Happy Easter Peeps!

Remember Easter Bonnets? If you were a girl growing up in the 50's or 60's you probably sported one of these on Easter Sunday. You also probably wore a frilly dress, patent leather Mary Janes and a dressy spring coat.
Remember the feel of that weird spongy fabric those spring coats were made of? It was probably polyester (wasn't everything made of polyester back then?), but it was just an odd texture. I tried to find a photo of the exact kind of coat I'm talking about, but this was the closest I could find online. If I could find my photo album from my childhood, there is a lovely black and white snapshot of me, sporting an Easter Bonnet with a shorter brim than pictured, wearing a pink (I do remember the color) spring coat, white eyelet ankle socks and patent leather Mary Janes. However, as was the case with most of my early photographs, I appeared to have only 1 leg. I assure you that to this day, I continue to have 2 legs! Lol! I always stood with 1 leg up and because of the length of my dress, I always appeared to be missing a leg. It drove my Dad crazy! Lol!

I still have eggs to color and this year I am again going to attempt an Italian Easter Bread. Wish me luck! My Grandmother used to make them every year for Easter. I made one when my kids were little and it was a big hit. I saw the recipe over at Cinnamon Spice And Everything Nice and will be using it since I've lost track of my Grandmother's recipe. I'm also cooking Easter dinner. I really haven't nailed down the menu, other than I know we are having a spiral ham. I'll let you know how the Italian Easter Bread turned out.

I hope everyone has a
Happy Easter!

Lola's Diner
©2008-2009

Good Friday - Good Deed

Today we ran around doing errands most of the day. We went to Walmart in Lockport for Easter gifts. Since the kids are older and since my daughter doesn't need tons of sugar to mess up her seratonin/dopamine levels we do just a little candy and then a couple of gifts. Anastasia also wanted to get flower seeds and seed starting trays. So this year, flowers will be her department and fruits and vegetables will be mine.

After Walmart we went to Barnes & Noble. As usual, I spent my gift card on the kids. I guess that's what Moms do, sacrifice. Lol! I got my daughter the DVD that she has been buggin the snot out of me for and I got my son a double DVD concert of his all time favorite group.

Then it was off to Sears to finally get my son's reading glasses adjusted. I know it's futile, but I at least try to make the effort. Lol! That kid can have his glasses askew 5 minutes after he puts them on.

After exiting Sears we got in the car. There was a car across from us picking up a woman and it pulled away quickly. Just as I was about to leave I noticed a purse on the pavement. We waited to see if maybe it belonged to the woman that got in the car, maybe they would circle around and come back to look for it, but they didn't. Since it was Friday afternoon, not a school day and the Orland Square Mall was filled with kids, I told my daughter to retrieve the purse. I peeked in the wallet just long enough to find identification and saw a drivers license. Then I debated, should I deliver the purse on my way home? It wouldn't be out of my way, but I didn't want to freak out the woman, nor did I want to drive over there and find no one home. Since the Orland Park Police Department was just a block away, I opted for that. The officer looked at me like I was from another planet. She asked if there was identification and I took it out. She then searched her computer for a phone number, not finding one, she called the village where the owner of the purse lived and got a phone number, called the number, got voice mail and left a message. The officer then asked for my identification and then came out from behind the wall of glass and got the purse.

I'm hoping the owner of the purse was the woman that was picked up and that it wasn't stolen and dumped there. I didn't even look in the purse, except for the wallet. There were still credit cards in the wallet, but I didn't see cash, but then I just looked in it long enough until I found the drivers license. Maybe she's like me, I rarely carry cash anymore. Hopefully the owner will be quickly reunited with her purse.

Lola's Diner
©2008-2009

TGIF - VIrtual Girls Night Out

What Easter candy do you just have to have?

Peeps. More specifically, roasted peeps! Don't knock em till you try them. The sugar on the outside caramelizes. Mmm. You need a skewer or hot dog fork and a flame. We have a gas range and use that, unless it's warm enough to be outside and build a fire in the firepit. Here is a photo I found online:

Come on. You know you want to try one!
Cardiogirl gave me this for my roasted Peeps idea. Lol!


Thanks for stopping by for VGNO! If you like what you see, please consider becoming a regular at Lola's Diner by becoming a Follower.
Hope you have a great Easter!

Lola's Diner
©2008-2009

If I Could Blog Back Time Thursdays - First Job

Come join me for If I Could Blog Back Time Thursdays! We'll be taking time out to share some memories. We'll Blog Back Time with possible ways to right past wrongs or about how times have changed. We'll share childhood memories, school/work memories, family and friend memories.

Today's topic is: First Job

I got my first job when I was 17. The major reason I didn’t have a job sooner was because I didn’t have my own car. My Dad had a 1976 Plymouth Volare` Station Wagon, big Sky Blue exterior with tan interior. It was hideous. He hardly ever let me drive it because it was his pride and joy. I’m not sure, but it may have been his first brand new car. It really never bothered me that he didn’t let me drive it. To me it was a Big Sky Blue embarrassment and I secretly hoped that every Friday when he let me take my Mom grocery shopping that I wouldn’t run into anyone I knew from school.

My parents bought me a gold 1971 Pontiac Granville for $400 right about the time I started my first job. It was a huge car. It was a good thing my first job was at a gas station because that car was thirsty.

My first job was cashier at the gas station booth at a Midas Muffler Shop. My Dad got me the job through a drinking buddy of his. One would think this would be a red flag, but it wasn’t. The shop was owned by a former Kentucky Colonel and his wife.

The gas station was 4 pumps, a very small booth with a cigarette rack and a milk cooler outside. When I first worked for Mr. & Mrs. P. I only had to cashier. Later, after they sold the business to Mr. S. I also pumped gas. With no A/C, summers were hot. In the winter it took me about a ½ hour extra to dress for work. I wore long john top/bottoms, t-shirt, sweat shirt/pants, jeans, heavy flannel shirt, down vest, gym socks, thick wool socks, snowmobile boots, knit hat, scarf and gloves. Frankly I don’t know how I managed to walk or get in my car! The booth I sat in basically stopped the wind. There were 2 space heaters, but in order to sit out there for 8 hours, the layered clothing was a necessity. My mother would heat up tomato soup or chicken soup and fill a thermos for me. That would help keep me warm too.

There were 2 real advantages to the job. One was that it was very solitary. I didn’t have any co-workers to have to fake getting along with, no office politics. The other advantage was that I could do whatever I wanted in the booth, so long as I was there to cashier and make sure no one stole the merchandise. I could read, do my homework, listen to the radio. On the weekends I would bring my B/W portable television and watch the Brewers games.

After I turned 18 (at the time the drinking age in Wisconsin was 18) Mr. & Mrs. P would invite me into the shop to join them for beers after my shift was done. It was a nightly ritual for them to run to the bar 2 doors down for 6 packs and shoot the breeze with the staff. Of course they all got a head start because the shop closed at 8pm and the gas pumps closed at 10pm, but sometimes they did hang around late and invited me to join them. After the beers ran out they would move to a local lounge about a mile down the street. Sometimes I’d join them, other times I’d go home, depending on my school schedule.

I worked there through high school and most of college. They were very generous and were kind of like a second set of parents. Cool parents. Parents you go out drinking with. Lol! I stayed close with even after I moved to Chicago. A little more than 20 years. I used to bring my kids to visit when we’d drive up to Milwaukee for the State Fair. I’ve lost touch with them in the last 5 years or so because I haven’t been traveling to Milwaukee often like I did in the past. That job allowed me pay for college and work full time while attending college full time. It was the perfect first job.

Now it's your turn. Please post your Childhood Memory on your blog. Then come back to Lola's Diner and leave the actual post link here. Please grab the html code for If I Could Blog Back Time Thursdays! Badge HERE. Please note these links are STRICTLY for If I Could Blog Back Time Thursdays! participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.

Don’t forget to visit the other participants! It’s a great way to make new bloggy friends!

Lola's Diner
©2008-2009

Zombie Chicken Award

Staci @ Just Bloggled gave me the Zombie Chicken Award Monday. I apologize for not putting it up earlier.

What an awesomely cool award! I have visions of "Night of the Living Dead", only with chickens! Lol! And I am all about excellence and persistence in all situations. I'm just not so sure about grace. Lol!

"The blogger who receives this award believes in the Tao of the zombie chicken - excellence, grace and persistence in all situations, even in the midst of a zombie apocalypse. These amazing bloggers regularly produce content so remarkable that their readers would brave a raving pack of zombie chickens just to be able to read their inspiring words. As a recipient of this world-renowned award, you now have the task of passing it on to at least 5 other worthy bloggers. Do not risk the wrath of the zombie chickens by choosing unwisely or not choosing at all…"

So now I get to pass the award on to at least five other bloggers. Here they are in no particular order:

1. The whole gang @ Sited And Blogged.
2. Patricia @ Subjective Soup.
3. John @ Gay Dads In Munchkin Land.
4. JD @ I Do Things So You Don't Have To.
5. Harriet @ I Am Harriet.
6. Lin @ Duck And Wheel With String.
7. Cardiogirl.
8. Jo @ Life's Perfect Pictures.

Lola's Diner
©2008-2009

Top 10 Things About Election Day (Yesterday)

10. Election day is suburban people watching at it's finest.

9. Judges - Mr. & Mrs. B - Republicans. They are a married senior couple. They are grandparents and talk about their children and grandchildren a lot. Did I say a lot?

8. Judge - Mrs. H. - Democrat - Age late 40's early 50's, about to become a grandmother for the first time.

7. WAG Dude - Republican, senior, grandparent, Walgreens part time employee (hence the WAG reference) and former war hero. Constantly telling war stories and vacation stories. Did I say constantly? (One would think he was a key stockholder in Walgreens.) Besides the war stories and vacation stories the only other thing he talks about is Walgreens. Ok, I should cut him some slack this time. He did give me 2 WAG Friends & Family Discount Coupons. I guess that should just about cover his debt to me for all the WAG talk yesterday.

6. Me - Well you know me and you can clearly see I am the youngest judge at this precinct and I am clearly the odd one out.

5. The Republican Committeeman for our precinct regaled us with the story of his run in with our Mayor. Apparently our Mayor didn't like the mass mailing said committeeman did and proceeded to have his minions do a mass mailing with personal attacks on the committeeman's family. Said committeeman is now plotting his revenge for the upcoming Mayoral election .......... 2 years away. Way to escalate the situation!

4. WAG Dude whistles. Have I ever said how much I hate random whistling?

3. Election day is "Catch Up On Village Gossip Day". I found out that the guy 2 streets over from us that Anastasia and I buy used golf balls (henceforth referred to as "Golf Ball Dude") from was arrested for allegedly killing a guy in September 2008. Apparently he went to a local business, had words with the employees, went home, got a gun, went back to the business and when he was told to leave by an employee (because of his extreme drunkenness) the Golf Ball Dude shot him in the chest, killing him. Mrs. B is bff's with the victim's mother. Whoa!

2. Voter Turnout betting. Each election day, the 5 judges in the precinct I work at bet a buck on how many voters will turn out. All day long (and believe me the days are very long, 5am to 8pm, and they feel even longer when turnout is low) all day long we amuse ourselves with the voter turnout bet. Last night was extremely close. We do the "Price Is Right" method (closest without going over.) WAG Dude kept teasing Mrs. H. because at one point she needed 4 more voters to win. Then 3. Then 2. Then 1. Then the we closed the polls...she lost!

1. I won! Again! My first couple of elections I wildly guessed numbers. Now I have a system. This time I won by 1 voter! Woo Hoo! Victory is sweet! Ok, I shouldn't get so excited, it's only $5 bucks. But that is $4 bucks more than I started with! I plan on investing my booty in lottery tickets. I'm hoping the MegaMillions rolled over Tuesday night.

**I wrote this quite early this morning.
I think I may not have been very clear.
I did not run for office.
( Sorry peeps, that would have been really cool though.)
I won our the voter turnout bet amongst the judges in the precinct where I volunteer.
Yeah, I celebrate the little things.**

Lola's Diner
©2008-2009

This And That

What the freak is with this weather? No basketball after school today. Here in the Chicagoland area we got snow late Sunday.

Blagojevich went to Disney World when he knew his indictment was going to be announced. What was he thinking? “I’m about to be indicted…I’m going to Disney World?

Patti Blagojevich got money from Rezko for sham real estate deals yet the Feds haven’t indicted her because they are trying to determine if she knew the purpose of those sham contracts was to filter money to her husband for favors. Seriously?

Oprah’s topic was Moms today. One of the people interviewed is the author of Dooce.com and claimed that her blog became so popular that her husband was able to quit his job and they now earn over $40,000 PER MONTH from advertising revenue from the site. I've looked at the site, and I'm not even seeing that many ads. How is this possible? I don’t even earn enough in a month to buy a candy bar!

Tuesday is Election Day in some areas in Chicagoland. Local elections. Which means that the turnout will be practically nil. In our area the elections are for posts like Parks Commissioner, School Board, Clerk, Assessor, Supervisor, Trustee, etc. My fellow Election Judges and I are going to be twiddling our thumbs all day. I've been stockpiling magazines that have been coming in the mail. I think I have 5. I hope that is enough. It should be a fun day of people watching. (I mean, even the other judges provide plenty of entertainment if you ask me.) I'm hoping to get at least 1 blog post out of it. Lol!

If you have voting Tuesday, do as we do in Chicago...
Vote early and vote often.

Lola's Diner
©2008-2009

BLOG AWARDS LIST

Thank you to everyone who has sent me an award. I appreciate it so much!

06/13/09 From Stephany @ Soulful Sepulcher.

06/03/09 From Vicki @ Reading At The Beach

04/10/09 From Cardiogirl @ Cardiogirl for my Roasted Peeps Post.
07/14/09 From Cardiogirl @ Cardiogirl for my Monologue Memory Comment.

04/08/09 From Staci @ Just Bloggled

04/01/09 From JD @ I Do Things

03/27/09 From Rick @ Blazing Hot Blogs

03/23/09 From John @ Gay Dads In Munchkin Land

03/06/09 From Jo @ Life's Perfect Pictures

02/28/09 From Liza @ Mommy's Little Corner

02/02/09 From Harriet @ I Am Harriet
03/13/09 From JT Lock @ The Frugal Housewife

01/19/09 From tack @ I Am KCAT

01/15/09 From Mira @ My Barefoot Journey

12/29/08 From Jodi @ Jodi's Journey

12/25/08 From Harriet @ I Am Harriet

12/24/08 From Rose @ All About Cakes
05/17/09 From Beth @ Bartering Basics and Living Life on Less

06/04/09 From Chris @ Inspirational Insights

12/23/08 From Lisa C. @ Mommying On The Fly
12/26/08 From Jean @ The Skinny Queen

12/18/08 From Liza @ A Simple Life
02/11/09 From Louise @ English Opinion

11/21/08 From Patricia @ Communication Exchange

11/21/08 From Patricia @ Communication Exchange
02/11/09 From Amy @ All About Bipolar
02/15/09 From Garden Gnome @ Mom's Cafe Home Cooking

Lola's Diner
©2008-2009

CONTEST SPONSORS WANTED

I am having a contest to officially introduce my new blog, Lola's Victory Garden. I am seeking sponsors for the contest.

If you are an Entrecard member please consider donating Entrecard Credits in exchange for being a sponsor of this contest. If you are leaving Entrecard, this is the perfect opportunity to donate a portion of your Entrecard Credits and have your link appear on my blog for the duration of the contest. Your donated credits must be transferred to the winner within 2 days of the official announcement of the winners of the contest. Winners will be posted on Lola's Victory Garden and I will email you a reminder with the winner(s) details. If you are giving away more than 1,000 EC, email me and we can discuss options on how to transfer those credits to the winner(s).

You may become a sponsor by donating a free 125x125 ad on your blog for 1 month. You as the sponsor will be solely responsible for delivery of this offer.

If you have some other product, item or offer, please submit your idea. If approved, you will be a sponsor of the contest. You as the sponsor will be solely responsible for the delivery of the product, item or offer.

All sponsor blogs must be in English. I'm sorry, but that is the only language I can read and I am unable to decipher blogs or emails that are not in English.

All sponsors blogs will have your blog's name and link included with a brief description of your blog. This will run on the contest post the duration of the contest. This information will also be included in the post of the Winners at the end of the contest.

If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of this contest, please email me at sponsorlola@yahoo.com and leave me a comment by April 20, 2009. The contest post will be published after that date.

I will be updating this post periodically to include those blogs who have already committed to sponsoring this contest. Please be sure to stop by and visit these sponsors. The following blogs are sponsoring this contest:

Guilty Pleasures Donation: 3,000 EC. The things you enjoy in your life: little secrets of cuisine, a sparkle of glam, a dash of culture. It’s about you and your hidden desires, about the bazaar of human pleasures, seen as more or less guilty.

Answers Without, Answers Within Donation: 1000 EC. Exploring answers from oracle cards, paht chee analysis, meditative yoga, and more!

A Malaysian Abroad Donation: 1000 EC. Join a Malaysian/Swiss mutt in Chicago as she observes, compares and celebrates the similarities and differences between Malaysia, Switzerland, the USA and more!

Things About Computer Donation: 2000 EC. Computer tips, Latest Tech News, Software News.

All Blog Contest Donation: 500 EC. Listings of Blog Contests. Win Cash and Prizes.

Symphony Of Love Donation: 125x125 ad space for 1 month. Symphony of Love is created to share with you the Positive Power and Wisdom in love quotes. This is a collection of some of the best love quotes, love stories, love poems, lyrics of love songs, romantic tips and more.

Subjective Soup Donation: 500 EC credits. A personal diary blog--a hearty mix of daily experiences, thoughts, and feelings, seasoned with just a hint of attitude.

Communication Exchange Donation: 500 EC credits. An education blog. A place where students, teachers, or anyone may discuss any communication-related topic

One At A Time - A Busy Mom's Life Donation: 1000 EC credits. One at a time. A busy Mom's life.
Everything PLUS the Kitchen Sink Donation: 1000 EC credits. Home. Health. Beauty.
Babette's Definitely MAYBE! Donation: 1000 EC credits.

Just Keep Trying Donation: 1,000 EC. Contest listings.

Thoughts And Obsessions Donation: 1,000 EC. I am Mys. I write about a lot of things. I talk to you about my passions, thoughts and obsessions. I write about books I've read, shows I watch, blog contests that caught my interest and sites that I find interesting.

Gewgaw Writings Donation:. A one month ad in her PR 4 blog.

Dad To Two Donation: 500 EC. All the joys of being a dad - times two.

A Mom's Box Of Crayons Donation: $15 dollars in Avon products. Come enjoy a day and a life with me as I tell you about my life, my experiences, my kids, and the things I sell. Valery's Avon site.

A Changing Life Donation: 750 EC. I travelled as a child, when my father worked in Africa. I travelled (trailed?) as a spouse, when my husband worked in Europe. I've travelled as a tourist when all else fails. Nowadays we spend most of our time either in France or in England.

In This Life Of Ours Donation: 1308 EC. A Family's ventures to be free. Living our life according to the constitution and God. They contradict each other however, pursuing the balance to the correct pathway somehow.

In My Kitchen Donation: 125x125 ad for a month PR3. My family's favorite homemade food.

My Vegetables Garden Donation: 125x125 ad for a month PR2. Join me at my garden, see my 12 feet tall corn and 2 feet gourd. Also giving tips and "how to" about gardening.

Girls Are Made Of Sugar And Spice Donation: 125x125 ad for a month PR1. Talks about everything and mostly about my campaign against socialism, one world order, tyranny, fiat money, taxation and conservation of our constitution. The rights to bear arms, to home school, the sovereignty.

Everything Has A Reason Donation: 1308 EC. My stochasticity thoughts astir indefinite areas I fancy.

Life According to Me Donation: 2,000 EC and 125x125 ad for 2 weeks on PR3.

Learn To Earn Money On The Net Donation: 500 EC. 'Learn How To Make Money On the Internet with Abdulrehman Agha. Join me as I teach how a 15 year old is making money on the internet.' I'm looking forward to hearing from you.

Lola's Diner
©2008-2009

The Birthday

So I drop my daughter off at the bowling alley for "the" event. My daughter had told me that they were probably going to have dinner with her brother after the event, so hint, hint, I would have to drop off my son at the restaurant. Well thank goodness I didn't make my son sit around for that phone call because...it never came!

Anastasia and I took our son to the driving range, where he actually did quite well for not picking up a club since the fall. Anastasia however, completely rocked the range. I got her a Nike Sumo 5000 driver for Christmas. (A slightly used one, cause those puppies go for $499 new, not at all my price range.) If you are a golfer, you need to get one of these because she could not make a bad shot. Every shot was straight on and the distance was amazing. She's a good golfer, but this club is going to make her smokin' hot!

Afterward I encouraged our son to call a friend and make plans for the rest of the afternoon and evening. Thankfully his best buddy invited him over to play video games otherwise the poor kid would have sat home waiting for that call to go to dinner that didn't come.

My daughter called me at 6pm (while I was in the middle of grocery shopping) to come get her asap. Well, ok, I guess I'm done shopping. I went to pick her up and her 4 gift bags chocked full of loot, plus leftover cake. Needless to say when our son saw all the loot he was jealous. (My son did not get near anywhere that much loot from his dad for his birthday in December.) I was jealous too. I can't compete with that when the jackass loser is not paying child support and reimbursing me for the children's expenses as he is supposed to. I was angry. Our son got all moody and uncooperative. If there is any consolation, we will likely have to return the clothing he and his girlfriend bought. He never buys the correct size.

You know when your partner knows you like the back of her hand when she insists that you buy "Twilight" the movie and you tell her no, you're going to buy the cargo shorts our daughter wanted that she didn't get from her Aunt, some golf stuff, and a teen magazine. Anastasia kept insisting I just get the movie. No, that's not how I roll. I saw our daughter when she opened my sister's gift and she was disappointed because she wanted those shorts for golf this summer. I couldn't afford to buy what I planned on, plus the movie. Anastasia still insisted, then went off to her caregiver gig, while I went to shop. I bought what I said I was going to. Anastasia came home with...you guessed it, "Twilight" the movie. I asked her what if I bought one and she gave me 'the look'. She knew I wasn't going to buy the movie. Lol!

Oh, and can I say how much the Jewel Osco Bakery '4 way' cakes rock? It is a regular size cake consisting of 4 big slices of 4 different kinds of cake. Simply white, chocolate chocolate, German Chocolate and carrot cake. Everyone gets what they want, everyone is happy and best of all, Mom doesn't have to bake.

Lola's Diner
©2008-2009