A Gift ?!

Friday evening Sir Steve came home with this bottle of 'MamaJuana' - a gift from one of the guys he works with - who had been in the Dominican Republic on holidays.

Nice gift right?

If you can get past the name 'MamaJuana' (does it sound like marijuana to anyone else?) and read up on it... 

it has 30% alcohol (our favourite wine has 11%)
It is a concoction of rum, red wine and honey (doesn't sound too bad so far right?)
that is allowed to soak with tree bark and herbs.

It is apparently an elixir of sorts that will cure whatever ails you.  On the label it says it is an aphrodisiac ......... 
on line it says besides it's aphrodisiac properties it is also used to rid you of flu - aid digestion and circulation - cleanse the blood, liver and kidneys.

We couldn't wait to try it out........... maybe it would miraculously cure Sir Steve's bug...

Saturday night Sir Steve poured us each a good shot ............ images of wild sex danced in my head.......... and we both clicked glasses and took a drink........... 



O H   M Y   G O D! 

our eyes bulged
our faces went red
we almost gagged

It took a few minutes before either of us could speak......... 

gasping I declared it was the worst tasting (insert expletive here) I had ever had...... it tasted like mouldy rotting trees ........ it burned like liquid fire.......... 


We waited.......... we took a second mouthful.......... 

ok the second one wasn't nearly as bad........ (had our taste buds shrivelled up and died?)  Maybe it would be better chilled - we put the open bottle in the fridge...... 

I tried to finish that first glass..... I got about 75% of it down -- and then the headache hit!  like a sledgehammer to the back of my skull.

Later we both limped off to bed -- me with my headache - Sir Steve with his bug (obviously no miraculous cure)

The bottle is in the fridge........ and it may just gather cobwebs there........ 

Life is good when you don't die from gifts given.........

A very Special Present

The lil one had a chance to go shopping for Christmas presents all by herself at her school.  3 packages were carefully brought home and hidden away until Christmas.  I was entrusted with the job of making sure two of the presents made it to my youngest daughter's house on Christmas Eve.

Christmas morning when the lil one gave her presents to her Dad and to me she watched intently while we opened them.  Remember those days when your child discovered the joy of giving -- the wanting you to LOVE what they had made/bought for you ??? That was the lil one on Christmas morning.

In my parcel was a coffee mug -- some chocolate and a plastic bobble headed green turtle. I was surprised!  I was thrilled! 

And the day moved on.

When we came home my gifts from the lil one were plunked on the kitchen table -- the cup put in the sink for washing -- the chocolate put into the Christmas candy bowl and the lil plastic bobble headed green turtle was abandoned on the table.

Some time that afternoon the lil one came to me in the living room -- carefully, lovingly cradling the lil plastic bobble headed green turtle in her hands.  She wanted to know where I wanted to put it.  I suggested she put it on the table beside my bed.... thinking I would toss it into a drawer later on .... she gingerly carried it into the bedroom and put it on the table as close to the bed as she could get it.  

When she came out she said "You'll love snuggling with it at bedtime won't you S?" I smiled and agreed -- it would be a great bedtime snuggly  (though I did remind her I had Daddy to snuggle with - grinning)

Here is bobble head -- in the place of honour beside the bed............

 


He will stay there -- after all it's the first gift from the lil one -- and a symbol of acceptance into her home -- into her life.

Outraged

I received many wonderful gifts from staff, parents, family and friends this Christmas. I am one lucky lady !!!

But there is one gift in particular that I want to rant about this morning........

My new staff took up a collection and bought me the above pictured gift card to the Fairview Mall here in the Great White North. Fairview is a huge multi store mall.......

Once many years ago I bought my eldest daughter a gift card from Cadillac Fairview malls.. only to be charged a whooping fee for purchasing it. I wrote letters (to no avail) and then vowed NEVER to purchase a gift from them again. Store gift cards (at least the ones I have bought - do NOT charge the purchaser an additional fee) I could only hope when I opened this one for me - that the policy had changed and my staff were not charged this additional purchasing fee.

This morning, as I was sipping my first cup of coffee of the day, and planning out my day, I thought about the gift card and what I might go and purchase with it. I went and found the card (I had stashed it away safely until after the festivities) and looked at the back to see a) how much I had to spend and b) when it expired.

There was all this legalize writing in VERY small print - in french on the back. (Honestly so small that I had to go on line and find the card and read the "terms and conditions" online) I thought I had read on my small card something about a monthly fee being deducted from the gift card (plus applicable taxes) every month. It was small and in french - so I was sure..... SURE !! ...... I must have misunderstood.

Well I didn't. Apparently Cadillac Fairview will deduct $2.50 a month from my card plus applicable taxes - until such time as the card reaches $0. No wonder the card doesn't have an expiration date........ the expiration date is automatic - whenever it reaches $0 ............. grrrrrrrrrrrrrr I am spitting tacks here.

Have you EVER heard of such a thing???!!!! I am enraged! I am infuriated! If I could I would return the card for a full refund and damn their $2.50 a month....... but of course I can't.

I will write Cadillac Fairview ....... again.......... knowing full well that nothing will come of it..... and perhaps I will post something on Facebook - I hear from Warren that some big manufacturers / shops /etc actually read Facebook - and have accounts there... People should be warned ..... read the small print.. read it very carefully - because the gift you give may just give back to the shop rather than the gift recipient.

(now I am putting my soap box away - and going to get ready to go shopping and empty this particular gift card before the store claws back $2.50 plus applicable taxes)