Category Archives: Humor

Gig Hunting On Social Media…


Shenanigans with Algorithms

Taken from actual job suggestions I’ve received on social media in the last month….

Digital Woman AI Algorithm: Hey Julia, I have job suggestions for you!

Me: Great! Show me what you’ve got!

AI: “Technical Writer!”

Me: Totally makes sense. I am a writer after all. Let me look at what industry that’s in.

AI: I have others, do you want to see them?

Me: Sure, what’d you find?

AI: “YouTube Media Manager.”

Me: Eh, close-ish. I don’t really specialize in the videography side of the social media pool.

AI: How about “Temperature Taker” or “COVID-19 Test Administrator?”

Me: Nooo. I mean, we have a cancer patient at home and really wouldn’t want to risk that. And I don’t have any formal medical certification either. But I guess there’s a wide-spread need for people to do that job right now. I understand why you might ask. Thanks anyway, AI.

AI: There’s “Office Clerk” and “Personal Assistant.”

Me: Eh, not quite the field I’m aiming for, AI. I hope you didn’t ask because I’m a woman.

AI: I know! “Medical Device Quality Engineer” or “Pharmacist!” Or there’s “Veterinary Technician!”

Me: Uh, nooo. I do write for the healthcare industry, so I can see why your wires are crossed there, AI.

AI: “Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist!”

Me: Um… nooo?

AI: There’s “Nursery Worker” and “Toddler Teacher.”

Me: Look AI, I know I’m a seasoned Mom, but I’m not looking for that kind of work. I’m a writer. Remember?

AI: How about “Full fabrication and installation of quartz and natural stone countertops?”

Me: Excuse me?

AI: Or “Shuttle Driver” or “Car Wash Attendant?”

Me: What? No!

AI: “Farm Hand.”

Me: Now you’re just making stuff up!!

AI: FINE! Be a “Sheriff Department Jailer” then!

Me: 😑

Copyright © 2021 by Julia Meek Chambers, all rights reserved. Julia has more than 25 years of experience as a freelance writer, content creator, and editor.

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Early for the Ball…


I dreamed Uber showed up 15 minutes too early
to pick me up for the ball–and I wasn’t dressed yet.

My kids were all yelling at me,
“Mom, Mom, Mommmmm!”

And I’m all grumbly.

“But I have 15 minutes. My hair looks stupid.”

“Mom, hurry! They can’t just wait on you!”

Why not… grumble…. fine. Ugh.

I start pulling my red studded cowboy boots on.

Good thing my kids were there in my dream
to yell at me and wake this Cinderella up.

I accidentally turned my alarm off this morning.

Would have missed my meeting.

red studded cowboy boots - the best anniversary gift Texas

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Worcestershire and vanilla do not taste alike…


Appearances aren’t everything…

I’m just sayin’, my cinnamon hot cocoa never stood a chance.

They may have similar bottles.

Their liquids might be the same color.

They’re kept in the same cabinet.

And in the dark they seem very much alike.

But they are by far NOT similar in taste.

Pays to be more awake when you are getting creative in the kitchen.

Or turn on the @*&#! light.

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NOT A Fortune…


Pick A FortuneWe love fortune cookies in our family.

I know they were invented in America, blah, blah.

I don’t care. They’re so much fun!

We read them together and then collect them in a little shot glass to enjoy again later.

Anytime we need a little pick me up, positive word, a bit of fun when friends come over – just grab the shot glass and Pick A Fortune!

But the last year or so, they haven’t been so much… fortune.

In fact, much of the time, it hasn’t been fortunes inside the cookies. It’s been NOT-a-fortunes.

Don’t believe me? Check it out.

NOT A Fortune!

< Click on the picture to view it in a larger size. >

On the right side, you can see fortunes that actually qualify as “fortunes.” Or at least mostly.

  • “An opportunity will knock on your door.”
    –  General, but OK!
  • “You shouldn’t overspend at the moment.”
    – General advice, but could be a useful warning!
  • “This coming Friday will be an exciting time for you.”
    – Duh, who doesn’t love Friday? But still – I’m really looking forward to the “exciting time.” I think.

Those qualify as fortunes!

These DO NOT!

  • “If a turtle doesn’t have a shell, is it naked or homeless?”
    – Wha? Why?  NOT A FORTUNE!
  • “Love is a present that can be given every single day you live.”
    – I personally believe in Life After Death. NOT A FORTUNE!
    and my favorite…
  • “Eat your vegetable and you’ll grow up big and strong like Popeye.”
    – Seriously, wtf. THIS IS NOT A FORTUNE!!!

FORTUNE COOKIE FAIL!

Someone needs to quit at the fortune cookie factory and hire me instead.
I would write totally awesome fortunes.

My fortunes are inarguably better!

Nailed it.

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Craft Bullies…


I cannot believe… I’ve never seen this video before.

Someone shared it over at The Crochet Liberation Front Ravelry Group.

I think it’s absolutely HILARIOUS!
And that its satire also reveals some points, if anyone’s listening…

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12 Brilliant Ways To Create More Time To Crochet!


1. Sleep in your clothes. You’ve probably heard about laying your clothes out the night before to save time the next morning.  But I say heck – why not cut the time out altogether?  Go to bed dressed for tomorrow.  That way you don’t have to dress when you get up in the morning, thereby saving you even more time.  Note: T-shirts, jeans and knit items work the best.

2. Eat breakfast in the shower.  How long do you take to eat breakfast in the morning?  I’m guessing you probably scarf something down in 5-10 minutes tops, don’t ya?  Well that’s still 5-10 wasted minutes you could be crocheting instead!  Multi-task by eating in the shower.  I know, brilliant right?  Hello smoothie! Instant Breakfast shake! Just pop it in a spill proof container and voilà, suck that puppy down while you rinse and you won’t even taste the suds.

3. “Services will be down for scheduled maintenance.” No seriously! Send this notice to your boss, put it on your website, place a sign on your desk and then get to your scheduled crochet maintenance! Trust me, the world will be amazed at how much better everything seems to work!

4. Skip the makeup. After all which is worth more – Maybeline or Malibrigo. Obviously, when your priorities are straight, there’s no contest.  Use that time to pretty your crochet instead.

5. Have a Cro-Go Bag.  Seriously, I don’t just mean your emergency go bag essentials that you should always have tucked away in the trunk.  I mean get in the habit of keeping a crochet bag packed and ready to go – to take in your car.  *Crochet in the drive-through, crochet in the pick-up line at school, crochet at the red lights.  Crochet in the waiting room at the county tag office.  You never know where you might be delayed and there are moments to be caught anywhere.  Especially if you’re a Mom Taxi.  And if you suddenly find yourself having to wait on someone – no worries, you can be productive.

12 Brilliant Ways To Create More Time To Crochet - photo and article by Aberrant Crochet6. Crochet on the phone.  Blue tooth and speaker phone were made for crochet, unless you need to count.

7. Let Amazon deliver.  Seriously. More and more you can find anything on Amazon.  Even Malibrigo.  Save your gas, let them deliver goods to your door and use that time to crochet!

8. Skip lunch.  Well, is your crochet important to you or not?

9. Cover your end tables with crochet projects and WIPs, thereby eliminating the need to dust.  Ergo, more crochet time.

10. Store your clothes in the dryer. Seriously, why fold and put them away?  You’re just going to put them on again before you go to bed.  So leave them in the dryer, toss them if they get cold and save that folding time for crochet!

11. Better yet, barter for laundry service.  You wash and fold my clothes for me, I’ll totally crochet for you.  Oh here, this one has a wine stain.

12. Barter for meals.  You want more time to crochet anyway, right?  Well cooking eats a lot of time!  Covert that time instead into crochet time.  Find the best foodie cook you know and offer to trade them your time, hour for hour, in crochet.  Make sure they have lots of pot holders.

And there you have it!

12 BRILLIANT ways to increase the #crochet quality of your life.

Do you have an idea to add?  Share it in the comments below!

Got a friend in need who could use these tips?

Do them a favor and SHARE this post with them!

World peace will thank you later.

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Filed under crochet, Crochet Community, Humor, NaBloPoMo

Today You Get Kittehs: The Todd Chronicles…


Repairs were being done on the house awhile back.  We were having some flooring replaced.  And a section ended up needing repair, some bracing for some studs, and everything that goes with that.  All this was taking place upstairs right next to my office.

I currently use a dining table as a desk in my office.  No kidding!  Gives me a plenty big surface to work on.

What can I say?  After all those years with just my kitchen dining table as my only available work-space, I don’t know how to condense to a tiny desk surface anymore.  I like to spread my work out.

Meet Todd the Wonder Cat - Aberrant Crochet's baby

Meet Todd the Wonder Cat

So with my table/desk butted up to the window, there’s a nice pocket my furry baby enjoys.  Along with the chin rest.

This is Todd, and out of the 5 cats I have (3 of whom are geriatric), Todd is my baby.  He’s a Bengal mix and he has quite the personality. But then again, don’t all cats?

I guess when I think about it, we’ve had Todd about 6 years. Some renters moved out down the road from us at the old place, and left him behind.  For awhile he visited John while he worked out outside.  Or visit the kids and I outside, teetering across window ledges and whatever tiny strip he thought he could balance walk, while playfully pawing for attention.

In a way, I think he was interviewing us.

Then one cold night after Halloween, he just up and walked into our house.  Without batting an eye at our other cats.  Who, by the way, FREAKED out that some strange cat had just barged right on into their home all calm and cool like.

He found a spot, fell asleep and claimed us all.

And that’s where his stories begin.

As you know, Halloween is quite popular at our house.

And spiders are kind of a thing for me.

And while he doesn’t enjoy the guests, Todd loves the new gear each year.

Truthfully, these are all over our house. I have to explain to every new visitor that it's not a real infestation.

Todd’s favorite.

Truthfully, these Halloween spiders are all over our house.

And one day, someone installing a new oven is probably going to have a heart attack when a bunch of these tumble out in the removal process.

I have to explain to every new visitor that it’s just a prop, not a real infestation.

When people are coming over, I generally try to take a quick scour of the house and toss the plastic critters into corners under the pianos, so they won’t be in the middle of the floor, staring people down.  But that’s really all I bother with.

I suppose I should care more, but… I don’t usually.  And I still haven’t taken down the magnetic ones (that I made last year) off all my doors.  In fact, my yard is still full of crochet spider webs and spiders.  We have not taken them down.  And there is still a TARDIS in front of my front door too.  So truly, the inside and the outside are reflections of one another.  Signs of spiders and The Doctor are everywhere.

Eh, most people know us by now.  My neighbors leave their Christmas lights up.  I leave my spiders up.  It evens out.

And then there’s Todd, usually dragging one of the little plastic buggers out of the corner for someone to see.  My perfect pranking companion.

Floor Repairs

I don’t know if it’s because of his beautiful lines, or what, but Todd has the most expressive face.

So on this particular morning, while I was drinking coffee and debating on webmastering solutions, he was enjoying his drowsy perch.

Todd2-05132015

Working hard with mom.

Over all, as long as he can have his spot somewhere, he doesn’t care about visitors showing up at our house. People can go about doing whatever, as long as he gets his mommy time at some point in the day.

But then the Skil saw came out.

Wha...?

Wha…?

I don't understand....

I don’t understand….

OK, I'm not dreaming.

That’s not nice, I was napping.

This is your fault.

This is your fault.

I gotta hand it to Todd, he didn’t panic. But he wasn’t too happy!

Still, what can I say? It was worth all the work and noise and I love the new floor.  No more carpet in the hall!  Easy to mop and clean, bare floor.  It’s been wonderful.

And guess who can’t get away with peeing on it now?

Gotcha kiddo!

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“Mommy: Which Would You Rather Have To Fight In A Tank – A Tarantula Or A T-Rex?”


I take my head-phones off.  My son just came barreling into the kitchen.  “What?” I ask. 

It’s Sunday morning and I’m sipping coffee at the table, enjoying the quiet while typing.  I’m working on a blog post.  Well… I was.  Until now.

It’s another one of those convoluted questions he throws in my lap when my head is completely dedicated to something else already.  And I’m not even really awake yet. 

He repeats the question.

“Wait,” I ask. “So the tarantula and the T-Rex are in the tank?  And I’m outside the tank trying to fight them?” I’m trying to visualize a tarantula and mini t-rex in a tank.

“No!” He says.  “You’re in the tank! It’s for the game I’m programming.”

“Oh, so I’m in the tank with them, trying to fight them?”

“No! Only you are in the tank, they are outside.”

“Wait, so I’m in the tank and a giant tarantula or T-Rex is trying to attack me?” 

“Yes!”

Since my brain was literally torn from the job it was tasked with when he popped his question, I’m struggling harder than usual to visualize and a scene from Honey I Shrunk The Kids comes to mind.

“Why am I trapped in a tank trying to fight a giant Tarantula or T-Rex? Shouldn’t they be in the tank if there’s a tank at all? Am I miniature or something?”

I clearly do not understand.  I see no logic in this game scenario. 

“No Mommy! You are in a military tank – shooting at them!”

….Duh…. 

Oh….

New light is dawning on my morning coffee brain.

“I thought you meant something like a fish tank.”

Well… when you’re talking about a tarantula and a tank, of course I thought of pets!  And of course I was way off base.  No wonder it seemed so illogical to me as a game.

“No Mommy!” He puts his hands on his cheeks, staring at me incredulously.

Yeah, I don’t care for that look and my inner self pokes fun at me.

“Hehe.  That’s the look that says: ‘Am I really related to these people?‘  I thought you never wanted your kids to have that look.” 

You know what?  Shut up self!  I’m just tired, OK?  Now get on with answering your son!

“Oh.  OK, well I guess I’d rather fight the tarantula,” I say.  “I know more about them.”

“Too bad!” he quips.  “You’re fighting both!”

 


My Surreal Life on Sunday morning: October 7, 2012

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Filed under Conversations From the Passenger Seat, Friends and Family, Humor, kids

“You know Mommy? I wonder what would happen if all the magic in the world made all the water bottles in the world appear inside a car? The car would probably explode.”


Ya think?

Random thoughts in the car after school from dear son, September 30, 2010…..

O_o

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“You know Mommy? What if there were a such thing as zombie crickets?”


Random thoughts in the car from dear son after school, 2010….

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“You know what’s strange Mommy? I fall asleep easily to Iron Maiden. I don’t know why….”


(My son one night before bed, August 14, 2010…)

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“You know Mom…? There’s no better friend than the one who kills monsters with you side by side…”


(Dear son’s reflections on the couch July 2, 2010…)

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“You know Mommy? Some days I wish I could be in an all out Nerf War…”


You know son? Sometimes so do I….

(random thoughts from dear son in the car June 25, 2010…)

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“Mommy? I Wonder What the Largest Rainstorm in the World Would be Like…? I know it’s not possible, but what if the largest rainstorm in the world was a drizzle?”


(More random thoughts from dear son in the car, June 26, 2010…)

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“Mommy, I wonder what it was like for the first people who first experienced rain….? Maybe it was scary. Or maybe they were like: ‘Look – water from the sky! Wonder if it’s edible….?’”


(More random thoughts from dear son in the car, June 27, 2010.)

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“Mommy? You know what’s the one thing a person doesn’t want to see when they’re hungry? A Burger King…. And that happens to me a lot.”


(Random thoughts from Dear Son in the car one summer morning….)

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“Mommy? Remember that restaurant we went to on our trip where they throw rolls at people? I want to go back sometime. They never gave me a roll when I asked for one….”


(Dear son’s thoughts in the car one day…)

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“I’m Such A Genius…”


Son: “Mommy Look!”
Me: “What son?”
Son: “I’m such a genius, I created a robotic arm to pick my nose!”

O_o


Originally published on June 7, 2011 on Family Quirks

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A Mother’s Surreal Moment #5987…


This story originally published on “Family Quirks” on June 24, 2010…


So I go by Sprouts on the way to pick up the kids from school. (It’s kind of like a Trader Joe’s.) And they have these great crunchy Bavarian pretzels. Basically a larger gourmet size dehydrated pretzel.

So I pick up a bag of them and have it in the car to give some to the kids, because they are generally ravenous when I pick them up from school.

The kids get into the car, we’re heading down the road and they find out I have pretzels in the car.

“YAY! Those are my favorite!” my son quips.

And I start to feel the inner satisfaction a mother feels when she knows she got it right.

And then he goes on: “They have this interesting texture that when you break them makes the edges kind of rough. And when your lip itches from the salt, you can scratch your lip with the pretzel.”

…… :blink-blink: ……

Umm, gee – that was not at all what I expected to hear……!
My kid… go figure.

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Zombie Squad On Your Side


We were out and about in AZ on our family vacation when I saw this car next to us in Phoenix.  I busted out laughing and just had to share a pic!  Too cool, too cool! (Click on the photo to see it larger and up close!)

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