I am going to be an adult soon

My First Work Picture from 1999

So I am coming up on my 18th year at my company.  I am thinking we need a party or something.  I mean it isn't everyday that a girl turns 18.  I have held several different positions at my company and I have seen many people come and go.  I even ran away from home for a few months only to return appreciating what I had.  I have so many great memories of my colleagues.  Everyone knows that you spend more time at work than you do with your family, so you either learn to get along with people or you are miserable.  I have had several different "work husbands" over the years and currently am in a polygamist relationship with several depending on the day and project.

Our company is very old school.  We work 8 to 5, in the office, no working from home.  Ties and jackets for the men and business dress for women.  We most definitely do not have a pool table, ping pong table or a dart board, but who says there is no Fun in Fiberglass. The people are what make work fun and we have definitely had some characters. Don't worry, I won't name names, but here are a few of my favorite memories in no particular order.

• Après Sales Meeting Soirees on the Boat
• Peach Moonshine (or at least the first part of that night, definitely not the next day)
• Rocky Horror Ladies Night Out
• All Ladies Night Outs
• A certain custom products manager retirement roast.
• Going to Appomattox with an Operations Manager who was like a grandpa on the way home from a site visit
• Afternoon conversations with above Operations Manager
• Putting somebody's face on a shirt since they didn't want it on a retirement cake
• Walking into work and having the hall plastered with pictures of me doing Karaoke the night before- I think it was Family Tradition.
• Coming back from a conference and my office being plastered with pictures of me pretending to be a Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader
• Relay for Life and learning to do the Electric Slide
• My pitiful attempts at redneck photoshop- aka color printers, scissors and tape
• Creating Jib Jabs of co workers
• A certain estimator doing the Cupid Shuffle
• Dale Carnegie
• Sharing a dumpling
• Saying something stupid when the Go To Meeting is asking for your name
• Lunch room random conversations
• Giving a book to a colleague who was leaving- a book written by someone who had the same name and was about a gay stripper- still makes me laugh thinking about the presentation
• Trying to teach a co worker how to get his game on so he can get a date
• Negotiating ice cream parties for big order days
• Pageant for Relay for Life
• Bartending in the NASCAR Race Suite
• Posting pictures on FB of me with the new UT Football Coach and then having to take them down because he turned out to be a major %**&^$
• Having Dinner with Pat Summit at Tribute to Women
• After Work Cocktails ( I said AFTER work)
• Parties
• All the Babysitters that were coworkers kids
• Pen Kidnapping
• Ice Ice Baby

There are just too many to list really.  

I told the owner and Chairman of the Board that I moved out of my parents house to go to college when I was 17 so in a few short months he will have had the pleasure of being in charge of me longer than my father did.  He rolled his eyes and grumbled something about that must be why my dad has more hair than him.  (Don't anybody tell him but I have a tremendous amount of respect for JDT, but he would think I was mad at him if I didn't give him a hard time).

So in a few short months I will be 18.  My days of childhood and teenagerhood (is that a word?) are coming to an end. I guess that means I have to act like a grown up so I will try and be serious and professional at all times.  Anybody want to take bets on how long that will last?   And if anybody is interested my start date was March 1, 1999 if you want to plan the party. 

We're off to see the Wizard

When I was a little girl The Wizard of Oz was my favorite movie.  I used to wear red shoes that I called my Ruby Slippers and would say in my best witch voice "Take off those Ruby Slippers".  I am not sure why it was my favorite, but I think part of the reason is when I was kid, before VCR's and DVD's, the only way you could see the movie was when it came on Thanksgiving weekend on tv. We were usually at my grandparents for Thanksgiving and we would all gather in the family room with Grandpa's popcorn and watch the movie again.  Somewhere Over the Rainbow would come on the screen and I would dream of being Dorothy.  I would get so excited when the munchkins would appear and I would hide my eyes when the Wicked Witch would come to scare everyone.  I was so enthralled with the songs and the sets that I didn't realize until much later that the characters in Oz were the same as the ones in Kansas.  I know, I know, I am a little slow on uptake.

When I went to DC for the first time as a kid I couldn't wait to get through the monuments so we could go to the Smithsonian Museum of American History to see the Ruby Slippers.  I still go to see them.  Every. Single. Time.  Here I am the last time I went.

I was so excited when Liam auditioned for a part in Theatre Bristol's production when he was 11 years old.  He received the role of The Mayor of Munchkinland. I couldn't have been prouder.  He owned that part.

Seeing Wicked on Broadway was life changing. I had always loved the Wicked Witch of the West and knew there had to be more to the story.  (People always think the pretty girl with blond hair and the sugary sweet voice can do no wrong, but it is generally the dark haired girl who is kind of awkward and brash that you want on your side. Right?! )  I took Liam and Owen to see the traveling show a few years ago.  After the first song Owen proclaimed that it was the most amazing thing he had ever seen.  When we hear Defying Gravity in the car we all sing, very loud.  I make Defying Gravity my theme song when I need to make positive changes in my life.  (yes, I have different theme songs for different times in my life as well as a supporting soundtrack.  doesn't everyone?)

A few years ago we were able to go to The Autumn at Oz.  In Beech Mountain, NC there is an old amusement park that is a replica of the movie.  It is closed now, but once a year they have a festival where you can walk through the park on the yellow brick road and meet all the characters.  We met up my parents and rented a chalet for the weekend.  It was unseasonably cold, and by cold I mean crazy cold for North Carolina in October.  There was snow and crazy cold wind, but we bundled up and went to Oz.  I have to admit, it was magical.  For a short time we were there.  On our way to see the wizard.

So why do I love The Wizard of Oz so much?  Well, it is a musical, and musical's have singing and dancing and of course Jazz Hands.  But seriously, my memories of the movie aren't just the movie, they are family moments related to the story and it is such a great story with great lessons.  Black and White Kansas is really dull compared to Oz with all it's colorful characters on the other side of the rainbow. Those colorful characters deep down are more like the black and white characters then you think at first. You already have inside you what you think it is that you most want, you just need to find it.  In the words of Scarecrow- "Some people without brains do an awful lot of talking don't they".  The great and powerful are really just people, just like us.  The Wizard says "A heart is not judged by how much you love; but by how much you are loved by others".  Dorothy learns that happiness doesn't come from a place, but comes from being with the ones you love. There is no place but home.

The Camper

Some of the Cousins

My mom comes from a really big family. She was one of seven and her mom was one of seven  of McPhillips. I can't ever keep them all straight.  My mom had a ton of cousins. Real bonafide first cousins. Not third cousins twice removed or anything like that. 35 First cousins.  They all grew up in the same town and have always been very close. Several years ago they started the tradition of the family reunion. When my grandmother and her siblings were alive these were huge multi-day events. There were even t-shirts. Each of the families would take turns hosting and planning these reunions.  One year would be my grandmother's families turn, the next would be one of the sisters turns, and so on.  One year the family in charge found a really nice campground with an indoor pool, a great pavilion and even a tractor for hayrides.  My mom asked my brother and I to please come to the reunion that year.  Liam was about 3 and she knew there were several things planned for the kids that he would enjoy.   She also wanted to have all of us together which had not happened in a while.  I think she was also losing her mind a little because instead of staying in a hotel she decided that we would rent a camper that the campsite had for rent. She kept saying how nice she heard they were and then she told us it was only $35 a night. Really.  What kind of place goes for $35 a night. Now Graham was kind of used to living in some questionable apartments. I think we found that at least 3 of his apartments where he lived in college got condemned after he moved out. Me on the other hand, not so much.  I knew it was bad when I walked in and mom was spraying Lysol everywhere.  I mean everywhere.  The mattresses, the seats, the bathroom, everywhere.  We may die from asphyxiation, but we would definitely not catch the rotavirus.  Mom and Dad were taking the "bedroom". The mattress was visibly sunken in the middle.  This brought on visions of mom and dad laying on top of each other and I really didn't want to go there.  Graham was going to take the couch bed in the front of the camper.  Probably the best spot. Of course. Right. Liam and I were to share the table bed.  The bed that is made by turning the table upside down and putting cushions on it.  I am sure when the cushions were new this would have been delightful, but 20 years and God knows how many families splurging for the $35 a night camper later the cushions had lost whatever fluff they once had.

My mother was surprisingly optimistic about everything.  I think it was probably because she wasn't going to give dad the opportunity to gloat and say I told you so, but she kept saying how it wasn't that bad was it.  We weren't planning on spending that much time there right.

The reunion was fun.  Liam had a blast. By the end of the day he was covered in mud, food, hay, and sweat.  He was exhausted .  We threw him in the summer's excuse for a bath, the pool, and planned for him to pass out from exhaustion.  Didn't happen.  Parent's Worst Nightmare- The OverTired Child.  We were all trying to go to sleep.  I imagine mom and dad on top of each other in the sunken bed.  Graham trying to sleep but mosquitoes hanging out buzzing in his ears, me on the table bed with a kid that won't quit crying.  Graham finally lost it.  Jumped out of bed and yelled "Oh my God, this sucks so bad.  It is like we are the F*****g Griswolds".

Things eventually calmed down and I wouldn't say it was restful, but we were able to get some sleep. The next morning when we were all pretty sure we had all the family togetherness that we could take I hear Graham screaming from the bathroom.  " Oh my God, oh my God, come quick, it happened again". I rushed to him thinking he might be getting attacked by a giant cockroach (as if I would help ) and he is standing in front of the mirror.  He turns and says to me- " I got better looking than I was yesterday".  Yes, he has always been like that.

Graham and I headed back to our homes that day.  Mom and Dad were supposed to stay a few more nights at the camper.  She has never really admitted it, but we know she checked into a hotel for the rest of the trip.  Even penny pinching dad was happy to pay for it.

New Year's Resolutions

I am really bad at making New Year's Resolutions.  The years that I make them I undoubtedly break them before February.  Most years I don't even try, but this year I am documenting them for all the world to see.  Accountability.  Friends and Family- I challenge you to call me out when I am straying and also please commend me when I not. I was at a party the other night and someone said I wish I just got a Report Card on my life.  Please give me a report card.  So here they are- in no particular order.

Meghan Little Carty's 2017 Resolutions

• I will love more. 
• I will not try and lose weight.  ( If I say not try I think it might work better than the other 30 times I said try.)
• I will not eat the things that make me feel badly, except for Taco Bell.  I can't give up Taco Bell.  I know my limits.  I will limit my consumption of Taco Bell compared to this year.  
• I will drink Vodka instead of Red Wine so the morning after isn't as taxing, BUT if I do drink wine I will remember to take my Claritin to offset the red wine's inflammatory response.
• I will only read my news from reputable news sources. 
• I will not read social media posts that are hateful, racist, sexist, homophobic or anti whatever religion. I am not saying I won't read things with which I disagree, but you can bet if it came from Breitbart or Addicting Info I will not read it and I will question how we are friends if you posted it.  
• I will try and see the other side of things
• I will not subscribe to Donald Trumps twitter. 
• I will be "For" things instead of being "Against" them. I will compromise if it means that progress can be made.  
• I will not sit quietly when I see hatred and I will teach my children to do the same.
• I will cherish my friendships and realize how lucky I am to have those friends for so many years.
• I will do more things in life that if I were to post on social media would require a jazz hands emoji.  I have recently found out that some feel the jazz hand emoji is actually the give me a hug emoji.  I still say it is jazz hands, but feel free to give me a hug if you want.  (Just don't grab me by the p***y please)

My Saint Patrick

My Godparents- Pat Gallagher and Cindy Kohart

In my family St. Patrick's Day is a big deal.  Not only is it a celebration of everything Irish, but it was my Uncle Pat's birthday.  Uncle Pat was my Godfather and half of my cousin's too.  He was a good guy.  A really good guy.  He had nicknames for all of us.  I was Muggsy or Muggs for short.  He said because when I was a baby I would punch the air like a prize fighter.  I can't remember if Graham or Kevin was MadDog, but the name fits either of them actually.  Uncle Pat read more than anyone I knew.  He was a total history buff and knew so much about the Civil War and World War II.  He loved all things Irish.  He was into ancestry way before Ancestry.com.  He wrote letters to the post office in Ireland to find some of our relatives and he succeeded.  He mapped out the family tree and went to the library (his favorite place) and made us all copies.  My kids will have no problem going back several generations if they ever have to do a school project.  He was a Vietnam Veteran, and the war was very hard on him.  Not physically, but emotionally.  He never really talked about it, but the pain was always there.  You could see it.  He had the kindest heart.  He always remembered my kids at Christmas and I always appreciated his gifts more because I knew he was on a fixed income.  He really connected with Owen for some reason.  They were about as different as two people could be.  Pat was kind of quiet and calm while Owen, well ...  He rarely traveled far from home but he went to Arizona to see my Aunt Bonnie and all along the way he sent Owen postcards.Owen loved getting those in the mail and still keeps them in his bedside table.  I will never forget the last time I saw him.  We were at my mom's for a visit and he was over and so excited about his trip to one of the Dakota's ( North I think).  He was going to ride the train and meet up with his regimen from Vietnam.  I believe it was the first reunion he was going to attend.  I don't think I ever remember him being so excited about something.  When he got up to leave I gave him a hug and told him  to have a great time.  He started to cry which made me cry too.  I am not sure why he cried.  Maybe he knew.  Who knows.  All I know is I miss seeing him sitting in the chair at family events.  I miss listening to him talk to me about civil war history.  I miss him calling me Muggs.  I am pretty sure he is hanging out in heaven listening to a Celtic Reel reading a Civil War book.  Grandma probably made him some Corned Beef and Cabbage (the best in the world, BTW).  He is most definitely wearing green.

Happy Birthday Uncle Pat!!!!  Love Muggsy

Driving Mr. Graham

I feel like Morgan Freeman but instead of Miss Daisy I am driving Master Graham.  I have been driving around for four weeks with this huge picture of him.  It is his Senior Picture from 1993 that the photographer used as a sample.  I love how it shows how serious and intense Graham is.  I find the shadow particularly interesting.  The shadow looks as if he is sitting on the pot talking on the phone which he has been known to do when I call him.  The worst is when I didn't know that is what was going on and then I hear the flush.  Anyway,  Saddler's Photography sadly shut down this year and they put out an announcement that you could come and get the samples.  I hated to think of him being thrown in the trash (this is a sign of how much I have grown in 40 years), so I made an appointment to go pick him up.  I left him in the car so I wouldn't forget to take him to my mom's when I go at Easter, but got sick of him falling all over my groceries and such so now he sits in my dining room on the bench with the rest of the stuff that I just can't find a place for yet.  I am thinking of auctioning to the highest bidder and the money could go to the charity of Graham's choice.  If I forget to take it to my mom's at Easter that is definitely what I am going to do.  Where does the bidding start for a wicked cool picture of a hipster before hipster's were cool?  Maybe I will just keep it and put it back in the car to help keep me company on long drives.

Snow Days

I am not a fan of snow.  Proof is that I looked all through my photos and this is the only one I could find that was of me outside in the winter.  I am sure my grandmother took this photograph.  She took the most god awful photos of me.  I am always in a ridiculous position.  Never gave any warning.  Just started snapping.  To make matters even worse, she would have doubles or triples printed and give them to me.  Anyway, that is a story for another day.  Snow.  Not. A. Fan.  Sure, I love to ski, but I don't fall.  I am not a fantastic skier, but I really stay in my comfort zone and if I fall, I am done.  TO THE LODGE!!!  I like to sled.  One time.  Walking back up that hill is for the birds.  Especially all bundled up and feeling like the Stay-Puff Marshmallow Man.  One and done and I am good.  The older I get the more my disdain grows.  My kids had over 3 weeks of snow days last year.  Who needs that stress???!!!!

But alas we are in the middle of our biggest snow event in several years.  The Blizzard of '92 kept me from the Adam Ant concert.  The Blizzard of '98 ruined my moving plans.   Now we name our winter storms- this one is called Jonas  and it is particularly annoying as it is taking several days to pass.  Because my New Year's Resolution is to try and find the good in things I tried to remember some good times that I had during some snowstorms.

Sometime in the '80s.  Location Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio.  The "forest" next to Heather's house.  I remember we walked around and pretended it was our Winterland.  I am sure it seemed much bigger than it actually was, but every time I see trees with those icy drops covered with a dusting of white fluffy snow I go back there.

Also in the 80's, many different times, sledding at Valley Vista.  Now that I live in the mountains I chuckle at how big I thought that hill was.

1988- We moved to Bristol.  Stayed at the hotel where Elvis stayed until our furniture got here.  Got ready for first day of school only to arrive and find school was cancelled because it might snow.  WTH???  I have been here almost 30 years and am just now getting used to that one.

Blizzard of '92.  Was supposed to go see Adam Ant with Rachel in Atlanta.  Cancelled because of weather.  Nooooooo!!!!  Rachel tries to leave Atlanta and gets stuck in one of the worst traffic jams of all time.  (I am pretty sure this is the same traffic jam that brought my friend Tracey together with her husband.  They may be the only people in the world who are fond of that traffic jam.)  Tried to make the best of missing the concert so I played Stripped over and over (much to the disdain of my friends) and found some friends to help me drown my sorrows.  Problem is every store on the The Strip ran out of beer.  Oh no!!!  Never fear- there's always liquor.  Tequila doesn't make your clothes fall off when you are playing outside in a blizzard, but it does make you feel that sledding down The Hill on a cafeteria tray is a good idea.  It was really fun, but flying off the hill over the wall and onto the street can leave one with a gigantic bruise on one's ass cheek.

Blizzard of '96.  Decided to get snowed in at my mom's with some friends.  Best place to get snowed in.  All sorts of tasty treats, most likely with dill at that time, and really fun board games.  Playing Taboo or Win Lose or Draw with my mom is a total hoot!!  My favorite memory of this storm is sledding down Bellebrook Dr on those exercise slides that came out about the same time as step aerobics.  We are talking Clark Griswold super secret spray fast.

Snow Day January 2010.  Sledding at the Campbell's.  This picture makes me smile.  Nothing like sledding on a plastic.  PS- this is the same plastic you use for Redneck Slip n Slide at the Campbell's.

  So as I finish Day 1 of being snowed in I have a new attitude.  I will enjoy Day 2 of Winter Storm Jacob.  I may go build a snowman or make a snow angel.  Or I may stay in my pajamas and binge watch all the British dramas that I can't get enough of on Acorn.  One thing is for sure- I will thank God that I don't live any further north and have to do this more often.