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bath and body works sucks
December 10, 2007
Now what the #@*! Am I going to do? They�ve discontinued my moisturizer. My wonderful, perfect moisturizer that I wasn�t allergic to and could actually buy in this suck-ass shopping void of a town. Bastards.
I�m pretty sure my precarious mood has been tipped over to the negative. I tried to be perky this weekend. When that didn�t work I tried my �serene� shtick. Just made me tired.
I even tried to buy my way out of it, spending money I couldn�t really afford on treats to try and cheer myself up. (A new Fossil watch and a nail care set). All I got was a case of the guilts for spending the money. Not from Spouse�he didn�t give a shit if I spent on myself�but from my own sub-set of issues dealing with spending money on anything for me.
Well, I also got a bitchin� new watch and a nail care set, but still. Main purchase was guilt.
I do love the watch. And it was time to replace the �temporary� one I bought two years ago at Value City for $9.99, so I did need one. Very simple, as is my style, it has a round, oyster colored dial with gold Arabic numerals, date calendar in the three-spot, water resistant, and a two-toned gold and silver colored bezel and band. And (miracle of miracles) the band bloody well fits! (I have fat wrists.) I pretty much walked into the Fossil outlet, looked down, saw one I liked, and asked to try it on. It was perfect, it was $39.99, I said I�ll take it, and ba-boom. Done. This always slightly bemuses Spouse; he says I shop like a man.
The nail thing was a different story. I got waylaid by a kiosk clerk, who sweet-talked me into buying his product. But the truth is, it is kinda cool. I�ve searched for years for a nail buffer that actually made my nails shiny, and this guy had it. I had to buy a set with a file, lotion, and cuticle oil to get it, but I wanted that buffer. And I spent more on it than I did my watch. $64.50, to be exact. Since it was a BOGO, though, I got one for W&T as well; so I can amortize the cost down to $32.25 for each. That helps a little with the guilt. And I think the girls will like it, since they are into neat nails but not into manicures and such.
I got up around seven on Saturday, and sine Spouse had made it clear that he wanted to sleep in and go shopping later in the day, I made the batch on M&M cookies. I was bitching and grumbling about my shitty old oven, and how I didn�t like the way they turned out�but apparently, they were fine with Spouse. He�s eaten over half of them already--and I made five dozen!
He�s such a cookie monster. I also made a batch of shortbread dough, which is still sitting in the fridge because I never got around to baking it off. I�ll probably do that tonight. I hope it is still okay�but it�s just flour, butter and sugar, so it is probably fine.
Well, one we got started with the shopping on Saturday, we managed to wipe a bunch more names off the list. But after the mall, we really were pooped. We aren�t big mall people anyway, and Christmas is just beyond the pale. We stopped for pizza at the Quonset in Waukegan, chatted a bit with Spouse�s brother�s wife�s sister (whew!) who works there, and brainstormed gifts for a few tough ones left on the big list. Thus fortified, we stopped a couple more places, picked up some gifts, and then headed home.
Where I proceeded to be violently sick, and feel horrible for the rest of the night.
Sunday, I pulled a switch on Spouse, and got up early to make a homemade breakfast. That�s his thing, so he was stunned to be awakened to eggs, bacon, home fries, toast, and fresh coffee.
As I said, that�s his thing, not mine. But the weather was sleety and nasty, and I didn�t want to go out for breakfast, so I figured I�d just forestall any arguments by cooking it myself.
After we ate, I cleaned up the kitchen and fiddled with the laundry while he went out and cleared cars and sidewalks. One that was done, we got ourselves cleaned up and headed out, swearing a solemn oath that we would not come home till every bit of the Christmas shopping was done.
And it was! We didn�t even have to go out of town to do it (Pleasant Prairie doesn�t count), which is really saying something in this burg. Of course, we�d already given in and decided on gift cards for the folks left on the list, so it was going to be quick business to get it all wrapped up.
Then, Spouse has the bright idea to wash my car. I haven�t washed my car in a high-pressure carwash in about a year, because they tend to fuck up the Rocket in various ways. Busted antenna, blown taillight bulbs, etc. The R-R is a massive piece of shit, suitable only for warm, dry climates. And only barely suitable, even then. But the husband decides that he knows best, right? Washes the car.
And later, when we are leaving Wally�s, he notices that once again, the tail light bulbs have gotten wet, and popped. No tail lights.
But you know what? I don�t care. He decided to run it through the car wash, he�s the one who has to fix the lights. No skin off my nose.
I was all set to bake up my shortbread and finish the laundry one we got home, but then Spouse shafted me again. He handed me a telephone with his SIL on the other end. Not E. Not Niece&Nephew�s mom. Niece&Nephew�s step-mom.
That�s�complicated. Lotta history and issues between Spouse and his baby brother, and we are just this year starting to try and mend some fences. And I really want to try and be nice�but she�s not my cuppa tea. She seems very lonely and needy and desperate to be liked and accepted in this family, even after 11 or so years. But it�s a rough road, because you can�t always participate in the shattering of a family and have everybody say yippity-skippity, good on you.
However, sometimes life isn�t so cut and dried, and when it comes to dysfunction, the buck has to stop somewhere. And I think part of her struggle has always been that she comes from a very close and forgiving family, and can�t understand why we are all so weird, hateful and fucked up. So I tend to take pity on her.
Anyway, the upshot is�I spent over an hour on the phone with her, and committed to going to
- some of Niece�s ball games
- some of Smallest Nephew�s ball games
- a �family game night�
- letting her do my nails
Yeah. Like I said�needy.
Don�t get me wrong. I love Niece. And Smallest Nephew, even if he is a bit of a pill. But lordy, I hatehatehate basketball.
So there�s why the shortbread didn�t get finished, in case you wondered.
Reading: �Upstairs, Downstairs, Volume II�, by John Hawkesworth. When I am reading at all.
Listening: More watching, really. I�m kind of hooked on the Brit quiz show, QI.
At Random: click here
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