Random Things From My Dad - #8

The Shoes...

Shoes have a long running history with my dad.  My first memories of his random shoe purchases were when I was in college... although I'm sure these strange and curious purchases must have happened sooner...

It was some time in the mid 1980's... He came home from one of his infamous shopping sprees loaded down with random deals he had come across.  Among the array of items was a pair of Nine West boots.  They were kind of a taupe color, tall, slim and with a relatively high heel. They were fancy and not at all like anything my sister, myself or my mom had ever worn.  So we were all looking at these boots thinking "okay?  who are these for?"  So, we asked... "who are these for?"  His answer sums up so much of what his purchases represent... "I figure they'll fit somebody... they were such a good deal I had to buy them."

And so it continued... his purchases of "too good to pass up" deals.  He has purchased so many random things over the years, many of which were such a good deal he bought it and would decide later where it might find a home.  Some of these items include a Waterford crystal lamp (it's been passed around a few times, but I'm pretty sure I have it right now)... a globe that had a light on the inside... a cuckoo clock, random and numerous items of clothing, and the list goes on and on.

But the shoes... the shoes!  Who on earth buys shoes for someone else?  Especially unsolicited purchases of shoes?  I find it so peculiar and also, endearing.  I was visiting my parents a few years ago when they lived in Arkansas.. my dad had driven to Hot Springs for the day and again, came back loaded with treasurers.  Among them was a pair of water socks.  Mind you, both of my parents were almost 70 at the time so why there were water socks among his purchases was a bit mind boggling.  My mom looked at the water socks, and looked at me with a huge question mark written all over her face.  "Why on earth did he buy these?"

I looked at the water socks and I looked at my mom.  Recalling similar odd purchases in the past, I replied "he probably got them because they were such a good deal he figured someone could use them."  She laughed, as did I.  When my dad came into the room we asked him what the water socks were for.... and yes... they were too good to pass up and he figured someone could use them.

So... yesterday when I went to pick up my kids from my parents' house I sat down with a glass of wine, as I often do, to visit with my dad.  He says to me "take a look at those shoes over there"... On the couch was a shoe box... I thought "oh, Lord, what now"...  And here's where it gets even stranger... I opened the box of shoes to find a pair of women's flat, casual/dress shoes.  They were two toned beige, neutral, practical and somewhat nondescript.  The weird part?  I had the EXACT pair of shoes in my closet.  I've had that pair of shoes for at least 15 years.  And yet, somehow, my dad manages to purchase the exact pair.... figuring someone in our family could wear them.  They were too good of a deal to pass them up....  I laughed, and I continue to laugh, every time I think of those shoes, and all the shoes that preceded them.

So... here are the shoes along with a photo of my old, ratty pair....

Same Designer

The Shoes My Dad Bought Yesterday (1/28/2013)

The Shoes I Already Had (Purchased in 1997 or earlier)

Random Things From My Dad - #7

I find it interesting how therapeutic it is, cathartic even, to write about the various things my dad gets for us...  I used to find it so irritating... wanting to simply go to my mom & dad's, visit for a few minutes, pick up my kids and get home so we could get on with the business of homework, dinner time, bedtime... whatever we needed to get done before turning in for the night.

In my mind, I was just going to pick up my kids and head home... Then I would discover that he had this array of items for me to load into my car... which, in turn, meant unloading them from my car and finding a home for them.  I don't know about you, but my least favorite thing about going to the grocery store is when you get home... unloading and putting everything away.  Instead of knowing ahead of time that I was going to be unloading and putting away, it was thrust upon me and I did not feel like a willing participant... I resented it, even.... Peculiar, I know... and even selfish I suppose.

So writing about it has done a couple of things... First, it really has highlighted for me just how generous he is... In the past, I would bring the things home... put them "somewhere" as quickly as I could, annoyed the whole time, and move on with my day and not really give the items much thought.

But with the blog post, I now have an inventory... a record.. of just how often he shops with me and my kids in mind... and how abundant his generosity is.  I am so much more mindful of each and every thing he sends our way... and also much, much more appreciative...  While there are still the items I have no idea what he had in mind when he bought it... I appreciate them nonetheless...

I have also found that our relationship is a bit less strained than it has been in the past... I recognize his efforts to be supportive and helpful and that, in turn, affords me just the insight I need to be a bit more patient with him and attentive when he's got a "story" to tell (oh my... could that be another series of posts about my dad!)  My dad has stories that will make your head spin... mostly with his take any any given situation... But... another time... I'll wait for then next particularly mind boggling conversation to open that can of worms.

So... without further ado... the latest and greatest abundant array from my dad...

Fresh cut tulips, a six-pack of wine... THREE different kinds of coffee... chocolate covered blueberries
 and chocolate covered pomegranate seeds, two different kinds of shredded cheese, mini-marshmallows... strawberries, blueberries, and flamin' hot Funyuns... oh my.  Not pictured (but very much appreciated) was also a gallon of milk
 and a loaf of bread...

A close up of one of the tuliips...
they are so pretty.

So... there it is... when photographed and itemized, I am so much more aware, and appreciative, of just how generous my daddy is (and yes... I do call him "daddy" as all proper southern women do)...

Whether You Love Obama or Not... This Story Should Give You A Laugh...

So this is actually a Facebook post I wrote in July of 2010.... It also qualifies as a "Random Things From My Dad" post, as he is the one responsible for the now infamous Obama hat...

A dear friend of mine, who shall remain nameless (you know who you are) contacted me a couple of weeks ago. She also makes cakes for people, and she has one customer in particular for whom she makes a 6" italian cream cake every year for her wedding anniversary. Unfortunately, my friend was going to be out of town and wasn't able to make the cake this year. I agreed to make the cake and deliver it for the stellar price of $15. After all, it was a favor for a friend, right?

So today is the day I am to deliver this cake. Kids are home, it's rainy outside, and everybody's a little whiny and cabin feverish. After finally getting the kids dressed, cake boxed, and address in the GPS, I am frantically searching for my hat (definitely a hat day, folks.... too much rain and not enough product for this hair to be hatless). I see my hat in the office, grab it and put it on quickly as we're walking out the door.

We are about two blocks from the delivery address when I notice the flashing lights in my rear view mirror. Crap! I couldn't believe I was getting pulled over and would most likely get a ticket for something while delivering this $15 cake to Pflugerville. As the officer approaches the car, my kids are bellowing "are you gonna go to jail, Mom? I don't want you to go to jail... who will take care of us?" The officer was very polite, informing me that I had no inspection sticker on my car. What??? I knew there was something wrong because I had my car inspected in April.

Then the humiliating truth reared it's ugly head.... I did, in fact, have my car inspected in April. I also renewed my registration in June (which had expired in May, btw). Apparently, when applying my new registration sticker... rather than remove the expired registration sticker, I had removed the current inspection sticker. So now I'm driving around with an expired registration sticker, a current registration sticker, and no inspection sticker.

I was able to find my receipt for the inspection, so the officer was very kind and gave me a warning. As a bonus, he gave the kids each a coupon for a free ice cream cone because they were properly seated in their booster and car seats.

Now, this may seem like it should be the end of a funny little anecdote, but it's not...

I arrive at this lovely lady's house to deliver the cake. She's very kind and appreciative as she takes the cake and gives me the $15.... All the while, however, she is looking at me rather strangely. I figure I must look like someone she knows or something. I thank her and head back to the car.

When I get to the car I notice something odd on my hat in my reflection in the window.... then I notice my hat! I thought I had grabbed my Texas State Aquarium hat... an unassuming, neutral colored hat with very little embellishment. The hat looking back at me was anything but unassuming. This was a hat my dad had bought shortly after the most recent presidential election. This was an Obama Hat.... Em-blazed with vibrant red, white and blue embroidery with "Obama" hugely written across the front.

Now don't get me wrong, some of you may find this offensive but I actually am an Obama supporter.... this is just an outrageously ornate hat and one I would never choose to wear regardless what the words on the hat were. And it was one of those "tall" hats. You know the kind I'm talking about... they look like you're smuggling something on top of your head under that hat.

But here it is folks.... the final humiliating blow to the tiny fragments that remained of my dignity..... The tags were still on the hat.... hanging from the top. And not small tags, either... big tags... at least 4 inches long and 1-2 inches wide. And this is how I looked when the officer pulled me over... and the lady accepted the cake from me.

I replayed my encounter with the police officer and the lady I delivered the cake to... what must they have thought of me. Probably thought I was off my nut.

So this, my friends, is why I will definitely have to think twice about making a cake for $15 as a favor for a friend... :)

Here's the hat, in all it's glory... I have to say, this photo does not do the hat, or the tags, justice:)

Random Things From My Dad - Post #6

So....  Here is how a conversation with my dad went on Thursday...

DAD:  "I'm going to Costco tomorrow... do you need anything?"

ME:  "I do need some powdered sugar, but only get it if they have the 20lb bag... I don't want you to have to lift the 50lb bag and I don't especially want to have to deal with it either.  But some powdered sugar would be great.  Thank you:)"

DAD:  "Okay... anything else?"

ME:  "No... nothing else.  But would you mind just checking the price on their butter per pound?  DON'T buy any... just let me know what their price per pound is."

DAD:  "OK."

Any guesses as to what he came back with?

A 50 pound bag of powdered sugar (apparently, he didn't hear the part about NOT a 50 pound bag?)... 85 packets of Cascade dishwasher capsules, a can of roast beef (hmmm???)... 2 bottles of Cupcake Vodka... a Bottle of Barefoot Merlot... 2 lbs of mushrooms... some strawberries.... and......(drum roll please) 24 pounds of butter.  

The bottles of Cupcake Vodka were too awesome not to include their own photo...  Aren't those bottles simply gorgeous?

And, of course, the 50 pounds of powdered sugar.... (Man that was fun getting in and out of the car... but I am set for quite a while on the powdered sugar front!)

I had to count these at least three times to be certain I was right... it is, indeed, 

24 pounds of butter.... wow...

But wait... there's more!  

My mom gets an honorable mention in today's haul...

We had been shopping earlier today and I mentioned I was looking for some new kitchen towels because a lot of mine have just about worn out their usefulness... of course, when we get home, she shows me a drawer in the guest bedroom FILLED with dish towels, tea towels, and dish cloths.  The too, too cute white ones with red on them she embroidered herself... So I've got Easter, Valentines Day, Christmas and New Year's covered as far as tea towels go.

And the goodies off to the right?  She was making cinnamon rolls (from scratch... this apple didn't fall too far from the tree).... She asked me for some help.... in return I  got a pan of the delicious treats ready to bake in the morning.  Yum!

Yes... today was a bountiful day at the Edge house.... better get to baking!

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Random Things From My Dad - #5

Okay.... finally, finally, finally.... this is the kind of "haul" that inspired me to write the "Random Things" blog posts.... Most of the time, the things from my dad are common household items, grocery items, etc.  But he has a knack for the obscure and this recent load is most definitely an example of those obscurities....

So exactly what is in this diverse selection of items? 

• A Snuggie (complete with a free book light!)
• Thunder Wolf Battery Operated Toy Helicopter (I will have to include a video of this in action if it does indeed fly!)
• MicroFiber Wash Sponge
• 4 - Cleanpot pot cleaner sponges (these are fabulous, BTW... you can throw them in the dishwasher and they never mildew:)
• Smuckers Red Plum Jelly
• A Jar of Peaches
• A Jar of Strawberries (???... never seen such a thing)
• A Jelly Knife - specifically designed to get all of the jelly and/or peanut butter out of the jar (I'll let you know how effective that is...)
• Plant Science Classroom Kit (includes seeds, planters, stakes, germination mixture - as well as teacher instructions and student handouts)
• And finally, two pair of Lobster Louies - these are scissors designed specifically for cutting lobster, crab and/or shrimp....

So, there you have it.... a very random list of incredibly obscure items from my dad.  Gotta love him:)

Random Things From My Dad - #4

So here's a bit of background on how I came to write the "Random Things From My Dad" blog posts... my dad is an interesting and complex individual.  He is usually angry about something and regularly gets on his soap box to yell at "you" when he's mad at someone else.  He is pushing 80 and very set in his ways.  The relationship within our family has always been one of stress and turbulence... always looking for that other "shoe to drop"... so to speak.

It's taken me a lot of years to come to a kind of peace and acceptance of my dad.  I remind myself, almost daily, that I cannot control his reaction to any given situation... I can only control how I choose to react or respond.  His stress does not have to  be my stress... I am not required to live my life constantly making decisions about what I say or do based on what I anticipate his reaction might be.  It's very liberating when I get it right.... mostly, it's a test of patience and temperament.

So how does this relate to the "Random Things"?  Well... since my parents moved to Texas, there has been an ongoing theme of "shopping" with my dad.  He is always on the lookout for a bargain... if he has a coupon, apparently not using it is not an option.  Their house has enough food, candy and canned goods to feed a small army for several weeks I'm certain.

He constantly, constantly, constantly was buying things for us...  mostly groceries that I never expressed an interest in, nor did I use on a regular basis... but sometimes household items, clothing, toys for the kids... if they make it... and it was on sale or there was a coupon... he most likely bought it.  He has bought us televisions, lawn equipment, silk plant arrangements, shoes, kitchen appliances.... I'm not sure there's a room or cupboard in our house that doesn't hold some gifts from my dad.  (Seriously... at one point in time I had a minimum of 6 - super size bottles of Advil gel caps... who needs that much Advil?)

I found myself getting annoyed with his purchases... almost every time I went to their house there were items displayed on their dining room table... before I could leave he would say "I need you to go through the stuff on the table".... what this started to mean to me was... "great... now I have to bag up and haul home a bunch of things I didn't ask for and then find a place for them."  My pantry is always full, and mostly with canned goods that don't fit into our daily eating regime.

But then I realized that I was looking at it all wrong.  With all of his faults, this is how he knows to show me that he loves me... that he cares about me and my kids... and that he wants to help out.  This is his way of showing love and support... He lacks the capacity to do so with words... he doesn't know how to be supportive without being judgmental.... but he does know how to give... to be generous to a fault.

So now, instead of being annoyed, I remind myself to feel loved... he buys these things for me and my kids because he loves us... this is how he knows to show it.  So I must accept it... I must be gracious... I must be appreciative... we all have our strengths and weaknesses.  We are all flawed... we are all human... and we all long to be needed... to be an important and vital part of other people's lives... especially our family.  We get the family we get and it is so important to learn to embrace them wholly... the good, the bad and the ugly.  The quirks and imperfections make us all unique, fallible, and vulnerable.

So... I love my dad... and I have learned to love each and every thing he sends my way...

With that having been said... here's the latest spread from my dad...

Nine beautiful white roses, a package of fully cooked bacon, a pound of butter and
Smucker's Red Plum Jelly (Milam's favorite)

Random Things From My Dad - #3

I feel I may have missed a couple of my dad's "donations" to our household, but this latest one is especially nice.  We actually have had some cold weather here in Austin (anything below 50 degrees is deemed almost unbearable here!).... so we have enjoyed several fires in the fireplace... so nice and cozy...

Anyhow... here's the latest assortment from my dad...

This wonderful assortment includes a 12 pack of Gatorade (great for lunches).... a package of Sargento's shredded mozzarella cheese (my favorite), eggs (I can never have too many... plus they are cage free:)... a can of black beans, some apples and oranges (also great for lunches!)... some Duraflame logs as well as some actual firewood.... and last but not least, an El Charrito frozen enchilada dinner for two (???)... ha ha!  

Love my dad (and my mom, of course) and his crazy generous self....

Random Things From My Dad - Post #2

Another random assortment of goodies from my dad!

This time?  Capri Sun, sweet potatoes, walnuts, coffee, tangerines and a pomegranate:)  Love my dad:)

I'm fairly certain the sweet potatoes were given with an ulterior motive... sweet potato pie is my dad's favorite... I've never made one, but I'm looking forward to the challenge.  Anyone have any good sweet potato pie recipes??? 

Happy Baking and Decorating!

Random Things from my Dad

My dad showed up at my house today, unannounced, bearing "gifts"....  His thoughtfulness and generosity can, at times, be exasperating and frustrating.  Today, it was very endearing.  He brought me flowers... and not flowers in the cellophane wrapper from the grocery store, but a beautiful arrangement of flowers, in a lovely glass vase.

Why did he bring flowers?  My guess would be because a friend and fellow school mom recently passed away and my kids and I have been hit pretty hard by it....  He's not terribly demonstrative with words or affection, but  this is how he is able to show that he cares.  I'm also certain that he either had a coupon or it was a really, really good deal!

My dad is a man who is not without his faults (but who is, really?).... He is also generous to a fault.  He is a consummate shopper and is always on the lookout for a "good deal".  If he finds such a deal... and he  thinks that there's even the slightest possibility you want it, or could use it, you can bet he's going to buy it for you.

Along with the flowers, he brought wine and walnuts.  He knows I love wine and this was a particularly nice assortment.  The walnuts I use a lot during the holiday baking season, so I deem them a "necessity"....  This was one of the most thoughtful "random selection" I've received from my dad.  I'm sure there are many more to come, as there have been many in the past... some of them will make me smile... some that will leave me wondering "what was he thinking"... and some that I will just really grateful to receive because it means more of my budget is available for other things...

I hope everyone has a dad in their life that makes them smile from time to time and know that they are blessed....