This is how RJeezy rolls.

This comment was made just as we got back from lunch too. I can't wait to see what vacation in Korea will be like!

Some things never change.

I catch snippets of mental_floss here and there whenever I can, and one of today's blog posts was titled: Why Sisters Are Scientifically Better Than Brothers (and Other Important Discoveries). 

Science Proves Sisters are Way Better than Brothers?!

New research from the University of Ulster confirms that girls are made of sugar and spice and everything nice. Tony Cassidy, the lead researcher on the project, found sisters make their siblings more optimistic and help families deal with problems in emotionally healthy ways. Families with at least one sister are more cohesive and communicate more often. Girls who grow up with a sister are more independent and achieve more than girls who have brothers. Cassidy surveyed 571 young adults between 17 and 25. He found that sisters have the most positive impact on broken families. Only children scored in the mid-range for happiness while boys who had only brothers were the least happy.

I sent an email to Jon and RJ, jokingly suggesting that they owe their happiness and success in life because they have me as their sister. RJ's response? "Screaming at me and then harboring a cry fest about your experiences with racism in grade school all cuz I was putting a match box car in the freezer sure helped me out in life."

Um, yeah. If I was just in the right emo kind of mood, that response would drive me to tears. I do remember yelling at RJ about trying to fix his broken Matchbox cars by wetting them down to freeze them, but I don't remember delivering a diatribe about my experiences with racism in grade school in the next breath. It's interesting what we take away from our childhood, isn't it?

How old am I? (edited for relevance)

RJ:  I have to weed this weekend 

 me:  lolololol

the poop icon makes me lol

do you have any request for a dessert for saturday?

 RJ:  matcha cake nephew!

 me:  done, son

i'm also gonna make some beer bread and think of some kind of dip for apps too

 RJ:  ironically, I've become addicted to green tea and green tea products

 me:  i can now use up all that mgd i bought when you helped me move

 RJ:  and the main reason I got into tea is to not get addicted to coffee

 me:  tea is much better to be addicted to anyway

 RJ:  I did some car work over the weekend and I was looking forward to rewarding myself with jamba juice

I finished and then went over to find out they closed early cuz of a team meeting

sheeee     t

 Sent at 11:29 AM on Monday

 RJ:  oh I successfully cooked steel cut oats over the weekend

 me:  nice

 RJ:  I paid more attention, used water initially, and cooked 4 servings

 me:  did you add pb?

 RJ:  yeah

pb and cinnamon

 me:  yummy

 RJ:  and then topped with chopped bananas

 me:  i like craisins in mine

but you probably don't like craisins

 RJ:  blauchk

 Sent at 11:38 AM on Monday

 me:  do you like spinach-artichoke dip?

 RJ:  yeha

 me:  ok, i can make that for the dip to go w/ the beer bread

 Sent at 11:40 AM on Monday

 RJ:  I'm thinking I'll make bbq chicken, beef kabobs, and pacific scrimps

and toss a salad or something

oh yeah and sweet potatoes

 Sent at 11:42 AM on Monday

 RJ's new status message - needs smaller wheels :(   1:33 PM

 me:  totally belated response, but i like how you're gonna toss a salad. *snicker*

 RJ:  hahaha

 Sent at 3:28 PM on Monday

Did R-Jeezy Go From G to Gent?

I'm in the middle of making dessert for our family's celebration of Mother's Day, and I realized that my mom doesn't have any wax paper. RJ was talking about getting some orange juice, and he made it sound like he was going for a quick run to the store. I asked him if he could get some wax paper while he was at it, and he replies roughly "I'd like to take a shower first. I've got three layers of sweat on me."

"From what?" I asked?

"The first one is from the driving range..." 

I take this moment to try to interpret what other definitions of "driving range" there are. Because surely RJ didn't mean that he went golfing. Alas, I didn't know what esle driving range could mean. "As in golfing?"

"Yeah, I decided to try it out."

"Are you getting bourgie on me?"

"I've gone from G to gent. Ay, I'm out there wearing my black slim jeans and a V-neck." (As though this gives him more street cred.)

Apparently, it's a work thing.

And the laughs keep going...

I haven't talked to my mom in a while as she's been in the Philippines since mid-February. She got back last Friday and due to food poisoning and jet lag, she wasn't very sociable. Today, she feels a lot better and called to chit chat. The conversation was short, and we talked about her trip and how the family back in the Philippines is doing. We said good bye and hung up.

A few minutes pass and she calls me back. I figured it was because she forgot to tell me something. The following conversation was nothing at all I could ever imagine...

The Polka Dots Situation

Mom: I need to ask you something, but don't tell RJ.

me: Okay, what?

Mom: Something happened this morning.

me: Okay...

Mom: I thought he was wearing a robe because I saw this thing with polka dots. But it's not a robe, it's a shirt. I asked him why is he wearing polka dots? He said, "To freak you out."

me: [at this point, I'm laughing so hard, I'm crying. All this while I'm still in the office.]

Mom: Is that funny?

me: Yeah, that's freakin' hilarious!

Mom: So, it's nothing to worry about...?

me: No. He's not the first son you've had to wear polka dots. I'm pretty sure Bud and Jon have worn polka dots too.

Mom: Do you know the shirt I'm talking about?

me: No...maybe. I think it's his Comme des Garcons shirt.

Mom: He was wearing it with a pink tie.

me: And?

Mom: I like a pink tie, but with a polka dot shirt?

me: It's fine.

[Now, the thing about my mom is when she tells a story, she has to repeat it a few times to fully digest the details. During the third time she re-told the story, she said that she wasn't wearing her glasses and that RJ wasn't actually wearing the shirt, it was on his bedroom floor.]

Mom: When he answered "To freak you out," I didn't know how to respond. It did freak me out.

me: [still giggling and tearing up] Seriously, Mom, that's pretty brilliant of him. That was the best response he could've had.

Mom: So I didn't say anything. But I made a mental note to ask you about it.

me: I don't know why you worry about him. Everyone has their limits. Polka dots is not one of them. Do you remember his friend, Rob?

Mom: The Filipino guy?

me: Yeah, that's the one. He was just ripping on him for buying Marc Jacobs rain boots that has a pink liner and pink soles. For RJ, that's his limit. He's been calling him Roberta because he can't believe Rob is wearing shoes with pink soles.

Mom: Okay, I won't worry about it. Don't tell RJ, okay?

me: I won't.

Mom: I don't want him to become sensitive to this.

[The End]

Okay, so here's the thing. My mom freaks out over EVERYTHING. And seriously? How can I NOT tell RJ about this?

We interrupt your regularly scheduled program for this brief update.

It has been a while since I've done anything here. I haven't even gotten a chance to scan in any pictures. I know, I fail at life. Today, RJ has me in stitches. Edited for relevancy, of course.

Seizing the Day(s) @ Ikea

me: hey, could you do me a huge favor? ok, not that huge, but a favor, nonetheless

RJ: ?

me: if i don't make it down there this weekend, can you go to ikea for me and get this stockpot? http://info.ikea-usa.com/seizethedays/ $10 + tax is a price that you can't beat

RJ: word, ikea always has eye candy
usually sirius relationship eye candy

me: as in, they're in sirius relationships? or they're candidates for sirius relationships

RJ: they're in
cuz they're shopping with their roomate bf
does this come with the crab legs?

me: i wish!

RJ: I'm putting this in my google calendar with a reminder alarm

me: ok
sunday, sunday, sunday

RJ: whoa free breakfast!

me: right?
Sent at 2:59 PM on Monday

me: would it be too much to add the droppar jars too? 99 cents a piece is also a good deal, and i need a couple

RJ: I saw those too

me: ok, so if you can add 2 14 oz droppar jars to my order, i'd appreciate it

RJ: k

me: also, add a 61 oz jar too, and that's it
Sent at 3:09 PM on Monday

me: also, just to remind you, ikea charges for bags now
so bring your own
and don't break my jars
or maybe they'll fit in the stockpot?

RJ: I dunno if any of my bags won't make it look like I'm shoplifting

me: you don't have to bag them, but i didn't know if you would feel awkward carrying around 3 jars and a stockpot
but they should fit inside
remember the capacity, because i want the 61 oz one, and if they're out, they're out
oh shoot, the jars are only available on saturday
wth
i hate that
do you mind?

RJ: maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan

me: lulu will massage your shoulders...

RJ: no she won't
did pandy teach her something?

me: she will! you have to sit on the floor and she's up on the couch
she kneads with her paws, she knew that way before pandy ever came along
free breakfast?
at ikea?
come on...

RJ: lulu jumping on my shoulders from 5 ft above would not create the necessary force
I'd be like "what was that? spider?"

me: you would not be saying that

RJ: yes I would, and fobby too!
Sent at 3:19 PM on Monday

Taking a power nap from blogging...

I've been swamped at work and have been busy otherwise since the new year, so blogging about RJ's past and present escapades have taken a lower priority. I have a ton of pictures from back in the day to scan, so you'll have to amuse yourself with those and the occasional content I'll provide until I can resume blogging more consistently.

Time to make the sandwiches.

Sorry I haven't been providing quality content here lately. Work has picked up, and I've been working long hours. Not to worry, I still plan to recall stories of Jeezy yore and report current Jeezy tales. I think now would be a good time to tell you all the story about me making all those sammiches. This is more of a collective childhood story than a specific RJ story.

My parents moved into their current home while I was away at college. The summer I came home, Pop was working on his first of many home improvement projects: the back yard deck. Since Pop still had his day job, RJ and Jon were his day helpers. Technically, so was I, but I learned that I wasn't very good at hammering nails in straight (I'm much better now) and Jon and RJ became frustrated with me because I was wasting good nails.

I also found that the one task I liked was the one thing I consistently produced: I liked pulling out the busted nails. We had an assembly line of sorts where RJ would line up the boards, Jon would nail them in, and I would go through and pull out nails that weren't in properly. And as time went, there were less and less nails to pull out, so it got to the point where I was just standing outside watching RJ and Jon work. Cue the sandwich maker.

Since I wasn't doing anything, Jon and RJ continued working while I went inside and made sandwiches for everyone. I believe I also made lemonade, but that's a detail that no one else seems to recall. Anyway, the work load for the deck got to the point where I really had nothing else to do but make sandwiches.

When the deck was done, it was time to start planting flowers and shrubs for a garden area. I thought this was an area that I would excel in, and I was doing all right...Up until the moment where the longest worm ever (I swear it was at least a foot long) came out of the ground into the area where I was planting flowers. I hate worms so I freaked out, dropping the flowers and running into the house. Eventually, I returned to my planting duties, but I was paranoid the whole time and I became totally inefficient. I was then dismissed with the statement "That's okay, Jessamine. Maybe you can make some sandwiches?"

The irony is now I never make sandwiches at home.

For your viewing pleasure...

Jeezy Vignettes

About Being Jeezy

RJ: jeezymine
hahaha

me: man, no kidding

RJ: elveezy

me: hehe, i shoulda busted out with that!

RJ: it ain't easy being jeezy

hahahaha


About Shovelin' Shovelin'

me: btw, the shovelin party is all you when you get here

RJ: yeah I figured that

me: i already took the first shovelin shift
but it's all covered up again

RJ: ideally the first shift should've been at 6 but I didn't wake up in time
cuz now theres a layer of compacted snow under the fluff

me: and i tried to move the stuff the plow left at the end of the driveway
i tried to do that, but i didn't do that towards the end
i didn't want you to think i was slacking off making sandwiches all day

[The story behind sandwich making will be told sometime.]


About Not Being a Morning Person

RJ: ha, check out this text from mom
"r u ok? u seemed 2 b grouchy this morning."

me: lulz!

RJ: I told her that I'm grouchy everyday of the week and nothing unusual is going on

me: pretty much


About Keeping It Real

4:21 PM me: i haven't been with anyone over 40, so i don't know what that demographic wears

RJ: ask michelle

me: ROFL!!!!
DAMN
seriously, dude
wow

RJ: and you know I said that with a straight face

me: i know you did
cold-blooded like that

"Does God have feet?"

I've been a lazy blogger during the holidays, I admit it.

It snowed and snowed and snowed on December 23 and 24, so RJ and I shoveled together. I can't remember the last time I had to shovel. I asked RJ if he wanted my help and he kept saying "If you want to." Man, what's up with that? Do you want my help or don't you? I did help out, of course, just to prove that I can do manual labor and not just make sandwiches*.

About manual labor, I will say this. Tuesday night, RJ and I ran some last minute errands. I was carrying a 4-lb. bag of sugar at Meijer and I didn't have a basket. After a while, my arm got really tired, so I had to have RJ carry it for me. For the record, I'm not normally that much of a wuss, but I'm also not used to shoveling massive amounts of snow.

Christmas wasn't as tragic as we thought it might be. I got RJ the God of War II PS2 game, and RJ was awesome and got me a food processor (byaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!) and the book Geek Love. I do have something else in store for RJ, but that's a surprise. He knows he has something else coming, that's not the surprise. (We had other people as our secret Santa, we didn't have each other.)

Since RJ had to work the day after Christmas, Jon, Lyn, and I met up with him for lunch. Todd and Mary Jo also joined us for lunch. MJ also had to work, but Todd had the day off.

Saturday, December 27 was a day trip for all the siblings to go to the Harley-Davidson Museum in Milwaukee. When Mary Jo asked me if I wanted to go during lunch on Friday, it didn't sound all that appealing. But then Joe talked about it, and since there was student discount pricing, plus you get a pint glass and a free drink, that sold me on going. Plus, it was a family road trip! I can't remember the last time we did that. And no, the Philippines 2007 trip doesn't count.

RJ spent some time there taking pictures, which was a switch. I wanted to bring my camera but since it didn't fit in my purse, I didn't bring it. RJ kept trying to get a picture of me, but I was having a bad hair day (it rained like crazy the whole day, and thus gave me the frizzies) so I wasn't having it. He did manage to get a couple though, all ninja-like, since I didn't know he was successful at capturing my soul.

Later that night, we lost power. I was in the middle of baking cookies for Elvis, and Joe and RJ were rocking out on Rock Band. We busted out my new board game, Worst Case Scenario: Game of Surviving Life, but we ended up not playing it.

The power resumed, baking was completed, Elvis came over and we stayed up playing Rock Band past 6:00 AM. We decided to put a mild wager on the game and started keeping track of who did the worst after each song. Each person took a turn to sing a four-song set, singer's choice. We also did jaegar bombs to kick off the wager, and then after each set. Elvis lost. :D

Since last weekend, things have been pretty uneventful. We saw JCVD on NYE.

* Unrelated story, which I'll have to go into at another time.