YUM!

Comfort Food - This phrase was included into the Webster Dictionary in 1977.  Comfort food is loosely described as food which brings an individual comfort and well-being.  It says nothing about guilt.

YUM! Brands is the name of the ex-trinity of PepsiCo Foods:  KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell.  Personally, these are not my comfort foods.  But they must be comfort foods for millions, maybe billions of people.   YUM! Brands is doing quite nicely even through the great recession.

Once upon on a time, I worked with a very young woman.  We worked in an office building downtown. Her comfort food was fried rice.  But it had to be from China town.  So she would send her boyfriend of the moment to China town to bring back an order of fried rice.  (Did I mention that she was quite attractive?)

Last evening, I had dinner with some friends, CareBear and Mikey.  As we were enjoying our dinner, we were discussing comfort foods and past combinations from our childhood.   One was dill pickles and peanut butter.  Another favorite was white bread with butter and sugar sprinkled on top. Quite a few of these concoctions were tossed around with comments.

There was a time during my preteen years when I sneak into the kitchen to make a butter and sugar sandwich as a snack.  (Did I mention that I was a chubby child?)  It has been a long time since I craved or ate a slice of white bread with butter and sugar.  At this point in my life, the thought does not appeal to me.  

We all crave those foods that bring us good memories or a positive feeling about life.  To tell the truth, my comfort foods have not changed all that much.  Currently, my list would include:

• Chicago pizza - sans pepperoni - a true Chicagoan does not eat pepperoni - it's sawsage
• Macaroni and Cheese 
• Cheeseburgers - pub style - medium rare
• A well-made cosmopolitan with grey goose vodka

What are some of your comfort foods?  We would all be interested.  Just check the pencil in the lower left corner and share - please.

Yummy, Yummy

Choo-Choo Charlie

Again for a moment or two, let's go back to early television.  Do you remember the candy called, Good n' Plenty?  It's still around.  It was not my personal favorite candy.  Good n' Plenty is licorice in candy coated shells of pink and white.  You can still find it in a Walgreens in the $1boxes of candy.  Yes, it was only 5 cents when I was a child (a million years ago).

Now that you are trying to picture the candy, stretch your memory to remember the commercial.  It was a black and white cartoon.  The only color in the commercial was the pink and white candy pellets.  The main character was Choo-Choo Charlie who closely resembled Charlie Brown. Well, Choo-Choo Charlie was engineer who shook his box of Good N' Plenty to make the sound of a train chugging down the tracks.

As a child and still as a mature adult, when I think about trains, picture the commercial as well as hear the song in my head.  Skip ahead two generations to the present.  My Coco is now 2.5 years of age. Her frame of reference for trains is the series of Thomas the Train. Can you believe that until Coco came along I never heard of Thomas and his train crew?  (Guess television was my babysitter.)

Coco is quite familiar with this entire train crew:  Gordon, Percy, and Thomas, etc.  Every time she sees a train pass by, she points, smiles and says "Thomas"!  So as a potty training reward,  on a bright sunny Saturday morning, the entire family boarded Thomas and rode the train to another suburb approximately 30 minutes away.  As we passed trains, in complete awe, Coco called out the names of the other train crew members.  Her face held great awe and wonder.

Those moments held great awe, wonder and joy for me as well.



Choo-Choo Charlie & Thomas the Train

The Secret Word

It's the beginning of October and the beginning of my fourth week with Talbots.  Even though my dogs (feet) are barking and howling some days, I am having fun.

Most of us will not remember this early television show with Goucho Marx. It had something to do with a "secret" word.  After the contestant chatted with Groucho, the guest would need to guess a secret word. Of course, Groucho would look into the camera, raise his bushy eyebrows, cigar in mouth and say, "What's the secret word"?   I digest (even more) for a moment.  It's a trivia moment.

Remember this was early television when there were censors.   Here's the true story of how Groucho was banned from his show and no longer on television.  While chatting with a couple (contestants), the couple mentioned that they had 9 children.  Groucho, of course, looks at the camera ready for the punchline and says, "Name, I like my cigar too, but I take it out once in awhile." 

Thank you for indulging me.  I love that story.  Back to my short story.  Last week, I learned we have a weekly word.  Of course, my imagination runs wild and I call it a secret word.  Last week, the word was "glamorous."  We are to try and use the word at least once during a conversation with a client/customer.  This week the word is "style."  For me, a person who already speaks in superlatives, this great fun and comes natural.

Upon further reflection, the secret word should always be sincere.  The point of the weekly secret word is to focus on the customer and be positive.

So what is your secret word this week?

Heaven -

/In the past, I have been part of many discussions about heaven.  What's it like?  Where is heaven?  Does time stand still in heaven?  Does time speed ahead?  Is it an alternative universe? 

Let's face it.  It must be darn good.  No one comes back to share its secrets.  They are all too busy enjoying heaven to share. For this blog, I am going to presume that heaven is something different to each and every one of us.  Some people believe it's a place to be reunited with loved ones.  (I pass on that notion.)  Case in point, my Aunt Marie.  She is buried in between both of her two husbands.  Where does she hang in heaven?   Maybe she found a third husband in heaven.  I don't know.  She has not come back to tell me.

This past month I took a part-time job with one of my favorite stores, Talbots.  For the fall line, we (Talbots) is featuring jackets. But not just any jacket.  There are three main categories of jackets.  Each line is named after a fashion icon:  Grace, Jackie and Kate.  One of my duties is showcase the jackets.  What better way to showcase the jackets than to wear them.  So, when I am on the floor, I change jackets every hour or two.  To date, I have worn every jacket item in the fall collection. Some days, I add a piece of jewelry or scarf to accessorize the outfit.  Now in my book, that is a piece of heaven.



My personal choice of jacket is Grace......MOM

Sounds of Silence (Simon & Garfunkel)

Personally, I would rather fixate on happy and cheerful news. But the "sounds of silence" of this (d)recession just need to be spoken.

The latest sword of the Recession hit me and a few of friends quite deeply. Last Sunday evening, my friend, Sunshine, texted me in horror. Our beloved Talbots was closed! There were no signs of there ever being life at the store where I spent a decent size fortune was gone from our lives. "Who will dress me"? was one of my first questions. "Where will I shop"? was the next question.

Then, I personally took the blame. I'm sorry to the Talbot gods. In my current circumstances, I just could not buy enough beautiful clothing to sustain the store. My friend, Sunshine, admitted since her lifestyle had changed, she was not shopping as much at our store.

When I say, my store, I mean it. The tastefully dressed women at Talbots were like family. Candy and Sue would greet me at the door and drop everything to focus on me. Where do you get that type of service from a retailer? Honestly, tell me. I need to know.

After a day or two, we realized that the larger Talbot's stores are still open for business. What relief!

Over the 18 months, we have heard about General Motors, AIG (still paying bonuses), and other huge corporations going bankrupt and whining for money. How many trillions of small businesses and families have gone bankrupt in silence?

MOM - with plenty of clothes for now.

Sweet Dreams (Eurythymics)

Calling all Baby Boomers!

Perhaps this crazy economic time has been a recession for the generations of X and Y. Yes, things are tight. The job market is thin. But in conversations of with members of generations X and Y, they feel there is time to recoop from this economic plunge.

To many of my friends and acquaintances who happen to be baby boomers, this recession disguised a Depression. There I said it. The D word.

Not all, but many baby boomers have lost/spent their life savings and/or retirement money just to survive the last 18 months. Many have lost their homes to foreclosure. How many have lost jobs? Within that number of jobless rates, how many have had to reinvent themselves? How many are working at a fraction of their pre-depression compensation? Where are the opportunities for the baby boomers?

After a few heartfelt conversations, many of us have felt we have gone full-circle in our lives. We are starting from scratch. We are picking up shattered pieces of dreams, hopes, plans, and our lives. This is way too depressing for me.

Let’s focus on the other D word. DREAMS! However you want to name them: new dreams, refocused dreams, minimized dreams, etc. Let’s continue to DREAM. Without dreams, there is no hope. Without hope, there is not success or future.

Trifecta plus One

Through my cursory perusal of the dictionary, I did not find a word for four wins in a row. In some instances, trifecta is used interchangeable with “Hat Trick.” So for this blog today, we will use trifecta plus one.

Last year about this time, we had a blog entitled “Holiday” (Madonna). So you may remember, I love and celebrate every holiday, including Groundhog Day. Celebrating holidays makes life special, in the fabulous sense.

Right now, we are in the third holiday of a trifecta plus one extravaganza. Yesterday, Sunday, February 14 was a double bonus. It was Valentine’s Day and the Chinese New Year. Both of these great days are celebrated with the color red. Did you wear your red yesterday? This is the year of the tiger.

2010 is the year of Tiger. Some people say 2010 is a Golden Tiger, White Tiger or Metal Tiger year.

Today is President’s Day. If you have the day free from work or school, please celebrate the day with a “President’s Day Sale,” cherry pie or waving the flag.

Tomorrow, Tuesday is FAT Tuesday or Mardi Gras. What a way to end a trifecta plus one in holidays. Please at least wear your mardi gras beads. Coco has a set of beads to wear tomorrow. Personally, I have red beads to wear. Eat whatever you what and do act crazy.
Celebrate and enjoy the holidays - MOM