Maria's Space: 2019

Tuesday, December 31, 2019

Reliving My Very First Giveaway From My Blog In The Blink Of An Eye


My First Giveaway – We Have A Winner


Well, this morning we held the official drawing for my very first giveaway. It was so much fun and I can’t wait to hold another one. I printed out everyone’s comments, cut them up, folded them, put them in the Official Box or in this case an empty coffee can/plastic thingy.
Here is how it went down……………….


The winner of Maria’s Space very first blog giveaway is Ma Val (congratulate her if you have a chance). I will be sending out her package early this week and also will try to visit as many of you as possible.
Be on the look out for more giveaways from this blog and my other blogs.
MEMEPHOTOS

 Face Bling

This week the theme is self portrait. I always wanted a pierced nose, so today I did it. 42 years old and pierced.

Monday, December 30, 2019

Because I can’t fill enough of these out

I MUST BE BOREDRANDOMNESSSOMETIMES IT'S ABOUT ME

Because I can’t fill enough of these out

1.) If I were a doll, the accessories packaged with me would be:
Telephone, Babies, coffee, laptop
2.) I have an irrational fear of:
It’s so irrational that I can’t even type it
3.) What type of food do you eat at your grandparents house?
Back in the day when grams was around, I ate the best Italian food this side of New York. That women could cook!
4.) What weight were you when you were born?
7 lbs. 11 ounces
5.) What would you do if you were stranded on an island with the person you hate most?
I would eventually learn to like them the best.
 
6.) What would you do if you found out you had been cheated on?
Cry, a lot!!! Then get very pissed!
 7.) Do you stalk anyone on myspace?
I barely visit my own Myspace let alone someone elses
8.) I find the thought of childbirth:
Beautiful and scary at the same time
9.) Next door to my house is:
Red, I think

10.) My feet are:
Great for walking. I couldn’t do it without them

11.) My preferred style of jeans is:
The type that fit

12.) Why is your #1 your #1?
Because it is not YOUR number one it is MY number one. Confused yet?
13.) Know how to cook?
Yup, I do ok.
 
14.) I am annoyed with:
My inability to fit in some reading
 15.) What is the worst way you were dumped?
Over the phone by a real big schmuck, too much of a pussy to face the music. DICK
16.) What child-related smell do you not like?
Any of the body excretions pretty much suck
17.) What sea creature scares you?
None of them scare me if they are behind a nice thick sheet of glass
18.) What color hair do most of the people you are around have?
Brown
19.) What object have you broken most recently?
A glass in the sink
20.) Name one of the Spice Girls.
Posh
21.) What was the last thing to make you cry?
Some sappy, chick flick I guess. I don’t do much crying these days
22.) What are the stems on wine glasses for?
To hold so you don’t warm your wine?
23.) My favorite shoes are:
Comfortable.
24.) Can you use chopsticks?
Yup
25.) Do you prefer beaches or forests?
They both have their uses
26.) What serial killer do you find most disturbing?
All of them. Do you actually want me to chose one moron over another?
27.) Who knows a secret or two about you?
No one, that is why it is a secret
28.) Have you ever burned yourself?
Yes but not intentionally

29.) Who is probably talking a load of crap about you right now?
Hopefully someone otherwise what is the sense?
30.) Who is your hero[s]?
Most of the time, My husband
 
40.) Do you believe in things that last forever?
Yes
 41.) What are you listening to?
My daughter singing The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow.
42.) What do you smell like?
Myself with a touch of Grass from Bath and Body
43.) What’s the most confusing to you?
How they get those little boats into those coke bottles. God damn, that is amazing.
44.) Do you have any bad habits?
Sure but are they really that bad????
 
45.) Have you ever wanted to be a teacher?
Yes, I still do…just ask my kids
 46.) What is one thing you’ve learned about life?
That it is what you make it.
47.) What’s your favorite color?
Blue
48.) Have you ever been stuck in an elevator?
Thank God no
49.) What does your dad call you?
Ree, babe
50.) Has anyone told you that they like you more than a friend?
Yes, but it was soooooo long ago
51.) What are you looking forward to?
Going to sleep
52.) How are you today?
Hopeful

I am stoked

MEDIA BSSOMETIMES IT'S ABOUT ME

I am stoked

I found out today that one of my favorite guitarist from one of my favorite bands and if you REALLY know me, you know that I HAD a total ridiculous (too old for such a thing) crush on SLASH from Guns N’ Roses. I had pictures and posters of him all over my room when I was like 25. And, we he promoted Black Death Vodka I ran out and purchased not 1 but 2 bottles in it’s own little wood coffin. One is still in my closet unopened and the other I think I gave as a gift. Anyway…as I was saying…Slash (Saul Hudson) has a book out about his life. I cannot wait to read this book and I will be searching it out today.
Why can’t I find any pictures of Slash???

Just An Old Fill In

MEME

Friday Fill-Ins

Come and play with us at Friday Fill -Ins.
1. You know you’re old when you need help walking, getting out of a chair and can’t hold your own urine. (I found this really hard to answer. I don’t know the answer to this. I have a 90 year old grandma who can pretty much walk, talk, hear, and take care of herself.
2. My heart is divided between sleeping in and going to church every Sunday
3. Sleep and money is what I need RIGHT NOW!
4. I have felt the edge I have known the depths of despair (but I will never go there again).
5. Gah, won’t these people stop talking.
6. Going to bed as soon as you can!
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to reading, tomorrow my plans include shopping alone, a gift from my husband for my birthday and Sunday, I want to have a fantasy meal.

Sunday, December 29, 2019

Dieting 101

Time Flies When You Are Having Fun

Two weeks ago today I started a health plan (I totally prefer this term to diet) with my husband. If you were following along when I weighed in here.
I am very happy to report that I am down 6 pounds by following a very easy plan.
Ok, want to know the secret?
Come here…I’ll tell you.
Closer
Closer
Closer
Ok, you reduce calories and work out.
There, now you know.
No seriously, here is what I am doing.
Breakfast choices – egg beaters with 1 slice of deli ham or cereal such as Wheaties or All Bran with blue berries.
Lunch – Turkey breast on wrap with lettuce, mayo or soup or Lean Cuisine meal, or salad with greens and some tuna on top.
Dinner – Turkey breast wrap again, or steam veggies with grilled chicken and a salad, or Lean Cuisine meal, or soup.
I have had some snacks/cheats but I average only about 4 a week. My snack might be a small Baby Bell cheese, berries, apples, I had a small breakfast sausage last week when my son didn’t finish his breakfast. Also, there has been chocolate milk when my daughter didn’t finish hers and a piece of almond, raspberry tart, and a burger at a BBQ this past weekend. I even had 2 cupcakes on my birthday and the remainder of my daughter’s ice cream yesterday when she didn’t finish.
These are my choices so I am not saying to follow by any means. I just mention it because my cousin, father and friends have been asking how I lost it so far. I would love to know what I would have lost if I didn’t have the snacks and if my period wasn’t just days away.
As for exercise, we work out 3 times a week but I am also doing Wii Fit which I do not calculate into my plan because I don’t get to do it as much as I would like.
3 reps of each with resistance bands of
  • Overhead press
  • Bicep curls
  • Squats
  • Lunges
  • Lateral raise
  • Chest press
Also, 3 reps of push ups and sit ups.
The idea is to do as many as it takes to fatigue the muscle but never stop working. No long breaks if you need to rest the muscle work on a different muscle.
It takes roughly about 35 minutes.
If you read this and you are trying to lose weight, leave your link. I am interested to see what other people are doing.

Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Christmas Gift Issues

CHRISTMAS/HOLIDAYSLIFERANDOMNESS

Christmas Gift Issues

Most of the gifts have found a home. There are a few that we haven’t opened yet but I think I will put them away for a rainy day since the kids aren’t chomping at the bit on these. Today I put together a shelf for my daughter’s room because I had to mooch her shelf for one of my Christmas gifts. The Teach got me one of these cool digital picture frames. This one.
I loaded about 55 pictures onto it today and while scrolling through the menu it changed over to Chinese. Well now, I’m not a stupid women but I don’t know how to read Chinese. So I called Insigna and waited 55 1/2 minutes for an operator. The operator who answered had absolutely no personality and when I told him my dilemma he proceeded to ask a bazillion questions for their records. Where was it purchased, when, my email, name, address, basic annoying crap. Then he put me on hold for another 18 minutes while he looked up the item number in his records.
When he came back on I asked him if he could just tell me how to get it back to it’s factory settings. He told me that since it was in Chinese we would never be able to get it back to English because we would not be able to read the menu. I told him that it was very easy to change it to Chinese (which was done accidentally – by hitting one button), so if he could talk me through the process I could figure it out. I knew the process from reading the book and looking at the menu but something just wasn’t working.  He said there was 5 steps in order to change it back to factory settings and there would be no way to figure that out.
He told me I should take it back where it was purchased and have them reset it for me.  Well, Mr Operator, thank you very little. I just wasted over an hour and a half of my life and he isn’t even going to help me. I should have asked for another operator but I was so pissed I just said, “thanks” and hung up. If it hadn’t taken so long to get an operator I would have tried again to see if I got someone else who was more helpful.
I put the frame aside figuring that I would have to bring it to Best Buy to have it fixed.
Feeling chilly I got under the covers on my couch to watch General Hospital. I must be coming down with something and I hope it moves through my system quickly because damn I have no time to be sick.
I sat down with the frame after GH and turned it on. I went to the menu that would have said change language if it was in English but instead had some Chinese symbols. Where are all my high school Chinese friends when I need them?
I pressed the menu button, enter button, and nothing. I pressed the arrow buttons and nothing. I thought perhaps the arrow buttons aren’t working. Maybe it is broken. Nope, my finger accidentally held the button instead of pressing and it moved to a different screen saying choose a language. I chose English and guess the fuck what? Yup, it is in friggin English.
1 Step not 5 Operator A-Hole! Why can I type Fuck but not the whole word for a-hole? Interesting!
Well, anyway the frame is loaded and working. The damn kids won’t leave it alone so hopefully it lasts long enough for someone other than the occupants of this house to see this awesome gift.
By the way…Thank you Baby! I love my gifts.

The Little Things

Posted on 

Slice of Life choices for the week of August 3, 2008 are:
1. My Earliest Childhood Memory
2. I thought I was Invincible
3. Writer’s Choice – You may choose to write about anything that has happened or is happening in your life that you feel moved to share.
This time I am choosing #3 and I title it, It truly is the Little Things

Taken from my Journal Entry 9-6-05

Today was a great day. Why? Well it really is something so small it almost seems silly to make such a big deal about it but to me it really is special.

Today, my husband, The Teach, soul-mate, dude, man, baby daddy, friend, and occasional thorn in my side took us to the park. I have been asking for this for the past year and a half.
I took Handsome there every day last year. I would mention to The Teach what a great time Handsome would have in the hopes that he would be unable to NOT join us the next time. He never would. There were quite a few fights about this and he would say that there would be plenty of time for the park but it just never seemed like he was making any.

This morning I mentioned a convo that I had yesterday with two girlfriends. They were talking about men and how most don’t want to do things with their families. I said that not all men were like that and that I believed that when my kids were a little older The Teach would have a lot more interest in doing things with them. His selective hearing button must have not been working because he said “maybe we will go to the park this afternoon”.
Forcing myself to not jump out of my seat with a joyous “yippy” I simply said, “Handsome would love that.” He headed outside saying he had some things to do and the kids and I headed to the deck.

He started building a new bridge for our creek and I played with the kids until Handsome wanted to go inside. While heading in, The Teach said “call me at 2:00 and we will leave for the park. I still didn’t believe it would happen.

When we finally got to the park, I found some shade and watched my two boys running, swinging, sliding, and climbing. All the things that Handsome NEEDS to do, and NEEDS to spend some time with Daddy.

Handsome had an awesome time and the Goddess and I made a friend. Another mom with a 4 1/2 month old was there and we exchanged numbers to get together next week. It is the weirdest thing; I have given my number to complete strangers just because we have kids the same age. This is the only time you can have a five minute conversation with a stranger and hand over your number without wanting a free meal or a roll in the hay. It really is strange.

As we left the park with the baby girl screaming in the back and my son drinking water in his car seat, I looked over at my husband and thought that he was the hottest person alive. Like I said, it truly is the little things.

Friday, December 20, 2019

My Sunny, Funny Face and We Are Done With All Done

GODDESS IN TRAINING/GODDESSMY NAME IS MOMMYPARENTINGPHOTOS

My Sunny, Funny Face and We Are Done With All Done

spread01.jpg
I just put my daughter in her bed after she fell asleep on my lap in the rocking chair. It’s much later than her usual time of approximately 8:30 but usually she is nursed to sleep.
This is the 3rd night of her not nursing so I guess we are all done! The first night, Saturday, I was with Lori at the play Oliver. Last night, when she asked for “all done” (she called it this for the past year) I said with a smile and a laugh, “no, you don’t want that silly.” She didn’t beg and eventually fell asleep.
I am a little sad about it because it wasn’t work for me, it was very relaxing for the both of us, and it also means that I don’t have a baby in the house anymore and never will again.
So many people have asked me when I was going to wean her but honestly I am not sure why it was a concern to anyone.  It took no time away from anything, it came easy for the both of us, it forced me to sit down a couple times a day which was great, it relaxed us and it wasn’t WORK.
She turned two in April. Eventually it would have to come to an end and holding onto it because I loved it, or because I wasn’t willing to give up my “BABY” wasn’t the answer either.
I am proud to have done it for as long as I did. We had a few problems in the very beginning but after that things were very smooth.
As I look down at her beautiful face and find sadness in the fact that our “all done” is all done.  I am so proud that she fell asleep so easily without it. No crying, no begging, just acceptance. I guess we all have to accept that things change.

Thursday, December 19, 2019

ANGELA’S CHRISTMAS

Hey everyone! If you have never seen Angela's Christmas and want to watch a beautiful Christmas movie with your children this is the one! No Santa, no presents, not even a Christmas tree. This movie put Christ back in Christmas in the most innocent and beautiful way. I loved the animation and the adorable storyline about a little girl who was upset that Baby Jesus in the church needed to be warmed up so she steals him to keep him warm. It is so sweet and handles the message beautifully.




Wednesday, December 18, 2019

When Nursing Ends

One Year Ago Today……

One year ago today, was the day I stopped nursing my daughter. (Last Years post)
One year ago today, I sat holding her while she feed from my body.
One year ago today, was the last time I held her like an infant.
One year ago today, she slept with me and nursed off and on all night long.
One year ago today, I was sad that it was over and I would never nurse another baby again.
One year ago today, I was still fielding questions about when I would stop nursing.
One year ago today, my baby grew up with one night out with a friend.
Nursing my kids was something I knew I would do when I was pregnant. My son was such a natural. He was my first and he took to it like a champ. I nursed him for about 8 months which was as long as he would allow. Then I pumped for another 4 until he was 1.
My daughter on the other hand, was not a natural and because she gave me so much resistance, I felt unsupported by the people in my life for the first 4 days of her life. She was hungry and would not latch on. I finally got in touch with Le Leche and through their support (1 phone call), I got the support I needed to relax and try again and it worked. When she finally got it, it was so easy.
I never felt that it was a job, or a commitment, annoying, hard, it just worked. Having a 23 month old be patient enough to watch me nurse ALL DAY is crazy too. Everyone just did their part and it was a piece of cake. In fact. I loved it. It relaxed me and when it finally was over I realized it was the only time I sat down. On the 3rd day after weaning I realized I NEVER sat down during the day. Nursing forced me to sit and just be! Something a mom with a colicky newborn and a late talking 23 month old needed very badly.
Baby Girl,
I will never forget how much I loved holding you and smelling you as you nursed. I used to take my hand and trace your face and play with your hair as you played with my fingers. Your brother used to come over and say, “baby eat” whenever you were nursing. He didn’t say much but he did tell us when you were crying and when you needed to eat.
You used to call it “all done” which I found so cute. You would come up and ask for all done which meant you wanted to be nursed. I guess me asking if you were all done was a bit confusing.
When we were done I was actually very surprised at how easy it was. You asked for it the next night and I said, “You don’t need it.” You probably only asked for it 3 times. On the 4th night you cried for it but I felt that enough nights had gone by and that you were probably more tired than wanting to nurse. Honestly, if you had cried and begged for it on the next evening after missing the first time I would have caved in.
I love you baby and miss our time together but I think our bond more than makes up for that loss of closeness.
God bless you baby. You are everything Mommy wished for and God intended.

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Just Some Fill Ins from 2008 Blog Post

Here we go:
1. I believe whatever doesn’t kill you was weaker than you.
2. If you’re good at something, perfect it.
3. Why so tired?
4. Something is out there, it’s undiscovered.
5. If my life were a sitcom, it would be titled She’ll Sleep When She’s Dead, but They are Putting Her in an Early Grave.
6. Sitting on my back porch [if you don’t have one, use your imagination] I see the lush thick brush of my overgrown lawn.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to finishing up my freelance, tomorrow my plans include the beach and Sunday, I want to read my newest read, My Sister’s Keeper!

Monday, December 16, 2019

Share A Summer Time Memory

MEME

Heads or Tails – Share A Summer Time Memory

Over at Heads or Tails we were asked to write about a Summertime Memory.
There are so many tiny tidbits so I am going to bullet point a bunch of summers in no particular order.
  • Summer at Red Pond with my Mom, Dad and Sisters. There is nothing like eating breakfast cooked over a BBQ.
  • Ice cream at Jamos.
  • Heading down the Jersey Shore with my girlfriends.
  • Wildwood’s “watch the Tram Car Please
  • Summer at my cousin Carol’s in Staten Island.
  • Hanging at the lake with my husband and kids last year.
  • Drive in Movies with my parents.
  • Vermont with my very first best friend Peggy and learning how to swim.
  • Bike riding all over the universe with my sisters on summer vacation.
  • Going to the park all day and laying on the merry-go-r0und spinning around until I thought I was going to puke.
  • Bunking down in one room to sleep because there was only 1 air conditioner and loving every minute of it.
  • Spending a summer with my cousins in Long Island and feeling like I was part of a big family, living with a mother and a father.
  • Teaching bible school with a bunch of other teens and having the best time.
  • Drinking beers out of a trunk and listening to music in the swamps of New Jersey.
  • Camping for 2 nights in the back of my boyfriend’s car with a bunch of people I didn’t know and having the time of my life listening to Creedence Clearwater and Springsteen all weekend long. I can’t listen to either of them and not think about that crazy weekend.

Saturday, December 14, 2019

My Life In Pics Nov 21 - Nov 28

November 21 - I took a photo of my current read at the time. SUCH a GOOD book. I loved it.


November 22 - Not something I love doing but I get it done and feel better until the next time it comes around.

November 23 - NADA

November 24 - Not sure what is in this balloon but it was from my daughter's graduation at school in JUNE! Still normal size and sitting in her room. We are amazed by it.


November 25 - Luna looks like she is part of my Christmas stuffies. This is now her favorite place to sleep.


Nov 26 - Do you see her hanging out under the tree? My 3 cats fight over this spot!


Nov 27 - I do not partake so I was surprised when a company sent me these blunt papers. I guess if I were going to I would use these.
Nov 28 - We went to my in-laws as usual for Thanksgiving. We did a lot of Snapchat filters which was so much fun. My daughter loved seeing her Abuela in the filters. This was my filter shot!


Mario & Sonic Head To Tokyo For The 2020 Games



The 411: 
I was hesitant to get this one since it's been so long since we played the last ones on the Wii.  My kids are older and I didn't think we would enjoy it anymore but when I showed my kids that we got this, their eyes lit up. 

Once we started playing everyone was having a great time.  Even my husband, who does not play a lot of video games was getting a kick out of this. There were even some really cool games that looked like an 80's Nintendo game and he loved that!


Honestly, I was really surprised at how much fun we had playing this game! When they were younger, playing games with them was quality family time. I missed it and they have been hanging with us playing instead of locked up in their rooms. It might be short lived because it is new but I will take it!


Thursday, December 12, 2019

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

Mother’s Day 2008

Mother’s Day

Over at Give Me Five Monday, we are to write about 5 things that we enjoyed about Mother’s Day from prior years.

1. Mother’s Day is much better since becoming a mom. I used to hate everything about it. Losing my mom at 12 and having to have this dedicated day to celebrate her was very hard growing up. I don’t know why I haven’t thought about this before but I really should have celebrated it anyway. She is still my mom. I should have just gone to church or remembered her in a quiet way but I was so busy hating walking by Hallmark or seeing all the Mother’s Day ads to notice. My mother’s day card from my husband and my kids was extra special this year because my son wrote in his and his sister’s name. My husband always picks a great card (I am not sure if he really reads them but the sentiment always means a lot to me).

2. We got to play Wii this year. My son got it for his birthday and my husband and I played on Mother’s Day. We boxed and we played golf. I am happy to say I was able to knock him out in both fights.

3. It was just relaxing. Usually we head out to the in-laws for dinner but this Mother’s Day we stayed close to home because hubby was doing an all nighter at work.

4. I camped out in the living room with my kids and let them fall asleep whenever they did. No pressure no problem as they say in the islands.

5. More than all the others, this year and every 5 years I will share this day with my son’s birthday. He was born on Mother’s Day 2003. The best gift ever.

Nat Geo Kids Introduces Kids To Greek Mythology With Zeus The Mighty - REVIEW



The 411:

I am in love with this chubby Zeus The Mighty a character in a series of middle school books from National Geographic Kids by Crispin Boyer. This epic adventure featuring talking animals is the perfect way to introduce Greek Mythology to kids and who doesn’t love cute talking animals? You and your children will love this book and I am hoping for many more in the series. 
Zeus thinks he and his friends Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Ares are Greek Gods but they are really just animals in Mount Olympus Pet Center. The artwork is funny and really adds to the story. Families will love reading this together. I think my favorite character was Poseidon The Puffer Fish.  

The story is about friendship, adventure and lots of fun!











Friday, December 06, 2019

All Around Bustletown Winter




The 411:

As a kid I love Richard Scarry books. All Around Bustletown Winter reminded me of those beloved books. I use to look at them all the time and point to all the tiny characters and talk about what they are doing. My preschool class did exactly the same thing. They wanted to talk about the characters on each page AND the illustrations are incredible. There is so much to look at. So much detail on each and every page. My class loved finding the same characters over and over on each page.

I love these books for kids who can read or who can't. 



Wednesday, December 04, 2019

2006 Compared to 2007

1. Compared to 2006, was 2007 better or worse for you?
I BELIEVE IT WAS BETTER. THE KIDS ARE OLDER, I AM OLDER AND WISER HOPEFULLY AND WE DID A LOT MORE THINGS. FINANCIALLY IT WASN’T BETTER BUT THINGS CAN ALWAYS BE WORSE. I AM OF THE MINDSET TO HOPE FOR THE BEST AND PLAN FOR THE WORST. BUT I KNOW HOW TO COUNT MY BLESSINGS AND DO SO EVERY DAY.
2. Take the quiz: How did your year rate? 
THE QUIZ I THINK DOESN’T HOLD MUCH WATER, SAYS I HAD A FANTASTIC YEAR. THERE YOU GO. IF THE QUIZ SAYS SO I GUESS IT IS SO.
3. What moment do you remember as being the most emotional for you of 2007?
I GUESS IT WAS SENDING MY SON TO PRE-K 3 DAYS A WEEK. I REALLY DON’T WANT TO LET HIM GO SO THAT IS ALWAYS SO HARD. THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER INTO DECEMBER WASN’T EASY EITHER. I FELT A DISCONNECT WITHIN MY MOST IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIP AND THAT WAS REALLY HARD. I THINK IT IS ALWAYS HARD WHEN YOU HAVE SOMEONE WHO ISN’T A TALKER. YOU ARE LEFT TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT THE PROBLEM COULD BE AND YOU ALWAYS THINK IT IS SOMETHING MUCH WORSE THAN IT IS. 
4. Do you feel that you accomplished any major goals during the year?
MY GOAL WAS TO BREATHE AND YUP ACCOMPLISHED THAT.
5. Compared to your feelings last December, are you more or less optimistic going into 2008?
I AM ALWAYS OPTIMISTIC. YOU HAVE TO BE. IF NOT WHAT’S THIS LIFE FOR? 
6. Take one more quiz: Will you keep your new year’s resolution?
WHILE I TRIED TO TAKE THE QUIZ I WAS UNABLE TO ANSWER THE FIRST 4 QUESTIONS AT ALL. I DO NOT MAKE RESOLUTIONS. I THINK THEY ARE A WASTE OF TIME AND MOST PEOPLE NEVER STICK WITH THEM PAST 3 DAYS ANYWAY.