Friday, June 3, 2016

A FRIDAY CHAT ( about this & that )


Good Morning All !

I've been working non stop the last month or so - on the house - the garden - furniture - but other than instagram I haven't been diligent with taking photos.

I did a beast of an armoire ( she's now a beauty ) that I should get around to posting and I've just finished a little chest.........maybe next week - for now I'm just going to sit around and chat with you and take a break !

Soooo..... you know my ongoing problem with chin hairs ?
I've mentioned it in passing on a few posts.
Well I was at the pharmacy a while back and found a mirror that magnifies by 15 percent !
No more problems !
I was actually excited to get home and get to work on those few stray hairs.

DON'T DO IT.
JUST LISTEN TO ME AND DO NOT BUY ONE OF THOSE MIRRORS.

JESUS - MARY & JOSEPH !

I sat down on the couch - brought my knees up to my chest - placed the mirror on my knees and positioned my face - tweezers in hand.

And then I screamed.

Grizzly Adams was staring back at me.

John says - from the other side of the couch - What the hell's the matter now ?
Suzan says - I'm like a gorilla - my entire face is covered in hair.
John says - No it's not - don't be ridiculous
John says - I'd like to be able to get through just one show.......just one of them without you interrupting with your foolishness - your face is not covered in hair.

But it is - and I had no idea.
I've been blissfully living my life totally unaware of that fact - grumbling now and then about a hair or two that I missed when putting makeup on.

THE ENTIRE SURFACE IS COVERED IN HAIR !!!
I plucked out two or three and gave up.

And now I'm wondering - if anyone has really great eyes - can they see that?
Failing eye sight has it's advantages I must say.
That's why you can only hang around with people your own age - a young whipper snapper would probably spot that flaw immediately.
Dear God...........really just Dear God.

Suzan says - I look like Grizzly Adams
John says - Who the hell is that?
_________________________________________________________________________________

Jesus Mary and Joseph.
Growing up in a large extended ( and boisterous ) Irish family - that expression was heard often.
Usually shouted out.
So it was JESUS - MARY AND JOSEPH ! this and JESUS MARY AND JOSEPH ! that.
I never considered it blasphemy because our Priest would say it himself - with a thick brogue - as he sat at my Grandmother's kitchen table smoking cigarettes and having a glass of whisky.
But this is the way I always think of it
JESUS !  MARY !  ( and Joseph )
Like Joseph is an after thought.
I always picture Joseph kind of just walking 2 steps behind with his head bowed.
Skulking around there somewhere in the background.
Just a random thought I thought I'd throw in there.

Anyway one day in school ( elementary ) someone slammed the door and I jumped - yelling out
Jesus Mary ( and Joseph ) !
To which the " sister " - ( sister Mary something or other ) came swishing down to my desk with a ruler in her hand ( the nuns in our school used these as weapons - tools of the trade so to speak )  holding it up in the air in a threatening manner

- You will NOT use the Lord's name in vain in this classroom ( leaving a young impressionable mind to think it was ok to do so outside of the classroom )
- But Father McKinty says it all the time - I replied

To which the ruler came smashing down on my desk so hard that it snapped in half -
I don't know how much the Catholic School Board spent in rulers -  but they were constantly being smashed in half by furious nuns.
They had anger issues - I swear to you.

Later when I told the story to my Grandmother - she pff'ed it off - saying
" What the hell does she know - she's not even Irish "
________________________________________________________________________________

You can imagine the shock I felt upon learning that my Grandmother wasn't born in Ireland.
Her Father was.
Irish blood is the strongest blood on the planet.
Don't believe me?
Go to a St. Patrick's parade.  It flows like guinness.  I've seen Asians claim to be Irish in March.
_________________________________________________________________________________

The other night John looked at me funny.
Suzan says - Why are you looking at me like that?
John says - You have dark shadows under your eyes
Suzan screama - AGGGHHHH - WHY DID YOU HAVE TO MENTION THAT ?
John says - What ?  You're tired that's all
Suzan says - Now I''m going to go to bed thinking of Quentin and Barnabus
John says -  You're getting worse you know - with this constant jibberish
Suzan says - The show !  Dark Shadows - don't you remember it ?
John says - I think you make half this shit up


My brother and I would literally run home from school - gasping and out of breath to make sure we didn't miss one second of the terror this show created in our worlds.
Between that and Batman and angry nuns swinging rulers around - we spent a couple of years like little jittery nervous wrecks.
JESUS - MARY ( and Joseph ) !
_________________________________________________________________________________

Now I'm in a nostalgic frame of mind.
So before I bore you to death with my ramblings of way back when I think it's time to sign off.
Hope you all have a wonderful weekend my friends !



Hugs - and love
Me
Grizzly
aka

33 comments:

  1. I so agree with you on the 15x mirror! I got mine a few years ago. It's a blessing and a curse! LOL!

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  2. Hi Suzan your chat today gave me a smile. Ohhhh I remember coming home after school to see Dark Shadows too. Loved that show. Hope your summer is off to a good start.
    Hugs,
    Kris

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  3. The day I bought my magnifying mirror was the day I told myself I looked like one of those old ladies who have a full beard and they have no clue or don't care.
    It is quite shocking what you can find with one of those mirrors. I pluck and I pluck and wonder why the hell don't I just get my entire face waxed?

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  4. hahahaha! I bought one of those little mirrors a few months back and I know exactly what you're talking about. Its probably just better to not know what 15X magnification can do to you. But once you've seen it you can't stop looking. I caught my husband in the bathroom with it looking at his nose hairs. Crazy.

    I used to love Dark Shadows!!! I had forgotten all about it. Wasn't there a character named Jonathan too?

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  5. SO Funny!! You brought back so many memories.. including the rulers and nuns!!

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  6. Ahh, the memories. We watched Dark Shadows faithfully. What was my mother thinking?????!!!!! I'm not catholic so I don't have the same perspective on Jesus, Mary and Joseph. ;) What I do know is Jesus is the son of God. And Mary and Joseph were obedient to His calling on their lives. :D I love your Friday chats. Laughter is the best medicine. Thanks for my Friday dose. xo

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  7. I know that "Grizzly Adams" face... it appears in my mirror all the time! Ugh ~

    I loved Dark Shadows, too.

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  8. Across the river from you in the sweet little village of Chateauguay (at least it was a sweet little village back in the 1940s when my mother lived there) was a seminary with a fine walled orchard. My mother and the other hooligans on her street used to climb the wall and steal the fruit. It was inevitable that she would get caught and dragged home by the ear by some monstrously tall man in priest's robes. The neighbours would gather and call out that there was no point in talking with "that" family as horror of horrors not only were they English (Scots and been in St Louis de Gonzague since the 1820s but who's counting) and even worse they were Protestants. But my quiet and shy mother would only use French swear words and they all began with Holy Mary Mother of God! Have a great weekend!

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  9. I didn't think that y'all would have the same tv shows as we did...now or 40 years ago. How interesting ! Yep.... that stray hair thing.... I've had the same thoughts. I'll get home after a day of shopping or whatever and see one long hair sticking out that I missed somehow or sprouted over night. OMG! Did the cute young cashier see that ??? did he think I was an old hag because of it ? Geez. Like I really care. Still...the thought goes through your head. It's like walking around with a big piece of broccoli stuck on the front of your teeth (which wouldn't happen to me because I don't touch the stuff), or having a long piece of toilet paper coming out the back of your jeans as you walk through a nice store....which I'm only in because I have a great coupon! UGH! I feel with ya, Sister!!

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  10. OMGoodness, I went to Catholic school too, for 13 years (K through 12). THose nuns were CRAZY!!! Of course if I had 85 kids in one room for a full day I would be BEYOND crazy....just sayin:) I of course remember Dark Shadows! And to make you feel a LITTLE better, my face is covered in hair too....but then I am half Italian so that's where I get it. It is sometimes a full time job to keep up with it:):):) Have a great weekend.!!!!!!!!!!!!

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  11. Dear fellow repressed Nun educated Soul Sister,
    Yup, all of the above sounds just like my childhood! It was nice going down Memory Lane with you! Since I am older than you by approx 10 years, from what I can gather, Dark Shadows wasn't around yet, so we rushed home to watch the original Mickey Mouse Club with Annette Funicello as one of the Mouskateers!
    Chin Hairs are the bane of my existence and I'm always late going to bed because I start hunting them down by feeling them with my fingers and trying to see if I can find them in the mirror. The grey,(white), ones are really hard to see with my super myopic vision!! Do you think that eloctrodyalysis works? Do they still have electrodyalysis???
    BTW, I feel like young people don't even know I'm around. The ones I encounter in California don't even acknowlege older people! They seem so self-absorbed, that I don't think they would notice even if my Chin hairs were braided and went all the way to the floor!
    Have a great weekend!
    XOXOXOX
    Ethel

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  12. Teeheehee!!! Slitting a gut, jup, I noticed all the hairs on my face a few years back, just about died! Found wine, beer and cocktails helps me forget about them.... When in my very early 20's I first moved to NS, that is when I first heard the Jesus Mary and Joseph line. But added to that was also - and the f**king donkey! To dwhich someone responded - leave the poor f**cking donkey out of it! Ever heard that one before? I wonder if it's a Maritime thing, lots of Catholics here too of Irish decendency. We are hoping to finish year 3 of our reno's here by July then we will be putting the property up for sale. We have put all our savings into it, heart and soul. It has consumed us and now Dave no longer has his job in the oil field industry so we are hoping for a quick, break even sale. Hope you are soon finished with your renos. The house and yard looks great on Instagram. xo Patty

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  13. We lived outside of Dublin for a couple of years, best two years. It is entirely impossible to have an minute or less convo with an Irishman, and you might have 10 people in the same room and everyone is talking at the same time! It was totally energizing, loved it! One of my favorite roundabouts had a statue of Mary in the middle. Don't get me started on superfluous hair on my chin and upper lip. Maybe we could start a new fad and dye them purple or something, what do think?xxxxx

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  14. Jesus Mary and Joseph you crack me up. PS I grew up in the same type of household and had my hand zapped with a ruler many times!

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  15. Jesus Mary and Joseph you crack me up. PS I grew up in the same type of household and had my hand zapped with a ruler many times!

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  16. The good news is that as more hair appears on the face it fades on the legs. Try to look forward to not having to shave your legs.

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  17. Yep, to all of it. Hair on the chinnie.. chin.. chin. The magnify mirror..Yikes, I know, have the scary thing too. And Jesus, Holy Mary, (and Joseph) grandma always said it in polish, which of course I heard as a kid, and now some 70 years later I still say it. And the sisters in grade school, rulers and the dreaded (cloak room which was reserved for the naughty boys). Yep, those were the days. I enjoyed remembering it all again...oh, except the hairy chin, I see and remember that every day...Have a wonderful weekend, and John too of course...

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  18. Close up mirrors are an evil invention that some plastic surgeon came up with to increase his income......what? You didn't notice all the wrinkles when you were looking at all the chin hairs that you didn't know you had? Jesus, Mary and Moses(Southern Baptist upbringing)! If the hairs freaked you out, the wrinkles will cause you to need therapy! And, I too, could stand in for Barnabas Collins with the pale skin and dark circles I've got going on lately. And let's not even get into how my legs look like someone decoupaged a road map onto them! Getting older is not for the faint of heart. Sigh.

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  19. Ah Suzan you are such a delight. I sit here laffing so hard hubs comes out to see what I'm "really" doing. You're good for my health.
    Now those nasty chin hairs, pesty aren't they? Since we stay home for days on end, no make up or spending time with mirror. Since hubs is very impatient person when he wants to go somewhere, I will get dressed but not put make up on, can do that in car. Only when I look in mirror my chin looks like Grizzly Adams. I ask hubs why he didn't tell me about chin hairs. He answers by asking what he was supposed to say? groan. I make sure to have tweezers in purse and mirror.Hope other drivers don't notice. The hair on chin gets worse as a woman gets older. Sorry to need to warn you about that. Get one of those "no-no's" advert on tv. Gotta go, have good weekend

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  20. I loved this post! I spent two years in a Catholic boarding school.I was not Catholic and had never even seen a nun in person or in much of any form, for that matter, before living with them. Terror was struck in the hearts of both Catholic and non-Catholic alike one night when our "house Sister" dressed in her long black habit caught some of my room mates in a lie as to where and with whom they had spent that Saturday evening. At an older boy's house(no parents home). Jesus, Mary (and Joseph)! They had not been in town at a movie as they were scheduled to do. Sr. R loomed in the doorway in her long black habit, stamping her foot and screaming " I am sick and tired of this @#%! string of lies you are handing me!" We were all petrified and one of the girls started screaming "I'll tell you where we were tonight, Sister," whereupon she began to spill her guts. Her fellow dilenquents were ready to kill her, for sure. I was so scared that I was ready to fess up too and I hadn't even been with them. I can attest to the wrathful persuasion of an angry nun!

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  21. Oh yeah
    Got the 15% mirror too
    Love it
    And the best place for tweezing is a parking lot
    I try to find a less travelled isle

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  22. I refuse to pluck (or shave) one hair off my body. We were born with hair! Anyway, I have earned every single hair on my chinny-chin-chin!!! I also have the Italian mustache which was given to me proudly by my nunnie and passed down by my mom and her mom. Otherwise, I'm not a very hairy person. Anyway...

    We watched Dark Shadows, too. I don't remember being creeped out about it.

    I can't believe how angry those nuns were. I have heard the most awful stories from the Catholic girls across the street when we were growing up. You would think that those women would have had blissful faces on while serving the lord, but apparently not. They must have thought of all the things they had given up for a life of poverty. I would have been bitter, too.

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  23. I scrutinize my chin daily, with a magnifying mirror! I also ran home after school to watch Dark Shadows! I was in love with Quentin (David Selby). You are too funny. Enjoyed this.

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  24. You brighten my day, thanks for the laughs.

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  25. so...I am a few days late in reading this...sigh. Just remember: WE ARE MAMMALS AND MAMMALS HAVE FUR (hair). there, now I am done with my simple rant and just to keep you screaming: we also have fun (hair) on our butts! even if you can't see it, it is there. PS: Dolphins and whales also have hair/fur, it is just in MUCH smaller quantities and not often seen. Love, your mammal sister - K (LOL)

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  26. JESUS - MARY & JOSEPH !....lol. Thanks for the real belly laugh this morning Suzan. Bless you!

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  27. Suzan, I LOVED Dark Shadows! A little trivia- Quentin (David Selby) is from WV. Our state celebrated its 150th birthday in 2013 and David came to do an Abraham Lincoln reenactment (we were declared statehood in 1863 by Lincoln). I got to meet David backstage, and I was that giddy school kid again! His brother (just as handsome) was editor of our town's paper, located right down the street from our high school. When he'd walk past, we used to holler at him from our classroom windows). Oh yeah, nostalgia, indeed!

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  28. Oh, and BTW, I grew up Catholic (yea, good olen Catholic girls yelling out the windows while the nuns weren't looking). JMJ was commonly heard too. When my mother lost her filter totally, one time she blurted out (when she thought a credit card lost), JMJ, say a GD prayer to St. Anthony. Lol!

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  29. Ha ha! Suzan, you crack me up! Of course, i know can't stop thinking of Dark Shadows and Barnabas Collins. Loved that "scary" show as a kid, just like you. Yeah, no magnified mirrors for me - THAT would be the scariest show of all! Jane

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  30. Suzan, buy some wax strips and take that hair off. They look like bandaids. you warm them up with your hands (friction) and place them on your chin or lip and pull. Easy peasy.

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  31. Laughing 'till my sides hurt! I heard that (and many more) from my Irish parents so many times. Once in a BIG while if my mom got REALLY mad she said the "s" word, but when she said it, it the i was long. It had so much more power! Unfortunately I have had the supermagnifying mirror for years.

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  32. Laughin out Loud! I gave up on trying to pluck my chin hairs. I just give em a swipe with a little plastic razor...(that is the advise of my laser gal,,,,don't pluck!)She doesn't work on Friday afternoons anymore, and I used to go on Friday cuz I needed the weekend to "let the little red welts go down" before work on Monday....I guess I need to find someone else...Not great on customer service! Good grief.....Thanks for the TV memories....Loved those two shows and so many others....seems like there were a lot of good ones.

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Due to a large amount of spam ( that I'm tired of going back to posts and deleting ) I'll be using comment moderation from now on !!!
Can I beat these spammers at their own game? Probably not - but I'm going
to try my damnedest !!!
xoxo