Remembering Tony

Dude, I didn’t even know him and I’m sad about it.

Truth was when I heard it the first person I thought about was my dad. He would have been seriously bummed out to hear the news. He was a big Sopranos fan. Most people had family dinners on Sundays, we had Sopranos, coffee, and tea. We never missed an episode. Always hanging out on the couch, tripping out on Tony Soprano and his crazy mobster life. Our elaborate discussions of Silvio, Christopher, Tony, Janice, and Carmela after each episode only made hanging out on Sundays even better.

The Sopranos

I guess James Gandolfini’s passing was like losing another part of my dad, another connection gone. But at least I have some awesome one-liners with plenty of profanity to remember our HBO nights, but let’s not forget the weird series finale that left us with a wait … what-happened-here moment.

I know he did more than just the Sopranos, but this awesome show is what brought us together every Sunday night, complex, loving, murdering criminals. Here’s the best of Tony…

“A wrong decision is better than indecision.”

“If you can quote the rules, then you can obey them.”

“What fucking kind of human being am I, if my own mother wants me dead?”

“All due respect, you got no fuckin’ idea what it’s like to be Number One. Every decision you make affects every facet of every other fuckin’ thing. It’s too much to deal with almost. And in the end you’re completely alone with it all.”

“He tells me he’s got no purpose.”
“And how did  you answer him?”
“I told him that it costs 150 grand to bring him up so  far, so if he’s got no purpose I want a fucking refund.”

“Is this a woman thing? You ask me how I’m feeling. I tell you how I’m feeling, and now you’re going to torture me with it.”

“This isn’t painful. Getting shot is painful. Getting stabbed in the ribs is painful. This … isn’t painful. It’s empty. Dead.”

“You’re only religious when it suits you.”

Weekly Photo Challenge: Curves

 

Real Women Have Curves — The Factory Scene

 

“Pretty dresses aren’t just for skinny girls.”

“This is who we are mama … REAL women.”

Real Women Have Curves.

 

Thanks HBO For a Refresher on My Eastwood Education

It’s been almost three years since my dad passed away and Father’s Day is still a tough one for me. I usually get through it by watching stuff like Frequency, Juno, October Sky, Little Miss Sunshine, or if I’m feeling emotional My Life with Michael Keaton. But this Father’s Day I hung out with Clint Eastwood, which seemed pretty appropriate seeing how my dad was a huge fan.

HBO made this encounter possible.

I used to be high-rolling it and got HBO regularly, but seeing how I’m a starving writer, I had to cut down with expenses and just get the bare essentials. But this weekend FREE came back into my life and it was pretty sweet. I like free. Me and free get along pretty well when there’s no strings attached. We got the free HBO trial this weekend. It must have been a sign. My dad was working his magic behind the scenes.

So I didn’t argue, I got some Ghirardelli and parked myself on the couch and watched Trouble With The Curve. Now I had to wait until 11 p.m. to watch it, you know, during the real quiet of the night so that I would not get disturbed with questions about food, diapers, parking spots or toys. I wanted to be present – in the moment –hanging out with my dad, in a way.  And that usually can’t happen when crazy is happening here. So I waited and it was worth it. I like baseball and I like Eastwood.

 

 

All I could think of was what my dad would say during the movie. He was big on color commentating during a film, play-by-play and replays too. I imagine I’d get frustrated with all the questions and pauses but it was our routine. I enjoyed Eastwood’s funny one-liners in his gritty voice. I’d bust out a loud HA-HA crack me up laugh. And my dad would shake his head at my exaggerations and smile. Then he’d probably have a cup of coffee, while I drank some tea.

In truth I wasn’t always a Clint Eastwood fan, wasn’t too thrilled with his whole macho man western type of movie. But my for some reason my dad was like any father, he wanted to share his wisdom with me. My dad began his quest to educate me on Eastwood in 1992. He formally introduced me to Eastwood with Unforgiven. He’d have to bribe me with popcorn, gummy bears, sour patch candy, or chocolate to check out these films. I’d reluctantly go see the movie, but enjoyed the treats.

It wasn’t until my college years that I fully appreciated the Eastwood education and all the times I’d just hang out with my dad in front of the VCR, you know when people had VCRs and memberships to Blockbuster.

So I found it appropriate that I’d see one of his films Sunday and do my best to remember him and our conversations. Thanks HBO for my Eastwood Education Refresher Course.

Thinking of My No.1 Fan on Father’s Day

 

 

Me and pop stylin’ in the 70s … even back then he always had my back.

 

Happy Father’s Day

Sandbox List Adventure 12: My Little Aquaman

“Opens June 2013″

“Is it June, yet?”

“No.”

“Is it June, yet?”

“No.”

“Is it June, yet?”

“Yes, but it doesn’t open for a couple of days.”

“Is it a couple of days yet?”

“No.”

“Is it a couple of days yet?”

“YES! YES! It’s been a couple of days, and today is the day. Today.”

It was a year-long countdown for this Sandbox List Adventure to begin and it finally arrived this week. Construction complete, bulldozers no where in sight, and water slides included. My only concern was the fact that we signed up for the A.M. session. As you all know I’m not the greatest morning person on Earth. But this week waking up early didn’t bother me. I woke up with purpose, with excitement. I woke happy to check something off my son’s Sandbox List. He was pretty ecstatic, too, so much so that he didn’t need to watch The Sprout Channel, PBS, or Disney Jr. I didn’t even need to give him the customary multiple reminders to brush his teeth and get dressed. I spoke once and it was done. Magic.

I guess swim trunks do that for you.

Although his sister was not that thrilled, considering she couldn’t participate in this particular adventure she could care less how fast her brother got dressed. She was still wild, running around in her pajamas and throwing Kix everywhere.

But after all the morning routine craziness, I piled them in the car and off we went … to my son’s first swimming lesson at the newly constructed pool down the street. I was really happy to see him having a great time splashing around in the pool. I’m sure he’s going to do well in his Tiny Tots Triathlon. He’s been to swim school every day this week and seems to be getting more confident in the water. I think the SpiderMan goggles definitely help.

All the kids were at the same level, so it didn’t really matter that he was younger. All that mattered was that they all splashed the same way. I was pretty proud of him for not freaking out and containing his excitement long enough to listen to the swim coach. So when the first lesson was done I asked:

“So, how was it?”

“It was great, mom! Great! But next time I need Aquaman powers, instead of SpiderMan powers. They’ll make me swim better.”

 

Meeting his swim coaches and awaiting eagerly to dive in.

 

Working on his kick, although he needs to work on staying completely in the pool while doing so.

 

Working on his underwater Aquaman formation. 

 

The Big Test … floating. Everyone needed a little assistance on that one. Even my little Aquaman.

 

 

 

 

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The High School Guat … Way Ahead of Her Time

Hanging out at a 40th birthday bash for an old high school friend, and a retirement party for a former basketball coach this weekend, raised questions about my own existence and the quality of my life, or the lack of it. And as I was contemplating this Tuesdays With Morrie question a blast from the past snuck up on me.

Literally.

As I was tearing up the dance floor to the best jams of high school gym dances I felt a tap, tap, tap. I turned and there he was … The Danny Zuko of my past. In truth, I wasn’t talking about Summer Nights at the lunch tables, or singing Hopelessly Devoted when I was “hanging out” with him, but I did like him. It was a big time crush, not Jake Ryan worthy, but still pretty big for high school days.

But you all know the common story … most high school boys are stupid.

Danny Zuko

So it wasn’t a ride off into the sunset on Grease Lightning after the carnival type of situation. It was more of a I’m going to trade you in for one of those cha-cha girls with too much make-up from the drill team. Yeah that’s how he rolled.

Flash-forward twenty years later, he’s standing in front of me giving me the biggest hello hug ever. I hadn’t thought about him since the last time I saw him at his graduation. No real reason to do so.

So it was funny when he said he’d been hoping he’d run into me. We chatted about our families, kids, and work. And just as I was going to take a break from the dance floor, he said it. I had no idea why he had said it, but he did.

“I’m sorry.”

“Sorry? Sorry for what?”

I was totally confused because he hadn’t stepped on my toes while we were dancing, and I know he didn’t spill a drink on my jacket or anything. I stood there with the huh? look on my face.

He went on a full five-minute apology, surprisingly pretty sincere and remorseful, for dogging me way back in the day for his Danny Zuko behavior, chalked it up to being a dumb teenager. I told him not to worry about it, wasn’t a big deal now. In fact the whole situation hadn’t even occurred to me because there were plenty of jerks that followed, so he was sort of lost in the muddy waters of my past. I’m sure that at that time I was undergoing the typical what’s-wrong-with-me teenage chick blues, but they weren’t big enough for me to have a whole Sandy metamorphosis so that he would like me better. I wasn’t changing for anybody.

And even though the apology came twenty years later it made me smile. Not so much because he was sorry, but because I realized I was way ahead of my time and it definitely paid off to stay true to my Chapstick Girl kind of ways. I wanted to give myself a high-five.

Apparently I hadn’t changed, or at least that’s what everyone at the party had told me. They said I looked like my yearbook picture. The fact that the party was outdoors and late at night probably helped hide my crappy lack-of-sleep needs anti-aging cream appearance. Apparently I still looked hot, in my Sporty Spice kind of way and I guess that may have prompted the apology. Who knows. But it makes me feel better to know that I was right all they way back then … yeah … high school boys were stupid.

 

Weekly Photo Challenge: Fleeting

Fleeting

 

I hadn’t seen one of these since junior high school … when we were chasing the paletero down the street for an ice cream cone.

We got it at the fair when my son won this as a consolation prize for not tossing the frogs onto the lily pads. It made me think of all the times I sat on the steps of my building, hung out with friends, talked about how awesome our lives were going to be when we moved on up.

My life is not awesome, but the Ring Pops still rocked. It reminded me of the times when I actually sat down and enjoyed the moments without having to remind myself to be present. Ring Pops … who knew.

Inspiration Finds You In Many Ways

 

 

 

It Finally Happened

At first sight, you’re hopeful. It looks good. It sounds promising.

But then you show up and realize, it’s not alone.

Free is never alone. It has company.

Fine print.

Nothing good usually comes out of it. At least for me.

At the market it’s usually buy one and then get one free. It’s never just get one free.

At the museum you think it’s free and then there’s the box. They put it in the middle with big bold letters, so you can’t miss it. The senior citizen who’s volunteering at the desk smiles and looks you in the eye while she points at the donation box. Guilt consumes you. It’s because you’re a good person. So you open your wallet and give in.

On Wednesday you make it to Happy Hour at the Regal Beagle, but then realized that it’s not every Wednesday. It’s every other Wednesday and you just happen to be bad at math and calendars. You get no free appetizers.

On your honeymoon they say free helicopter tour or free surfing lessons. You get excited and you sign up. You’re dumb like that when you’re a newlywed. When you get to the location for your free voucher, you realize you have to sit in on a three-hour seminar for timeshares. Eventually you get the helicopter ride or surfing lesson. But it wasn’t for free, you paid with your time.

Free was just a myth to me. Some people are lucky they get free all the time, but unfortunately I’m not part of that club. I’ve been trying to be, but I’ve been unsuccessful … that is until this week.

I actually got something for free. Completely free. Well my kids did, but I savored in the fact that I was able to get it for them. Free admission to the children’s museum and not just any museum, but the kind that lets you touch and climb everything and it’s not breakable. My kids love it.

In truth I was a little skeptical about it being free. Considering my track record I thought there had to be some fine print. Had to, but no. There wasn’t. They enjoyed four hours of exploration through some awesome exhibits featuring physics, astronomy, archaeology, and earth science. And apparently so did a lot of other kids. A lot. This is the side effect of free. Crowds. Massive crowds, but we managed to get there early enough to maneuver our way around them. When you get free, it’s good to show up early.

Free is a good thing. Especially when it finally happens. It should be cart-wheel worthy.

 

The outdoor physics exploration area, which captured our attention for about an hour.

 

Free brings out the awesomeness in people. My kids were actually sharing without fighting. It was great.

 

Checking out his own strength and learning about kinetic energy. He didn’t know he was learning it though.

 

Climbing outdoors. Some kid didn’t do so well … gravity got the best of her.

 

Focused on checking out fossils. I’ve never seen her sit so still for such a long time. I need to get some fossils at home.

 

This free thing was so good, we even got a free concert. Scottish bagpipes rocking the joint.

 

The free thing rose to the next level when my son got a free lesson. Free was good that day.

 

Weekly Photo Challenge: The Sign Says

Go Green

 

Dude … this sign totally makes me want to recycle more.

Go green.