Happy New Years for 2009!!!

I can’t believe it!

I survived Christmas and New Years!!

Considering how December of 2008 started I was wondering if 2009 was going to be the same way.

In one night a crazy neighbor’s son cuts our phone lines, I get a kidney stone attack and Hunka rushes me to the ER. Then dealing with Crazy Neighbors son’s parents (they really are O.K. it’s their son that’s nuts) getting the phone company to fix the lines, calling the cops, then having a sink link, plus trying to find enough money to pay the bills and have a decent Christmas, on top of that realizing that Christmas dinner was going to be at T.M.’s house, it really turned out O.K.

Not fantastic but nice. Of course we still have to get the bathroom sink fixed, I still have to talk to a lawyer, then putting stuff together for income tax time (really looking forward to that), but we survived.

New Year’s Eve and day was really quiet, we don’t watch the football games, and we’re not into that. So on new Year’s eve, Hunka and I with the dogs on the bed, watched a James Bond video, then we switched to Channel 2 to watch Robbie Kenivel jump over the volcano in Las Vegas, did the Dick Clark count down and we opened the front door and toasted each other with sparking cider to welcome in 2009. Some body was setting off fireworks, and the neighbors down the block were having a party and everyone was outside in the cold, yelling and whooping it up.

So we listened to the noise, said “Uh huh, Happy New Years to each other” and went to bed.

I remember years ago before I met Hunka, I rarely went out on New Years; there really wasn’t any place to go to. So Mom and I we went to bed after the news, I’d read a little bit, so did Mom in her bedroom and then we’d hear the whistles go off and people yelling and Mom would say from her bedroom “Happy New Years Sweetheart” and I’d get out of my warm bed and go to her bedroom and kiss her on the forehead and say “Happy New Years Mom” and we’d smile.

There was one time I did go to a New Years Party that some friends of mine were throwing I asked Mom if it was alright and she said “Go, you never go out on New Years, Go, I’ll be fine”

Well I did and I did have a good time, but a half hour before Midnight I felt that I had to get home fast, so I told my friends I wasn’t feeling too good but thanks for the party and left, good thing too, when I got to my block there were fire trucks all over the place I couldn’t get near the house with my car, so I parked it in a neighbors drive way (he said it was fine I could pick it up the next morning) and ran to my house, the firemen stopped me but I said I had to get to my Mom’s house, they wouldn’t let me through, so I ran to the other side of the street, and several neighbors helped me get over the fences so I got to the other side, Mom’s house was two houses over from the fire, and Mom was on the front porch, scared as anything.

I grabbed the garden hose, got a ladder and went up to the roof and started hosing down the roof, the good thing is that the wind was calm and what there was of it was blowing away from the house, so here I am up on the roof, in my good dress and coat, getting wet and cold and not stopping hosing down the roof until the firemen had the other fire under control.

Then I looked at my watch and saw that it was 30 seconds to midnight, holding on to the ladder and the hose I looked down and saw that my Mom was looking up holding the bottom of the ladder and I yelled down to her “HAPPY NEW YEAR MOM!!” and she yelled up at me “HAPPY NEW YEAR SWEETHEART!!” Then we heard everyone else yelling Happy New Year and applauding the firemen---they rescued an elderly man out of the house, and no one was hurt.

When I came down off the ladder, a couple of neighbors helped me take it down, I just didn’t have the strength, and how I got it up I don’t know. I looked at Mom and she looked at me all wet and cold and said “What made you come home?” I said “I missed you”
There was nothing to look at and I was freezing, so Mom threw me into a hot shower, and got my flannel p.j.’s, robe and slippers. When I toweled off I went into the Kitchen and Mom had a mug of hot coco for me, she changed too, and the firemen were still mopping up two houses down.

She looked at me and said “We can straighten things out tomorrow, tonight you rest”, the next day, I was still in my robe but I slipped on some shoes and moved my car out of the neighbors driveway, and went in, Mom fixed breakfast and said “It’s a good thing we’re going to your Aunt and Uncle’s house for New Year’s Dinner after all that excitement I don’t see how we could put one on.” I smiled at her and said “yeah but we’ve got a great story to tell.”

Now that was nearly 40 years ago, my nice dress and coat was a total loss, I didn’t realize it had gotten ripped and even some burn holes, my shoes were a total loss as well and I only wore them that one night----***sigh*** Well when the relatives heard what had happened, without my knowing they gave Mom some money to replace what I lost, when you compare the cost of today’s stuff from 40 years ago the amount doesn’t seem like much, but back then a dollar was worth a dollar and I had bought my stuff from the Grey Shoppe, an expensive store back then (long gone) since they were having a new years sale, we went back and I was able to replace my stuff at a bargain price and get a new coat for Mom.

That was a long time ago but as a New Years celebration it stands out in my mind.

Now thinking about things currently I find that things are just too scary, and too much of Wall Street, Banks, the Government is interfering with our lives and all we want to do is live simply. And the Big scary part is that 2008 went by really fast---I mean real fast. I’d like 2009 to slow down a bit and be a bit easier and not so complicated.

I think that will be my New Years Resolution, uncomplicate my life, and it will start with the credit cards.

Maybe that should be everyone’s New Years Resolution, Simplify and Uncomplicate things, cash and carry, save and save.

Now that would be fine, I just have to light a fire under Hunka’s butt and get him in gear.

Anyway, Happy New Years everyone, and I’ll see what I can complain about for 2009.

Mean Kitty signing off, and making a “Honey-Do List”