Who Got Us The Free Drinks? YOU Be The Judge.

Well hello there. Melisa with one S here. I'm guest-posting for Weaselmomma, who might be in Hollywood selling her autobiographical screenplay to Quentin Tarantino in the hopes that he can get the ball rolling on her major motion picture, tentatively named "There's a Mouse In the House: Trouble in Weaselville", starring Meryl Streep as Weaselmomma. Or she may NOT be doing that. Regardless, you're stuck with me today.

I have a little story to share with you about a recent evening out that Weaselmomma and I enjoyed. Specifically, it was last Saturday night. We had a blogger event to attend in the city at 7:00 p.m., and had to leave our suburban homes really, really early because it's construction season in Chicago, and the main highway from our houses to the Loop is a complete mess. (The drive normally takes about 35 minutes from my house, but all bets are off these days.) Weaselmomma picked me up at 4:30, and we were on our way, figuring that if we arrived in the city early enough, we'd grab a bite to eat.

On the ride there, Weaselmomma talked my ear off, which is nothing new. (Seriously.) She told me how Mr. Weasel dressed her for the evening (okay, well, I don't mean LITERALLY. I mean he picked out her outfit.), and she felt like a Barbie doll. She didn't have a springtime jacket that was appropriate for a dressier evening, and because she despises shopping, Mr. Weasel went out to buy one for her. In the process, he bought her an adorable ruffled-blouse, a little light sweater to put on over that, fishnet socks (yes, really!), and even shoes. She put on all of that with her favorite pair of black pants, and looked really great. I think Mr. Weasel must have been a stylist in his other life. (I think she said he even helped her with the hair. Hmm.) Anyway, he did a great job styling her, yet she felt a wee bit uncomfortable because she was showing a tiny bit more cleavage than she would if she were hanging out in the burbs. I reassured her that she wasn't flashing anyone, and she's just used to her t-shirts and twin-sets, and to just relax.

We made excellent time, as it turned out, arriving at our destination by about 5:20. We parked across the street from the event and looked for a restaurant. There were several choices, but I suggested Ed Debevics, where the motto is "Eat and Get Out!" and the staff is really, really rude: on purpose. (I wrote about an experience my family had at Ed's when we went for my older son's birthday two years ago, on Suburban Scrawl. Click here. Then come back!)

Weaselmomma was not really crazy about the idea of going to Ed's because she believes that if she wants to be treated rudely, she can just stay home. (Ba dum bum!) But I talked her into it, and away we went. To be honest, though I love the rudeness of Ed's, I'm always a little scared when I go there because you never know what to expect.

We were seated, and our waiter showed up. I can't remember his name, but he was hilarious. He asked if we wanted to hear the specials and I told him we were probably going to stick with appetizers, and then we got yelled at. He asked if we wanted a drink, and of course Weaselmomma said yes; I was a little indecisive, which he berated me for. He asked how I was going to get drunk if I didn't have a drink, and although that wasn't my goal (hers either), I didn't spend my time telling him that, because, you know, he would have taken that and hit the ground running. I ended up ordering my favorite, a Jack and Coke, (Yummy.) and bantered with our server a little bit. He was a fun guy, especially when I turned on the charm and it became clear that I was his favorite.

We decided that we were indeed hungry enough to order "real food", and told our server. In response, he yelled, "GOOD!" He became especially snarky with Weaselmomma when she ordered American cheese for her burger, not realizing (because she never wears her glasses in public) that they didn't offer that as an option. (I, of course, ordered correctly.) He looked at me and said, "Yeah. Thanks for bringing THAT ONE here," tossing his head in her direction. I was really enjoying my place as the better of the two guests in his eyes.

Weaselmomma and I chatted about all kinds of unbloggable things, of course, and she was still a little anxious about her cleavage, adjusting her top as she spoke.

He brought us another drink, and by the time we finished, it was time to walk down the street to the event.

The server swung by the table, set the check down, and said something as he kept walking. I said to Weaselmomma, "WHAT did he say? It sounded like he said the drinks were on him!" She said, "Yep, I think that's what he said!"

I picked up the check, and indeed, we were only charged for our dinner. WOW*.

So you see, a great personality (mine) really can take you places and give you advantages in this world.

Or was it Weaselmomma's cleavage**?

You decide.

*I gave him an 80% gratuity. And yes, I know from working in a salon that sometimes people who get paid tips will sometimes not charge for certain things so you'll tip them better. But seriously. He really liked me. Or her. But I think he liked ME.
**No pictures. Sorry!

*Okay, WeaslMomma here. I wasn't going to step in today, but in my defense, the proof is in the pudding! Melisa has a stunning personality and nice cleavage to boot, but I am not lacking in the personality area and thanks to Mr. W's clothing choice is why we received free drinks, no doubt, but judge for yourself.
Photo credit to Kris, aka, Little Tech Girl


If you wonder what this has to do with Dad-Blogs Fatherhood Friday, it's just a little something to remind you of one more reason to cherish the fairer sex.

The Internet Has Big Arms.

The Piper of Love, whom I love, Is having a tough time right now and I am happy to be part of the best virtual hug ever. Reach your virtual arms out and leave Piper some comment love of support, reinforcing what a wonderful community the blogosphere truly is.

Piper's friends are giving her one big hug today at:

Triple The Insanity, Triple The Fun

Yesterday I had the pleasure of interviewing John Cave Osborne, author of Tales From the Trips and the voice behind the blog And Triplets Make Six, about the book.

This is the first installment of WeaselMomma's book club of 1, where I hope to introduce the authors of some books that I enjoy, directly to you.

I found Tales From The Trips to be very endearing as John takes us along on his journey from bachelorhood to marital bliss and being a father of four in just 13 short months. This is a candid look at extreme parenting, filled with stories that will bring a tear to eye and have you laughing yourself simple, within the span of a few short pages.

Without further ado:



I encourage you to pick up a copy and check it out. It's light, sweet, sincere
and funny. You can check it out *here*.

Don't forget to head on over to Dad-Blogs.com for Fatherhood Friday.

Thanks, Kid

Unlike all of you beautiful people, I don't always take the time to primp and prepare to look my best. On busy days with no social appointments on the agenda, I don't bother with hair or make-up. Undergarments are sometimes as close as I come accessorizing. Jeans, t-shirts and ball caps are my 'mommy uniform' for getting things done.

I have been known to occasionally drop off the Weasels for school while still wearing my pajamas. The Weasels don't care as long I sit really low in the seat and under absolutely no circumstances including a car fire am I too exit the vehicle. C'est la vie. When I'm busy, I'm busy.

So the other day, still exhausted and playing catch-up after my trip to Galena, I was rocking a bad hair day the ball cap and no make up the natural beauty look of my mommyhood as Middle Weasel approached me. She had her shoes on the wrong feet, one sock up and one sock down, a headband that completely clashed with her skirt and half of the shirt un-tucked.

MW: "Hey Mom, can I borrow your hat?"

Me: "What for? Why do you want it?"

MW: "I'm just trying to see how stupid I can look!"

Me: "Thanks, kid".

You never see this kind of thing in a Hallmark ad.

Moms Just Wanna Have Fun!

.......and I have found just the place to fit the bill! This past weekend the the Convention & Visitors Bureau of Galena, IL hosted myself and 7 other bloggers overnight to showcase their vacation destination town yes, on their dime, in return for an honest review.

Galena is located in Northwest Illinois and just a 3 hour drive from Chicago. I have friends who occasionally slip away for a romantic weekend there, but I had never been there myself. Nor had I any idea just how much Galena had to offer. I had heard about fantastic dining, cozy cabins and an incredible Main Street shopping in a quaint little town. That wasn't even 10% of the story!

We all met at 10am in the Visitors & Information Center. I personally think they should change the name to the Super-Duper-Extremely Welcoming and Helpful Visitor and Must Know Town Tips & Information Center. I'm not sure all that would fit on the front door, though. We were welcomed by Jess and Kathie Yes, we are now on a first name basis. (CVB Board Chair and Chamber of Commerce Board President, respectively) and our Hosts/guides Celestino and Dorian who quickly realized that they had their hands full with 8 anything but shy and timid women. The poor guys could hardly get a word in edgewise as we all hit it off immediately, giving the impression that we had all known each other for years.

We started on our walking tour up and down mostly up. Go figure? the picturesque town. The views were incredible! and I am not easily impressed by such details. We toured the home of former President Ulysses S. Grant so up close and personal that it all came to life. Our tour guide, Terry (Miller), did a fantastic job of giving interesting facts and tidbits that made the history lesson so enjoyable that children would never even suspect that you were tricking them into doing something that was educational would enjoy the tour also.

As we walked the streets between stops, there was a level of friendliness and hospitality that you just can't fake. The Old Blacksmith Shop (a real working shop, how often do you see one of those?) was not yet open for the season, yet when we peaked through the windows, the volunteer gentleman(whose name that I forget- pretty sure it was Rich) that was preparing for this coming weekends opening waved and came to open the door spontaneously. He invited us in unannounced, before he even knew that we were not just there for a girls weekend. We took pictures and he showed us what he was making and how it was done and let us know that the shop is non-profit and volunteer run. Every penny they make from the sale of their wares, from childrens puzzles, to door knockers, goes back into keeping the shop up and running.

We laughed and enjoyed the town and each others company nonstop as we enjoyed lunch at the family friendly priced Cannova's on Main Street. By happenstance last weekend was the celebration of President Grant's birthday. Poor Dorian and Celestino had to pick up their chins off the table when all 8 of us women made a sprint for the door after spotting Civil War re-en actors walking down the street and assaulted them wanted to get some pics with them. The fellas recovered quickly and adopted a 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em' attitude for the rest of our stay.

Continuing our walking tour we were greeted at the Galena History Museum for an amazing experience that once again would pull the wool over any child's eyes. Set in an historic home and filled with 10,000 artifacts on 2 floors from the Civil War that you could see up close and personal was amazing. A husband and wife team of Actors in character played the role of President and Mrs. Grant, beautifully and believably as they gave us information and answered our questions about the couple and the time period with a husband and wife banter that was glorious to watch. The Cherry On Top came in the form of being invited by Nancy (Breed), the Executive Director, to the 3rd floor storage rooms for the white glove treatment, literally. We were given white gloves to don and allowed to root through the artifacts in the storage areas (that are on constant rotation in the museum exhibits). We picked up and held pieces of American history in our own hands. Simply amazing and I was awe struck. I could have spent 12 more hours there and I am not even a civil war buff. The rain cloud on the silver lining that is this this museum, is that they are fighting to keep their lights on and their doors open. They need the tourism to keep this precious public trust museum open. When you go visit Galena, be sure to stop in and enjoy all that the Galena History Museum has to offer for the bargain price of a $7.00 admission.

And were walking, and were walking.... We continued our scenic walk and blogger bonding time as we headed for The Seal House. A private home of historic value,That you too can tour by appointment built in 1871 by Judge Seal. Currently owned, renovated and historically preserved by two of the most fantabulous decorators and welcoming hosts that you will ever meet, Roth Weaver and Brad Davis opened their home to us for a wonderful tour and a history of the gorgeous home. I'm sure that if we hadn't already been running late for our wine tasting next appointment, we would have soon found ourselves hanging out in the kitchen, drinking wine, laughing and joking with Brad and Roth. Their hospitality was overwhelming. Thanks fellas.

We moved onto Galena Cellars Vineyard and Winery for a tasting and even more laughs as we had a chance to relax and enjoy numerous wines and have some time off of our feet. After sampling 10 different wines and spending damn near $100 on a very large goodie box to bring home. Yes there were that many that I loved. Get off my back. It was time to head for our accommodations to freshen up and drop off bags in 10 minutes time because were running so late due to enjoying all of our stops so much and staying longer than was scheduled at each and every one to get ready for dinner on Main Street.

The Eagle Ridge Resort has accommodations of every style and budget. As a group we stayed in 2 beautiful luxury homes with 5 massive bedrooms, 5 1/2 baths, a kitchen fitting of a culinary champion, living space pouring out all around and a private indoor pool and hot tub. Yes, it would make your eyes pop and 4 bloggers in each. These beautiful homes rent for $700/nt, but easily and comfortably could accommodate 3 families or 4 bloggers per home.

Off to dinner we went. Fried Green Tomatoes was a delectable culinary experience with an Italian menu. Whouda thunk it? The food was superb. The fried green tomatoes appetizer were incredible as was everything else, including the Naked Filet. Our company was equally as enjoyable as we ran into Roth and Brad on their way out and our way in and were joined for dinner by Mike Scholz (interim CVB board director) and his lovely wife Linda and later on spotted and joined by the Farrows (remember them from the welcome center?) after they had enjoyed their own dinner.

The next morning we were up bright and early in reality dark and sleepily to meet Andy, the pilot/owner of Galena on the Fly at 6am for a hot air balloon ride above Jo Daviess County. Like everyone else that we had met, Andy was welcoming, fun and a wonderful guide. The flight was amazingly beautiful and the laughter plentiful as Andy was hysterical and then add 8 women who are punchy after so much activity and so little sleep. Our hour long adventure was topped of with Mimosas and chocolates for breakfast in the field where we landed.

Soon thereafter we headed out to a working alpaca farm/log cabin getaway where we had the opportunity to walk and feed the alpacas. Seriously, how many places do you know that offer alpaca interaction. Galena has it all.

After bonding with our mammal friends we headed for the premier skiing destination in Illinois, The Chestnut Mountain Resort for a tour of their property and facilities along with lunch in their restaurant. Sitting alongside the Mighty Mississippi River, with breathtaking views, numerous activities such as hiking and biking in the off season and family friendly pricing for large, comfortable rooms ($89/nt,-off season- including breakfast & sleeps 6), you can't go wrong.

Galena basically has not just something for everyone, but lots for everyone to enjoy. Whether a romantic getaway, a girls weekend trip or a family vacation for all ages, it's there. There are beautiful parks along the Galena River for picnic lunches, the sculpture park with kid friendly sculptures for climbing, shopping, vineyards (complete with private vacation cabins), delectable restaurants in every price range, overnight accommodations in every form and price range from hotels, cabins, B&Bs, to resorts and luxury homes.

I apologize if I got a little bit long winded on this one folks. I'm just that excited about it. Oh and by the way, we did manage to hit the main street shopping that I had heard friends raving about, on our way out of town. It was chuck full of lovely shops with a wonderful feel and great pricing to boot. I enjoyed it and bought a few gifts for the Weasels and the Mr, but when thinking about what Galena has to offer, it's just the tip of the iceberg.

I Have a Really Funny Story

that I can't post, even though I really want to. In it's stead, I will tell you this one and you can know that yesterday was ripe with comic relief.

Yesterday was the Cubs home opener. Mr. Weasel shared his train ride into the city with the raucous and libation enjoying fans during the morning rush.

In Mr. Weasel's own words, "4 milfy blonds on their way to the game got on the train". Being the consummate gentleman that he is, Mr. W got up to offer these women his seat, so that they may sit together. In their gratitude, the women poured Mr. Weasel "The best Bloody Mary I ever had". Yes, he got the recipe.

The women talked amongst themselves while Mr. Weasel stood next to their seats. The conversation took a turn in which a proclamation was made, "He is such a fag!", in reference to someone who was not present and then immediately the woman turned to Mr. Weasel in apology, "No offense to you".

Only in Chicago. Well probably not, but I still got a good laugh out of the deal.

The Weasels Have Worms

The Weather is Weaselville this past weekend was simply gorgeous. Taking advantage of the fact that I just received a round of cortisone shots and being pain free, plus the fantabulous sunshine, we decided to get some much needed yard work done.

The flower gardens needed to be cleared of all the mucky winter buildup and needed a fresh layer of mulch. The Obstacle Course garage needed to be cleaned out and reorganized to avoid being a fire hazard and the itty bitty little vegetable garden in the backyard needed to be cleaned out, expanded and upgraded to a raised bed platform. A trip to the local DIY garden center and way too much money later and it was time to get started.

I enlisted the help of the Weasels with some of the weeding, while I pruned back and trimmed the overgrowth. Boy Weasel was put in charge of cleaning out and reorganizing the garage.

This all sounds very Suburban Storybook like, but it actually went more like this:

"Get back here and stop playing with the dog!"
"Mom, can I have a Popsicle? I'm hot." (after 23.4 seconds of work)
"Look Mom, I found my old frog tanks in the garage. Can I get a new pet?"

Throw in the neighbor kids popping in and out and Weasels disappearing to go play. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. It took all day, but it felt good to be outside and by dinner time the front yard and the garage were finished.

Sunday morning was the start of the heavy work. Cleaning out the vegetable garden and working to relocate the strawberries that had taken everything over. I worked to till up the soil with a spade while the Weasels were tasked to dig through the soil and clean it of any grass, rocks and weeds. In reality, the Weasels played in the dirt while competing to see who could find the biggest worms and give them all names like Jim Bob, Big Jim, Little Jim and Jimmy Tim.

"Mom, Can we have some dirt and worms for pets? We already have tanks in the garage!".

Weaselville definitely marches to the beat of a different drummer. I'm not opposed to any pet, as long as A) They don't cost me money to feed or house. B) I don't have to be their caretaker. I did the math in my head. Worms in tanks in their bedrooms are no skin off my back. Their low maintenance. They eat dirt, don't smell, bark or do anything, really. They would also work as a great incentive to get the job at hand done.

"Yes, you can. *If* you help me get this done quickly, you can get the tanks and take some dirt and worms".

After 2 hours of back breaking, ground breaking and hand tilling, Mr. Weasel appears in the backyard with the weed wacker, beautifully fitted with a roto-tiller attachment. He came in and cut through the soil like a high powered Ginsu knife. In about 2 minutes time the soil was soft and ready. I just shook my head and wondered aloud "Where the heck were you 2 hours ago?".

Just as that thought crossed my lips, Boy Weasel and Monkey Weasel return to the excavation site, their arms filled with clean and empty tanks and their hearts ready to welcome all of the Jims I did set a limit of 5 each into our home as dearly loved companions from the soil bed that Mr. Weasel just sliced and diced through, with what turned out to be a food processor for worms and dirt.

The light bulb went off in my head and Mr. Weasel's simultaneously. We shared a telepathic look of mutual recognition before I burst out laughing at the dark humor and realization that the garden bed was now full of worm puree.

Luckily, for the Weasels, they were still able to save a handful of Jims from their brutally harsh captors and they are now living within the safe confines of the Weasel bedrooms, eating dirt. So, yes the Weasels have worms.

Weasel and The Man To The Rescue

This is part of a collaborative post that I am partnering with my good friend Dear Mister Man to bring to you. It is a his view/her view answer to a question that he received. Although we have teamed up on this, we did not discuss with each other what our answers to the question would be. The question that Mr. Man received via email is this:

I'm not one to email people for advice, but I read some of your stuff and maybe you can help. I'm a stay at home dad and I've worked all my life until this year. My wife is a manager at Wal-mart. My problem is with the guy "friends" she has at work. She always tells me about guys hitting on her or saying dirty stuff when no one is around. She knows it upsets me to no end.I'm not a violent man, but people messing with her makes me want to do some damage. Recently she asked me if it was ok for her to go hang out with her friends from work (all females except for one guy who she knows I have a problem with). This guy texts her sometimes and even texted her at one in the morning. I picked up her phone and texted him back to let him know that if he didn't want any problems, he needed to cease and desist. She got MAD at me for doing that even though it was 1:00 am, she was sleeping, and the phone woke the baby up. She always says she likes to hang out with guys more than girls, but she admits she talks to guys about things she cant talk to me about. She gets mad if I so much as speak to another girl, but she chatters the night away with this guy. What advice would you give someone like me? My idea is wait for him in the parking lot and make an example out of him, but I know it would get her into trouble.

Sincerely,

Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired

Dear Sick and Tired,
The first thing that I want to say is that I have no problem with men and women maintaining friendships. For that matter, neither does Mr. Weasel.
I have many friendships with men and women alike and I can say that I often prefer to 'hang out with the guys' for the lack of drama, gossip and less intrusive nature of the male species. Not to mention that I would rather stick a red hot poker in my eye rather than have a conversation about Jimmy Choo's. Therefore, I tend to pick both my female and male 'hangout quality' friends very carefully.

However, this has to be a two way street. Mr. Weasel has to be able to choose his friends also. The beauty of his friends and my friends is that they become 'our friends'. Anyone who has enough significance in my life to have earned the title of friend is someone I want to share my family with and share with my family.

If I had a friendship that made Mr. Weasel uncomfortable for any reason I would back off and keep that person at arms length and Mr. Weasel would do the same if I were the one uneasy. A marriage should always take priority over a friendship.

I know that there are always two sides to every story and I am only hearing one of them. I do not portend to be an expert and the only thing I know about you is that one paragraph that you wrote, but what I have surmised from it is this:

1. You and your wife are not on the same page regarding opposite gender friendships and it's not a two way street.
2. You are more upset by your wife's cavalier attitude toward your feelings on the matter than you are that these incidents are happening.
3. Your wife is not offended by the comments and may even be welcoming of them.
4. You feel a need not only to protect your wife, but also to 'spray your territory', so to speak, to ward off other males.
5. You and your wife have a communication breakdown.
6. There is not a mutual respect in your relationship.
7. I'm guessing that you also are having a struggle being a SAHD and feeling less of a man and more threatened by other men around your wife because of it (although you need not feel that way, but societal pressures will do that).

Therefore, my suggestion is this. You and your wife should seek counseling. In a marriage you should be partners and best friends even though you have other friendships. You should have mutual trust and respect for each other and open communication no matter which end of the household your running.

You are right to be disturbed by one o'clock text messages from a man whom you are not comfortable with. I would be too. Your wife being more concerned with the feelings of the person on the other end end of the phone or her own embarrassment more so than your comfort level or piece of mind is yet another red flag that your marriage needs some serious work and repair.

I wish you the best of luck.

WeaselMomma

and here is Mr. Man's response:

Dear Sick and Tired,

I do believe that it is perfectly fine for men and women to be friends, but there are limits. The dirty talk and the late night texts and calls are totally out of line. As you mentioned, your wife would go nuts if you had a woman sending you text messages in the middle of the night. So let's go point by point:

"She always tells me about guys hitting on her or saying dirty stuff when nobody is around."- My question to her would be how she is responding to these comments. Most women I know would not allow such behavior from men unless they were trying to encourage that behavior for whatever reason. As the manager, these men are disrespecting her, you, your marriage, and her profession. She is only hurting herself professionally because the guys that are doing this obviously don't respect her position as the boss. By her allowing such talk, she is condoning the disrespect of your marriage.

"Recently she asked me if it was ok for her to go hang out with her friends from work all females except for one guy who she knows I hate."- As I mentioned previously, I believe it is fine for a man and woman to be friends, but with distinct limits. She has to ask herself whether it is acceptable for her female friends to cross the line and disrespect your marriage. I don't think she would allow this. If she does, she needs to take a look at your commitment to each other and decide whether it is something that she can live up to. As far as hanging out with the guy that you dislike, she needs to put that to a screeching halt. Friends of hers should be friends of yours. If she continues to hang out with someone who she knows makes you uncomfortable, then she is placing that friendship ahead of your marriage.

"He texts her sometimes once at 1a.m. I picked up her phone and texted him back and told him that if he likes his teeth, not to do it again. She got MAD at me for doing that even though it was 1 a.m., she was sleeping, and the phone woke the baby up."-I am taking a guess here, but I'll bet she wasn't mad at him for disrespecting your family by texting her at 1a.m., was she? I don't know all of the facts, admittedly, but I would ask her why she values this friendship over your marriage.

"She gets mad if I so much as speak to another girl, but she chatters the night away with this guy."-If I were in your shoes, I'd ask her why she expects you to live by one set of rules while you live by another. There is an obvious double -standard here and you've got to find out why.

"She admits she talks to guys about things she can’t talk to me about."-Man, this is the real problem and possibly the root of the issue. It is important to ask ourselves at times if we are meeting all of our spouses' needs. Emotionally and physically. Why does she believe that she has to talk to others about things that she can't talk to you (her best friend and life-partner) about? This is probably the most important question to ask. If she gives you an honest answer, you can't get angry or upset. You have to listen and then do your part to meet that need for her.

In my opinion, there is a lack of respect that exists in your marriage. I don't know if it is because you are no longer working. I also don't know if, as a mother of a young child, she is feeling trapped and is trying to live as though she is single. There is not enough information available to me to make that call. Whatever it is, I think you should be the one to open the lines of communication. Again, it is important that you listen without anger and be prepared for her to say some things that may hurt you or that you don't like. If this happens and you lash out, she won't open up to you again.

No marriage is perfect, but love and respect has to be the foundation for any marriage to last. I also believe that God needs to be at the center of any marriage if it is going to be successful. I understand your frustration and your desire to lash out at the other guy, but it is your wife's responsibility to put this "friendship" to rest. If she is unwilling to do so, then you need to determine if there is more to what's going on than a "friendship".

When a person fails to get their needs met in a relationship, they almost always seek to get those needs met elsewhere.

I hope this was helpful.

Mr. Man

Now don't forget to go visit Dad-Blogs for Fatherhood Friday.

The Aroma Of Green

Mr. Weasel would surely rebuff this statement, but as far as I and the Weasels are concerned, he is King of the Fad. Not just any fad. Definitely not societal fads that we all know about, but his own personal fads. A sudden idea that becomes an obsession and a major expense. Within a few weeks time, interest is lost. Then it just becomes a storage problem.

Much like a child's need for guitar lessons or the latest video game that turns out to be lousy or Jonas Brothers Concert tickets, these are passions that will soon end up our morgue that doubles as a garage.

Some examples of this would be handmade Irish tin whistles, a concertina, his gorilla feet running shoes and I am not even cruel enough to mention his choice in drag preventing swimwear for swimming laps at the pool we do not have, just to name (or not name) a few.

The latest idea that Mr. Weasel wants to bring to life is adding composting to our daily lives. Well, not really our daily lives. It's more like my daily life, being that I am usually home many more hours than he.

Note that we are not green people, so to speak. As a baby eating, woman hating, environment destroying, conservative attitude type, I recycle more than I throw away because it's free and I have to pay for my garbage haul even though the process is not cost effective or environmentally friendly. I reuse most of what I can because it's cheaper to use what I already have. I do not litter and nor does anyone in my home. We live by common sense rules and are fairly responsible beings.

That said, I hate compost. I hate the process of composting or rather the process that I would have to endure of taking everything I would normally push down the garbage disposal and trek it through the yard to a compost bin that will stink to high heaven when you open it and gag me constantly. I do not want to wade through the snow in the middle of winter to dispose of things that I could in the kitchen, just for the sake of making something that I can (but don't) buy pre - bagged at Home Depot.

I have been given the argument that compost, done correctly, does not stink. Coming from a back round of having been near a handful of compost bins when opened and having gagged and held my breath through the local outdoor garden center compost aisle, I beg to differ. I find the aroma to be reminiscent of a back alley in Camden, with a hint of the primate house at the zoo.

Mr. Weasel's idea is that we could then use the compost to fertilize my very small and modest vegetable and flower gardens. I personally enjoy subscribing to a lifestyle where my fertilizer, like my chicken, beef, sausage, bacon, scrapple and eggs, simply come packaged from the store. I know what they are, but I don't want to ever think about the process.

Think about it. Everything that I would put into my garbage disposal, i.e. everything that I don't want to put into my trash can because it would stink up the kitchen, is what I would have to trudge across mud and snow for about 7 or 8 months of the year and have it decompose, rot and ferment for a years time before spreading it all over the ground where I would be growing food in hopes of actually eating the food.

That sure sounds like a winning plan to me. Much like hot dogs, I do not think that I would want to eat the food after having first hand knowledge and visuals of the process.

If you make your own compost and love it, I tip my hat to you. I'm just saying that making my own compost would make me green.

Will I Ever Learn?

If you let Smallest Weasel sleep in your bed because she had a bad dream, she is going to fall back to sleep very quickly and start dreaming that she is a kick - boxer.

When Smallest Weasel is going for the take down sweep in the ring all night you better believe you are going to wake up with bad back pain on the only day that you have available to get some yard work done.

So, despite knowing better you will start working in the yard and Boy Weasel will ask if he can give the 100 lb Mastiff puppy a bath in the yard. You will say yes because you are delusional with pain and Boy Weasel will get the dog wet and soapy before the dog decides that she is afraid of the hose and Boy Weasel realizes after being drug around the yard that he is not strong enough to hold her back when she bolts away in fear.

You will then step in to hold onto the dog and finish her bath. You will soon realize that you are not strong enough to hold back a scared 100 lb puppy either and wind up falling flat on your face and aggravating your back pain on the front lawn.

Soon your neighbor will need a ride to drop off her car for repairs and will ask you to help out and you will.

You will drop off your neighbor just in time to realize that two Weasels and a stray Weasel friend need rides to two separate track practices and that dinner is not yet prepared because you didn't plan it yet.

Mr. Weasel will agree to take care of dinner on the grill while you play chauffeur.

Once all the Weasels are home safely and Mr. Weasel has fed them, it will be bedtime for the youngest Weasels and yourself. You will take your pain medication and lie in your bed grateful for the comfort. As the medicine starts working a severe, violent and loud thunderstorm will begin.

When the storm moves in, Smallest Weasel will come to you afraid and want to sleep in your bed. And when Smallest Weasel sleeps in your bed, you just know that you going to wake up with back pain but you also know that you are going to get a blog post out of it.

Suburban Wow - On Location

This morning at a special time, Noon EDT, 11 CDT and 9 Pacific Suburban Wow will be livestreaming on location from Buffalo Wild Wings on Sutton Road in Hoffman Estates, IL.

Complete with special guest co-host Michelle of Honest and Truly and Melisa who can not join us on location will be live in our chat room and heckling taking part in the audience.

This is sure to be a good time, fraught technical follies because I have no idea what I am doing without Melisa. So tune in and tell a friend. I'll see you there! You can watch the show by *clicking here*. The rerun from last time is looping until we air today.