The Girl In The Band - Home

The Roasted Pumpkin Wall of Fame

11/27/2018

The last few months, every time I went to the bathroom, I saw how badly my hallway needed to be painted. Even painting a small hallway is an all-day project, so with football season and weekend gigs, the only way it was going to happen was for me to take a day off of work.
I finally tacked a PTO day on to the long Thanksgiving weekend and spent the week before trying out different colors. I was all set on a grey color scheme, when the night before I went to buy the paint, I decided to flip through a home magazine. I saw a dark orange bathroom and I decided to do the same color I had done in my entry way (Roasted Pumpkin) with the ceiling the same Orange Mousse as the living room. It was a lot of work, but it turned out great.
Now the hallway isn’t just the way to the bathroom and the bedrooms. It is my own little “Walk of Fame“.
I have a lot of pictures of family and friends throughout my house, but the hallway is all about the bands I have been in over the years. For people who come to visit, it is always a good conversation piece, but for me, it always brings back a memory of someone, some song, some bar or just some night.
On a week where I was thinking about the twenty years of the California version of L.A. Lyon and the amount of time I have spent with the guys I play with now, it was an interesting coincidence to be working on a project that requires taking down and putting up the pictures that held so many musical memories. It also wasn’t lost on me that it was a weekend where we should be focusing on all the things we should be grateful for.
One of the great things about social media, is that you are able to connect with people you have lost touch with. But I am always surprised when someone messages me from one of my early bands and says, “I don’t know if you will remember me, but…”
Remember you? Of course I do! You are on the Roasted Pumpkin Wall of Fame!

Vision Chair

10/19/2018

I admit it, I do not have a vision board. It’s not that I don’t believe in them. The logic behind why they work actually makes sense to me. But to be perfectly honest, I haven’t made making one a top priority.
For those of you who may not be familiar with what a vision board is, it is a collage of images, pictures and affirmations of one's dreams and desires, designed to serve as a source of inspiration and motivation, and to use the law of attraction to attain goals.

This week I think I came up with a variation. It is called the vision chair.

I mentioned I have been struggling with trying to get financing for a home addition. The combination of my credit score and the difficulty of getting a home equity line of credit has made me put the whole idea on the back burner until after the holidays. But I still think about it every day.

Of course, part of the reason I am so obsessed with adding a new dining room and a laundry room is a “want.” I want the convenience of doing laundry without having to drag it through my garage. I want more space to entertain. I want to turn my current dining room into my wine room. A classy little space for cocktails and appetizers, before moving to the main dining space. Yes, the want is also the life style part of it. More space, more entertaining and more time with friends.

The other part is much more practical. My home, particularly right now, is the largest investment I have. The light of retirement is getting brighter every day and a reverse mortgage is something I have been thinking about since I first heard they existed. Adding on square footage means adding on value. Value means more income in retirement. So the addition actually makes sense and is not just a way to feed my HGTV addiction.

Speaking of home design, I recently read an article by a designer who said, “If you love something buy it. Find a place for it later.” This is not something I should have ever seen.

So imagine my joy when I received an email from Cort Furniture stating I had been awarded a $40.00 credit for a class action suit. By the way, I had no idea I was part of a class action suit, but $40.00 is $40.00.

Off I went to the Cort Furniture Clearance store in Glendale.

A few things about Cort. They are not just office furniture. They carry some well-made items and if you visit a clearance store, they are reasonably priced. I found a great dresser there about a year ago. They also have some unique and cool styles and colors, which of course, is right in my hemisphere.

I had been looking online for a chair for my wine room. Yes, the one that doesn’t exist. But just like I did when I had my fire and my beloved home was in despair, I find looking for ideas and picking out finishes, makes me feel better. I may not have a vision board, but I have a very fat folder full of ideas and designs for my new dream home.

But here I was, in a real store, with real credit and there it was. The perfect chair for my wine room.
Well, almost perfect. The chair cushion was dirty and worn and the chair was silver. Not the beautiful gold I was looking for. But the price? Marked down from $299.00 to $99.00. With my $40.00 credit, I had paid more for dinner a couple of weekends ago for the D-Man and me.

Home it came, to my garage and two cans of Gold Metallic spray paint. My first Cort Hack.
Just to be totally transparent here, the picture of where it is, is not where it is living right now. The wine room is still the dining room and as tiny as it the space is, my wine chair has to live in a less fashionable place right now. Sitting in an awkward corner of the living room.

But I see it every day. To remind me, that giving up on anything you want, is not an option.
I mean, let’s face it. You can’t sit on a vision board.

Goodbye To Summer

9/21/2018

This weekend marks the official end of summer. And in the past, that has always made me sad.

I have always had an intense love affair with summer. It started at a young age, growing up in a small town in Wisconsin. Sleeping in, hanging at the community pool, riding bikes for ice cream. Then in later years, hanging out at Milwaukee Summerfest, catching outdoor concerts and spending every possible waking hour outside. When you live in Wisconsin, where half the year is spent navigating the frozen tundra, when summer hits, everything is about getting out to enjoy the only descent weather of the year.

When I moved to California, things between summer and I cooled a little. When you can literally wear shorts 365 days a year, my summer love affair lost some of its intensity. Yet a part of me has never let go of that feeling that I had to pack a ton of sun and fun in three and a half months. I have also never forgotten doing that first day of school report, “What I did this summer.”
The answer this year would be, not that much.

I didn’t really do any major projects, which I usually do. I had been planning to have a home addition done this summer, but who knew how tough it was going to be to get a HELOC to pay for it? The first time in my life I could have actually afforded to make the loan payments and no one wanted to lend me any money. Alanis Morissette are you listening? I have an idea for another verse to your song!

It was an extremely hot summer and both the refrigerator and just recently, the air conditioner needed major repairs. Doing gigs meant hauling in equipment in heat, performing in heat and basically peeling off clothes stuck to my body and taking showers at 300am when I finally got home. Some weekend days we never even ventured out, watching documentaries on Netflix with Kody and Kato on the couch. Not quite what I had in mind as summer fun.

Looking at my list of untouched projects, same size house and smaller size bank account, I lamented to the D-Man, “I am so OVER summer!”

I got the “stop being a drama queen” eye roll.

But the reality is, I am never over summer. The longer days. The summer fruit. Those summer nights, sitting on the backyard deck with a glass of wine, introducing the D-Man to old Bob Seger songs.

This summer, I got to see some family I hadn’t seen in years, spend some time with friends and yes, enjoyed a long tradition of seeing some great summer concerts.

Redesigning this blog, painting the hallway and refinishing that dresser I got at the Goodwill have just been moved to the Fall Project List.

No, it wasn’t an amazing summer. But it had its moments. Some of them pretty darn good.

I didn’t mean it summer. I am not over you. We just had a couple of rough patches. Goodbye for now. I can’t wait to see you next year.

Litter Box Inspired Renovation

8/2/2018

Let me start by saying, you will never hear Joanna Gaines from “Fixer Upper” say the next sentence. I got my latest design idea for my office from a litter box.

Let’s back up a bit. For the last year or so, I have been dealing with Kato’s inability to do what he needs to do in the correct place. Not for lack of trying or medical reasons. Without getting graphic, let’s just say his aim is not what it used to be. Since the location of his kitty box was in my office, it made for a lot of me wiping up the floor and a lot of burning of Yankee candles. You get the picture.

After trying every option I could think of, including two different boxes that look like furniture and still not having any relief, I finally found a winner! Modkat Flip Litter Box with a Reusable Liner. It has a high back and a low front for entrance and the reusable liner makes clean up super easy. I found it on Amazon and the only thing that isn’t perfect about it is the plain white color. Which I fixed with some orange spray paint.

The other great thing about it, is it fits in a corner of my office instead of sitting prominently on one wall.
So back to how it inspired my latest office design. Since I now had some extra space, I have been looking for either a vanity or a thin desk to use as a dressing table. With just one bathroom in the house, any time the D-Man is over and we are both getting ready to go out, it makes for a time crunch. I wanted to add one more function to my office and make it an office/dressing room. What was missing was a place to do my hair and make-up. Now with the litter box tucked in the corner, I finally had the room.

Target to the rescue! I found this Hairpin Pin Desk from the Room Essentials collection. Exact size that I was looking for and a cool mid-century modern look. The price is what had me ordering it immediately. A sale price, five percent off with my Target Red Card and free shipping brought the final priced just over forty dollars.

It also has great storage for my office supplies. Turquoise and pink spray paint on some old silver desk trays I had added color and gave me a great place to keep printer paper and notebooks.
Turning my office into an office/dressing room is the easiest renovation I have ever done. Who knows, maybe I can get my own HGTV show. How does Litter Box Renovations sound? Yeah, I might need to work on the title.

Vacation Insights

7/15/2018

The D-Man and I returned from a wonderful eight day vacation in Wisconsin last week. He proclaimed it was his best Wisconsin vacation ever and I have to agree, it was wonderful. We balanced time between Summerfest on the Milwaukee lakefront, the music festival I have been attending since I was nine years old (11 days, over 800 bands), a stay in Sheboygan at the Blue Harbor Resort and lazy days in small towns like Port Washington and Cedarburg. The biggest lesson? Vacation is NOT optional! It is a necessity! An eight day break from work, stress and emails brought both of us back more refreshed and ready to face the world! In addition to that important lesson, there were some things I discovered that just made the whole trip that much better!

PROPER SHOES MAKE THE VACATION
I bought these Aerosoles last December in Las Vegas at the Outlet Mall. The shoe store was going out of business and I paid under 10.00 for them. The color was crazy and I really forgot about them until the recent heat wave, but I decided to take them along. The surprising thing was that even though the color is loud as can be, they went with a lot of my shorts and skirts. The best thing was they felt like I was wearing slippers! They really came in handy the day we walked all over the picturesque town of Cedarburg, Wisconsin. The D-Man's phone app said we had walked five miles and my feet felt like we had walked around the block.

LOVE THE ONE YOU ARE WITH
Speaking of Cedarburg, we really enjoyed a couple of afternoons we spent there. I have done wine tasting in Napa Valley and Northern California and yes, the wine is fabulous and it is a great experience! But I also enjoyed the wine tasting we did at the Cedar Creek Winery. I found a Strawberry Blush that is a great summer drink. Right next door was a crepe restaurant that had the best turkey crepes I have ever had in my life! The morale of this story? Anywhere you vacation has great places you can discover and enjoy. It doesn't have to be the "it" place to be a great place.

THE SAME OLD ISN'T THE SAME
I mentioned I have been going to Summerfest since I was nine years old, missing only a couple of years. Every year they improve the stages, the sound and the food. In addition, they add fun activities. Walking around the grounds one day, I saw they were giving free boat rides around the lake in a speed boat. So off the D-Man and I went for a really fun thirty minute ride, where I snapped the picture at the left in the middle of Lake Michigan. It was a lot of fun and a new addition to something I have been going to for most of my life.

So if you haven't taken some time away this summer, take my advice and do it! No matter what your budget or where you live, take the time to recharge! Your co-workers and family will notice the difference.

POUND PUP SURPRISES

5/18/2018

Today is Kody’s birthday. Not the day he was born, but the day, two years ago, that he came to live with me. He came from the Burbank Animal Shelter, with a different name, a sketchy past and scars from a fight with his Pitbull brother.
People always ask, “Is he a rescue?”
I am not fond of the term “Rescue.” We did not go in at night, with riot gear and weapons and pull him out. He was surrendered by his former family to an animal shelter. I chose him to fill the void left by not having a dog and he was grateful to have another chance at a home. He adored me from the day he walked into the house. We spent his first three days painting my home office, him standing under the ladder, staring at me, making sure I was really real.
I know many people are reluctant to go the pound route. Especially for a dog like him, with aggression towards other dogs and already three years old. I am not saint. I had my reservations too. But I can say, after two years, I am grateful every day I took a chance on him.
When you get a pound pup, you rarely know the real day they were born. You usually don’t even know their breed. You get whatever information is available, but that can be very incomplete. Yet, over the last two years, the discoveries of my very own Kody, have been worth any gaps in info.
Here are my three top Pound Pub surprises:

GENECTICS
He is not a Rhodesian Ridgeback, as he was presented to me. (I REALLY wanted a Rhodesian Ridgeback) A DNA test shows he is Weimaraner, Boxer, German Shephard and Pitbull. Which means he has the most exotic eyes, lot of agility, is very protective and is loyal to family. A perfect mix that I didn’t even realize until I brought him home.

HOBBIES
Kody hunts gophers. Of course I had no idea. This is a perfect hobby for me, because for about two years before I got him, my yard was like “Caddy Shack.” $500.00 in Gopher Hunter fees and they still returned. Until Kody.
One day I was out in the yard lamenting that I once again, would be looking at another Gopher Bill, when out of desperation, standing over a hole, I said, “Kody, get the gopher!”
This dog had never dug a hole in the yard in the entire time he had been with me. All of the sudden, he became like a cartoon dog, digging to China. Dirt flew behind him and he kept going until I told him to stop.
I moved to another hole. “Kody, get the gopher!”
Dirt flew again.
After a couple of repeats, I got the hose.
With Kody stood at my side, we flooded the holes. A couple of times.
Miraculously, the gophers left and haven’t returned. I think they decided that it was too much hassle, having a flooded home and a dog snout in your face.
Every once and awhile, we walk past a neighbor’s home that has gopher holes. Just to keep his skills sharp, I say, “Kody, get the gopher!”
Then I just watch the dirt fly.

LOVE RULES
Two years ago, Kody could not be near any other dogs. When I had to leave him, he was a shaky mess, insecure and uncomfortable with most people. The D-Man’s sister called him “the scary dog”, because he was pretty much freaked out by everything.
Today, he has a neighbor puppy friend that he has play dates with. When I leave him with the D-Man or his mom when I go out of town, he isn’t thrilled, but he realizes I am coming back and adjusts. He is more confident and secure than I could have ever hoped for.
Of course, it was not just love. We got some professional help. Matt at The Zen Dog in Los Angeles and a class at The Pasadena Humane Society worked out some issues. But so did cuddling on the couch watching HGTV with Kato.
You can get a brand spanking new puppy from a breeder. A pure bred that might be like all the characteristics in the book. You may think that they will love you more because you have them from the beginning.
You will be wrong.
A pound pup understands where they are. They know they have been left behind. They know they may not get a second chance. But when they do!
The love can be endless.
And so can the wonderful surprises!

Lessons From My Mother

5/11/2018

My mother and I did not have a perfect relationship. A lot of mothers and daughters don’t. But there were some very positive aspects to it. My mother brought me up to be an independent, self-sufficient woman. There was no pressure to have grandchildren or get married, only to be able to support myself and be happy.
She also gave some great practical advice on a regular basis. This started when I was so young, I don’t even remember the first time she said some of the things that I have heard in my head all of my life. So as we approach Mother’s Day, I want to share three of my favorites.

YOU DON’T WANT TO BE HAPPY ALL THE TIME
My mother always said that if you were happy all the time, you wouldn’t appreciate being happy. Think about that a minute. Think about all the pain and struggle you have had in your life. Now take away all the strength and wisdom you gained from those times. What kind of person would you be? How great does it feel when you come out of a difficult time or finally reach a goal that you have been trying to hard to achieve? All-the-time happiness can never come close to those feelings of pure exhilaration.

PEOPLE WHO SPEAK BADLY OF YOU ARE JUST JEALOUS
I think my mother genuinely thought I was the smartest, prettiest child in the entire world. In reality, I was not. That didn’t stop her from telling me that daily. When other kids called me names, (Apple Face was a popular one!) or said things about me behind my back, she always told me they were jealous. Jealous because I was smarter, had more friends, was prettier.
I have carried that with me my entire life. Fortunately, I don’t run into it my private life. My friends are the best! Professionally, the corporate head games and position struggles have been a part of every job I have ever had. It can wear you down, unless you take what my mother said to heart. If you are not viewed as a superstar, no one feels the need to take you down.
I even take it one step further and translate it a little differently. I keep the quote, “Lions don’t lose sleep over the opinions of sheep,” taped to my computer screen. It’s amazing how seeing that makes me laugh and just keeping moving on.

EVERY GROUP OF PEOPLE HAVE BAD PEOPLE AND GOOD PEOPLE
Just a reminder, I grew up in an all-white, predominantly Catholic small town in the Midwest. We were not Catholic. When I was around seven, I had a classmate tell me I would never go to heaven because I was not Catholic. My mother took this news from me and instead of taking the easy route and saying, “All Catholics are bad,” she said, “All races and religions have good people and bad people. She is not a good one.”
Simple right? Not to a small child, hurting from being told she was not one of God’s children and heaven was no longer an option.
She repeated that simple phrase throughout my entire childhood. So I went out in the world, not judging by anything but behavior. Not race, not sexual preference, not religion. In my life, you were judged by who you were. Not what color or religion or who you loved.

Simple lessons, but ones I remember almost every day of my life.

Happy Mother’s Day to those women who shaped our lives. And to those mothers just starting out. Sometimes the simplest lessons are the ones your children will carry with them for their entire lives.

WORK TRAVEL THE SEQUEL

4/13/2018

I just go back from another work trip to New Jersey, which included a side weekend trip to New York City. It is official. I have fallen passionately in love with New York City.
I know we are not going to be a forever kind of thing. My first love is California and I would never leave him for a side fling. But like “The Bridges of Madison County”, I am hoping we can continue to meet at least once a year.
Not only did I get to shop at my favorite Macy’s store, I got to see my celebrity crush Wayne Brady in a great show on Broadway, “Kinky Boots.” Great music, great message and great fun.
I also learned some valuable lessons to add to my work travel fact folder. Here are the newest three:

JOIN THE REWARDS PROGRAMS
Join ALL the rewards programs! I know it sucks keeping track of your membership numbers and passwords, but it does pay off! I arrived in New York City to check into the Radisson Martinique and got a free upgrade to the penthouse floor, a much larger room than expected, a check in three hours early and a late check out three hours after regular time. All because I have a lot of points on my Radisson reward membership! I literally paid for a vacation flight with my Southwest Airlines points, accumulated from all that work travel. So join, join, join.

NEVER BOOK THE LAST FLIGHT OUT
I love Southwest Airlines. Yes, they have late flights and yes, I have missed connections because of this fact, but overall, they are my favorite airline. That being said, flying home out of Newark, I made the not so smart decision to book a flight with a connection to Phoenix that would take me home to Burbank airport. Problem was, the connection was the last flight out of Phoenix to Burbank. Basically, if I missed the connection, I was staying in Phoenix for the night.
Now nothing against Phoenix, but when you have not budgeted for a night in another hotel and you want to get home to your bed and your sweet boys, Kato and Kody, staying in Phoenix is not high on your bucket list.
The other factor I ignored was having only one hour between flights. Boo boo number two.
Of course the Newark flight got delayed by almost 30 minutes. Of course the Phoenix flight was right on time.
Yes, I made it, but the stress of willing all the people who took their time getting their crap out of the storage bins to turn to sand and the reenactment of the OJ Simpson Hertz commercial are two things I can live without again.
This next business trip I am flying direct, but if I have to make a connection again, I am flying out in the morning. If you miss a connection in the morning, there is another flight. Miss it at night and you are looking for a Motel Six instead of relaxing on your comfy couch with a glass of wine and all your back episodes of your favorite show you missed while you were away.

DOWNLOAD, DOWNLOAD, DOWNLOAD
Adding to the fun and games coming home, was a five hour flight on a plane that did not have working internet. No working internet meant no watching live television. No surfing mid-century modern design websites. No Amazon Prime music. Nothing but two magazines that I burned through by hour one.
I had one movie that I downloaded from my DVR to my tablet. It turned out to be two hours when I didn’t have to listen to a kid behind me say, “Mommy, no!” fifteen times in a row. It was a true blessing. Unfortunately, that was it and for the remaining two hours, I just had to suck it up.
This next trip, I have downloaded music and five movies from the DVR. No internet and I will be ready for a full flight of entertainment, not trying to find a way to sit outside the plane on the wing!
I hope these tips help and wishing you happy and safe travels, for business or for pleasure!

THE TRUTH ABOUT WORK TRAVEL

3/30/2018

As I get ready for my fourth work trip so far this year, I was thinking back on a conversation I had recently with a client.

“You are so lucky to get to travel for work! That is my total fantasy! It must be so great!”

I stopped myself from rolling my eyes.

By no means am I a road warrior. I have a couple of friends who basically have jobs that mean they are traveling almost every Sunday thru Thursday, but over the last year, my work travel has increased to almost one trip a month. I am no stranger to this work travel thing, having done my fair share of trainings, going to alternate offices in other parts of the country and attending conferences. So for those of you who spend the majority of your time in one place, dreaming about that traveling gypsy dream job, here is the truth about work travel:

FLYING SUCKS
Unless you are Kid Rock and you have your own private plane, there is nothing fun anymore about flying. My last trip, I flew American Airlines from a one day client visit in North Carolina. My first flight landed in Phoenix and I was more than ready to get on my flight back to Burbank airport. It had already been a long day. I became concerned when the boarding information at my gate never came up. The plane arrived, but there was still no hint that they were going to be flying to Burbank any time soon. That is when they announced they needed 30 people to volunteer to be bumped off the flight because, WAIT FOR IT…….The flight was going to be too heavy.

I had just started the South Beach Diet, so I wanted to let them know I was down about five pounds and would that help? I have been flying since I was 9 years old and I have to tell you, this was a first.

We proceeded to play “The Price Is Right” for the next two hours, as they continued to raise the flight voucher amounts to get people to stay overnight. If they would have rented us a bus and driven us to Burbank, we might have made it sooner. They finally topped out at $1400.00 in travel credit and we got to head out. Had I not had a full day of meetings the next day that couldn’t be rescheduled, I might have considered taking the bump. The other detriment was the thought of flying the same airline again made me sick to my stomach. Spending ten hours in planes and airports because American Airlines was carrying something in the cargo section that was more important than passengers who plaid for their tickets will do that to you.

UNLIMITED EXPENSES ARE AS RARE AS SOMEONE ON HOUSE HUNTERS WHO WANTS A CLOSED FLOOR PLAN
Where you stay, how it gets paid and how much gets paid, really varies, depending on who you work for. I have worked for a real range, from one company that didn’t have an issue with paying $200.00 for an employee who threw up in a cab because they were drunk to the employer who seriously couldn’t understand why breakfast had to cost more than $5.00.

In general, you do get to stay at nicer hotels, but that isn’t always the case. Sometimes you even have to share a room with a co-worker, which being an only child who never had a roommate, is the thing I hate the most.

It is also not unusual for the expectation to be YOU front the expenses and then fill out an expense report. One company I worked for had a policy of making you wait for almost a month to be reimbursed. My policy became not traveling anymore without a cash travel advance and I eventually left the company.

IT ISN’T ALL BAD
The biggest plus, is you do get to travel to places you may have never gotten to see. It still isn’t a vacation, because you do actually WORK when you travel. Doing training, working a conference, client visits, can be more intense and exhausting then being at the office. Late nights out club hopping in a new city isn’t conducive to getting up at 700 am to do an 800 am training, but there is some off time and I have gotten to explore some cool cities. The best part is if you can combine it with a little weekend time. You still have the cost of your hotel and meals, but you save the airfare and that can be a big part of that getaway expense.

Not to mention not getting on ANOTHER plane to have a little down time!

A WEEKEND WINE CABINET

2/25/2018

One of my main goals this year, is to continue to get rid of "stuff". You know, all those things you don't really need that take up space, but you keep thinking, "Well, if there was a Zombie Apocalypse this would really come in handy!"

My little wine refrigerator has been taking up valuable counter space since I got it. I love the look of a built in wine refrigerator, but really don't have it in the budget. My solution? Take the door off one of my kitchen cabinets and put in in there.
The actual project took about an hour this weekend, but what took three hours of pre-work was getting rid of enough stuff and re-organizing things I really do use to free up a cabinet.

Check out the pictures and more details on my Home Ideas tab. My proudest moment? Looking at the empty cabinet and realizing I don't miss a thing! But I do hope those Zombies don't show up...