Paul's Corner

Hi Paul,

Haven't made the time of late to check into the "Corner". So glad I did today. I get to be the first poster!!!! Yipee!! My husband got home early so he can sit outside while my twins sleep in the car. Such a good dad, quite a bit like you in that respect.

You sound wonderfully happy and fullfilled. Wish we all had time to do the laudry list!! Wow, sounds like you've got the world by the tail.

16 friends over for a party???? You do have your work cut out for you. And you're going to cook?? Awesome!! Sixteen adults is difficult enough, but all those pre-teens!!! I know that I've said that my daughter, Mary, is almost 13. We did the sleep over last year. Her birthday is New Years day. Tons of fun and not to expensive. The girls sprayed her with that silly string stuff at midnight. Man, that was a bear to clean up.

Loved your description of the Full Monty cast doing the promotional "tease". Sounds like all of us girls should have been there, (right Millie!!)

Boy, you sure were right about the teenage years being quite a ride. For me, it's a real roller coster and Mary's not even a teen yet!!! Hold on to your hat!!! I'm sure that she's a lovely, wonderful,brilliant girl. I'm so glad that she has two parents that not only live together, but love each other, to show her the ropes. Such a wonderful example you and your lovely wife are providing for her. Attentive parenting with love, is the best gift you can give your children.

So glad you sound so cheeful and full of hope. This kind of chaos is GREAT!!!!

Missed reading and will catch up soon...

love to you and to all in the Corner,

Margie

Paul! So good to hear from you again. You are certainly the busy man, and I do mean BUSY!

Hope your birthday party went off without a hitch. Sounded like lots of fun.

I don't think there is any book or person in the world who can prepare you and the wife for the wonderful rollercoaster ride you're going to have with your girls' teenage years. You have to write your own book, making lots of mistakes along the way. Somehow, all your bumbling and stumbling will come together and you'll wonder what you did right when you see your beautiful girls become beautiful women... It's a helluva ride, so hang on tight!

Lordy, Lordy, I wish I was one of those 2,000 screaming women at your strip show!! I can ONLY imagine... (Is it hot in here, or is it me?) *g*

Good luck on tour with Monty. Can't wait to read the reviews!

Take care and "break a leg!"
Sally (The Lurker)

P.S. Hi and love to The Corner!

Hi, I've been lurking here for awhile now and decided to pop my head out.

Paul, I've heard good things about the book Reviving Ophelia by Mary Pipher when it comes to raising girls. I have friends who have liked the book. You may not want to take my word for it since when my daughter becomes a teenager I plan on just locking her in her room for the duration.

I do admire you trying to get help however. I think so many children would be far better off if parents sought help when things started to get a litte scary.

I have more to say but I have to run. My day doesn't include 16 girls (thankfully) but it does include a house breaking dog, a potty training boy and a dinner party.

Natalie

Hey mate...
So very happy to hear you all excited and cheerful and busy. You're singing around your house because your confidence is back. You KNOW you're going to do well.
I'll bet the party went off great...tell he happy birthday from Tim.
As far as the strip...goodonya. I sure as hell wouldn't do it. I wouldn't even take my shirt off.
Aunt Mil...I'll join you. I joined Gold Gym today. I meet with a trainer first of next week and the onsite doctor. Plus I'm getting a nutrition plan. I'm going to start going every day and do something. Between the right nutrition and the workout..I might actually look like that picture again. I DO NOT look like that now. My hair is colored to cover the grey and the face..omg the face. It looks swollen...well it's going down. I'll keep you posted on how I'm doing.

Glad everyone seems to be doing well. The holidays are coming up. ALREADY. I know I don't do anything, but still, for my clients and everything...whew. It came around fast.

peace and love to all out there at pc

Tim

Good to hear from you, Paul. I have the same whirlwind going on in my life. Lots of great ideas for managing my time and no time to sit and plot it out. I've heard good things about the Phipher book, too. I'll look around to see if there are any others that are recommended. (Need a good excuse to go to the bookstore anyway.) Keep up the singing. You'll only get more stronger and more confident.

We have guests over tomorrow night for a play reading, but the boys have a band competition also, so I'm going to order food. Not enough time to do it myself and not enough energy to worry about it, either. Just have to get the dog and cat fur off of everything.

Hello to Sally, Margie, and Natalie. Peter, your project, as you described it in the last thread, is impressive. Thank goodness for people like you who can save us from impending environmental/energy disasters.

Millie, I'll join the diet group. I've tried Atkins, but fallen off lately. Dang Halloween candy. Now, my husband has me recording my daily food intake on my Handspring organizer. Actually, he records what I eat, while I scowl. Gotta change that.

Dhiana, I hope your son's show was great fun for him and well met. Maybe the townsfolk can counter the reporters negativity with positive letters to the editor. Wish I could be there to see it.

Gotta run. Off to a "rubber chicken" dinner tonight to "roast" a politician that I'm not wild about. I'm doing it to support my favorite city councilmember and to promote my own business, if possible.

Hugs to ya'll!

Hi, Paul, and all the PCers,

Viruses are all over, aren't they? I've had a couple on my pc, but caught and neutralized by my anti-virus.
Just getting over West Nile virus danger here, in time for flu warnings.

I lost my first hard drive, beyond saving, amazing what you do miss, and what you don't. All I can say is,
make a hard copy of important stuff! ;)

Ah, teenagers . . . I've seen two off on their own, have a 15 year old boy at home yet . . .love them and let
them know it, that's the best advice I can give. That and, male or female, think of the next few years as
permanent PMS, and you'll do fine! Seriously, their brains are not developed, cause and effect don't always connect.

Oh, may I add my wish to having been in that audience?!? Deep breaths, in and out,lol. Sally, we are twins there,lol!
And it is definitely getting warm in here!!!

You sound a little busy,lol, and in your spare time . . . ? Hope all went well.

hugs and smiles to all,
Sally aka deltalady

Dearest Paul,

It was such a pleasure to read about the activities in your life these days. It brought such cheer, and now, you will soon be heading for Sydney, so prepare for the adoration after the articles come out! It won't be "what ever happened to..." but "oh, my gosh, Paul Mercurio is opening in "The Full Monty"!!!!

A friend of mine is going to see TFM, as my proxy, and being she already knows people in the cast, she will be going backstage to meet her friends and you also, and give you a hug from your Grandma Mil and all the gang here on PC!

Her name will remain a secret, but she is in show biz in Sydney, and she will reveal herself.

In her spare time, she is an actress, singer, director, choreographer. She works as an administrator in one of the prestigeous smaller theatres in Sydney. She is absolutely a dear, like all of the people I have met through "Strictly Ballroom"...see the extra benefits in all our lives?

Cherish the teenagers...they grow up so fast, and it's like a blip, as they go from one phase to another. Before you know it, they are middle aged, and have teenagers of their own, and even, GRANDCHILDREN!

Margie, our twin girls are almost 45 years old..I remember how easy they were as babies...they ate out of one spoon, were bathed in the same bathwater, and grew up very close and healthy, thank God! They even were in the high school musicals together...Leah had the lead in "Sweet Charity" and Marcia played Marian the Librarian in "The Music Man."

Even our eldest, Paula, now in Israel, played Gypsy Rose Lee in "Gypsy"...from a stripper to a religious wife and mother! The only one that went into show biz "big-time" was yours truly, in my old age!

Good for you, Timmer, to join the Gym and get guidance with your weight loss. You'll do it, I know!

Diane, writing down everything that one eats is a wonderful tool. I wish I could use those new fangled hand held electronic gizmos..too hard for this old brain. I always remember what the old Weight Watcher's adage was: "Once through the lips, always on the hips"...how true!

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

Peace and Love,

Grandma

P.S. I got a message from our dear Linda Thomas. She was to have had back surgery yesterday. (Friday)

I will call her home and perhaps her husband will be able to report on how she is doing.

Love,

Grandma

Hey,

Forgot to tell you, my 8 yr old, Maeve dressed as "Liz" from SB for Halloween. Thought that was kinda cute.

HOpe all is well, and the party was a raving success!!!

Love,

Margie

Dhi, Tim & Evelyn-- Thanks for helping with the male dancer thing. I reported back to my class and the same boy wanted to know if they had to work with weights in order to get strong enough to lift the ballerinas over their head. This kid never stops.....but you have to take these teachable moments when you get them and they are not always academic ones.

Mary--hope all went well with the issue you comfonted this week. You have more courage than I do, I have a couple issues that I'm letting go because I just don't feel up to tackling them right now, and I know I should.

Paul--reading about Emily's party brought back memories of when my daughter was that age. She used to rope her dad into helping with her parties also. He loved doing it. He used to shake his head over all the giggling that girls of that age do when they are together. Now she is twenty-two and in her last semester in college. She was a daddy's girl and still is close with her dad. She often calls him while I'm at work to talk just to him. I find their relationship very special and hope it remains that way forever.

Teenage years. . . what a unique time! We went through it twice, once with a son, then with the daughter. We survived both times. The son is married and has children of his own. We enjoy watching and listening to him deal with his children. The main change there is we now know something and he even calls us for advice!!!

Which brings me to Grandma Mil---my grandchildren live five and half hours away. I get to see them every two to three months and feel they are growing up so quickly between visits. It must be very hard not to see a grandchild for five years. I know you'll have a wonderful reunion when you visit them.

My in-laws stopped by today. We are all concerned about the situation that happened with the downed Black Hawk helicopter in Iraq. Our nephew, their grandson, is crew chief on a Black Hawk. He's currently in Georgia, his wife just had a baby girl last week. He was not scheduled to go back over until January. We wonder if he'll be shipped over sooner. This will be his third time over. We worry constantly about him while he is over there. He's our "movie star." His helicopter was the main one featured in the movie "Black Hawk Down." In fact he's in the background in three shots in the movie.

Dhi--hope all went well with your son's play. I cannot believe a local critic would be so harsh about a high school production. Our advanced theater arts class will be doing their fall performance just before Thanksgiving. A bunch of us elementary teachers always attend and watch in awe as these kids, we once had in class, perform with so much talent on the stage.

Paul--glad to hear you're happy and busy. If you had been any more graphic about your "strip" my computer wouldn't have to worry about ever getting a virus.....it would have suffered a melt down!

So Margie--was your daughter wearing yellow at Halloween? Did Liz wear any other color in SB? Love that movie! I let my mother-in-law borrow my copy of "Joseph." She loves anything that has to do with the Bible, so I'm hoping it eases her worry over the grandson while she watches it for a few hours.

Peter---What an interesting job you must have!!! You know words I can't even pronounce, let alone know what the meaning is! Your job is so very, very important to this world we live in.

Tim, Mil, and Peter.....you actually said.....that awful....four-letter....... word......diet!!!! That is one of those issues I should be dealing with that I'm not. Glad to hear you've had such success Mil. I've heard of the Atkins diet, but not the other one you've mentioned. Actually, I think that when someone says that word.....diet.....aloud, my ears close up. I have a routine doctor's appointment on Monday. I'm pretty certain that word will be coming up.....I suppose I should follow your good example, and be mature about the whole idea and listen to him this time. I do want to be around to watch my grandchildren grow up.

My best to all,
Cindy

Cindy, first off, nice to hear from a young grandma, and a teacher, to boot. I am the old one, a retired teacher, but I'm not complaining!

We have other grandchildren in Connecticut and New Jersey whom we see more often than the ones in Israel. In fact, we were up north in June for a wonderful visit.

Our prayers for all the heroes in Iraq, including your nephew. I won't get started on the political aspects, for it would not be fair to those who serve so bravely.

Ask your doctor about "The South Beach Diet" written by a cardiologist. You can buy the book in any of the big bookstores, Borders, Barnes and Noble, etc. It works for me and my hubby, but your choice of diet to use is up to you and your doctor..good luck! Most of the diets can be obtained online, but there are charges to join!

My wife usually reads the posts and on occassion has written her self here. Well she read the above post yesterday and then came into to chat to me as I was preparing the kids meals - she had an armful of dirty washing and was on the way to the washing machine - any way she said - honey, your post was fine but you make it sound like you are doing all the work!

Yes what a typical bloke I am!!! So my apologies to my wife. Let me be clear- while I was busy doing all my stuff my wife was in fact doing the other half of the chores that needed to be done in order to host the party. In fact whilst I took time out to jump on the trampoline with Erin, Andrea kept at it!!

The party was great!!

Nice save, Paul! Sort of anyway … okay, really nice save! :) Happy belated birthday to your daughter Emily! Glad things are going well for you and that you are happy despite the fact that you are busy. Good luck with juggling all these different balls at the same time. May your happiness continue and increase and that of your wife and daughters as well and all the other people dear and close to your heart!

Happy Birthday to Katalina as well (I think that was yesterday though).

Peter, I’m amazed by what you do and I’ll second it, not boring at all. Naturally, while reading your description, this image formed in my head that if I were to do anything like that, the entire thing would combust most likely already while I was trying to think about how to put something like this together. Glad it’s you and not me, esp. since you know what you are doing.
Love to each and everyone and have a wonderful week!

What fun this is. I just found this site - and I'm sooo upset that I didn't get here in time for the autographed photos. I do hope they will be offered again. I really enjoy your work, Paul. I loved Strictly Ballroom - the dancing was great to watch but the thing I enjoyed most was your passionate intensity which was so obvious in your performance. In fact, I asked my son as we watched whether he thought you were an actor first or a dancer first - we couldn't decide which - you did both so well. Now, I'm collecting your other movies - Joseph was great too. Thanks too, for being willing to share yourself with fans like this - with your "blog." It makes you as a person so much more real and that makes the work you do more special. Now if I could only get to Austrailia for The Full Monty - all the way on the other side of the world from me.
Nina
I see Coopers is coming to the US. Will it ever come to the Eastern US I wonder.

Jump away Paul!! My time seems to be compressed as well so I may not be here as often for a while (hi Grandma).

I was a judge at our annual Homebrew Festival: 33 beers! Lots of very hoppy brews! An oatmeal stout took first place and the same brewer took 2nd place as well. You should see the trophy!!!! It's this gigantic combination of all these trophy parts; he couldn't even get it in the car. To top it all off, we saw the lunar eclipse!!!! I took some pix. If any turn out, I may try to upload them to our image page.

I've read a great book lately. It's titled "You'll See it When You Believe it", by Wayne W Dyer. I highly recommend it to all. Right now I'm reading a book one of you recommended: "Anam Cara by John O'Donohue: A Book of Celtic Wisdom". It's a great book. The Celts had a good take on life. The two books have a certain similarity.

Oh and Paul, on the teenage thing. Having been a teenage girl myself I know you can only do better than my parents. Just be sure to warn her about boys (at that age they are obsessed etc) and beer (it lowers teenage inhibition). Not a good combination with the teenage hormones and all. And if she's out after 11, she could be in a situation where she's being pressured. Help her to stay focused on why she's in school: to make her career dreams come true!! That'll help her stay away from trouble. I'm sure that being a part of your family will be the support she needs during these challenging and exciting times.

p.s, I just scanned the posts and saw that you posted again. I'm glad you straightened that out. I wasn't going to ask, but I confess I was wondering why you were working all alone. I figured faithful Andrea had to be lending a hand!

My love goes out to each of you.
Whit

LOL...indeed you smoothed over that one, Paul!

Teenagers are a fun mix of Jekyll and Hyde on a hormonally-challenged roller coaster ride. I teach 120 of them every day, and never know which personna to expect.
No matter how much turmoil your daughter feels, she needs YOU to be calm and rational. (Your acting abilities will be needed for that task! ;)

Prayers and supportive thoughts heading your way.

Hello all. Happy birthday wishes to Emily and to Katalina. I hope I'm not too late.
After being married for so many years I just assumed that Andrea was doing chores as well. It just goes with the teritory. In my house if he's working I'm working but it doesn't always follow that if I'm working he's working. Hmmm, wonder how I will ever fix that.
Teenage daughters, that's a chilling thought. Mine is only 10 and she confounds me daily.
Peace

Paul - your post really gave me a lift and made me laugh! Your happy and excited busyness made me feel like getting up and doing something - anything! As for those fortunate women - I just hope they appreciated how lucky they were!

Having negotiated almost two sons via the 'scenic route' through adolesence, all I can say is that it helps to think of these years as a work in progress. At times,when you look around you, all you can see are what seem like fragments and jagged edges. It's only in completion that you can see that ALL the pieces, whether challenging and intensely frustrating or amazing and wonderful to behold - were all necessary to complete the young adult your child has become. As long as the lines of communication stay open between you, all will be well. It's a learning process for all concerned, like everything else in life.

With regards to your second post, I take Andrea's point. But you - typical?? I find that hard to believe. On second thoughts, if you really are - I'm moving to Australia! Good luck with the rehearsals.

Janice - thanks for passing on your Dad's words of wisdom. They really helped.

Cindy - Thanks for the encouragement. No, I'm sure I don't have any more courage than you do. When the time is right, you'll find yours. Good luck.

Linda - sending good wishes and healing prayers to you for a speedy recovery.

Whitney - reading Anam Chara for the first time was an almost surreal experience for me. I identified so much with so many parts of it that it was like deja vu. I dip into it all the time. It gives me great comfort. John O'Donohue has a double cassette called The Divine Imagination which is also amazing. I'm going to try and get hold of the other book you recommended.

Grandma Mil, Diane, Peter, Innussiq, Tim, Dhiana, Sally, Evelyn, Katalina, Michelle, Julie - hope you are keeping well.

Hello to Lisa, Margie, Nina, Deltalady, Natalie, Mary Ellen and to all the lucky people who have found PC.

Mary
.

A great book that I've found very helpful is Parenting Teens with Love and Logic. My family is working at communicating our likes, dislikes, fears, and joys with each other. Some days are definitely more challenging than others. I'm always learning. 'Tis a gift!

Hello to all in the Corner! Finally re-surfacing after back surgery last week. Got home late Tuesday. Things went very well in terms of expectations but I still very, very sore and am relying on heavily on pain killers and muscle relaxers. It really zonks me out! Will try to catch the Corner up during periods of lucidity. Sounds like everyone is busy living.

Linda

Linda, good to hear from you and glad the surgery went well. Wishing you a speedy and full recovery and sending you pain countering and muscle relaxing thoughts and energy. Take care and be careful.

Hello to everyone and have a great day!

Hi Everyone,
(Paul, NICE one on the retread, mate...we believe you. ;-)

I responded about Jud's play (Evelyn...how the Hades do you make an oomloud--the two dots over the "u" in my son's name--appear on this danged thing???) in the last thread, but it went VERY well. I'm bursting and can't wait to do it all over again.)

Hey...riddle me this, Batmen: How in HELL did I manage to get to be a 2nd Degree Priestess of an organization with its ROOTS in Celtic Wisdom, not having read word ONE from this O'Donohue person? Just goes to show you, you don't know what you don't know until you find OUT that you don't know what you thought you knew.

I'll check it out. When I get back. ("From where?" you ask?) My sister-in-law has talked me into jumping ship and flying to Daytona for the weekend! My mom is performing the Mendhelson(agh! I HATE spelling his name) Violin Concerto on Sunday and Shelia and I are going down to surprise her! Mind you, we're arriving Friday morning and will be on the beach by NOON, so have left plenty o'time for bumming and eating seafood, but she's going to be out of her SKIN surprised. Her live-in is all jiggy with it so we're sure we're welcomed and there is no other complications, and I can't wait!

Life is good. I'm also joining you guys on the diet plan, but I can't do anything far out, just keep an eye on what goes down the hatch. I'm going through detox right now. Best go fill my water glass. BLeh.

Hugs to all,
Ditching NY Dhiana

Good morning, dear Whit, and everyone!

I spoke to our Linda yesterday, and it was wonderful hearing her voice..she's doing okay, considering. Easy does it, Linda, we love you!

Bleh, is right, Dhi, my doctor's nurse called to tell me that my blood test, although great for cholesterol, etc., shows I need to drink more water..I hate plain water, and always drop some Splenda (not aspertame) into it to make it go down easier!

As for your mother, is she a violin soloist or part of an orchestra, or both? What a thrilling weekend coming up for you! Give her my best and have a great time on Daytona Beach!

Paul, I read in the Sydney Morning Herald that your late dear friend, Russell, was honored with a dance program at the new Sydney Theatre. It was quite a tribute...I wondered if you were able to attend.

Peace and love,

Grandma

Hi Millie,
Try slicing lemon into the water as a pcik-me-up refresher.

Mom was just part of this orchestra (violin)originally, but she's been playing the solo part with the orchestra at rehearsals so the rest of the group knew what to expect when the "Shipped In Professional" gal they'd hired actually came for the performance. Mom was just a stand-in. BUT...the "Professional" gal had a scheduling conflict--found out three weeks ago-- and tickets were already sold so...Mom's doing it. She's FREAKING out with nerves (that is one of the hardest pieces on the planet to play) and my sis-in-law just told me they'd spoken last night on the phone and Mom's got nine friends attending, plus her father, so she's really looking forward to knowing there are friendly faces out in the audience.

WAIT til she sees us pull in her driveway tomorrow!

Gotta get ALL my work done. Now. Water water water water water water...bleh. ;-)

Hugs,
I'll wave towards you and Elliott when we get into shared air space. ;-)

Helloo all you water drinkers!!!

I used to be in your shoes. What really helped me was doing the "ten reps". two sets of 10 swallows. downed the whole water bottle in less than two minutes. Just have to get used to it.
Good luck to everyone on the "weight loss express"!

Wow Linda, Back surgery!! That's tough. Bummer.
Here's a swig (of water) to your speedy recovery!!

Lots of love to all!!

Margie

...and we'll wave back, Dhi! I wish Daytona Beach wasn't so far!

Wish your mother the best from us... I'm sure having her family around her will give her a lift. The story of her rise to featured soloist is amazing...just like an MGM musical drama!

Love,

Grandma

I'm very impressed with your Italian.

Better busy than miserable waiting around. I really enjoyed this last post.

Teenage daughters....hmmmmm. Things to expect, talking to her friends about boys at school. Shakira Posters on the wall. Suddenly matching clothes and looking trendy becomes important. And of course, secret stuff, diaries, love letters to boys and a romance novel under the bed. Sitting with your parents at the movies is JUST NOT COOL ANYMORE. What else...oh just make sure that when that boy at school fails to call, that she remembers there is one man in her life that cares for her dearly, and mom to.

take care,

Ps: Grandma Mil I haven't forgotten you. The world is just staying on my shoulders a little bit longer. I have to take the famous Uncle George to a doctors appointment in Hollywood Friday. I'll give you a ring when this tidle wave of stuff is gone.

I wasn't sure if I should post here, seeing as most of the people who do seem to know you personally, but I just want you to take a look at the guestbook.

Paul:

I just wanted to let you know that your dancing is so inspiring. I've been dancing ballet ever since I was 4 years old, and dancing is my passion. I guess you've pretty much moved on from dancing now, but your dancing in Strictly Ballroom enchanted me so much.

Sometimes I doubt whether I have it in me to become a dancer.. whether I have the drive or the commitment or whatever. I get bored with ballet, it's too slow and precise. I really want to dance some jazz or contemporary movement, like I have in the past, but my director says that ballet is the best training.

He always tells me that the only people who could possibly be dancers are people who can't do anything else BUT dance. Sometimes, I find that hard to accomplish. I sometimes wonder whether I should be a dancer at all, if I'm bored with the material in class. But just watching your dancing makes me excited to go to my dance classes everyday and want to dance around in my room to "time after time". I'm only 14, but I know that dancing (and actually just being on stage in general) is the best feeling in the world, and I wish I could find someone who loves it as much as I do, since most of my friends aren't really into that.

I really don't expect you to answer this, I just hope that you eventually read it and understand that you've really inspired me and brought me closer to my dreams, corny as it may seem.

Love and thanks from new york, Frances

ps. i have relatives who live in perth and sydney, it's where my mom grew up.

Dear Frances,

You love to dance, and now you're one of us, on Paul's Corner? You're in the right place!

I suggest that you watch for tryouts in your junior high or high school drama group later in the year...usually a musical is in the works for the spring, and who knows, even though you are only 14, you probably would be grabbed by the choreographer! Don't let peer pressure sway you from your love of the dance, and your desire to perform!

Good luck!

Grandma Mil

P.S. Everyone: I just checked "Guestbook" and a new post just came in (Friday, November 14th) from a young person named "Verity." She is from England, and it seems that Paul's performance in "Strictly Ballroom" has inspired her and her friends to form a "jive" dance troupe, and entertain at nursing homes and hospitals around Cambridge, her area. She even claims that some mental patients seemed to be better after the performances! Oh, the power of dance, and the influence of our dear Paul!

Love,

Grandma

Hi Paul,

So wonderful to see you posting in an up-beat mood.

I saw the movie Cosi on DVD tonight and saw that your name was in the credits. I enjoyed the movie greatly, but wished you had the lead.

Home life is always interesting. My 12 yr. old boy (going on 30) has been such an education for me. I used to teach parenting classes before I was a parent! I suppose that was a bit of acting. I think the trick to this survival of the teen years is to give them room to fly with limits..... or at least I hope so.

Best wishes,

Suzanne

Hi to all, and happy belated birthday to Katalina.
Linda- wishing you a great recovery, I know a simple backache can be so debilatating( did I spell this word wrong?) so to have back surgery sounds really painful. ok i am tripping over my words, just wishing you the best...

As for the word diet, I dont use it in my vocabulary anymore. It seems to have a connotation of a really bad chore, so I realized that I am not dieting I am changing my lifestyle when it comes to food. So I am eating healthy because I enjoy the changes that my body is experiencing. well, I tell myself that hoping that self-brainwashing will work. I do get an occasional sweet tooth, and yes I indulge it. hmmm chocolate.

Anyway, hi to the usual suspects and have a great night/day. Back to painting....:-{}

I'm checking in on you all! I think I may have finally gotten over the bug (virus) that I got in late September. I have been miserable and haven't been able to go to weight-lifting or ride my bike.
My husband is out of town at his father's house, doing a little remodeling so that they can sell it. I think that we may have to go there at Thanksgiving and have a huge garage sale. I have grabbed the crystal candy dish that I gave my MIL and a few linens. I would really like the rocking chairs and the sewing machine. I inherited my family home and a house full of furniture, so we have few things that we want from my husband's family, but I want him to be able to get the things he wants. He told me that I am not going to fight about the sewing machine. I need one that will do stretch stitches.
enough about me. I hope this weekend finds all the Corner crowd relaxing and doing what they want
to get done. I think my daughter and I may have to facials and pedicures. It's not sandal weather anymore, but my toes need some winter pampering.

Belated birthday wishes to Emily! I forgot to add those wishes to my earlier post.

Paul and Andrea, when men tell me how much work they have to do, I just assume the women in their lives are doing at least 1.5 times as much. Most of the women I know have jobs (homebased or other), take primary responsibility for the children, keep the home clean and running and keep their husbands informed/involved on schedules, bills, home repair, social calendar, etc. I'll admit that at times I may not give my husband as much credit as he deserves. That usually occurs at about 9:00 pm when I'm cleaning the bathrooms, doing an emergency load of laundry, and filling out school forms that are due tomorrow and were handed to me 10 minutes ago — all, while he listens to some classical music and does his stretches. Nowadays, I've got to cut him some slack because he's laying the foundations for our business and doing a great job with the intricacies that are not my forte.

Linda, I am sending you my best soothing and healing wishes. I have a friend here who is going in for back surgery next month. It's a tricky business and I hope you enjoy a full recovery.

Glad to hear about your mom and your trip to Florida, Dhiana. I hope you have a fabulous time.

Welcome, Frances and Nina. Hello to Millie, Mercedes, Evelyn, Mary Ellen, Mary, Suzanne, Innussiq, Julie, Margie, Whitney, Lisa, Natalie, deltalady, Sally, Margie, Tim, Peter and you other wonderful people.

Business is getting off to a slow start, but that's good because we're fine tuning. I'll tell you more in the next post. It's been a very interesting week.

Did anyone read today's news about a scientific report asserting that herring communicate by means of flatulance? I kid you not. My dog Stella seems to be speaking to the fishies. Better get her out for a walk.

Have a great weekend!

Hello to all. My name is Susan and I am finally summoning the courage to post after lurking for a time. What a wonderfully friendly and supportive board! That is not an easy trick to do in cyberspace!

My comment is not related to Paul's blog entry but just a question to Paul (or anyone else who might know the answer). I noticed you have one piercing in one ear and three in your other ear, is that right? I have four in one ear and three in the other. In the world of body mod, I'm sure that's pretty tame, but my point is this - each of my piercings stands for a significant event in my life. Do yours mean anything? I guessed that it would probably be one for each of the most important women on your life - wife and three daughters?

Thank you for reading my post. Back to lurkdom!

Susan G.

P.S. Congratulations and best of luck on "The Full Monty".

Hi folks. I saw an ad on TV last night for The Full Monty. It featured Paul quite prominently.
I must say that he looked very happy. The show looks to be loads of fun.

delurking briefly to say a quick hello to the PC!
TFM sounds like it's shaping up and keeping Paul happy! That's wonderful.
thx to all for the nice bday wishes.
tomorrow i start my new job. I'll be involved heavily in the review process for medical/scientific research grant proposals with two major behavioral and biomedical review committees for researchers who will be using human subjects or anything related (tissue, bloodwork, genetics, surveys, medical records, personal information) to make sure everyone is in legal and ethical compliance before the committee approves/disapproves the research for funding. There's quite a bit to learn but I'm excited for the challenge.

Hi to Whitney and Inn and Evelyn and Dhi and Diane, Tim, Peter, Paul, Grandma Mil and all here today!

Was happy to see all the wonderful water drinking/weight maintenance motivation here! Good luck to all. I need to drink more water too! I agree tho, yik blech! I must drink bottled sparkling water to make it palatable however. Lemon doesn't cut it somehow.

big Hugz,
latte luv,
Katalina

Susan
Awhile back we discussed piercings. I have two and one. Paul said that in Australia that was what was in when he got his ears pierced 3 and 1.

Hi to everyone

later

peace and love

Tim

Tim,

Thanks for the info RE: piercings. :)

Susan G.

Hang in there with you teen age daughter. She is coming out of her childhood caccoon and is starting to spread her wings. There were a couple years there that I wanted to either sell my daughter to the Gypsies or put her in the freezer for a year or two. Hang in there Paul, it may get worse. You also have two more girls to experience the game of life as a teen agers. Just love them and do things with them as much as you can. Take time to jump on the trampoline.
You are a wonderful father and husband. There should be more compassionet family men like you.
I am glad that your career it taking you in the direction you want to go.

I forgot to mention. I shared your pain with the loss of your brother and your two friends. I am sending you a poem that was given to me when my husband passed away in 2000. It is very comforting and I keep it at my computer desk, along with his picture. I have shared it with many others since.