But I DO have a brother.  And he rocks.  Literally.

My sweet older brother, now known throughout the world as AJ Love, used to drift from one great life plan to another.  I still remember when he was going to be a travel agent.  Or the heavy-weight champion of the world.  Or a radio DJ.  (which I actually still think he should do some day.) 

Then one day, he picked up a guitar and found his true nitch in this world.  The rest they say is history.

I have always been proud of my brother.  Even back in the good ol’ days when he was on the West High basketball team.  I remember the time my friend Leo and I went to a game that happened to be on his birthday.  Sadly, he was sitting on the bench and well, that just wouldn’t do.   Being the baby of the family and Princess Mikkimoto even back then, we started cheering, very loudly “Let Alan play!  It’s his birthday!”  over and over and over.  Until he shot me a look that stopped my heart cold for a few seconds.  A look so scary I can clearly remember it 25 years later.

And now, I am still that little sister, still sitting in the stands, cheering for my brother. 

He has an event coming up this month that I highly encourage you all to check out if you are in the area.  Hell even if you’re aren’t in the area, come on up! 

He’s worth it. 

And not just because this insanely cool guy is my brother, but he’s also just really that good.

The Blues Jam at the Frequency, hosted by A.J. Love every Tuesday night in Madison WI, featuring guest artists from Chicago, begins Jan. 13th 2009.

The first Tuesday jam session will feature former Muddy Waters sideman and internationally acclaimed Bluesman John Primer. Primer will be performing a set of classic Blues music as well as selections from his brand new CD “All Original” with the Tuesday night Frequency house band including drummer Joey Banks, bassist Bruce Alford, Joe Nosek on harmonica and A.J. Love on guitar.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest traditional Blues artists on the planet, this will be Primer’s first appearance in Madison in many years.

Blues Jam schedule for January:

January 13th - John Primer
January 20th - Joe Nosek of the Cash Box Kings
January 27th - Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith

John Primer website : http://www.blueshouseproductions.com/id3.html

John Primer “All Original CD” http://cdbaby.com/cd/jprimer

A.J. Love website http://www.ajlove.com

And A.J. dear, I promise if you let me bring Leo we won’t chant or cheer.  Well… unless the other guys in the group don’t let you play, then all bets are off.

Happy Birthday A.J.  I love you, you goof.

How are ya doin’ buddy?  You feeling OK?  Sorry. Stupid question since you are lying in the bed next to me resembling a rag doll and not my normal bouncing boy.

I’m sorry you’re so sick but I can’t help but laugh at the timing.  This was supposed to be the first day back at school after the longest winter break in history.  Has it been six months off or just five?

Will you even remember your teacher’s name?  What classroom you are in?   How will you know the way to the lunch room?

You started off yesterday great.   We crashed Alison’s 4 year old birthday party and had a blast playing Air Hockey.  You creamed me!   Next Air Hockey table we see, total rematch!

But during “Marley and Me” I could visibly see you sinking.  I think you could have given away all your Star Wars toys just for a chance to lay down.   Leaning on my arm wasn’t doing it huh?

By the time we got home, after thinking dinner out was a great idea, you barely made it to the bathroom.  But thank YOU so much for making it.  You are a Super Star puker.  Just one of the million reasons I love you.

I hate it when you’re sick.  Your already big eyes get bigger and your already skinny bod gets, well, TOO skinny.  But I swear this time around I will sit on my Jewish mother instincts and not feed you, unless you are hungry and ASK me for food.

So feel better soon buddy.  And er, next time you get sick… maybe plan it for a day when I could actually USE a day off and you haven’t been out of school for so long you might forget your ABC’s.

Love,

Mommy

The holidays are all over.  So… um, now what?

This is the part of winter I hate.  The part I most dread.  I look at the looming dark cold days of January and February ahead and want to cry.   I would very much like to become a bear and hibernate until spring. 

Does anyone else hope that Obama makes Valentine’s Day and St. Patrick’s Day national holidays so we don’t have to wait until Memorial Day for our next paid day off?  Especially since THAT ISN’T UNTIL MAY!?

I know I complained before but now… I kinda want it all back.  I want the parties and the anticipation.  I want the Christmas cards.   I want the Christmas music!  I want SOMETHING!   How long can I get away with saying “Happy New Year!” before people start giving me the stink eye?

You know what?  NO!  Part of declaring 2009 as My Year means I refuse to be down in the dumps.   Even the January Dumps!  2009 being My Year doesn’t mean it starts in March.  I get the WHOLE year!

There are some fun things happening this month.  I have some good friend’s birthdays to look forward to, a Superbowl Party and of course 1.20.09.  Did anyone else just hear the angels sing?

So yeah!  Did you hear that January!?  You can suck it!  Same goes for you February!  Yeah I’m shaking my fist at you!  You won’t get me down this year!   You won’t tarnish my 2009.

Who said the Holidays are over?  Well they aren’t the boss of me. 

There are PLENTY of holidays coming up.  Good holidays!  Important ones!

Therefore, I’m going to pull myself up by my snowboot straps and give President Lincoln the best birthday party he has ever seen. 

And don’t even get me started on the Groundhogs Day!  I wonder where I can get some groundhog lights?

Yes, some good things happened, (creating this blog being one of them) but over all, I won’t look back and I will never have another 2008.

So buh bye 2008.  Don’t let the door hit your ass (do “years” have asses?) on the way out.  Like our current president, the best thing about you is that you can NEVER return. 

Instead, I have claimed 2009 as MY YEAR!  There are many who can share it with me, and some that really deserve to have a good year.  But just know, it’s really mine.

I came up with list of expectations that will happen in 2009.  And it’s become sort of a mantra for me as I repeat them over and over like a crazy person.  No going crazy isn’t an item on the list. 

I refuse to even call them “resolutions” because they aren’t wishes.   They aren’t things I hope to happen.  They will happen.  

Wow.  Apparently I will also be very bossy in 2009.

And if last night was an indication on how 2009 is going to be, it will definitely be a good one.

So bring it 2009!  I’m ready.

Wordless Wednesday (and Happy New Year!)

Since my sister, mother of seven, wife of one and a preschool teacher, is by far the hardest working woman I know, we try to make a big deal out of any occasion we can for her. 

Her daughters came up with this great idea after our previous trip to Chicago was cancelled.  Needless to say my mom and I jumped at the chance and then proceeded to pray to the Weather and Health Gods that all would go smoothly so we could make it down there.

Our prayers paid off because the sun was shining and the roads were bone dry.  And amazingly enough, there wasn’t even a runny nose found on any of those cute seven faces.

The ride down to Chicago was filled with many phone calls between our car and my nieces and brother-in-law as we tried to organize the perfect time for the onslaught of surprise.  To say we were all excited was quite the understatement.

All the hard work and careful planning paid off as Debby was so happy and so surprised it made us all laugh with happiness.  At one point she even exclaimed while looking at mom and I, “I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU ARE STANDING HERE!  IN MY LIVING ROOM!”

It was a short visit but a VERY fun one.   

One filled with many cute faces:

a big birthday party for both Debby and my nephew Aryeh (who’s birthday is Wednesday):

The lighting of the last night of Hanukkah:

A very special Von Trapp like family sing-along:

although I don’t think the Von Trapp’s sang Hanukkah songs.  But maybe that was in the Sound of Music 2.

And of course some of Aunt Becky’s famous self portraits and goofy pictures with my cute eldest niece.

I think, I hope, this was just what my sister needed to give her that extra umph in order to get through the rest of the winter in a house full of nine. 

Happy Birthday Dear Sister.  I love you so.

Christmas Eve I had my folks over to my place for dinner and then we all went back to their place to spend the night.  Santa only comes to my parents house because at my house we have a gas fireplace so… duh! 

Ben got to open a couple presents on Christmas Eve and one was for the whole family.  It was a puzzle.  YAY!  A puzzle!  What a great idea for everyone to take part in.

It was 500 pieces, but no big deal.  My mom, dad and I are so quick and smart.  This puzzle would be finished by morning.

Before sugar plums danced in his head, Ben left Santa and the Reindeer some snacks.  I’m sure Santa appreciated the extra instructions on what was what.  I mean you try getting ALL over the world in one night and see how your vision and reading is. 

In addition to these great treats, Ben also left Santa a letter.

My favorite was the option on cookies for next year.  This kid is nothing if not thoughtful.   I think I see politics in his future.

Christmas morning came fast… a little TOO fast for some of us, but Ben’s joy made up for the lack of sleep.

And good lord, that kid raked it in.  Which pleased me to no end because I was worried it was going to be a lean Christmas.  But as my VERY generous mother said, “Christmas comes but once a year.”

My uncle Bob was also incredibly generous to Ben this year.  One of the gifts he got him was a digital camera.  The boy took to it like a PMSing woman takes to chocolate covered salt. 

As soon as it was out of the box, he was taking pictures of his toys, his grandparents and a few too many of his mother. 

At one point I asked to look at his pictures and said, “Oh wow! I didn’t know you got a Jaba the Hut doll.  Wow, he’s huge!  Look at all those chins on him!”  To which Ben replied, “That’s not Jaba.  That’s YOU Mom!” 

The diet starts today.

Oh and as for the puzzle.  After hours of back breaking work, days of mind numbing concentration and many a grumble made, this is how far we got on the damn thing.

We are smart people.  We can do puzzles.  But this puzzle is without a doubt The Hardest Puzzle Ever.  Someone evil made this.  Someone without a soul or a human heart created this.  I haven’t looked closely at the box but I’m pretty sure I could find Dick Cheney’s name on there somewhere…

Minus the Devil Spawn puzzle and the fact that I’m not going to eat until mid 2009, it was a very nice cozy Christmas.  What more could a good Jewish girl ask for?

Wordless Wednesday

Between the crowds in the malls for last minute shoppers like myself, the traffic on Madison’s already congested little streets or the weather, ugh the weather… it’s not looking good. 

You know when people say, “Wow, another storm is coming.  Are we going to make it?”  From now on, I’m going to look at them square in the eye, with a stone hard glare and say in my most serious voice,  “No.  I’m not going to make it.  But thank you for asking.”

Seriously!   On top of all the snow we already have, we are supposed to get another 10-12″ over the next couple days. 

That’s another FOOT OF SNOW PEOPLE! 

Where is all this snow going to go?  How can we possibly have more?  

Will the Mayor start asking the good citizens of Madison to store the snow in our freezers? 

Will we all be responsible for taking in and making room for snow?  

Will small animals and children ever be found again?

It’s all too much to bare. 

So dear readers, if you don’t hear from me for a few days, look under a snowbank.  I might be there with the small animals and children.  

Or perhaps you’ll find a flattened form of myself in the Toys R Us parking lot after being trampled by people who just got the last Lego Star Wars DeathStarShipTracker for 20% off.

Or maybe, just maybe, you’ll find me rocking in a fetal position, under the Christmas tree, sucking my thumb and muttering over and over again “Is it January 2nd yet?  Please let it be January 2nd.  Please.  I want January 2nd.”

Until then, may you each have a very peaceful and Happy Merry Joyous Kwanzaa/Hanukkah/Solstice/Christmas!

On Friday the idea of having an active, bored and bouncing 8 year old in my apartment terrified me more than Sarah Palin as VP.  So we bundled up and I let the boy out to run.

It was INSANE outside. 

Very pretty:

But INSANE!  

No, this wasn’t my car and no I didn’t know this guy.  And no, I didn’t help him shovel out his poor car.  Well, unless you call taking his picture and telling him to “Hang in there!” as helping.

Ben, being Ben, had to climb on every single snow pile we saw.  There were A LOT of snow piles. 
But the boy was in heaven.  Some of these suckers were as tall as small mountains:

However, there were a couple surly snowbanks that fought back. 

This one wasn’t going to let the kid out of it’s grasp so easily:

It seemed that this boy’s mother wasn’t helping him get out of this quicksand-like snowbank.  Well, unless you call taking his picture and telling him to “Hang in there!” as helping.

I love these die-hard Madison folk who are still saying “Yes We Can!” 
But really folks, Obama is cold.  Bring him inside now.  

With the difficulty of walking in 1,000 inches of snow, the fact that it was almost physically painful for Ben to not jump in every snowpile he saw (which were every 2 feet) and the fact that I’m an idiot who didn’t wear a hat so my ears were turning black, we didn’t get too far on our walk. 

But man, that kid had fun.

I can’t be totally sure but I think chances are pretty good that we’ll be having a white Christmas this year.