Channeling Mama Bea

Ever stop to realize how silly the things are that we form emotional attachments to?

Mama Bea is notorious for keeping items simply because of their emotional value - my elementary school artwork, Brother Bea's many sports trophies, our graduation gowns and toys/blankets/stuffed animals...and I always tease her because our small house is stuffed to the gills with stuff.

Not artifacts, collections, or anything like that. Just stuff.

Florida and I were moving things around in "his" bedroom in our apartment today and I asked him what this big blue piece of material was. He answered that it was his graduation gown. I laughed.

He blamed it on his mom...but then again if he didn't want it, he could just get rid of it...after all his mom lives in Florida and probably wouldn't notice if it went missing.

And yet, just now, as I clean out my closets and continue the never ending process of packing I find myself channeling my inner Mama Bea (and Lord knows how I try to keep that woman out!)

My denim mini-skirts that I only wear on my birthday...

Mama Bea's vintage t-shirt that says "100% Fat Free..."

or Mama Bea's vintage t-shirt that says "Never trust anyone under 6,000 feet - Lake Tahoe..."

The sequined tube top Grandma Bea made for me...

hell...all my sequined tube tops (there are few. Don't judge...)

The many pairs of pants and skirts that simply no longer fit but were expensive and therefore in my mind should be kept...

It's all so silly...and yet it's causing a major delay in my packing.

I know that I don't want to pack, ship, and store these items...yet my emotional attachment to them is so strong I just know I will break into tears if one day I open my closet and don't see my favorite 100% Fat Free shirt.

Nothing more to this post - just my random thoughts on the packing process thus far (which is terriboo!)

Happy Tuesday evening, sweet friends!

Cheers,



PS - yes I know that I am a woman of a certain age and women of certain ages do NOT wear sequined tube tops and denim miniskirts...

A little Friday miscellany for ya'll

Whoopsie!

Instead of showering and properly prepping myself to head to work for 9 or so hours...I stayed in bed and caught up on your blogs.

And I don't regret one minute second of it!

Hope ya'll have a lovely Friday evening and an even better weekend, in case I don't get a chance to come back and chat. I'm working tonight and going to a party with Florida's Air Force friends tomorrow night...wish me luck. They are all hammering him as to why he hasn't brought me around yet (ahem, ya'll were in ALABAMA for a month!) so I have to be on my best behavior and charm them (and their girlfriends/wives.)

I might be social...but in crowds where I know very few people I get quite intimidated and tend to clam up, try too hard to be funny, and drink. Not a good combo.

There is a rumour however that Rock Band will be played...and as we all know your Sweet Bea loves to sing :) Rock Band to me is just in-home karaoke! So maybe I will wow them with my vocal stylings?

Anywho, no real topic here...I've been meaning to post all week but Florida has tended to fall asleep on my shoulder while I work on stuff (I had an interview this week - keep those fingers crossed!) which gives me an excuse to cheat and come to blogland (my happy place!) and catch up on your lives...but makes it impossible to catch you up since I can't move my right arm as he is snoozing away on it.

Cheers!

Sweet Bea

I need to do laundry like WHOA

I do not know what is wrong with me lately!

I have so much paperwork to do - stupid taxes (which will be a nightmare because of the campaign), medical insurance claims due to the fall, and I know for a fact I need to organize my files that have been neglected since before I went to CA for the campaign (read: May.)

So what am I doing?

Laying in bed, in my jammies, on the blogs.

Now, I could have grabbed all my paperwork and worked on it from my bed. But no.

I'm trying to figure out what to wear to do laundry. Seriously.

I need to wash my pjs.

But if I change out of my pjs, what do I put on?

Jeans? Nope, need to wash them all TODAY.

Other pj pants? Nope, those need to go into the "colors" load.

Workout pants? Nope, those need to go in the "darks" with the jeans.

Ok ok, I'll leave the PJ bottoms on, whatevs. But what about the shirt?

Need to wash the t-shirt I'm wearing with the "darks." UGH!

This might be the stupidest conversation with myself I've ever had. And believe you me...that's saying something. But I felt like sharing with all of you.

Somebody please put me out of my unemployed misery!!!

Cheers,

Sweet Bea

PS - does anyone else have massive problems with the Italic button not functioning? When I try to write something in italics it's fine...but when I try and go back to normal font, it won't stop writing in italics, even when I edit the HTML. The only thing that works is highlighting what I've written in italics (that is supposed to to be normal) and then unclick the Italic button. It's driving me CRAZY!

Keep it in the family, folks!

You know something that just absolutely burns me up?

Its going onto Ebay and looking up my sorority's name to see what cute stuff I find...and am welcomed with an onslaught of badges.

I get that even thought you say you are Greek for life that sometimes that life interferes and you take on other priorities. I won't claim for one moment that I've been the best alumna - not even a good one.

But I would never, no matter the cost, give my badge to someone outside of the sisterhood.

I realize that many of these are from deceased members who didn't leave instructions for their badges and pins. I get that.

But, even if you were dealing with the death of a loved one and in cleaning our their items stumbled onto their badge, why on EARTH would you think it was acceptable to give that person's badge away???

Grandma Bea is in a nursing home and we know that she will never live in her home again...so when I was home during the campaign I'd try and help Mama Bea go through some of her things. I was specifically looking for her pin, from Alpha Delta Pi (Psi Chapter, UC Berkeley, 1930 I believe), because I want to make sure that it doesn't get into the wrong hands. I will return it to the headquarters where it will be properly looked after.

Even if I wasn't Greek, Mama Bea (who didn't go to college and doesn't really understand the whole thing) wouldn't just give Grandma Bea's pin to someone, or sell it on Ebay!

When you enter into a sorority or fraternity there are certain rules, certain standards and traditions, that you subscribe to. Your initiation - and the several weeks of hard work that often precede it - teach you these rules and traditions. Just as I don't sign off as Sweet Bea, MD because I didn't earn it, you don't get to wear my letters because you didn't earn it. I didn't get to wear an honor cord at my graduation because I didn't earn earn it, and you don't get to learn the history and symbolism of my rituals because you didn't earn it.

Please don't think that just because you purchased a Greek pin on Ebay you have the right to wear it, display it, share it, or do anything with it. You do not. You did not earn that right. Speedos can be purchased on Ebay too, and Lord knows nobody, outside of this guy has earned the right to wear them.

Chill out Bea...calm down Bea! I know, I know, I'm ranting like a lunatic (I'm actually on Ebay procrastinating setting mousetraps...ugh!) but still, it just really frustrates me to see people pledge themselves to something with so little care and thought.

Ok done. Soapbox neatly tucked away under the bed (with the mouse, who my cousin says should be named Thundersnow, after the crazy phenomenon happening in Wisconsin, my second home, right now.)

Cheers,

Sweet Bea (MD)

Sweet procrastination, release me from thy grip

I am procrastinating more than you could imagine, sweet friends.

My plane for Arizona leaves at 3pm on Wednesday...its 11:30pm on Monday and so far I've spend a grand total of 30 minutes packing.

It's not like I only have a few things to toss in a bag for a quick vacay...I've been here in Cali for over 5 months and came out here with 3 suitcases and about 7 boxes.

If I'm a bit sparse in my postings, its only because I'm either 1) STILL packing, or 2) having a fabulous time with my bestie KJ, whom I haven't seen in nearly 4 years (I've been a naughty bestie, haven't I?)

So, wish me luck that I finish packing and actually make it to the airport in time for my flight! If I can post from Arizona I most certainly will. If not - the next time you will probably hear from me is once I've returned to DC!

Cheers,

Sweet Bea

Just for funsies, here's what the weather is going to look like where I am...

Tempe, AZ:
High: upper 70s
Low: upper 50s

Washington, DC:
High: low 40s
Low: 30s with snow.

:(