Fried Chicken For My Valentine

It's no secret that Valentine's Day puts a lot of pressure on people, singles and couples alike. Single people feel crappy because they may not have a love interest, or if they do, they have to figure out what level the relationship is on in order to pick the appropriate card and gift... you don't want to go too sappy and scare your potential mate away, but if you don't get a card that's on the appropriate level of sappiness, the other person may feel let down. Couples feel pressured into spending an insane amount of money on jewelry, flowers, dinners, lingerie, and whatever else might ignite the dying flames of passion. I'd say singles definitely have a harder situation on their hands.

I get really irritated with all of the jewelry commercials this time of year. They make women seem so shallow. Yes, some of them are, but I am not one of them! I know a couple of women who expected huge rocks from their sweethearts before they would walk down the aisle. I married my husband with no proposal and no rock. That really baffles the women who have such sparkling expectations. Does that one carat princess cut stone in a platinum band really prove his love for you? No! In fact, it will just make him resent you if he is forced into spending 3 months (or more) salary on something you will wear on your finger, especially when he could have spent that money on a plasma TV. Most women I know just want the basics... respect, someone to have fun with, and someone to talk to.

James gave me a diamond when I least expected it, after we were married. He bought it on his own volition, without the pressures of Valentine's Day or a controlling woman breathing down his neck.

For Valentine's Day this year, he gave me a miniature rose that I can plant in the spring and a CD. I gave him some candy and a homemade meal of fried chicken and mashed potatoes. We drank an entire bottle of champagne. We had a great time with no pressure and no crazy expectations.

Hmmm...

Regarding my previous Wal-mart rant, I should point out that I don't think everyone who works there is incompetent. Obviously, Wal-mart would not be so successful if that were the case. I just seem to have more bad experiences there than anywhere else I go.

I've worked at McDonalds, Sears, and Kmart (over seven years collectively), so I know what it's like to deal with rude people all day long. I do respect Wal-mart for hiring handicapped people. That's the one nice thing I'll say about Wal-mart.

Why I Don't Shop At Wal-mart

I've read or heard about many complaints against Wal-mart... Wal-mart has been accused of paying employees less than its competitors in order to offer lower prices, they promote more men than women, they import everything from foreign countries, they contribute to the downfall of the environment, and so on... People have boycotted the stores because of these issues, but these are not the reasons I avoid shopping there. People are still willing to work at Wal-mart, and as long as people are willing to work for less pay or unequal benefits, why would Wal-mart change?

The reasons I avoid Wal-mart are more personal. The long lines, the incompetent check-out clerks, and the caliber of person who shops there all deter me from going in. We received two Wal-mart gift cards for Christmas last year, and it took three trips in to spend them. Each time I was reminded of the reasons I do not shop there.

After waiting in line for what seemed like an eternity with screaming children all around, the check out person began scanning my items. He would scan something, and then instead of putting it in the bag, he would set it down on the counter in front of the scanner... I didn't think much of it, but when I got home and looked at my receipt, he had rung up some lotion twice. I made a second trip to the store in freezing rain and waited in line again at the customer service desk to get my $3.99 back. When I got back to my car, a shopping cart was against the hood of my car. I didn't see any damage, but I was annoyed.

Another trip to Wal-mart to spend more of the gift cards resulted in another long line with the most excruciatingly slow check-out person I've ever seen. We had many items, and she kept asking us if we wanted things in a bag. Finally, James said "Yes, we would like EVERYTHING in a bag."

There are many instances of rude shoppers with eight million kids who really annoy me. There was a woman who had lost her child and began screaming in the middle of the baby department, a man who had a crying baby who smacked the baby and told it to quit crying, a woman holding a toddler so close to me in the check-out that the kid was kicking me in the back, and there are so many people who lack enough basic social skills to simply say "excuse me" when they bump into you, butt in front of you, or nearly run you over with their cart. I'm sure not everyone who shops at Target is polite, but what is up with Wal-mart? Maybe the sheer brightness of the store drives everyone there crazy. I am a firm believer that fluorescent bulbs suck one's will to live. The Wal-mart near us is excessively bright.

When it comes to shopping, I'll pay the extra 30 cents to go to Target.

Memoirs of a New World

I've seen two movies recently... Memoirs of a Geisha and The New World. I liked them both. Though they are very different movies, they both had gorgeous scenery, beautiful lead actresses, and a bit of controversy regarding their casting.

I have heard that people are upset because the two main actresses in Memoirs, Ziyi Zhang and Michelle Yeoh, are Chinese actresses playing Japanese Geishas. The main actress in The New World, Q'orianka Kilcher (had to look that one up on IMDB) is actually part Quechuan (South American Indian) and part Swiss (on a side note, she is also the singer Jewel's cousin), and she is playing a North American Indian.

Perhaps my opinion doesn't count on this matter, being that I am not Japanese but a mix of various European nationalities, Cherokee, and half of my heritage is a mystery, but I don't see what the big deal is. Actors are just that... ACTORS... playing a part. To me, a Chinese actress playing a Japanese person is no different than Renee Zellweger playing Bridget Jones or Jude Law playing an American. It is always arguable that someone else could have played a part better, whether they are of the same nationality as the character or not. People should just enjoy the story and the artistic interpretation of the people involved, in my opinion.

The Trials (and Errors) of Feeding a Toddler

Tess has decided that she does not want to eat baby food anymore. I guess it is about that time... time for her to transition to table food. She's been eating some of the more mushy foods here and there (mashed potatoes, yogurt), but now she is gung-ho about eating whatever mommy and daddy are eating. When I tried to give her some Gerber sweet potatoes this week, which she normally loves, she swatted the spoon from my hand and sweet potatoes flew everywhere.

Trying to find things that she can feed herself is challenging. She gobbled up some chicken and cheesy noodles that we had for dinner this week. That seemed to make her very happy. This morning, I made her a scrambled egg, and it wound up all over her, the chair, and the floor. She didn't eat a single bite. So, no more eggs for awhile. If you've ever tried to sweep up scrambled eggs with a broom, you know what a pain that is...

I've also tried giving her a bite of orange, which she promptly spit out. She did eat several bites of a goat cheese pizza and some pumpkin ice cream (my lunch) the other day. It's going to be a long road to establishing a menu for her.

Another developmental milestone: Tess took her first steps a few days ago (February 4). She is changing so fast!

Happy Birthday, Tess!

Tess is one year old as of yesterday. Where does the time go? We went to see grandpa in the hospital (he had emergency heart surgery this week, which is a whole different story), and then Tess had a cupcake, which she didn't really like. She smeared it everywhere but didn't eat it. I guess she did not inherit mommy's sweet tooth, and believe me, that is a good thing!