Today we went to the grocery store.There were people giving out food samples as usual.But I have noticed that they are looking older and older and worn out……like they should be sitting in a doctors office waiting for their Geritol (old people’s liquid vitamins) or something.These people are WAY past retirement.It suddenly occured to me that these are 401K failures.In the last 1.5 years, most Americans with their own private retirement savings fund(401K) have lost 50-70% of this savings.These old sample servers are people who normally would be out on the golf course but now that they only have Social Security, they have to go back to work.That is a crying shame.Blips and I have started to call them the 401K failures.These people are not standing on their feet for 8 hours a day because they think it is more fun than golfing.I always try to say something upbeat and pleasant so as to maybe be a bright spot in their day. 

I have intended to blog many times but just never got to it.So much has happened so I will just start with this morning.

Blips took the day off today because Friday is my day off.(more about work later)I let him sleep late and I got up and went to get two mochas at our favorite coffee shop called Sati.It is a French coffee shop with the North American headquarters in Woodbury, MN.(Yah, what is up with that?)Anyway, to get people into their shop, they give out coupons which in MN we call BOGO(buy one get one free).They put them on the internet and forgot to put an expiration date so I printed about 25 of them hehehehehe.So, we get coffee for half price.Somehow it seems to taste better at half price

http://www.satiusa.com/cafe_locations.htm

As I was headed for Sati, I noticed a BOGO for McDonald’s coffee in my ash tray.(you can get mochas and latta’s at McDonald’s now and they are quite good) hhhhmmmmm, I could get coffee AND breakfast.Ok, turn left and go to McDonald’s instead of go 4 miles to Sati.On the way, at a very busy street, the car in the left lane just stopped.So I slowed down and then I saw the geese crossing the street and did a quick stop too.Now the other car and I were blocking the traffic and the one mama, one toddler, and one papa goose could cross.It was so touching because I knew that this family started out with about 6-10 babies and now down to just one.The other day I saw on a different yet busy street also, a mama with 9 tiny babies.She set out to cross the street and the babies were afraid to jump down from the curb(about 3 times their height, imagine jumping from a third story window for us).So the baby behind each one bumped the front one off the curb and they were 1/2 the way across the street when the last one did not have the courage to jump.Now the cars were coming fast and the mama huddled the babies in the street together and put her body in front of them so she would be hit first.After the cars were gone, she rushed them all back to the curb to re-join the last one, the non-jumper.Parenting is such an important job.

Speaking of parenting, today I want to drop off Summer’s hammock and stand.She got a very wonderful deal before she had a house and put it in our garage.Now that she has her own house with a backyard and a wonderful shade tree, she wants her hammock. And I wouldlike our garage back.

Tonite, Blips and I are headed to downtown Minneapolis for Phantom of the Opera.We have tickets in my favorite spot (first balcony, first row)It is the same spot I got tickets for Mama Mia.If I am on the ball and get tickets 8-10 months before they advertise, then my row is available.I love that row because I can see the whole stage and there is never anyone in front of me with a hat or goofy hairdoo that blocks my view.I am excited to see this production and I hope I don’t compare it to the Las Vegas production at the Venecian where they warned people that the pyrotechniques could cause siezures.ohhhhhhhh and they lived up to it!!!!We will go early and after dropping off the hammock at Summer’s in SW Minneapolis, we will have dinner downtown at an outdoor cafe and then just people watch(Dutch style, of course)before we go to Phantom.It is a beautiful sunny 70 F (about 21 C)day here.I think it will be perfect, but any day with my husband is a perfect day

The job: hmmm where do I start.In America, you cannot put much public info out there about your job without consequences at work.So, I will just say, that it is a job perfectly designed for my talents.It is in management and I love it.I feel rather fortunate and blessed that I not only have a good paying job but one that is suited for me and I like it as well.Having said that, I am being moved along up the ladder rather fast and I would prefer to go slower with more time to learn each new level of management.I can handle each step up but it would be less stressful if it went slower.I look forward to the day when I know my job so well that I can do it in my sleep.When I started, they told me it would take 6 months to learn it all and I thought that was a long time but I feel like I know half of everything and I have been there 3 months so that is an accurate timeline. It is a very different lifestyle with me working every other weekend and having Friday’s off.So, one Friday off, work Saturday and Sunday then the next Friday off and Saturday and Sunday off.This is my long weekend off.The bad part also is only two weeks PTO(paid time off) per year.That is sick leave, funeral leave, vacation and any other leave combined into two weeks a year.And that is that, you can always go work somewhere else if that is not ok with you.It is hard for Europeans to comprehend this policy but it is very common in America where there are 100 people just waiting for you to quit your job so they can have it.I feel very blessed to have a good job but I know I won’t be doing much traveling in the next few years.I just put it out of my mind and enjoy my job.

So, I don’t know if anybody is even linked to this anymore but this is my life today.Life is good.I feel blessed.