New Sofa

It's been awhile..I know. I'm trying to work on a really good post, not just these 'quickies' I've been doing lately.

Here is a pic of our new sofa. The old one was, well ,old and super uncomfortable. I mean, this thing had some very bad mojo about it. I told Mags it was cursed by her ex but she refused to believe it.

Interesting story this store we bought it from said their delivery guys would not remove it. I mean the sofa wasn't cheap and I figured the delivery guys would hook us up and at least take it to the curb. No dice. So the image you need to get in your head is of me with my bad back and Mags, with her bad heart, trying to wrangle a sofa-bed sofa that weighed at least 500 pounds out the front door. It was not pretty. Our home is small and we couldn't figure out how the moving men got it in in the first place. We got it to the door and that was it. Thankfully our neighbor from two doors down, Tony was out early with his pooch and saw us struggling. He smiled and said "you guys need a hand?" He is familiar with our physical situation and held up his finger. "Gimme one sec to get the dog in," and came running over. He then proceed, with little help from Meself, to get the couch over to the door. He stopped and though it out, turning the couch this way and that in his mind. Finally he said "Okay, we need to stand it up on end." So we wrangled it on end and then he said "okay you go out first to the left...etc, etc.." I lifted the end and pulled and then Tony pushed and the couch came right through the doorway. We both thanked him profusely and later in the week I brought him a small token of our appreciation. A twelve pack. Nothing says 'thank-you' like beer.

We put the demon couch on the curb and we put a "FREE" sign on it. Later that day I was awoken by Mags screaming my name. Certainly a 747 was about to fall on our house, our the Four Horsemen were at the door looking for yours truly. I jumped out of bed, got dressed in three seconds and ran down to see what was going on.

I was shocked to see two little guys from around the bend trying to carry the couch away! I went out and spoke with the young lad and asked what was up. He replied that he needed the couch for his tree-house! Ummmm...okayyyyy... I told him he should check with his folks and he said 'of course he did.' I told him to get a parent to help him move it and he was sure he and his friend could do it alone. Uh-huh. Well. Never underestimate the determination of a ten year old. Half an hour later, the boys were back and they had gotten the sofa on two skateboards and were wheeling it away! Clever!

So now we have a new sofa and it's pretty sweet. It will take some getting used to though, I'm used to sinking right onto the springs of the sofa bed of the old one. My butt is grateful.

P.S. Note CrazyDog sneaking into the shot.

This is Creepy...

When I think about my eminant demise, I tell Mags I want a trdaitional Irish wake. Lots of food, beer and laughter. I also told her one night, possibly after one or two pints, that I wanted a keg of Guinness by my casket. I wanted everyone to rest a pint glass on my casket and write their name or a message in the 'ring' the glass left.
Well, whilst searching iTunes the other day, I came across this song. It's by a band called the Push Stars and it's called....

"Put A Keg On My Coffin"

Put the keg on my coffin
and think of me every so often
have a 'Losers Day' parade for all my friends,
drink up life like a river 'til
the pizza man delivers
smile and know I loved you 'til the end

Well here's what you do
when my time comes to pass...
Charlie told me throught the reflection in his glass
Don't waste time praying
'cause I'm never comin' back
Just throw a party in my name

Put the keg on my coffin
and think of me every so often
have a 'Loser's Day' parade for all my friends..
drink up life like a river
'til the pizza man delivers
smile and know I loved you 'til the end

Well here's what you write on the stone over my grave
His friends were earned and a not a penny saved
Don't waste time crying 'cause you too are on your way
to meet me at the pawn shop in the sky

Put the keg on my coffin
and think of me every so often
have a 'Loser's Day' parade for all my friends
drink up life like a river
'til the pizza man delivers
smile and know I loved you 'til the end
smile and know I loved you 'til the end
smile and know I loved you 'til the end

Halloweeeeen....

Do we have the ghoulest Halloween stuff or what?? More pics to follow...

Update

For lack of a better title..

The weeks are flying by here, alot going on at work and on the home front. A couple of weeks ago, Mags had a visit to the doctor and had a small lesion on her back checked out. Turns out it is skin cancer. This is, incredibly, her fourth cancer diagnosis in her short lifetime. She will be faxing a biopsy report to a doctor this week and has a tentative appointment for the second week in November. If the doc looks over the biopsy report and feels things are more serious she'll get Mags in quicker. So say a prayer for my lovely wife or send her some good Mojo or Juju or whatever you've got.

On Weds. we were sitting down to watch Bones when the phone rings. Bubs says she has to call and ambulance for J.W. He has, somehow, ended up on the floor and can't get up. He's weak, and confused. We follow the ambulance to the hospital and after spending the next four hours waiting, we learned only two things. That my FIL may or may not have a raging bladder infection and the nurse in charge did not, for whatever reason, like me. ( must have been English) There was no other patients or their families in our section of the E.R. and since 6 family members were there, seating was limited. I found a wheelchair pushed to the side so I sat in it. Twenty minutes later, a security guard comes over and says " Are you a patient?" "No," says me. "Then I'll have to take this." I get up and the young man takes my chair. We all roll our eyes and laugh. As the night wore on and the clock was nearing 11pm, I noticed there was a football match coming on the TV that was above the bed (empty bed) next to my FIL. I put just the very edge of my right arse cheek on the bed, I mean, my ass is small as it is and just so little of it was on this bed. The nurse comes flying over, like I'm killing a new-born baby with a melon-baller and says "Are you a patient here?" (Wasn't there a Monty Python skit about obviousness or something?) I look down at myself and noticed I'm fully dressed and not wearing A: a hospital gown and/or B: a wristband stating I'm a patient and contemplate a smart-ass answer. I look up and see the vein that runs from her eye around to the base of her skull pulsating like a Geiger counter on Three Mile Island and say quietly "no."

"Well than you'll have to get off this bed!" I think for a moment about grabbing her by the back of the head and pushing her face into a bedpan, however her G.I. Joe crew cut will prevent this and besides I'm way too tired for confrontation. I simply stand up and walk over and stand against the wall.

An hour later, we were home in bed and J.W. was a registered guest at Centra State Medical Center.
We spent a few hours at the hospital visiting him yesterday and then went next door to our local Foodtown...whooaa wait SuperFood Town to do a little shopping and grab a chicken for dinner.
This morning I got up with CrazyDog and after I fed him and Chainsaw I made tea for Meself and settled into the throne and watched an EPL match I DVR'd on Sat. I like Arsenal and was hoping to see them lay a whooping on Hull but alas, Hull came away with the victory. It was a very good game but I was hoping for a Gunners win. Mags made a nice cake and we were invited to her parents (J.W. and Bubs) house for lunch to celebrate her Dad's release from the hospital. The man looks great I tell ya. He is tough as Chinese arithmetic. Now I know where Mag gets her toughness.
We also got to spend some time with Mags sister and her beau, who were both in town. They're both very cool and I like them very much. We played a game of Scrabble and then a game of Fact or Crap. A great game for parties or really any occasion.

We are now finally home, winding down. Hopefully we'll both have a nice, quiet easy work week....knock wood.

This Bed is Now Mine

So we got this nice big pet bed for CrazyDog. As you can see, Chainsaw has taken it over and deemd it to be his. Doesn't he look comfy?

You Are Kidding Me, RIght?

Okay. I've talked about the slag next door and her ducks. Yes, I live in a regualr ol' neighborhood, you know with cars and houses and all. Nothing that resembles a farm, petting zoo or a third world country (yet). The houses are actually very close to each other and most of the folks here are somewhat respectful of this fact. The crazy next door however, is another story. At some point she thought it might be a good idea to have a pet duck. Yes, a duck. This was three years ago. Since then, the flock has expanded. There are now, probably four or five ducks. They come into my yard from the back of her property because the fence she fought City Hall to have is incomplete. The feathered fuckers just waddle through the underbrush and come into my yard. They squawk, squat, crap, shed feathers, lay eggs in my yard and drive CrazyDog bonkers. A call was placed to the township and we were told that owning ducks was okay. Not against the law at all. Okay, whatever. Maybe she's playing the "I'm a poor, widowed, immigrant mother of three..and one of my kids is retarded, " card. So the Township looks the other way. Poor old slag....tsktsk.. Do I sound angry?? Just wait. It gets better.
The other day I was in the kitchen and peeked out into my freshly mowed lawn. I spied something odd at the bird feeder. I had to look twice because I thought I saw a rooster. 'Naw..nobody in a tiny little development where houses are four feet apart could own a rooster.."
Well the very next morning, at 5 minutes before 6 we were awakened by a bizarre sound. I peek out the bathroom window and sure enough, the rooster is in our yard, crowing or cockadoodledoodling, or whatever the fuck they do, away. I run out and chase the little prick away and guess where he goes? Yes. Right back to Manalapan's little slice of third world fucking Havana. The comb-headed cockbag starts this shit at 6am every morning.
Now thinking about silly stuff, like I dunno, a sound ordinance or maybe owning a yard full of bar yard fucking animals must be against the law, we call the Township and are otherwise. "Sure you can own ducks, roosters, llamas, an Alpaca, whatever man..." we're told. "If the rooster is bothering you need to call the Health Department." Uh-huh...so we did and we are now told a letter will be sent to the offending rooster owner and if the bird continues to disturb us we must take her dingy ass (the Slag, not the rooster) to court and sue her.
We are paying almost three thousand dollars a year in fucking taxes and this is the shit I have to put up with?? Seriously?? If I were living in one of those McMansions up off route 9, the Mayor would come out and kill the bird herself with a paperclip and a take-out menu, but since we're in a lower tax bracket, we can go spit...nice.

Coooool Gift

Check it yo...This is my awesome anniversary gift. A 'Nightmare Before Christmas' hoodie! Check out the detail..I really can't wait for the fall now. Thanks Q.T.

Anam Cara

Today is our sixth anniversary. Some time ago, I wandered into an AOL chat room and became a regular. Fellow chatters were also 'regs'. We all got to know each other and we were a little 'cyber-family'. We knew about each others families, friends, trials and tribulations. There was one chatter in particular that caught my attention. She was funny, caring, smart and so very cute. I partook in this chat room for many months and then, took a small break. When I came back to the room, the same folks were there, including the cutie you see in the picture above. That cutie being Maggie, not me. We spoke for hours online and then on the phone. I got by talking to her that she was a fabuloso individual. We talked and talked, exchanged email and snail mails...After 'knowing' me only a couple of months she sent me a great gift. It was a brutally cold December Rhode Island day ( all December days in Rhode Island are brutally cold) when I went to the mail box. I pulled the bills and folded inside the Warwick Beacon was a manilla envelope addressed to me with a New Jersey postmark. I ran back to the house, not wanting to freeze to the ground, tossed the mail on the dining room table and ripped open the envelope. Inside was a wool scarf. Not just any wool scarf, an IRISH wool scarf. Awesome! Perfect! My Dad, who was sick with cancer at the time, smiled and admired it. "That's a sharp lookin' scarf there kiddo," he said. "Mags sent it." "That was nice! She's somethin' eh?" I think he even referred to her as a 'nice girl'.

That was the beginning of the acts of kindness and thoughtfulness that have been bestowed upon me in the past 6 plus years.

Over the years our life together has been anything but boring. The death of my beloved Dad in 2000, open-heart surgery for Mags in 2004, the same exact procedure on her dad J.W. the following year, Maggie literally saving her mothers life by dragging her forcibly to the E.R. to be diagnosed just in time with E. Coli poisoning, the death of my dear friend Marc in 2005, the struggle to work full time and earn her N.J. State Real Estate licence, a bout with breast cancer for Mags in 2006, the death of my sister in 2007. Her Dad suffering from seizures and a near death experience in upstate N.Y.....man....We have been through it. Mags has been a huge support for me through all of my families tragedies and when the shit hits the fan there is one person who I want in my corner. I'm not sure what I would do without her.

Even though we've been living la vida loca there's nobody I'd rather be riding this Crazy-Train of life with.

So tonight, we'll go have a nice dinner somewhere and come home, maybe catch a movie and when I say goodnight, I'll consider Meself a lucky lad.