueberries
So, my day is about done and I've got a nice tan, a carload of blueberries, and I'm listening to obnoxiously loud music as I head out. I realize as I'm heading into Gary that I smell that really rancid air from the Steel Mills and look at the clock. It's 2:00, GH is on. I knew that smell was familiar....
At the grocery store, I picked up a few half gallons of Bonnie Doon ice cream- made in Indiana for Indiana. I can't get it anywhere else. I have to have it ionce or twice a year as it's what I always had. Peppermint Stick, with the little pieces of green and pink candy pieces just like they had in the 1970's, and some Blue Moon.
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| Bonnie Doon Peppermint Stick |
Like my new house, Frank, I'm waiting. I know I'll get it but it takes patience and perseverance and I'll hate it when it's under construction and I'll curse everyone.But, know what? It'll be worth it. Anything worth having is worth waiting for. But, remember, like Bonnie Doon, if you change it too much, I'll find a new brand. I'm stubborn- I want what I want how I want. If not.....
Well, there's a lot of houses out there and it's a crappy market. And as I proved today, television doesn't have to be part of my day. Tread lightly, Dude, as the sign at the Blueberry Farm warned.....
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