YOU KNOW YOU'RE POOR IF...


+ you raid your red sox cup filled with change, spend the next hour sorting and counting and do a big cheerleader kick when you find out you have $34! market basket here i come!

+ when a friend tells you that they went to costco and bought a frozen yogurt and didn't even finish it-- you fight back the urge to ask if there is any left and if you can have it.

+ you consider taking tupperware to church functions so you can quickly, without notice, stuff as many brownies and lemon bars in as you can.

+ you also consider taking tupperware to friends houses when you are invited for dinner so that you can take an extra helping that you "can't possibly finish" and then when no one is looking you dump the food in.

+ you cringe every time you get on the bus or the subway, knowing that you only have 10 more swipes before it's all over and you're riding your bike EVERYWHERE.

+ your treat in your lunch box is a bag of microwave popcorn that you've had sitting in your pantry for who knows how many years.

+ when someone says the phrase "oh it's not that much; only $5.00" your heart breaks knowing that that is just WAY TOO expensive for your blood.

+ you wonder if this next experience of paying your tithing is going to turn into the next great ensign story.

+the word FREE pops out at you everywhere you go- and even when the dude at the T stop that gives the little fake newspapers away for free, hands one to you- you feel like you have just been given a present.

+ you actually took 30 minutes scouring your car because you may have accidentally left behind some money and when you come up empty handed you curse yourself for not being more careless with your dollar bills beforehand.

+ the words "sorry, i can't afford that" have become the way you start out all conversations.

+ you scowl at that total stranger who has a small bag of chips in her hand and is selfishly munching away, while you helplessly covet her goods.

+ you've had PB & J for two straight weeks and the outlook on a change is slim to none.

+ you anxiously await your early christmas present from ma n pa deming-- a box full of food-- whoot!

I LOVE THE 80's- peggy style

today's show is brought to you by my favorite

SATURDAY MORNING CARTOONS!
(in no particular order)

first off i would like to pay homage to the religious experience that saturday morning cartoon watching in the 80's was. there was no other reason to get out of bed at 6 in the morning and wait before a rainbow colored screen and the light constant beeeeeeeeeeepppp.

we were ready. ready for the onslaught of colors, icons and breakfast cereal commercials. we didn't mind the constant fight amongst ourselves about whether we should watch the ghostbusters cartoon or garfield and friends. it didn't matter. nothing mattered... at least until saved by the bell was over- idicating that



ron popiel



would come on next and try to sell us all on a cheap dry-your-own-food gimick! so we waited, with our cap'n crunch in bowls, ready... waiting for the mind-numbing brilliance of saturday morning tv!



NUMBER ONE-

do the CARE BEARS countdown 5...4...3...2...1!

nothing makes you feel better than to know that you have the care bears on your side- these plush do-gooders were always on the look-out for trouble. and trouble they found. from the kid in the wheelchair who couldn't get all her packages delivered in time because beastly, no heart's evil sidekick had foiled that wonderful plan again, to the trouble they sometimes ran into with each other in care-a-lot. these mongrammed icons, precurser to the emoticon, had us all in our own bedrooms clutching to our very own friendship bear practising the CARE BEAR STARE in attempt to thwart our mother's evil attempts to get us to do the dishes!

NUMBER TWO-

MUPPET BABIES!

in the heart of a nursery, guarded by a nanny we never see, except her green and white striped socks, lay a cast of characters we all loved and adored, known as the muppet babies. from gonzo opening the closet only to find a monster in it or a train headed for us, to fozzy the bear telling awful jokes and having food thrown at him... we just couldn't get enough of the crazy antics these multi-thinged bunch had to give. remember when they lost animal and they had to go into the basement and it turned into indiana jones? remember skeeter... scooter's twin sister who we'd never heard of before and haven't seen since?

NUMBER THREE-

THUNDER CATS/VOLTRON/TRANSFORMERS

don't hate me dudes, but being forced to watch these cartoons because roger was older and mean about it- we HAD to watch all of these and they have forever become one entity to me. don't get me wrong, i still liked them- but somewhere my psyche made like the voltron in trouble and meshed all three into one ginormous, crime fighting beast in my brain. they are one in the same and yet each had their own cool powers. the thundercats and their righteous hair-do's and kiss-esque make-up, voltron with thier cat like awesomenes and of course-- the beloved transformers. i love you optimus prime- your cool but sure voice helps me to know that i am in good hands against the decepticons!


NUMBER FOUR-

dun da dun da dun INSPECTOR GADGET

didn't we all just want to be inspector gadget sometimes!!! there you are watching your favorite show, but you really need a snack and your little brother (who usually acted as the gopher to all older siblings) refused to get it for you... wouldn't it have been great to say GO GO GADGET ARM and reach all the way into the kitchen and get that box of raisins? i say yes! i loved watching that clumsy detective dodge dr. claw and his meniacle cat with the help from his neice and smart dog! and do you guys remember the chief popping out of random places to give gadget his mission? dude i loved this show!

NUMBER FIVE-

i have the power! HE-MAN

the one and only master of the universe is here- along with his trusty steed cringer turned into battle cat, his sexy vixen of a "friend" she-ra and don't forget everyone's favorite comic relief orko! together they fight off the gnarly skeletor and protect the castle of grayskull. if my memory serves me correctly, he-man came on pretty early in the line-up... what a great way to start off anyone's day. oh and don't forget orko at the end of each episode giving the lesson of the day- eat more fruits and vegetables or tell an adult if someone tries to sell you drugs. thanks orko for helping me to stay healthy an safe!


NUMBER SIX-

the SMURFS!
i know you are all now singing the la las's in your head to the theme song- if not- you are now! dude, what the smurf are smurfs? but really, who the smurf cares. all we knew that these little blue mushroom dwellers made our lives seem a little better. after all, we didn't have to grow up being blue and we didn't have to constantly keep an eye out for that wicked villan gargamel and his dumb cat azrael. we questioned why there was only one girl, why that one man smurf seemed like a girl and why papa smurf got to wear red. but these were quickly forgotten as the theme song began.





NUMBER SEVEN-

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES

turtles in a half shell- turtle power! yeah dude- so these turtles and a rat got dipped in the crappy green goo that is under NYC and it turned them all BAD A and now they can kick the trash out of shredder with their knum-chuck skills and finish off the day with a pizza! RADICAL! the toys my brother and nephew owned- action firgures, costumes, weapons! love me some turle power man!


NUMBER EIGHT-

PEE WEE's PLAYHOUSE

does this really count as a cartoon- well it's probably better describes as an acid trip- but for the sake of argument and because this is my childhood we are reliving- it falls under the umbrella, as it did fall in the saturday morning line-up. oh where to begin- pictures and people and crazy antics and stupid jokes and weird doings all flash before my eyes as i begin to explain exactly what it was we loved about this show. maybe it was for its sheer strange factor that we watched- completly taken in by the "word of the day" and the big ball of rubber bands or chairy. what was it about ths strange man dressed weird, with a strange voice and wearing red lipstick that we loved so much? who knows- yet we still watched faithfully! shout out pee wee- and by the way loved you on the big screen!




NUMBER NINE-

ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS
alivn, simon... theodore! these guys can rock! once upon a time a dude was playing around with a recorder and played back his singing a little too fast and realized that it sounded a lot like little fury creatures singing- and the chipmunks were born. so you throw on some random colored tunics, give them a father-figure and some girlfriends and you make them a pop sensation! later will follow the many albums, the plush dolls and the movie! we watched as alvin and his gang made trouble for the sake of doing good and eagerly waited for dave to finally flip his lid and scream AAAAAALLLLVVVVIIIIINNN!!!!! then we'd giggle with delight!


NUMBER TEN-

who you gonna call... GHOSTBUSTERS!!!

so we just couldn't get enough of the movie- so like they alwasys seem to do... they made it into a cartoon. so venkman, ray, egon, winston and janine were joined by everyone's favorite slimy ghost- slimer! together they fought bad ghosts and continuously saved the lovely people of manhattan from near destruction! dude, my little bro was way into these guys and had all the action figures and he even got a kit for his birthday one year that was a gun and it illuminated a ghost on the wall and then you zapped it off and it would disappear-- it was like... way awesome!



well that wraps it up for today! i know there were many more fantastic toons that i didn't even get to. looks like we'll be looking at a sequal in the near future. but as lavar burton would say-- see you next time!

PEEPING PEGGY


i am a voyeur. it's sick and true. but i can't help it sometimes... no really i can't.

the previous tenant of the house next door was paranoid, so the blinds directly across from our kitchen were always closed. new friendly couple, who recently purchased the home always has their blinds open, as do we, and our houses are so close together i can almost reach out and touch them... at the very least i can see them oh so clearly. now when i am doing dishes or headed for the bathroom i can look over any time and see the inner workings of new friendly couple (heretofore called NFC).

NFC has now become my own little project in observation. what does the every day life really look like in a middle-aged, no children marriage?

a typical night looks a little something like hubby and wife sitting at kitchen table eating dinner- not talking. at all. it always strikes me as interesting. there have been times when i have washed each dish just a little more slowly just to wait and see if they ever do say anything to one another- but nope... nadda! interesting. maybe it's just me. maybe i am just a talker... maybe i just can't shut up. but really? you guys don't say anything at all? weird! and it makes me uncomfortable (as if i had any business being uncomfortable on their behalf) watching them look at everything in the room other than each other as they slowly masticate their food and take time sawing their chicken breast into bite-sized pieces.

then i walk away and later notice that now hubby is in the family room (which from kitchen window i can also see inside FR window) watching the current game and wife is sitting at kitchen table reading.

now i am not about to start making judgements based on these very brief interactions- but seriously- am i the only one that finds it rather interesting that this couple doesn't seem to interact at all? okay so they eat in the same room.. good enough? of course i don't see what they are like any other times of the day. but believe me when i say i am not done with my observations. i am totally and utterly intrigued by this and i can't stop looking! don't judge me or tell on me- i'm pretty sure it's illegal and i'm already in enough trouble with the law as it is!

and it's not like they haven't seen anything unusual coming from my kitchen. i mean michael and i did get caught dancing in my kitchen to the musical CATS...

I'M NOT READY FOR THE FALL YET!


this is my favorite season!
i love the change in weather-
change in color
the smell in the air
apple picking
pumpkin carving
halloween
making chili and soup
wearing light jackets and sweaters


but- dudes... i'm just not ready for it yet! this change in my environment had not given me enough time to relax to enjoy the more pleasurable changes that are going on all around me and it kind of just sucks!

today i was noticing the change of color in so many trees and it really freaked me out! i wanted to scream at the trees and tell them to stop- to give me just a few more weeks to get caught up! but time and tide wait for no man- or so i hear- and so all i can do it add it to the list of things stressing me out and then do my best to chill out and enjoy it anyway.

JAILBIRD!

hey- wouldn't it be hilarious if i went to jail?

kind of a random statement, no? well actually, not really-- more like my possible reality and i'm not even exaggerating!

so here's the sitch! in boston, if you get 5 traffic violations within a 3 year period you have to take a traffic class. well, that's me. i got the letter months ago and quickly put it out of my mind as i went about my busy july and august. but i did sign up for it eventually. the only problem was i guess i had done it a touch too late... thereby incurring the penalty of a suspended drivers license-- and driving on such is considered a criminal offence.

so imagine my surprise, when on friday night headed on my way home i get pulled over-- apparently my registration had also expired (oops, i knew i was forgetting something). so the dude, in a nutshell, comes back from looking at my license and reg and informs me that my license had been suspended, that it was a criminal offence that he will have to arrest me. HOLY CRAP did you just say arrest? he sure did. i informed the officer that i was attending the class the following day and did the only thing i could think of-- i pled for mercy and asked the guy to let me go. nope. but he did extend his arm of mercy by NOT arresting me... how kind.

so-- now-- my car has been impounded-- i have to get a hearing and pray as many prayers as it takes that somehow i get off easy. the most they can do to me is: 60 days to a year in prison AND revoke my license. the very least: revoke my license for 30 days.

interesting that i always seem to have this kind of drama with insurance and registration-- i'm a glutton for this kind of pain i guess!

it's a good thing that i have my bike up and running now, that i have already been getting used to taking the bus and the T everywhere i go and that i no longer have a job that requires me to drive anyone anywhere... it's like i have a very merciful Father up above that saw this one coming from a mile away and did all He could to make this as painless as he possibly could. cheers to finding blessings in the trial!

so, um... will you guys come visit me when i'm in the slammer?

THE LATEST IN MY LIFE...


so i have a new blog... MY LIFE AS A STARVING ARTIST. it does not replace this one... it's just a seperate one to document what my life is going to be like over the coming months as i toil and sweat and worry and play. so you can find the link off to the side there and go to it any time you want and give me a little cyber-lovin.

so that's all i was gonna say. hope your week is going well.