The Shaggy Dog (and Human) Transformation

 

Maggie had a grooming appointment the other week – shampoo, cut, blow-dry, nails – you know, the works. We were even springing for the dremel for her nails, which cost a few extra bucks.

 

And okay, so truthfully the dremel was for our own self-preservation…sometimes those nail trims leave sharp edges that hurt.

 

When we picked her up, Maggie had been transformed from the Shaggy Dog to CinderYorkie. She looked divine and smelled wonderful, to boot!

 

After I booked her appointment it occurred to me that Maggie gets beautified more often than I do these days.  I no longer get my nails done twice a month – unless I do them myself.  And I hadn’t had a hair appointment in well over seven months! How does that happen?!

 

Well, truthfully, I can withstand hair growth for seven months – it’s long, but it’s not going to interfere with my daily activities. Maggie, on the other hand, would be dragging a mop of Yorkie hair through the snow and mud on her walks.  Ick.

 

That is so not happening since I refuse to give her daily baths. Thus, it’s not all that surprising that we have her groomed more often. It’s more of a necessity – for me if not for her.

 

Nevertheless, I finally booked a hair appointment for myself.  My hair hadn’t been this long in years and I was kind of getting used to it, but it was definitely time for at least a trim.

 

For me, having my hair long makes it much easier to deal with than when it’s shorter and has some sort of style. I have to blow dry it or it frizzes – and I then have to either flat iron or curl it.

 

Instead, these days I just wash it and leave it alone.

 

My mom used to tell me that women over 40 shouldn’t have long hair. And then she changed it to 50 because I wasn’t listening to her. I thought my only other option in the short hair style was the permed poodle do.  (Can you tell I’ve never really ever had a successful short hairstyle?)

 

So I guess I’ve decided that I’m going to be that old lady with the long white hair she twines around her head in a bun. Or with the long grey braid down her back

Before

 

But I digress.

 

For now, I have to wonder why it even matters. I mean, where am I going during this pandemic that I need to impress anyone with my hairdo? I can pretty much guarantee that nobody at Kroger gives two flips about what I look like. As long as I’m wearing a mask.

 

Anyway, I drove to Alissa’s house and she transformed me once again. She only trimmed it so I no longer resembled the Shaggy Dog and put in some highlights to balance the color a little more.

 

After

I have to admit – I felt better. And I felt a little pampered. And that’s okay.

 

I feel fortunate that as I’m aging, my hair is turning white and gray, which makes it look lighter and it blends into the rest of my hair.  And, because it wasn’t really dark to begin with I haven’t had to deal with major lines of demarcation between the blonde and the grey.

 

But one thing I’ve learned during the last ten months of this pandemic is that manicured nails and perfect hair are really not all that important.

After

 

What is most important are the relationships we have with the people in our lives.

 

I miss seeing friends and getting (and giving) hugs. I miss date nights with Vince without having to weigh the pros and cons of going out in public. And I miss gathering for weddings and, yes, even funerals to honor those we love and care about.

 

So one of these days we will be able to once again gather together without being concerned about transmitting a virus that – for some people – can be deadly.  And maybe we’ll remember what it’s like not to have to wear a mask every time we leave our home. And hopefully we can eliminate the need for virtual, well, anything – virtual meetings, virtual parties and virtual book clubs.

 

Because, let’s face it – you still have to fix up a little when you participate in virtual meetings. Shaggy Dog hair notwithstanding.

 

But a virtual hug just isn’t the same as the real thing.

 

I can’t wait!

 

In the interim, I’ve decided that feeling a little better after a hair appointment can also be good. It’s a balance thing. And I’m okay with that.

The Cookie Factory

It’s the middle of January and I’m in Maui. As in Hawaii. How did THAT happen??!

Well, before I get into all that, I have to explain why it has been so long since I’ve written anything. I have written very few emails in the past few months. We didn’t send out a single Christmas card or letter this holiday season – the first time I’ve EVER missed since I’ve been an adult.

And I haven’t written a single blog since November.

So why the long delay? Well, besides the fact that I’m getting a tad bit lazy in my old age?

It’s because I took a seasonal job, which started in October. This was completely on a whim, mind you.

Evidently, my whims are not to be trusted.

My friend and neighbor, Suzy, took a seasonal job at Cheryl’s Cookies, a local “cookie factory” (as Vince calls it) that had gone national when it was purchased by 1-800Flowers a few years ago. But the main office and actual cookie factory is still down the road a piece in Westerville, which is near me.

When Suzy told me they were looking for additional seasonal help in Customer Service, I figured, Eh, why not? And went in on that aforementioned whim, applied, and was hired on the spot.

Fortunately, the job did not require me to speak to actual customers; I only had to respond to emails. This was a good thing, because I would not have been interested in dealing with upset customers over the phone.

The job started with a two-week training for four hours a day. And then, once we were considered trained, we moved to six-hour days. This was to get us conditioned for the 9+-hour day, six days a week efforts we ended up putting in once Thanksgiving passed and we headed into the mad holiday rush.

Who knew cookies were such a hot commodity these days? I really thought it was the one time of the year that people actually baked cookies at home.

Not so much.

We were told we could expect about 500 emails a day during the month of December, which is why they hire additional seasonal help. A normal number of emails might be anywhere from1-200.

Imagine our consternation, then, when we came in to five THOUSAND emails instead of five hundred. And no matter how hard we tried, we couldn’t make those numbers go down!

Problem was, the company implemented a new computer program/system a few months prior and the bugs had not yet been worked out. So we had production problems. And distribution problems. And shipping problems. We even ran out of cookies.

So we apologized. And gave back money. And apologized some more.

But we persevered. And, eventually, the numbers slowed down. The general manager held a meeting to discuss the problems and to thank everyone for their efforts. And the CEO of 1-800Flowers even flew in to do the same.

So it was definitely not business as usual. Which is a shame. Because I never want to go through that again.

I barely had time to put up a Christmas tree. I hurriedly shopped for all my gifts on Cyber Monday and, if I didn’t order gifts that day, I picked up gift cards when I shopped for groceries. And I only did that when we were completely out of staples like bread or milk.

I was exhausted most of the time. And the dog didn’t know what hit her – she had been so used to me being home to walk her whenever the urge came over her. Frankly, I think she likes to go out so often just to sniff out all the creatures that have been walking around her neighborhood rather than simply to tinkle.

But poor Maggie didn’t get that chance over the past three months. When I finally got home to take her out, she was desperately lunging at the door. So there was no sniffing pee mail at first.

Anyway, so that’s what I’ve been doing lately.

I apologize to those who normally get a card and a Christmas letter from us. I am sorry that I haven’t been in better touch. And I know I’ve missed some opportunities to write some good blogs.

Now I can’t even remember what those blogs were going to be about!

So I guess I’ll start from scratch.

And my next blog? Well, I guess I can tell you how we came to be vacationing in Hawaii.