Ladies and gentlemen....show a little respect for your country!

Happy 4th of July ladies and gentlemen.  Yep, we are half way through the summer ALREADY.  And it is time again to celebrate our independence day.  You will be happy to know that I took a highly scientific facebook quiz today to test my knowledge of American history and they considered me a true patriot.  Apparently I paid attention during high school social studies class.....or maybe it is just because I watched the mini series on John Adams.

So recently I went to Blues Fest here in Chicago in Grant Park.  I had an opportunity to hear Aaron Neville, who was great by the way.  Before the show started, they had a woman sing the national anthem.  NOW, I know you all know that when someone sings the national anthem, you are supposed to stand up and take your hat off right?  Well let me tell you about the woman I observed during the national anthem.  First of all, she was a good 75-100 pounds overweight.  Her chair was struggling. She was by herself, and when they started to sing, she didn't even attempt to stand up and continued to EAT during the entire anthem.  HUH?  Ladies and gentlemen seriously, I don't care if you don't like our president, our government, our policies, etc.  Your utter disrespect for our national anthem is thumbing your nose at our founding fathers, our soldiers and all of the people that have died or are working tirelessly to give you the freedom to SIT and eat during the national anthem.  Get your LARGE bootie out of the chair and show some respect.

Additionally, the woman in front of me allowed her children to run in circles around her blanket during the national anthem.  Now, I understand they are kids, but lady, please....tell them to settle down and be quiet.  NEVER too early to teach proper respect.

OH and people of Chicago, when they sing the national anthem ANYWHERE outside the United Center and the Blackhawks are NOT playing, please put your hands down, don't scream while it is being sung.  For crying out loud, Blues Fest is not a sporting event, calm down.

So ladies and gentlemen seriously, our independence day is around the corner.  And in light of the holiday I thought this was an appropriate topic.  Show some respect for our country.  We may have our issues in this country, but it is still one of the greatest places in the world to live.  And by respecting our national anthem and our flag, you are at minimum respecting our armed forces, our founding fathers and the principles upon which our country was founded.

OH yeah, and gentlemen seriously (I know it is guys because women would never do this), stop lighting off those DAMN firecrackers.  They are stupid and loud.  And you might blow your finger off. My dog gets scared of them and I lay awake every 4th of July listening to those crazy things vibrate in the alleys in Chicago.  Grow up.  Firecrackers do not SAY hey Happy 4th of July America...they SAY, F off to everyone who lives in a 10 block radius.

ONE LAST thing....World Cup soccer is in full swing.  And the US team is doing well.  I am thoroughly impressed with the support our nation is giving to our team, especially since most people have never watched a soccer game in their life.  If you are not a soccer fan, that is fine, don't watch the games, watch the games, I don't really care.... BUT be respectful of the sport, the team and the fans, please.  The rest of the world has accepted soccer as a sport for A LOT longer than we have.  Be happy that our team USA is competing on a world level.

Ladies and gentlemen seriously, have a wonderful 4th of July holiday.  Eat, drink, be merry and stay classy!

....keep your heels, chin and standards high....
BONSOIR, CHEERS and CIAO BELLAS!

Conscientious Parents ....Don't fret, you aren't the ones being obnoxious!

Happy Saturday to all the classy ladies and gentlemen out there!  In Chi, it is a lovely day and my dog has had me up since 4:30 AM.  I don't know how she KNOWS when I don't have to teach or go to work early, but those are the days she wants to get up and play.  Good times, that furry alarm clock.  It is getting to FINALLY be festival season in Chicago, so I am convinced that bad fashion and bad behavior will once again be upon us.  So stay tuned and stay classy.

SO this week I had lunch with a friend.  You know my fab job lets me have one day off a week, and my friend is a stay at home mom, so we had a lovely lunch OUTSIDE of Lincoln Park Zoo (you know I don't want to go inside...animal lovers UNITE).  I have been friends with the lady since 1992...yes, that is right, back in college when I had BIG hair.  She recently had her first baby, cute little boy.  Now, for those of you who know me, I am not enamored with children.  I like them well enough, yes, I will hold your baby and talk to you about breast feeding.  My niece and nephew are awesome.  Cooper Brashaw...fantastic.  Noelle and Colin Wick...A-OK.  Erica and Ryan Epstein...YEP.  The Coughlin Clan...YEP.  So my message is not coming from a kid hater.

So while we were having lunch, my friend's baby started to get a little fussy.  You know, he is a baby and they do that sometimes.  He wasn't screaming, he was just fussing.  We were at an outside restaurant and no one could even really hear him.  But my friend was so stressed out and kept apologizing to me for it.  He was fine....I honestly felt so bad for her.

I have seen my sister and brother in law stress out because my niece or nephew are acting up in a restaurant or public place.  And every time it happens, one of them remove the child from the situation and it is fine.

So here is my classy message to all parents out there, coming from a classy single lady who will probably never be a mom to human children.  Kids cry....sometimes they scream....and sometimes they act badly in public.  I get it...that's what kids do (although I was such a perfect child, I am sure I NEVER did that!  Cue the sarcastic music)  And if I can honestly see that the parent is doing everything they can to get the kid to calm down or stop crying.  So be it, I understand.  DON'T STRESS!!  I have seen those poor parents on a plane whose child is SCREAMING because his ears hurt.  And the parents are almost as upset as the child.  Again, it stinks, but I get it.

HERE is where I have the problem....your kid is screaming, running around and being disruptive and you are on the phone, talking to someone else, ignoring your child or laughing at your child because it is funny.  That it not a classy way to be a parent.   Be aware of those around you.  Don't let your kid kick the back of my seat in an airplane and think it is just OK and not try to stop it.  Don't have your kid's DVD player playing with no headphones.

So parents, don't stress....I get it!  If your child is acting up, do what you can and move on...And how funny it is that while I was writing this post, a reminder popped up on my computer that tomorrow is Father's Day!  So this parenting message is coupled with a HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to our dads out there.  And especially to mine, SDB...you are the best.

Enjoy your weekend classy parents and single people everywhere!

....keep your chins, heels and standards high....
BONSOIR, CHEERS AND CIAO BELLAS!

Self reflection and minor adjustments might be the classy thing you need

Ok, ladies and gentlemen seriously, it has been WAA-AY too long with no posting from JZZRGRL.  My apologies, I have been traveling and have really needed some inspiration for some posting.  This is not to say that I haven't seen ladies AND gentlemen not presenting themselves inappropriately or not being classy.  But sometimes I am a broken record with my posts.

So I think it was time for me to do turn that mirror around on myself and make sure that I am living the classy life that I expect everyone else do live.  Checklist:

1.  Appropriate bra and panties - CHECK
2.  Girls, are they appropriately covered and up and out - CHECK
3.  Dressing appropriate for body type and age - CHECK
4.  Generally being pleasant and treating others with respect - CHECK
5.  Being a good pet parent - CHECK

Now, this classy lady is a self proclaimed conflict avoider.  I just like everyone to be happy and get along.  And in the past, I haven't stood up for myself or expressed my feelings when I probably should have.  Don't get me wrong, you have to pick your battles and some things are better left unsaid.  But I have been trying to be better about speaking about things that upset me.  BOY, it has been a struggle, especially when it means you have to have those conversations with your boss and/or your family.  And in some incidences, my thoughts were upsetting to the other people and their reaction was hurtful or difficult for me.  But I have to say that I am fairly proud of myself for actually saying something.  Even my mom noticed and said she was proud of me.   So I will continue the battle, as constantly improving is also a classy move.

So ladies and gentlemen seriously, keep yourself in check, self reflection is good.  What you are putting out to others could be hurting you or your other relationships.  Self awareness is a good thing and being classy means knowing what your actions and words mean to others.

So there is the deep philosophical post for the summer...feel free to discuss amongst yourselves.  ;) Keep it classy ladies and gentlemen.

....keep your heels, chin and standards high....
BONSOIR, CHEERS and CIAO BELLAS!