Did I Type That Out Loud?

BOO!

2007-10-31T06:33:00.000-04:00

Finally

2007-08-06T10:58:00.000-04:00

I finally made it out onto the lake this weekend for a moonlight cruise, but the moon decided to hide behind the clouds and it sprinkled on us just a little. It was still beautiful out on the lake and we found a home where they were having a party, they had a tent set up in the front yard with an awesome band playing music from the 70s. We thought perhaps it was the band "Nostalgia" but weren't certain. We just floated out front and listened for awhile.

The boat ride was beautiful, the wine was good and the company was my best friend in the whole world, who could ask for more?

Here we go again...Week 14

2006-12-10T08:42:00.000-05:00

Sunday, Dec. 10
Atlanta at Tampa Bay 1:00 p.m.
Jess - Atlanta
AWB - Atlanta

Baltimore at Kansas City 1:00 p.m.
Jess - Baltimore
AWB - Kansas City

Indianapolis at Jacksonville 1:00 p.m.
Jess - Indianapolis
AWB - Indianapolis

Minnesota at Detroit 1:00 p.m.
Jess - Detroit
AWB - Detroit

New England at Miami 1:00 p.m.
Jess - New England
AWB - Miami

N.Y. Giants at Carolina 1:00 p.m.
Jess - Carolina
AWB - Carolina

Oakland at Cincinnati 1:00 p.m.
Jess - Oakland
AWB - Cincinnati

Philadelphia at Washington 1:00 p.m.
Jess - Philadelphia
AWB - Washington

Tennessee at Houston 1:00 p.m.
Jess - Tennessee
AWB - Houston

Green Bay at San Francisco 4:05 p.m.
Jess - San Francisco
AWB - San Francisco

Seattle at Arizona 4:05 p.m.
Jess - Arizona
AWB - Seattle

Buffalo at N.Y. Jets 4:15 p.m.
Jess - NY Jets
AWB - NY Jets

Denver at San Diego 4:15 p.m.
Jess - San Diego
AWB - San Diego

New Orleans at Dallas 8:15 p.m.
Jess - New Orleans
AWB - Dallas

Monday, Dec. 11
Chicago at St. Louis 8:30 p.m.
Jess - Chicago (Combined total score 45)
AWB - Chicago You either bet it's over X or under X kiddo.

Take this test - it's just cute!

2006-12-10T00:54:00.001-05:00

You Are Dancer

Carefree and fun, you always find reasons to do a happy dance.

Why You're Naughty: That dark stint you had as Santa's private dancer.

Why You're Nice: You're friendly. Very friendly.

Which of Santa's Reindeer Are You?

Odd

2006-12-09T21:08:00.000-05:00

jerome murat
Uploaded by segalier

Walkway of Lights

2006-12-08T07:08:00.000-05:00

I used to live in Marion. There was a company that manufactured Christmas Lights - General Plastics. Every late summer early fall they would decorate the bridge over the river near the park and photograph these items and use them in their annual catalog. Part of the company later sold out to Herman Tool in Pierceton. However a tradition began back in Marion of not only decorating the bridge over the river, but then the walkway along the river and on down into the Park. This is the Walkway of Lights.

In the past I have loaded up my kiddos and driven down to Marion with them just to see the lights. The park offers horse and carriage rides to view the lights and they have a cute little gift shop full of trinkets and also a little coffee house that offers a favorite to my kids, hot chocolate and homemade cookies. It's a neat little tradition. I know many area towns offer similar displays, but I believe this one to be worth the trip!

I found more information on the City of Marion Website explaining in better detail what I am trying to tell you:

Christmas City Walkway of Lights
Marion, Indiana, home to nearly 33,000 people, is called "Christmas City, U.S.A." Long known as the International Walkway of Lights, the new name, Christmas City Walkway of Lights, reflects Marion's well-deserved and decades-old nickname, Christmas City U.S.A. In the mid 1960's, Marion's festive holiday celebration with lights and decorations strung throughout downtown and a splashy parade captured the attention of an Indianapolis TV station as various cities in central Indiana were being scouted for a holiday TV special. In December 1965, when the half-hour program entitled Christmas City: Marion, Indiana aired, Marion immediately adopted Christmas City U.S.A. as a nickname. Mr. Richard Erlewine who was president of General Plastics, a company which produces decorations like you will see along the Walkway of Lights, had the "Christmas City, U.S.A." logo copyrighted for the City of Marion.
For years, most of the decorations surrounded the courthouse square. But with the new Mississinewa Riverwalk, which was completed in 1990 as part of the Build Indiana Project, there was potential to take the holiday magic even further. In 1991, Mayor Ron Mowery, Mark Erlewine, and a group of interested citizens decided to make Marion live up to its name. By combining the Mississinewa Riverwalk, the 2.25 mile walkway which is used year around for jogging, walking and more, and holiday lights and lighted displays, the Christmas City Walkway of Lights was established in 1992. The first year, the walkway was home to nearly 56,000 lights and lighted displays; this year, the walkway boasts over 2,000,000 lights and is nearly 4 miles long.

2006-12-06T19:46:00.000-05:00

Wonderful Memories

2006-12-04T19:10:00.000-05:00

The moon is gorgeous tonight. We took this picture on my cell phone tonight after picking my son up at his after school thing. A pretty moon such as this conjures up some of my very best memories from this past summer.

Molly is not a Molly...

2006-12-04T12:37:00.000-05:00

A few months ago I posted about our cat Molly not really being a Molly, because I noticed it had, well, um.....balls. Molly is indeed a little boy and I expect at any time to see him start taking on other male attributes such as the cat pictured above.

A first when we made this discovery we started calling him "Billy" - but he didn't respond to that name. Then we called him "Gilligan" - I don't know why - but we did - and that didn't work either. We kept slipping and calling him "Molly" - and he would respond...

Finally, I started calling him "Mulligan" which can be shortened to "Mully." He seems to like it. Besides what better way to apply a "do-over?" hehehe

Week 13! Will 13 be a lucky number for AWB?

2006-12-01T12:29:00.000-05:00

Arizona at St. Louis 1:00 p.m.

Jess - St. Louis
AWB - St. Louis

Atlanta at Washington 1:00 p.m.

Jess - Atlanta
AWB - Atlanta

Detroit at New England 1:00 p.m.

Jess - New England
AWB - New England

Indianapolis at Tennessee 1:00 p.m.

Jess - Colts
AWB - Colts

Kansas City at Cleveland 1:00 p.m.

Jess - Kansas City
AWB - Kansas City

Minnesota at Chicago 1:00 p.m.

Jess - Chicago
AWB - Chicago

N.Y. Jets at Green Bay 1:00 p.m.

Jess - Green Bay
AWB - Green Bay

San Diego at Buffalo 1:00 p.m.

Jess - San Diego
AWB - San Diego

San Francisco at New Orleans 1:00 p.m.

Jess - New Orleans
AWB - New Orleans

Houston at Oakland 4:05 p.m.

Jess - Oakland
AWB - Houston (just so we have a mis-match)

Jacksonville at Miami 4:05 p.m.

Jess - Jacksonville
AWB - Miami

Dallas at N.Y. Giants 4:15 p.m.

Jess - Dallas
AWB - Dallas

Tampa Bay at Pittsburgh 4:15 p.m.

Jess - Pittsburgh
AWB - Pittsburgh

Seattle at Denver 8:15 p.m.

Jess - Seattle
AWB - Denver

Monday, Dec. 4
Carolina at Philadelphia 8:30 p.m.

Jess - Carolina
AWB - Philadelphia

It Might Begin to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

2006-11-30T10:56:00.000-05:00

So the weather forecast is calling for snow. A substantial coating of snow as a matter of fact. Enough to wake up my Christmas Spirit. I love snow this time of year. From now up until mid-January then that is enough. I am going to venture into town today and select my Christmas cards. Do some grocery shopping. And maybe pick out a few special ornaments for the tree. I really am not feeling all that great and I know it will pretty much zap me for the day - but it will give me things to do tomorrow and this weekend.

A friend of mine is going on a road trip today and of course I always worry anyhow, but I am a bit concerned about what weather conditions he may have to deal with. I know he will have his cell phone and will keep in touch...but I still worry.

The staples are out!!!

2006-11-27T16:34:00.000-05:00

I went to the doctor today and got the staples removed from my stomach. All 55 of them. I was terrified to get this done. I had a deep aversion to the fact that there were staples holding me together. But I had a deeper fear of getting them removed. My stepdad laughed at me and said I was letting my head get the better of me. AWB kept telling me it was like a mosquito bite. But it just didn't matter, I was scared.

I drove myself there. My first outing all by myself in what seems like forever! She took me into the room and I was a nervous wreck. So anyhow, she got started and it only stung a little. But every now and then it got to stinging too much and she would have to stop and let me settle down a little. It really wasn't all that bad. I had myself all worked up into a frenzy over a lit bit of nothing!

The good news is, the nurse was very impressed with how well I am doing. She said the wound looks very good and I am moving around very well by myself - i.e. not needing help to get up and down. I myself have even wondered if something might be wrong because it just doesn't seem all that bad. I keep waiting for the major set back, but so far so good.

I am slowly working on the Christmas decorating around the house. I got the stairway done yesterday with lights, garland and bows and it does look very pretty. The boys moved some furniture around for me and brought some of the boxes of decorations up from the basement. I figure by the end of the week, both trees will be up and all decorated. So all in all, today was a good day!

Back to Normal?

2006-11-24T19:14:00.000-05:00

Sunday, Nov. 26
Arizona at Minnesota 1:00 p.m.
JR - ARIZONA
AWB - Minnesota

Carolina at Washington 1:00 p.m.
JR - CAROLINA
AWB - Carolina
Cincinnati at Cleveland 1:00 p.m.
JR - CINCINNATI

AWB - Cincinnati
Houston at N.Y. Jets 1:00 p.m.
JR - HOUSTON

AWB - Jets
Jacksonville at Buffalo 1:00 p.m.

JR - BUFFALO

AWB - Jacksonville
New Orleans at Atlanta 1:00 p.m.
JR - NEW ORLEANS

AWB - New Orleans
Pittsburgh at Baltimore 1:00 p.m.
JR - BALTIMORE

AWB - Baltimore
San Francisco at St. Louis 1:00 p.m.
JR - ST LOUIS

AWB - San Francisco
Oakland at San Diego 4:05 p.m.
JR - SAN DIEGO

AWB - San Diego
Chicago at New England 4:15 p.m.
JR - NEW ENGLAND

AWB - Chicago
N.Y. Giants at Tennessee 4:15 p.m.
JR - TENNESSEE

AWB - Tennessee
Philadelphia at Indianapolis 8:15 p.m.
JR - INDIANAPOLIS

AWB - Colts
Monday, Nov. 27

Green Bay at Seattle 8:30 p.m.

JR - SEATTLE

AWB - Seattle

Black Friday

2006-11-24T08:41:00.000-05:00

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving in the United States, is historically one of the busiest retail shopping days of the year. Many consider it the "official" beginning to the holiday season. Most retailers will open very early and usually provide massive discounts on their products.

Although Black Friday is typically the busiest shopping day of the year in terms of customer traffic, it is not typically the day with the highest sales volume. That is usually either Christmas Eve, the last Saturday before Christmas, or December 26th.

Retailers traditionally operated at a financial loss for most of the year (January through November) and made their profit during the holiday season. When this would be recorded in the financial records, common accounting practices use red ink to show negative amounts and black ink would show positive amounts. Black Friday is the beginning of the period where they would no longer have losses (the red) and instead take in the year's profits (the black).

And this year I am at home on Black Friday! I am not out shopping helping the retailers pull through the red...sigh, but you know what? At least I am at home and not still in the hospital! There is always a silver lining! Oh, and you wanna know something else? Last night I weighed myself and I have lost 22 pounds since I first got sick in October! Shoot, by the day after Christmas sales, I will be able to buy new clothes for me! hehehe...

Happy Thanksgiving

2006-11-23T17:19:00.000-05:00

It's finally here. Thanksgiving day, no big deal really, unfortunately my kids are split up for yet another holiday as my ex has not quite put much effort into working things out with Kelsay. I miss my boys terribly this day more than most, perhaps its because I've not seen them since I have been home, but I think mostly its just certain holidays are all about family. I am so thankful that I do have my kids with me most of the time, I am just being a sentimental fool today. My heart goes out to other single parents who are feeling the same pain today.

My parents picked my daughter and I up and we went over to my sister's for a very nice meal today. I am not able to eat much and have absolutely no craving for anything. She made cheese souffle, steaks on the grill, shrimp cocktail, green bean casserole, salad, cornbread, and I don't even know what else was on that table. What I had was very good. I have so very much to be thankful for this year but I am the most thankful for my kids, my family and my very dear friends in my life. These are the things that matter most.

There's no place like home, there's no place like home, there's no place like home

2006-11-22T20:10:00.000-05:00

I had the magic power all of the time, all I had to do was click my heels together three times and say "there's no place like home"...

Well no, not really, I had to follow the doctor's orders, but I did get to go home tonight instead of tomorrow morning. He told me that I was pushing it with him, but he also said he could tell I was pretty feisty and it was probably best to let me have my way. (hehehe)

So my mom brought me home from the hospital and my ex had picked up the boys before I got home, we have asked him to let me see them sometime this weekend, but it is his year to have them all of thanksgiving weekend......sigh

But anyhow, my daughter was home but the house was all dark, when i walked in she had a fire going in the fireplace for me and a blanket and a pillow on the sofa. She's a good kid!

It just feels really good to be back home, I am sore and extremely tired, but happy to be home. Even the cats have missed me. And some of my daughter's friends have stopped in to see us tonight. I was surprised at how many of her friends came to see me while I was in the hospital. I woke up last night and one of them was sitting in my room, she said she had been there about 20 minutes. She even went on my walks with me. Today's crop of kids aren't all bad, there are some really great ones in the mix, it just takes us adults taking the time to spend with them and recognizing their good points.

Anyhow, yes, I am heavily medicated and babbling, but I am babbling from home!

Doc AWB Reporting in..

2006-11-18T08:07:00.000-05:00

I spoke with JR last night and she came through the surgery just fine, and I even had her laughing on the phone. Maybe I'll sneak a picture of her today that I can post here later ;-)

Ok kids, play nice, I will be back in a few days!

2006-11-16T18:52:00.000-05:00

So, I will be lurking around here yet tonight and a little in the morning but then I am off to the hospital. I just got the call from the doctor and the results of the biopsy and the echo cardiogram are back and they are going to proceed with the surgery tomorrow. He said we would discuss all of this tomorrow before they knock me out, but we are still on schedule. Its a darned good thing too....I spent this afternoon doing that surgery prep thing. YUCK!

Everything is pretty much done and in order around here and I have all arrangements made for my kids and their schedules. Guess I will be in the hospital for 5-7 days, I am planning on being home Wednesday, but I will actually let common sense prevail, just this one time!

We have all been on edge all week and pretty snippy with each other. But as everything is falling into place as it should tonight, everyone seems to be finding their own peace with all. I won't lie, I am scared, but I know this is the best decision at the best time for myself and my family.

I will be packing my laptop into my case tomorrow morning and entrusting my mother with it until I get settled in my hospital room. I seriously doubt I will be online tomorrow night, but I have every intention of being coherent enough by Saturday. However they tell me they are going to be giving me some very good drugs. Maybe I should run a disclaimer statement now for anything I may type in the next five days or so!

Take care of yourselves and be kind to each other! Dr. Danny aka AWB may give an update over the weekend, but then again, he can be so graphic I may not want him to!!! hahaha

Sunday, November 19

2006-11-16T17:16:00.000-05:00

Atlanta at Baltimore 1:00 p.m.

Baltimore

Buffalo at Houston 1:00 p.m.

Houston

Chicago at N.Y. Jets 1:00 p.m.

Chicago

Cincinnati at New Orleans 1:00 p.m.

New Orleans

Minnesota at Miami 1:00 p.m.

Minnesota

New England at Green Bay 1:00 p.m.
New England

Oakland at Kansas City 1:00 p.m.

Kansas City

Pittsburgh at Cleveland 1:00 p.m.

Cleveland

St. Louis at Carolina 1:00 p.m.
Carolina

Tennessee at Philadelphia 1:00 p.m.

Tennessee

Washington at Tampa Bay 1:00 p.m.

Washington

Detroit at Arizona 4:05 p.m.

Arizona

Seattle at San Francisco 4:05 p.m.

Seattle

Indianapolis at Dallas 4:15 p.m.
Indianapolis

San Diego at Denver 8:15 p.m.
San Diego

Monday, Nov. 20
N.Y. Giants at Jacksonville 8:30 p.m.

NY Giants

The bet for last week was disrupted by well, you all know the story, so here are my picks for this week. I will be watching from my luxurious hospital room, but I will be watching!

Week 10

2006-11-12T10:40:00.000-05:00

Sunday, Nov. 12
Baltimore at Tennessee 1:00 p.m.
BALTIMORE

Buffalo at Indianapolis 1:00 p.m.
INDIANAPOLIS

Cleveland at Atlanta 1:00 p.m.
ATLANTA

Green Bay at Minnesota 1:00 p.m.
MINNESOTA

Houston at Jacksonville 1:00 p.m.
HOUSTON ???

Kansas City at Miami 1:00 p.m.
KANSAS CITY

N.Y. Jets at New England 1:00 p.m.
NEW ENGLAND

San Diego at Cincinnati 1:00 p.m.
SAN DIEGO

San Francisco at Detroit 1:00 p.m.
DETROIT

Washington at Philadelphia 1:00 p.m.
PHILADELPHIA

Denver at Oakland 4:05 p.m.
OAKLAND

Dallas at Arizona 4:15 p.m.
DALLAS

New Orleans at Pittsburgh 4:15 p.m.
NEW ORLEANS

St. Louis at Seattle 4:15 p.m.
ST LOUIS

Chicago at N.Y. Giants 8:15 p.m.
CHICAGO

Monday, Nov. 13
Tampa Bay at Carolina 8:30 p.m.
CAROLINA

Damaged Goods?

2006-11-12T10:15:00.000-05:00

Damaged goods. That is so what I feel like. On the dating scene it appears that I should take a leave of absence from that too. With all of this illness, its not fair to drag someone into my life until I get better.

I have been going through the pre-op lab work stuff. They ordered another EKG the other day. I didn't understand why, they had just taken one while I was in the hospital a month ago. They said it was abnormal. They thought it was abnormal because of the infection. So anyhow they did another one on Friday. I asked the nurse if it was ok and she said no. I said what's wrong? She says she doesn't know, she's not a doctor. But the EKG is abnormal. I asked how she knew and she said it said so....sigh.....

I went straight to my doctor's office right after that to find out what is going on. The nurse there tells me that the EKG being abnormal again confirmed that at some point I have had a heart attack. WTF???? Shouldn't a person know when they have a heart attack? I remember one time I had something going on, but I thought it was just a panic attack... Anyhow, they say I can go ahead with my surgery, but then, we are going to have to explore why I have had a heart attack....

I am wondering, maybe just maybe, there was never a heart attack, perhaps my heart is just damaged from all it has been through in the last several years. Maybe it will all heal up just fine and they will discover all is well.

Christmas?

2006-11-09T23:05:00.000-05:00

Have you all noticed how we went directly from Halloween to Christmas? There used to be just a tad bit of breathing time between the two holidays to enjoy oh lets say for example, Thanksgiving. But I noticed the Christmas commercials started right after Halloween and have kicked it up another notch now that the politicals are done.

Christmas stuff was out before Halloween even and Halloween was on clearance before Halloween to make room for Christmas. Sigh. We just don't seem to take time to enjoy life much anymore.

This holiday season will be much more scaled down and relaxed around my homestead this year. Although, I do admit, I have already considered how quickly it is approaching and due to my impending surgery and estimated time laid up, I have accomplished some things that I would normally not do for a couple more weeks. Traditionally, I have always started decorating the house for Christmas on the Sunday before Thanksgiving and finish it all up on Thanksgiving weekend, usually trimming the trees on that Sunday night when the kids return from their Dad's. I will be behind schedule this year, but all will be well.

Christmas itself is also going to be very scaled down this year, not very elaborate and not a lot of gifts, last year I got a bit carried away with the new house and all. This year I will not be working and things will just have to be within reason. We have had slim Christmases in recent years anyhow and the kids always fare well with my parents and sister and then their dad and his side of the family. No one will go without. All that really matters is that we are together part of the holiday and we always have each other. I hope these are life lessons that become very important to them in their adult years.

APPREHENSIVE

2006-11-09T18:58:00.000-05:00

My word of the day. Apprehensive. Freaked out. Scared. Nervous. Terrified. Feeling very alone in this world.

I didn't sleep well last night. I knew I was meeting with the surgeon today to determine when I would go under the knife. And listen to all of the gory details of what is going to happen. First of all - out patient testing on Tuesday. Surgery on Friday. So very scared. The words, major surgery, 5-7 days in the hospital, 4 weeks minimum to get to 60% better, 6 weeks to 80% better. Huge incision, huge scar. Not that I ever did wear a bikini, but pretty much guaranteed I never will now. Sigh.

I searched and I searched and I did find the silver lining to this cloud. And considering I will be in the hospital while my family attends the annual Thanksgiving brunch at the country club, one of my favorite events of the year, kind of the kick-off to the holiday season, it was difficult to find the silver lining. But this is the silver lining to the cloud, while they all stuff themselves silly during one of the biggest eating weeks of the year, I will lose weight!!! Haha - I should be able to get through the entire holiday season with a considerable weight loss!!!

2006-11-08T20:33:00.000-05:00

Life is dealing the cards again. I have no choice but to play them. I lost my DSL connection last Thursday, have dinked around with it all week to the tune of buying a new wireless card and everything and finally had Mediacom out today just to find out it was the connector cable thingy.... I resorted to using dial-up over the weekend and early this week, thus explaining my few and far between and short blogs!

As I have stated many times over, divorce sucks. Another flare up this week. I have tried to help my daughter and ex-husband reconcile over differences that happened almost three years ago, everything was going very well with her having gone to dinner with her dad and also spending an afternoon with him this past weekend. But his little girlfriend intervened and fed information to my son that I had caused these events to happen and my son out of his own insecurities decided to share this information with his sister. My whole intent was to restore their relationship and shield my daughter from being hurt, but now it is all a big mess again and I feel really bad. I explained to my daughter that I had done this for her because I thought it was best for her - but she shared how sad she was feeling because her dad had not really contacted her on his own out of love for her. I just wish she could understand that he is the most stubborn person in the world and no one can make him do anything he doesn't want to do. So the fact that he did make the initial phone call to her does show that he does care. And the fact that she answered it instead of letting it go to voicemail also indicates that she too had a desire to work things out. Life is just so difficult sometimes.

All of that aside I am preparing to meet with a surgeon tomorrow in regards to having surgery next week. Not excited to have this surgery, but would rather do it this way with it being my choice while in a healthy state than having it be in an emergency situation where the results are not quite so simple. A friend of mine called tonight and wants to plan a girls nite out this weekend since I will be slowed down for a period of time, but the truth is, I would rather spend time with my very best friend in the whole world rather than going out and partying...but such is life. I will probably opt for another quiet weekend at home in front of the fireplace.

I have spent the past week cleaning, organizing and rearranging so that I can enter into the holiday season with decorating and all in the least stressful way possible. I am hoping to get the rest of the leaves done this weekend and obtaining a ladder from somewhere so that I can get the gutters cleaned out. I have loaded the softener with salt and bought more so that it is on hand when needed and I won't have to get it when I am unable to lift and I also changed the filter in the furnace. Things are coming together on that front. I have even managed to pretty much get the kids holiday outfits together so that even if I end up not being up to attending the annual Thanksgiving brunch at the country club the Sunday before Thanksgiving, they will all be able to go. The things mothers stress about, I swear! I will probably cook a lot of meals this weekend and freeze them so that life will be simple on that front too.

Just Cute!

2006-11-08T09:03:00.000-05:00

A mother is driving a little girl to her friend's house for a play date.

"Mommy," the little girl asks, "how old are you?"

"Honey, you are not supposed to ask a lady her age," the mother replied.

"It's not polite."

"OK", the little girl says, "How much do you weigh?"

"Now really," the mother says,
"those are personal questions and are really none of your business."

Undaunted, the little girl asks, "Why did you and Daddy get a divorce?"

"That is enough questions, young lady, honestly!"

The exasperated mother walks away as the two friends begin to play.

"My Mom won't tell me anything about her," the little girl says to her friend.

"Well," says the friend, "all you need to do is look at her drivers license. It is like a report card, it has everything on it."

Later that night the little girl says to her mother, "I know how old you are, you are 32."

The mother is surprised and asks,
"How did you find that out?

"I also know that you weigh 140 pounds."

The mother is past surprised and shocked now.
"How in heaven's name did you find that out?"

"And," the little girl says triumphantly,
"I know why you and daddy got a divorce."

"Oh really?" The mother asks...

And the little girl says, "Because you got an F in sex!"

This is it! Speak Now or Hold Your Peace....

2006-11-07T06:41:00.000-05:00

Bring It - AWB!!!!!!

2006-11-03T18:42:00.000-05:00

Atlanta at Detroit 1:00 p.m.
ATLANTA

Cincinnati at Baltimore 1:00 p.m.
BALTIMORE

Dallas at Washington 1:00 p.m.
DALLAS

Green Bay at Buffalo 1:00 p.m.
BUFFALO

Houston at N.Y. Giants 1:00 p.m.
NY GIANTS

Kansas City at St. Louis 1:00 p.m.
KANSAS CITY

Miami at Chicago 1:00 p.m.
CHICAGO

New Orleans at Tampa Bay 1:00 p.m.
NEW ORLEANS

Tennessee at Jacksonville 1:00 p.m.
TENNESSEE

Minnesota at San Francisco 4:05 p.m.
SAN FRANCISCO

Cleveland at San Diego 4:15 p.m.
SAN DIEGO

Denver at Pittsburgh 4:15 p.m.
DENVER

Indianapolis at New England 8:15 p.m.
INDIANAPOLIS

Monday, Nov. 6
Oakland at Seattle 8:30 p.m.
OAKLAND

Interesting

2006-11-02T18:27:00.000-05:00

You Are Most Like George W. Bush

So what if you're not exactly popular? You still rule the free world.
And while you may be quite conservative now, you knew how to party back in the day!

What Modern US President Are You Most Like?

For Real?

2006-10-30T07:00:00.000-05:00

My daughter comes running down the stairs at the last possible moment to catch the bus this morning and stops dead in her tracks and says "Oh no!"

"Something is not right, Mom! It's light outside and I swear I didn't miss the bus..."

I reminded her the time changed yesterday because of Daylight Savings Time...

She looks as me and says, "Are you serious, they really are giving us back daylight?"

I sighed and urged her not to venture too far out from her corner of the world. ;)

Tp'd and Forked???

2006-10-29T20:10:00.000-05:00

So, I have been toliet papered and forked. As I have stated previously, I have never really lived in suburbia before and I have no clue as to what it means to be forked??? I mean yes I know its a prank....and I even know who did it, and yes my kids get to clean it all up, but I am just curious what the forking is all about??? Any answers anyone?

Update:

Urban Dictionary: forked

When you buy 4 packs of 500 forks and then go to somebody's house who you hate at night. Then, you put all of the forks into the ground with the handle out. When the person/people wake up, they will have 2000 forks in their front yard that they must go pick out - one-by-one - by hand.

Ok, so Michael and company hate me, but at least not 2000 forks worth...There obviously are not that many in my backyard, there are however a few scattered across my driveway also.

Girls Nite Out

2006-10-29T13:05:00.000-05:00

WHEN GIRLS DRINK TOO MUCH............

1. WE HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WHERE OUR PURSE IS.

2 WE BELIEVE THAT DANCING WITH OUR ARMS OVERHEAD AND WIGGLING
OUR BUTT WHILE YELLING "WOO-HOO!" IS TRULY THE SEXIEST DANCE MOVE AROUND.

3. WE'VE SUDDENLY DECIDED THAT WE WANT TO KICK SOMEONE'S ASS AND HONESTLY BELIEVE WE COULD DO IT TOO.

4. IN OUR LAST TRIP TO PEE, WE REALIZE THAT WE NOW LOOK MORE LIKE A HOMELESS HOOKER THAN THE GODDESS WE WERE JUST FOUR HOURS AGO

5. WE START CRYING & TELLING EVERYONE WE SEE THAT WE LOVE THEM SOOOOO MUCH.

6. WE GET EXTREMELY EXCITED AND JUMP UP AND DOWN EVERY TIME A NEW SONG PLAY'S BECAUSE "OH MY GOD! I LOVE THIS SONG!"

7. WE'VE FOUND A DEEPER/SPIRITUAL SIDE TO THE GEEK SITTING NEXT TO US.

8. WE'VE SUDDENLY TAKEN UP SMOKING AND BECOME REALLY GOOD AT IT.

9. WE YELL AT THE BARTENDER, WHO WE BELIEVE CHEATED US BY GIVING US JUST LEMONADE, BUT THAT'S JUST BECAUSE WE CAN NO LONGER TASTE THE GIN.

10. WE THINK WE ARE IN BED, BUT OUR PILLOW FEELS STRANGELY LIKE THE KITCHEN FLOOR (or the mop?)

11. WE FAIL TO NOTICE THAT THE TOILET LID'S DOWN WHEN WE SIT ON IT.

12. WE TAKE OUR SHOES OFF BECAUSE WE BELIEVE IT'S THEIR FAULT THAT WE'RE HAVING PROBLEMS WALKING STRAIGHT.

Smart Man....

2006-10-29T12:42:00.000-05:00

Post Date: Aug 7th, 2006
Expire Date: Sep 6th, 2006

$10,000
06' Suzuki GSXR 1000
Farmington, UT 84025 - Aug 7, 2006
2006 Suzuki 1000. This bike is perfect! It has 1000 miles and has had its 500 mile dealer service. (Expensive) It's been adult ridden, all wheels have always been on the ground. I use it as a cruiser/commuter. I'm selling it because it was purchased without proper consent of a loving wife. Apparently "do whatever the f*** you want" doesn't mean what I thought. Call me, Steve.

Trick or Treat in Suburbia

2006-10-28T18:46:00.000-04:00

This is the first year I have lived in a neighborhood where the kids trick or treat. It was actually a lot of fun - it was a neighborhood event followed up with a bonfire and chili cook-off. Problem was the busloads of kids that were trucked in for the event. I bought a mass quantity of cheap candy, but ran low very soon. Silly naive me. I forgot people dress their kids up and haul them all over hells' half acre just for a sackload of candy. These days they spend way more on the gas and the costumes than if they would just go buy the candy....

No, no, no, I refuse to be the Halloween Scrooge this year, I even got my son a costume this year. He is at his dad's for the weekend so he didn't get to participate in our suburbia thing. So now....on Tuesday, I suppose I will have to haul him into town to trick or treat....sigh. I will take him to Leesburg. It is where he goes to school and it is where we do as much of our local business that we can. I will not go out choosing the fancy dancy neighborhoods in hopes of the best haul on candy for him. Odds are, come Tuesday, each of my kids will get their usual cute little treat bag from their mama, and Kolt will probably drop by my sister's and my mom's in costume.....sigh....

Week 8 - Here we go AWB!

2006-10-28T18:02:00.000-04:00

THIS WEEK'S SCHEDULE - WEEK 8
Sunday, Oct. 29

Arizona at Green Bay 1:00 p.m.
Green Bay

Atlanta at Cincinnati 1:00 p.m.
Atlanta

Baltimore at New Orleans 1:00 p.m.
New Orleans

Houston at Tennessee 1:00 p.m.
Tennessee

Jacksonville at Philadelphia 1:00 p.m.
Philadelphia

Seattle at Kansas City 1:00 p.m.
Kansas City

San Francisco at Chicago 1:00 p.m.
Chicago

Tampa Bay at N.Y. Giants 1:00 p.m.
NY Giants

St. Louis at San Diego 4:05 p.m.
San Diego

Indianapolis at Denver 4:15 p.m.
Indianapolis

N.Y. Jets at Cleveland 4:15 p.m.
NY Jets

Pittsburgh at Oakland 4:15 p.m.
Oakland

Dallas at Carolina 8:15 p.m.
Carolina

Monday, Oct. 30

New England at Minnesota 8:30 p.m.
New England

CHOOSE

2006-10-28T14:09:00.000-04:00

Choose.

I watched "Dangerous Minds" last night, with Michelle Pfeiffer as a high school English teacher. The word "choose" was a very powerful teaching tool for her in this movie. It has kinda stuck with me today. In a different way than it was used in the movie, but it has ran through my mind over and over today.

Everyday we choose. We choose to get up or not get up. We choose to go to work or not go to work. We choose to be in a good mood or a bad mood.

We choose to be a friend. We choose to not be a friend. We choose to wash our hair. We choose to go for a walk. We choose to be mopey. We choose to be happy. We choose to be alone. We choose to be with someone we love. We choose to be a good example to our kids.

I am feeling kind of bummed over the recent hand that life has dealt me. I have made the choice to feel sad and have chosen to have my own little pity party. Shame on me! This is all because of a health issue. You know what? I am damned lucky. I have a choice to make. It is not necessarily the choice I want to make, I can take a gamble and have the decision made for me at a later date in a moment of crisis, or, I can choose to make it now for me. Life is unfolding before me right now with and I have the opportunity to choose how life fits into my plan more so now than perhaps later. I guess I truly need a kick in the pants and reminded that I am very fortunate.

So this is it. I choose to play the hand I have been dealt and make the best decision for myself and my family at this time. I choose to take it in stride as it comes. I choose to stop this self-pity thing, because its just not very attractive. I choose to meet it all head on and deal with it and hope to be a shining example to my kids through it all.

I made a decision a few years ago and have slipped away from it a bit, but I promised myself when my life fell apart, that I would deal with it the best that I could and be able to look back later and not be ashamed of myself for my behavior. So, yeah, I am ashamed for this pity party that has been going on, but it ends here and now and I move onward again.

2006-10-26T21:28:00.000-04:00

Blah.

2006-10-26T16:16:00.000-04:00

I am not happy.
I am not sad.
I am not mad.
I am not glad.

Indifferent? Perhaps... Is that good or bad? I dunno.

I went to the justice building today. It is the one year anniversary of the finalization of my divorce. I filed paperwork for modification of child support. I started all of this a few weeks ago but had to wait for the actual one year mark. He is behind as usual. He is lying about his income. yada, yada, yada. I really don't care. Its the whole principal. He has so few obligations as the parent of three kids that I just want the few that he has enforced.

On the flip side it is my stepdad's birthday today. We are going to the country club for dinner, its surf and turf night, so I will have prime rib and lobster. I guess tomorrow night I will have left over surf and turf for dinner too!

I just kind of thought today would be more emotionally charged for me. I guess its good. Perhaps it means it really is behind me now and he doesn't hurt my anymore.

2006-10-23T23:18:00.000-04:00

What do you believe?

2006-10-23T21:13:00.000-04:00

I believe - That just because two people argue, it doesn't mean they
don't love each other. And just because they don't argue, it doesn't
mean they do.

I believe - That we don't have to change friends if we understand that
friends change.

I believe - That no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt
you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.

I believe - That true friendship continues to grow, even over the
longest distance. Same goes for true love.

I believe - That you can do something in an instant that will give you
heartache for life.

I believe - That it's taking me a long time to become the person I
want to be.

I believe - That you should always leave loved ones with loving words.
It may be the last time you see them.

I believe - That you can keep going long after you think you can't.

I believe - That we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we
feel.

I believe - That either you control your attitude or it controls you.

I believe - Heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it
needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.

I believe - That money is a lousy way of keeping score.

I believe - That my best friend and I can do anything or nothing and
have the best time.

I believe - That sometimes the people you expect to kick you when
you're down will be the ones to help you get back up.

I believe - That sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be
angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.

I believe - That maturity has more to do with what types of
experiences you've had and what you've learned from them and
less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated.

I believe - That it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others.
Sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.

I believe - That no matter how bad your heart is broken the world
doesn't stop for your grief.

I believe - That our background and circumstances may have influenced
who we are, but we are responsible for whom we become.

I believe - That you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret. It
could change your life forever.

I believe - Two people can look at the exact same thing and see
something totally different.

I believe - That your life can be changed in a matter of hours by
people who don't even know you.

I believe - That even when you think you have no more to give, when a
friend cries out to you - you will find the strength to help.

I believe - Those credentials on the wall do not make you a decent
human being.

I believe - That the people you care about most in life are taken from
you too soon.

Let me gaze into my crystal ball...

2006-10-21T15:08:00.000-04:00

Week 7

Carolina at Cincinnati 1:00 p.m.
Carolina
Detroit at N.Y. Jets 1:00 p.m.
NY Jets
Green Bay at Miami 1:00 p.m.
Green Bay
Jacksonville at Houston 1:00 p.m.
Houston
New England at Buffalo 1:00 p.m.
New England
Philadelphia at Tampa Bay 1:00 p.m.
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh at Atlanta 1:00 p.m.
Atlanta
San Diego at Kansas City 1:00 p.m.
San Diego
Denver at Cleveland 4:05 p.m.
Denver
Arizona at Oakland 4:15 p.m.
Oakland
Minnesota at Seattle 4:15 p.m.
Seattle
Washington at Indianapolis 4:15 p.m.
Indianapolis

Monday, Oct. 23

N.Y. Giants at Dallas 8:30 p.m.
NY Giants

Pearls and Politics

2006-10-20T11:09:00.000-04:00

I was in the process of posting a comment on Fort Wayne Observed, when the more I typed the more this idea started forming in my head....I discarded the comment and traveled back to my own blog for this tidbit.

Pearls are formed inside the shell of certain bivalve mollusks. As a response to an irritating parasite inside its shell, the mollusk will deposit layers of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) in the form of the minerals aragonite or calcite (both crystalline forms of calcium carbonate) held together by an organic horn-like compound called conchiolin. This combination of calcium carbonate and conchiolin is called nacre, or as most know it, mother-of-pearl. The idea that a grain of sand acts as a "seed" for the pearl is a myth...

Politics. The resume' a political candidate presents to the public is like a string of beautiful pearls. A true treasure. At first glance. But this came to me as Dr. Tom is being scrutinized... at first glance he is a fine strand of pearls...but as you look at each individual pearl....and look down thru the layers of embellishment...the truth (or parasite inside) is absolutely not what is being presented to the public eye. For example and I am only going to go with one for now, This whole volunteering of his time at the tuberculosis clinic....fact being he is paid quite handsomely for his time by no other than the taxpayers.

I realize this analogy applies to all other candidates too, one tiny parasite, grain of sand or half-truth or whatever you may personally choose to call it, can be so well embellished that it truly does turn into a pearl...

Sara Evans and Divorce

2006-10-19T12:37:00.000-04:00

This whole Sara Evans things really saddens me. It saddens me for what she is going thru and the publicity that she has to deal with along with all of it. Divorce is painful and ugly. We all deal with our pain in a different way. I do understand her reasoning behind backing out of "Dancing With The Stars" and stepping out of the limelight.

I understand. At the same time I am disappointed. She has such a huge following. So many fans. She is a role model to many. I perceive this as her true opportunity to shine and show the world what she is made of. This is her chance to stand up and say, "Nothing is going to take me down, I am a strong independent unbreakable woman." And maybe, in a few weeks, she will find out how strong she is and she will do just that. That would be my wish for her.

One of those days...

2006-10-17T19:01:00.000-04:00

Today I have an opinion about everything. I know what I think, and I know what I mean, but for whatever reason, I have been questioned a couple of times today about what I may have been smoking.....I get so wound up in the heat of the moment, that no one ever quite follows along with what I am ranting about.

But basically, Tom Hayhurst visited Warsaw and was interviewed by the local newspaper. The Times Union is notorious for being a Republican biased media. Not the point. This quote from Hayhurst is what set me off...

“I can see railways being used in Kosciusko County for transportation and an automobile plant built where workers use their skills to build vehicles with better gas mileage,” Hayhurst said.

Its an innocent enough statement. He really meant no harm. But it bothered me. It bothered me because Kosciusko County is the orthopedic capital of the world. Many of the people in this community make a living off of the orthopedic industry. A new biofuel plant is being built in Claypool and Mentone is being considered for an ethanol plant, but nevertheless, we are a community somewhat centered around the orthopedic industry. So why would we try to bring an automotive plant into the area? Whitley, Allen, and Noble counties all have plants based on the automotive industry and Elkhart County is the Recreational Vehicle Mecca... I dunno...in my mind, and yes I am a woman and I think differently than you men out there, but it just seemed to me that his interview came across as him grouping Kosciusko into the overall surrounding area and not really understanding what this county is all about. These are people that he wants to represent, but is he really going to be a valid voice for us if he does not truly understand what our little corner of his district is all about???

I am in sales and I have areas that I work in. I work in LaGrange County, Kosciusko County, Whitley County, Allen County and some of DeKalb County. It is my job to know and understand the different areas and the different businesses in my territories. What is good for an advertiser in Allen County may not be good for an advertiser in North Webster due to the fact that North Webster is in the heart of the lakes and is a somewhat seasonal town. See my point? Its my job to know and understand these kinds of quirks about different areas and businesses.

Shouldn't we expect the same from the local politicians we select to represent us?

Fortune Cookie

2006-10-17T18:59:00.000-04:00

Your greatest wish will come true.

That was my fortune tonight. I can only hope.

The Final Judgement

2006-10-17T07:35:00.000-04:00

The Marine stood and faced God,
Which must always come to pass.
He hoped his shoes were shining,
Just as brightly as his brass.

"Step forward now, Marine,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"

The soldier squared his shoulders and said,
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't.
Because those of us who carry guns,
Can't always be a saint.

I've had to work most Sundays,
And at times my talk was tough.
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.

But, I never took a penny,
That wasn't mine to keep...
Though I worked a lot of overtime,
When the bills got just too steep.

And I never passed a cry for help,
Though at times I shook with fear.
And sometimes, God, forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.

I know I don't deserve a place,
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around,
Except to calm their fears.

If you've a place for me here, Lord,
It needn't be so grand.
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand.

There was a silence all around the throne,
Where the saints had often trod.
As the Marine waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.

"Step forward now, you Marine,
You've borne your burdens well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."

~Author Unknown~

Crimes of Fashion?

2006-10-16T23:57:00.000-04:00

1. The Crime: Poor-fitting clothing.
Too-tight clothing is never flattering and usually too revealing, but too-baggy clothes make you look sloppy and unprofessional. Pant length also matters -- if you're showing too much sock or leg, expect to be teased all day about an upcoming flood.

Redemption: Find a good tailor. It's a rare person who actually looks good in clothes directly off the rack. Buy an item to fit the fullest parts of your body, and the tailor can nip in the rest.

2. The Crime: Too much perfume or cologne.
You never want your co-workers or clients to smell you before they see you, and a colleague could be severely allergic to your favorite scent.

Redemption: Apply perfume or cologne with an extremely light hand. If you spritz too much, put some rubbing alcohol on a cotton ball and dab off the excess.

3. The Crime: Shorts or too-short skirts.
Showing too much leg is never a good professional move -- for women or men. Revealing a little leg makes men appear overly casual or sloppy, and makes women look more sexy than serious.

Redemption: Men should stick with long pants, and women should wear shorts or skirts that hit within an inch-and-a-half of the knee.

4. The Crime: Out-of-control hair.
Whether it's frizzy coifs or bushy beards, wild hair just doesn't look professional.

Redemption: Women should invest in a good haircut and some styling products that can reduce poufiness and make hair easier to manage. Men should keep their facial hair well-trimmed, or better yet, go clean-shaven.

5. The Crime: Dirty, ripped or torn jeans.
Even on casual Fridays, ripped jeans look too dirty and messy for the workplace.

Redemption: When you do choose to wear jeans to work, make sure they are well-fitting and in extremely good condition.

6. The Crime: Cleavage.
There are very few legitimate jobs where showing off your chest is a good career move.

Redemption: Cover up. Whenever possible, avoid wearing anything low-cut to the office. If you can't part with your V-neck shirts, simply buy a few camisole shirts to wear underneath them.

7. The Crime: Tank tops.
Showing too much skin in the office is never a good idea in the office, and tank tops are especially inappropriate for men.

Redemption: If it's hot outside and you're going out with friends after work, simply keep a cardigan at your desk to cover up. That way, you'll stay comfortable in frigid air conditioning and look professional when your boss stops by.

8. The Crime: Noisy jewelry.
An armload of bangles or long, dangling earrings are perfect choices for a bar, but downright distracting in the office.

Redemption: Keep your office jewelry simple. A small pendant, stud earrings and a delicate bracelet look much more professional than trendy pieces. Save your flashier jewelry for happy hour.

9. The Crime: Gym attire.
Even in the most casual workplaces, yoga pants, shorts, T-shirts and running shoes make you look sloppy and apathetic.

Redemption: At the very least, wear nice jeans and professional-looking shoes. If you're going to the gym or catching a flight after work, change into your comfortable clothes in the bathroom on the way out.

10. The Crime: Extremely high heels.
Extremely high heels are too sexy for the workplace -- not to mention impractical. Few things would be more embarrassing than wobbling or tripping over your extreme footwear in front of the boss.

Redemption: The highest heels you should wear to the office are 2 to 3 inches. That way, you'll actually be able to walk in them, and they'll be comfortable enough to wear all day. You might feel shorter, but you'll no longer fear grates or sidewalk cracks.

A Healthy Level of Insanity?

2006-10-16T23:51:00.000-04:00

1. At Lunch Time, Sit In Your Parked Car With Sunglasses on and point a Hair Dryer At Passing Cars. See If They Slow Down.

2. Page Yourself Over The Intercom. Don't Disguise Your Voice.

3. Every Time Someone Asks You To Do Something, Ask If They Want Fries with that.

4. Put Your Garbage Can On Your Desk And Label It "In-Box."

5. Put Decaf In The Coffee Maker For 3 Weeks. Once Everyone has Gotten Over Their Caffeine Addictions, Switch to Espresso.

6. In The Memo Field Of All Your Checks, Write "For Smuggling Diamonds"

7. Finish All Your sentences with "In Accordance With The Prophecy."

8. Don't use any punctuation

9. As Often As Possible, Skip Rather Than Walk.

10. Order a Diet Water whenever you go out to eat, with a serious face.

11. Specify That Your Drive-through Order Is "To Go."

12. Sing Along At The Opera.

13. Go To A Poetry Recital And Ask Why The Poems Don't Rhyme

14. Put Mosquito Netting Around Your Work Area And Play tropical Sounds All Day.

15. Five Days In Advance, Tell Your Friends You Can't Attend Their Party Because You're Not In The Mood.

16. Have Your Co-workers Address You By Your Wrestling Name, Rock Bottom.

17. When The Money Comes Out The ATM, Scream "I Won!, I Won!"

18. When Leaving The Zoo, Start Running Towards The Parking lot, Yelling "Run For Your Lives, They're Loose!!"

19. Tell Your Children Over Dinner. "Due To The Economy, We Are Going To Have To Let One Of You Go."

Midnight Bandits

2006-10-16T23:38:00.000-04:00

When I first separated from my husband I was not completely prepared to tackle life by myself and take any and all issues on by myself. A few nights after he moved out I heard a strange noise. I don't frighten easily, but this noise was persistent, and it rattled me to the depth of my soul. It was around 1 in the morning, the kids were all asleep and I was up and very restless.

I heard a noise on the front porch. I froze. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't move, I didn't know what to do. I heard it again. It finally dawned on me that I was the one in charge, the only one in charge and it was up to me to protect myself and my kids. I walked over to the front door very quietly, and assured myself it was locked tight. The noise persisted, it was like someone was standing on the other side just waiting. So I flipped on the light switch hoping it would scare them away. It didn't. The noise persisted. I was so scared.

I had the chain lock on the door, so I slowly opened it and peeked outside. There on my front porch were two baby raccoons. The kids had left a bag of potato chips on the front porch and one of the babies was inside the bag with just its tail sticking out while the other one was sitting up and trying to entice me into a game of peek-a-boo. I laughed out loud and told them they had scared me silly. Then I told them they needed to leave. The both just looked at me and did their little chattering thing and turned and walked right down the steps and on down the sidewalk....

It was the last I seen of them and of course the chip bag went into the trash and the kids got a big ole lecture in the morning.

2006-10-16T21:58:00.000-04:00

I love the Grinch. It's my favorite story and favorite movie. I dunno why exactly...but I really get a kick out of Jim Carey's portrayal of the Grinch.

Today was my first day back to work. I was zapped and worn out all day. Not back up to 100% I guess...

I recorded a commercial today. It was difficult. My voice kept cracking. It didn't really sound like me....but then again, I think that might just be a good thing.

I think this turned out pretty accurate!

2006-10-15T21:59:00.000-04:00

You Are Warm Nights by the Fire

Peaceful and romantic. The best part of fall.

What Part of Fall Are You?

To Dan Turkette

2006-10-15T12:05:00.000-04:00

Like my new look? It's like getting a new hairstyle and nails done and new clothes all in the same day! How way cool!

Those of you who know me, know I am very computer illiterate - so Dan has been dilligently working on my blog today and this is the look he came up with, allowing my opinions of course.

I really like it. Thank you so much Dan, I owe you lunch, or dinner, or help with the boat this week...

Week 6...

2006-10-15T09:49:00.000-04:00

Buffalo at Detroit
Detroit
Carolina at Baltimore
Carolina
Cincinnati at Tampa Bay
Cincy
Houston at Dallas
Houston
N.Y. Giants at Atlanta
NY Giants
Philadelphia at New Orleans
New Orleans
Seattle at St. Louis
St Louis
Tennessee at Washington
Tennessee
Kansas City at Pittsburgh
Kansas City
Miami at N.Y. Jets
NY Jets
San Diego at San Francisco
San Diego
Oakland at Denver
Oakland
Chicago at Arizona
Chicago

Well this week was a little tough to decide...we shall see.

To quote Chumbawumba...

2006-10-15T09:37:00.000-04:00

I Get Knocked Down
But I Get Up Again
'Cause I'm Never Gonna Let Them Keep Me Down

Last week I kind of let the world knock me down and keep me down. But today is the end of that. Tomorrow morning is a brand new week and I will be back full force and ready to take on the world. I truly hate being sick and I hate all of this lollygagging around I have been forced into. Its been a week I would just like to remove from the recordbooks thats for sure.

I had a huge sit down with my daughter yesterday also. And of course her standard line for everything is "Mom, you just don't understand." I really hate hearing this line out of her mouth. I want to understand, I am trying to understand, she doesn't get it that it is her that won't let me understand. I guess its the age old parenting dilema...sigh

Shall we dance?

2006-10-13T19:56:00.000-04:00

We need a witness to our lives. There's a billion people on the planet... I mean, what does any one life really mean? But in a marriage, you're promising to care about everything. The good things, the bad things, the terrible things, the mundane things... all of it, all of the time, every day. You're saying 'Your life will not go unnoticed because I will notice it. Your life will not go un-witnessed because I will be your witness'."

I guess I am a bit of a sentimental fool today, first sending myself flowers on my blog and now watching this movie and letting this quote hit me like a ton of bricks.

2006-10-13T16:38:00.000-04:00

A woman rubbed a bottle and out popped a genie.
The amazed woman asked if she got three wishes.
The genie said, "Nope, sorry, three-wish genies are a storybook
myth. I'm a one-wish genie. So... what'll it be?"
The woman did not hesitate. She said, "I want peace in the Middle
East. See this map? I want these countries to stop fighting with each
other and I want all the Arabs to love the Jews and Americans and vice-versa. It will bring about world peace and harmony."
The genie looked at the map and exclaimed, "Lady, be reasonable.These countries have been at war for thousands of years. I'm out of shape after being in a bottle for five hundred years.. I'm good but not THAT good! I don't think it can be done. Make another wish and please be reasonable."
The woman thought for a minute and said, "Well, I've never been able
to find the right man. You know - one that's considerate and fun, romantic, likes to cook and help with the house cleaning, is good in bed, and gets along
with my family, doesn't watch sports all the time, and is faithful. That
is what I wish for...a good man."

The genie let out a sigh and said, "Let me see that fscking map
again."

2006-10-13T11:35:00.000-04:00

Paraskevidekatriaphobia

2006-10-13T09:52:00.000-04:00

A fear of Friday the 13th?

I really don't suffer from that affliction. I do tend to think that an October Friday the 13th is worse than just about any other month though. For example I am pretty darned glad that I am still not in the hospital today. And even more glad to not be having surgery today.

Basically, I do not like October. It just doesn't have many pleasant memories for me. Today is my dad's birthday. I have not seen him in over 11 years. I have not talked to him for at least 7 years. I was married in October. I had a divorce trial in October. I had my gall bladder removed on Halloween one year. I was divorced in October. The love of my life dumped me in October. I wrecked my car in October. No. I don't like October. I really don't.

I have never been a fan of Halloween. I have always made my kids dress in "fun and light hearted" costumes. I have tried to not totally ruin the fun part of the holiday for my kids, but at the same time I choose to keep the wicked part of it away. And truthfully, I am looking forward to the trick or treaters in our neighborhood this year, we have always lived out in the country where we don't get trick or treaters. So, who knows, maybe there will be an up side to the remainder of this month, let me assure you that it has not been what I had hoped for at all in the past week or so. I apologize for being so negative, not normally this way, its just not been one of my better weeks, forgive me?

Home Sweet Home

2006-10-11T19:58:00.000-04:00

I am a happy girl! My family doctor came in this evening and checked my chart and did all the listening to me breathe and punching and pushing everywhere to see how bad I was still hurting and then asked me how I would like to sleep in my own bed tonight. I was ready to do the happy dance I tell ya! So I can't return to work until Monday - but at least I am home!

On a side note, there is a silver lining to every cloud...Tuesday night my mom brought all three kids up to see me. My seven year old crawled up in bed and cuddled right up to me and read his favorite book to me. It was so sweet. He just snuggled and cuddled and kept telling me how much he loves me. Those are the moments that make it all worthwhile.

Bah!

2006-10-11T16:03:00.000-04:00

I despise being sick. I am bored. I don't like pills. I have agreed to a few pills over the years for my overall good health. But I really don't like taking anything that could be addictive. Today they took the pain meds out of my iv and said I can have darvocets. I tried really hard to not take any and I fought it too long and caused the pain to get worse than it needed to be...I finally gave in and took two darvocets a little over an hour ago. They helped. A lot. I have been told that I am too stubborn for my own good. I think this was one of those times. Lesson learned? Probably not!

A Little Under The Weather

2006-10-10T18:33:00.000-04:00

Well I finally got a vacation! Suddenly. I was driving to work yesterday morning and kept feeling worse and worse. By the time I was almost to Fort Wayne I was in so much pain I was crying - so I did a "Uie" on 30 and drove back to Warsaw. I went to my doctor's office without an appointment and they took me right in and shortly thereafter I had all the paperwork in my hot little hands for a vacation at the hospital.

Its not like I am getting much sleep, they keep poking me and checking to see if I am alive...but they were so nice as to give me this handy little button that gives me more demoral whenever I want! So that kind of helps. Hopefully I can go home tomorrow - if I don't get sick when they decide to give me food - I have been living on ice chips for the past 36 hours or so. I am going to look at the bright side of this and take it as a jump start to a much needed diet!

Hit the nail on the head

2006-10-08T20:25:00.000-04:00

You Are 34% Open

You are open at times, but generally you don't let many people into your inner world.
It's possible that you have a friend or two that knows you well.
But to most people, you are a total mystery.

How Open Are You?

Are you ready for some football?

2006-10-07T11:18:00.000-04:00

Buffalo at Chicago
Chicago

Cleveland at Carolina
Carolina

Detroit at Minnesota
Detroit

Miami at New England
New England

St. Louis at Green Bay
St. Louis

Tampa Bay at New Orleans
New Orleans

Tennessee at Indianapolis
Indianapolis

Washington at N.Y. Giants
NY Giants

Kansas City at Arizona
Kansas City

N.Y. Jets at Jacksonville
NY Jets

Oakland at San Francisco
Oakland

Dallas at Philadelphia
Dallas

Pittsburgh at San Diego
San Diego

Baltimore at Denver
Baltimore

Sometimes people really make me wonder.

2006-10-07T08:35:00.000-04:00

My daughter and I went to Wal-Mart the other day and when we were leaving this couple was in front of us. Just outside the door a single cab pick-up truck drove by. The man had a car seat with a baby in it strapped in the middle of the truck beside him.

The woman in front of me launches into this tirade on her husband about how stupid that guy was to put the baby in the car seat beside him and she goes on and on and on about how the baby shouldn't be up front like that and she should call the police and report this guy...yada yada yada.

It turns out she and her hubby are parked next to us as we are unloading our stuff into our vehicles, she was still grinching. I had enough....I said, "Excuse me, but you do realize that was a single cab truck don't you, there was no backseat, where else could he have put the baby? Strap it down in the truck bed perhaps?" (If only I would have had Bill Engvall with me....Here's your sign.)

But the look on her face was enough....all she could say was..."Oh."

October 6, 1989

2006-10-05T22:56:00.000-04:00

October 6, 1989 I stood in front of the stained glass window at the justice building in Warsaw and got married. I thought my life was complete. October 6, 2005 I stood in front of that same stained glass window as I waited to go into the courtroom for my divorce trial. Irony? Perhaps.

So, here I am on the eve of what would have been my seventeenth wedding anniversary a totally single and dateable gal and ready to take the good times as they should be coming forth any time now.

July 7, 2007

2006-10-05T06:30:00.000-04:00

Some women are taking a gamble. Seven is supposedly a lucky number. So next summer we are going to be seeing July 7, 2007. Women are scrambling and booking churches and reception halls on that date because its a lucky number. Well luck really needs to be with them because 74% of these women are not even engaged!

2006-10-04T21:22:00.000-04:00

I Work Hard Because Millions On Welfare Depend on Me!

So True!

2006-10-04T21:18:00.000-04:00

As we grow up, we learn that even the one person that wasn't supposed to
ever let you down probably will. You will have your heart broken probably
more than once and it's harder every time. You'll break hearts too, so
remember how it felt when yours was broken. You'll fight with your best
friend. You'll blame a new love for things an old one did. You'll cry
because time is passing too fast, and you'll eventually lose someone you
love. So take too many pictures, laugh too much, and love like you've
never been hurt because every sixty seconds you spend upset is a minute
of happiness you'll never get back.

Leroy!

2006-10-03T21:27:00.000-04:00

A woman walks into the downtown welfare office, trailed by 15
kids...
"WOW," the social worker exclaims, "Are they ALL YOURS???"

"Yep, they're all mine," the flustered momma sighs, having heard
that question a thousand times before.

She says, "Sit down, Leroy." All the children rush to find seats.

"Well," says the social worker, "then you must be here to sign up.
I'll need all your children's names."

"This one's my oldest--he is Leroy."

"OK, and who's next?"

"Well, this one he is Leroy, also." The social worker raises an
eyebrow but continues. One by one, through the oldest four, all boys, all named Leroy.

Then she is introduced to the eldest girl, named Leighroy!
"All right...," says the caseworker, "I'm seeing a pattern here...
Are they ALL named Leroy?"

Their Momma replied, "Well, yes--it makes it easier. When it is
time to get them out of bed and ready for school, I yell, 'Leroy!'
An' when it's time for dinner, I just yell 'Leroy!' an' they all
comes a'runnin'.

An 'if I need to stop the kid who's running into the street, I just
yell 'Leroy' and all of them stop. It's the smartest idea I ever
had, namin' them all Leroy."

The social worker thinks this over for a bit, then wrinkles her
forehead and says tentatively, "But what if you just want ONE kid to come, and not the whole bunch?"

"I call them by their last names."

No More Begging!

2006-10-03T19:55:00.000-04:00

A couple of months ago I blogged about the street corner beggers at Wal-Mart
Warsaw City Council is looking into making streets more safe for drivers and those who want to hold fundraisers. Well - guess what?

The council approved an ordinance on the first reading at its meeting Monday night that prohibits solicitation in public streets that endangers the safety or welfare of an occupant on a motor vehicle, impedes the free flow of traffic, or obstructs the view of a driver.

The council will need to approve the ordinance on a second reading at its Oct. 16 meeting and it will need to be advertised.

The ordinance states it is unlawful for any person to sit, stand or move within or upon any street or highway or upon any median, guard rail or divider in or between any street or highway for the purpose of soliciting, peddling, selling, advertising, donating or distributing any product or property of service including tickets, handbills, money, flowers and newspapers.

Mayor Ernie Wiggins said there is an exception for a one-time event during any calendar year for charitable organizations that may conduct street solicitation for two consecutive days, provided the organization has applied for and received a permit from the Warsaw Police Department at least 30 days in advance of the first day of the event.

Wiggins said the ordinance will be enforced by the police department.

The ordinance includes a section that states any person who violates the provisions will be fined $25 for the first violation and $50 for violations after that.

Council member Bill Rhoades said he received support for the ordinance. “I received a call from the Knights of Columbus and they said the ordinance is a great idea,” Rhoades said.

Bad Hair Day

2006-10-02T22:17:00.000-04:00

I have been trying to grow my hair out. It is almost as long now as it was the day I got it all cut off to pizz off my then husband. Yeah, I showed him!

Anyhow - as I have been growing it out, I have struggled trying to perm it. About once every 10 days I have a good hair day. I made an appointment last Saturday to get a perm. When I went in, Jen took a good look and said no, she wouldn't perm it - it was just too dry. So, we decided to start straightening it, a look that I like - so it's all good.

I arrive home and am just kinda vegging and my sweetie drops by for a surprise visit. So we are talking and he comments that my hair is not so poofy... And I said yeah, I just got back from the beauty shop....and he says....are you ready for this one???? are you???? I don't think you are.... he says....

"You did that on purpose?"

Yeah, that is what he said! He quickly followed up with he really liked it and that it looks a lot better. And he was sincere enough...he got right back out of the doghouse. I am sucker for the baby blues, what can I say?

A Firm Handshake...

2006-10-02T18:55:00.000-04:00

Me and my upbringing. I know. I am so off the wall in some of my beliefs. I just happen to think a firm handshake is a necessity for business people. Am I Wrong? My job requires me to be out meeting people on a daily basis. When I meet a business owner or manager, I tell them who I am and extend my arm in a gesture of a handshake. That's the right thing to do, right?

I am absolutely amazed at how many business people have very weak even limp handshakes. It causes me to pull back as quickly as possible. Now, mine is not a power struggle type of handshake, it is a firm handshake. There are more men than women that I encounter with this weak wrist syndrome. Ok, so me, the analytical one, am trying to figure this out. Is there a secret message there? Are men being "gentle" because I am a girl and I am intruding into their "business world"? Are they afraid of me....or just simply giving me my moment???

Gonna Go Fishin'!

2006-10-02T18:45:00.000-04:00

A hillbilly was stopped by a game warden in West Virginia
recently with two ice chests of fish. He was leaving a cove
well known for its fishing. The game warden asked the
man, "Do you have a license to catch those fish?"

"Naw, sir, I ain't got none of them there licenses, no. You
must understand these here are my pet fish."

"Pet fish?" said the game warden.

"Yeah. Every night I take these here fish down to da lake and
let them swim 'round for a while. Then I whistle and they
jump rat back into this here ice chest and I take 'em
home."

"That's a bunch of hooey! Fish can't do that!" says the warden.

The hillbilly looked at the game warden for a moment and
then said, "It's the truth Mr .Government man, I'll show
you. It really works. It really does."

"Okay," said the game warden, " I've GOT to see this!"

The hillbilly poured the fish into the lake and stood and
waited.
After several minutes, the game warden turned to him
and said, "Well?"

"Well, what?" said the hillbilly.

The warden said, "When are you going to call them back?"

The hillbilly said, "Call who back?"

"The FISH!" replied the warden.

"What fish?" answered the hillbilly.

We in West Virginny may not be as smart as some city
slickers, but we ain't as dumb as most government employees!

Tooth Fairy?

2006-09-30T01:02:00.000-04:00

This week my youngest son had to go to the dentist and have three baby teeth removed. They weren't budging on their own and he had permanent ones coming in crooked. So...on Wednesday he had these teeth removed. Wednesday nights he spends with his dad. I called my ex to give him a heads up that the teeth had been removed and Kolt would need to have soft food and no drinking from straws. I went on to tell him the tooth fairy always leaves $1 per tooth and in quarters. (The last time she left a one dollar bill and he was devastated "cause she always leaves silver monies!") Well the ex got really ticked off at me for telling him this and asked why I was telling him. I reminded him that he had never "been" the tooth fairy and TRADITIONALLY the tooth fairy always leaves $1 per tooth. He was not very nice. He hung up on me.

Thursday night after school Kolt is all excited about the tooth fairy visiting him at his dad's because she left him $10!!! I was so angry I had to walk in the bathroom and shut the door, turn on the music and say a lot of really bad words.

My Picks for this week!

2006-09-30T00:47:00.000-04:00

I said I would play by the point spread thingy this week, and well its been a tough week and I didn't get to study that as I had wanted to...but I am still going to make my picks my usual way but I will honor the point spread systems when final results are tallied.

Arizona at Atlanta
Arizona

Dallas at Tennessee
Dallas

Indianapolis at N.Y. Jets
Indianapolis

Miami at Houston
Houston

Minnesota at Buffalo
Buffalo

New Orleans at Carolina
New Orleans

San Diego at Baltimore
Baltimore

San Francisco at Kansas City
Kansas City

Detroit at St. Louis
St. Louis

Cleveland at Oakland
Oakland

Jacksonville at Washington
Washington

New England at Cincinnati
New England

Seattle at Chicago
Chicago

Monday, Oct. 2

Green Bay at Philadelphia
Philadelphia

I have been assured a place in hell for this...

2006-09-30T00:34:00.000-04:00

Ok...I seen something too funny today and I have cracked about it all day and my sweetie has said I am assured a place in hell for some of my cracks that I made...but well, heck, let me share with you.

I was driving to Fort Wayne on 30. The speed limit is 60. So, I was going 70. A car pulls up beside me, I look over, I look at my spedometer and I look at the car again as it is pulling away in front of me...The car was a gold PT Cruiser and inside are four nuns in their habits (that's how I knew they were nuns). So what did I do, I caught up with them and flew the rest of the route to Fort Wayne. This just struck me as funny. I have really deliberated on this throughout the day...and there are two things that would have been funnier I think...One - If they had been in a VW Beetle; Two - If they had been in a Mini Cooper. Don't laugh, you will be sitting along side of me in hell if you do.

Sweet Dreams Sheri...

2006-09-28T20:48:00.000-04:00

I went to the funeral home this evening. It was very difficult. My parents met me there. It helped. As we stood in line I couldn't believe how together George and Judy appeared. It was their daughter laying in the coffin. It sorta bothered me. They were smiling and ever so gracious thanking each small group of people as they approached them...it seemed surreal almost. We slowly moved closer in line...I just didn't know what I would be able to say. I was so afraid I would start crying. I just wanted to offer kind words of support. I wanted them to know I care and I was sad and I wanted to help if I could. What do you say at a time like this?

Then it was us. My parents went ahead of me. This was so hard. I have known these people all of my life. They are salt of the earth people. People who are always there for you when you are in crisis. What should I say, what should I do... Judy hugged me and started sobbing. "She finally had it all together, this is not fair, she just got her life together....and now...." I didn't know what to say, I hugged her, cried with, and said, "if there is anything at all that i can do..." we hugged... and then....George...he lost it, he hugged me tight and cried, he didn't let go...I didn't know what to say...then he said to me, "you were her role model you know..." I just hugged him...told him how shocked and sad I was...how if there were anything I could do...What do you say? What can you do?

Then Christine and Debra were off to the side, her two younger sisters. My other girls. Christine was ever so brave with that big sheild surrounding her...kind of like I am not hurting and I don't want to talk...thanks for coming, keep in touch. That's Christine. Debra on the other hand..."I knew you would be here for us...that's my big sister over there, what am I going to do now?" The tears and hugs again. I know its all part of the grieving process. It's just so difficult when there is no logical reason to any of this. Sheri was only 36. She had been through a lot and she finally had it, she finally had it together...

Reality Check

2006-09-26T18:47:00.000-04:00

Last night my sweetie and I were having a discussion about life in general I suppose. We discussed the reasons why our marriages went wrong...Not any one reason, not really any one person at fault I suppose. A lot has to do with life choices, changes and growing up and growing old. Sometimes as you grow and learn you live life lessons that stay with you, these are the things that make you into the person you become. You learn perspective. You learn what matters most. Perhaps my sweetie can somewhat summarize in the fact he doesn't wanna grow up. Perhaps I can summarize in the fact I had to grow up. No matter what, all of us changed along the way. Sometimes love changes and grows along with and sometimes it doesn't.

Somewhere along the line I did learn that perhaps I took life too seriously. I let circumstances get to me and bog me down. In getting my divorce, I have found who I am and what matters most. My kids matter most. And being a kid with them and learning and loving and laughing and exploring alongside them is my priority. It's almost as if I have learned to live life from a child's perspective - taking in the beauty, innocence and wonder of it all. Trying to not build such big walls around myself that keeps the good times out along with the bad times. Its a tough lesson. But sheltering myself as I have done so much in the recent past has done just that, kept the bad out, but the good out too.

I recently stepped out of my comfort zone and back into the fire of my old job. Good and bad, I am back and loving it. I also stepped out of my comfort zone when I decided to get my divorce. It scared me to death. I thought I could just deal with the bad things because they were easier than what the unknown was. But then came a moment in time when the decision was no longer based on my comfort zone but what was best for us all. And yes, it was scary. But I made it through and learned so much. A friend shared with me a song today - "You Taught Me Well" - it was amazing, it told my story oh so well...

In the discussion between my sweetie and I last night, I came away with - it's the good things that matters most. Its the moments that make you laugh. Its the laughter and love that makes it all worth it. Lighten up and just enjoy the ride. Between that discussion and the song today, it served as perspective for me. And then...I heard news today that totally shook me in my shoes and reiterated everything I had already learned about my life today...

A girl I have known since she was 6 yrs old, a girl I babysat for, died. I have known her for 30 years. I danced at her wedding. I cried with her over her divorce. And now she is gone. She was 36. This has really shook me up. ...it's the good things that matters most. Its the moments that make you laugh. Its the laughter and love that makes it all worth it.

So this is MONDAY!

2006-09-25T20:01:00.000-04:00

This picture doesn't reflect my day. Well it does, I sure wish I was there! I don't really know where it is - but it looks like a nice place to be.

It's not that it was a bad day. It's just I think I am stressed and overwhelmed. It seems like sometimes a lot of the emotions I hold in and deal with on my own just kind of pile up on me and suddenly take a toll. Recently someone near to me went through a lot of health issues, and when this person got a clean bill of health and shared with me the doctor said all was well, I broke down and cried like an idiot, just relieved I guess. I tend to do that sometimes, meltdown after the fact. I am just not sure which fact I am melting down after...hehehe. Maybe I am just stressed over the new job. Maybe its the kids. Maybe its just life. Maybe its I have been trying so hard to be Miss Tough Stuff lately that I just want to be a girl for awhile.

I have to brag!

2006-09-24T18:05:00.000-04:00

I am so proud of my 14 yr old son. He is just a good kid. He and I hung out last night and didn't really do anything all that special just hung out. When we got up this morning he wanted sausage gravy and biscuits for breakfast, so we made them together and watched Blazing Saddles. He looked outside and saw the neighbor across the street out working in his driveway on a boat, and he said, "Gotta go Mom, I got to help Bill." He got dressed and took off to the neighbor's.

He came back about an hour later and told me to get up and moving it was time to clean the garage. So we went out and cleaned the garage. It looks so nice. We had to go to town and get the rest of the lightbulbs that I needed and we came home and finished up some more of my honey do list. Which by the way grew considerably today because I found several pictures and shelves in the garage that I wanted to hang up.

I have been doing laundry and keeping an eye on the football scores and my son has taken off to another neighbor's house, this guy is outside doing landscaping and my son told me, "Mom, that's a big job he is doing by himself, he needs my help."

But let me tell of what I am most proud of about my son, this kid truly likes to work and help people. He is not doing any of this thinking someone will pay him for his help, he is just doing it because that is him.

Honey Do List!

2006-09-23T09:57:00.000-04:00

Ok, I have my "honey do" list in my hand. I have a honey that I do love very much...however, he has his own "honey do" list at his own house. He has his own kids and house to take care of plus his job, so I cannot logically expect him to work on my list with me. Our time together is so precious and rare, it's just best to not have to worry about the "honey do" list. I will give him credit however, as I have gone over some of the things I need to do and fix he has either sent me links to websites that offer instructions or he has already talked through the problem with me and has me on my way to figuring it out and fixing it on my own. So all in all, he is a pretty good guy!

So today I shall don the get-up of Mz. Fixit and Suzy Q. Homemaker and tackle some tasks. I need to fix the drawer in the kitchen. I sorta started to fix the toliet in the half bath yesterday, just need to make sure that I did get it fixed. I have tons of lightbulbs out all over the place, no ladder, but I think I can reach most with a chair. The garage really needs cleaned out, may not get it done til tomorrow - but that is what weekends like this are for! The water softener is not recycling so I just need to figure out if the salt is all stuck together or if I need to find that button... I want to change my front door deco to fall and maybe get some mums and pumpkins... and the usual sweeping and dusting and stuff. The wooden blinds really need cleaned and I really hate doing that! And guess what? I already changed the filter on the furnace earlier this week when I fired it up for the first time! But I am pretty good about changing the filter every 4-6 weeks and keeping the fan on at all times. I have high vaulted ceilings, so I try to keep the air circulating.

At some point I am going to have to do the grocery run - think I will make a pot of beef and noodles for our staple to get us by this week...last week it was chili and it was just so good we ate it three nights in a row! Think I will have to add a bit more variety this week though! Oh and of course there is the mountain of laundry...

And in my spare time this weekend I have three proposals to do and two promotions to put together.

Last night I lit a fire in the fireplace, all of my kids were gone for the night, so I had a glass of wine and lit a few candles. My sweetie was home with his son, so we talked on the phone for hours. It was one of those really great conversation nights so it was the next best thing to a date. I fell asleep on the sofa in front of the fire and slept til morning. It was relaxing and I really needed that.

So, off I go to don my bib overalls (haha) and get to busy!

Something to think about....

2006-09-23T08:53:00.000-04:00

This is long, but it caught my attention - I have seen it before as I am sure all of you have, but it still is a powerful message.

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday
Morning Commentary, Sunday, 12/18/05.

Herewith at this happy time of year, a few confessions from my
beating
heart: I have no freaking clue who Nick and Jessica are. I see them on
the cover of People and Us constantly when I am buying my dog biscuits
and kitty litter. I often ask the checkers at the grocery stores. They
never know who Nick and Jessica are either. Who are they? Will it change
my life if I know who they are and why they have broken up? Why are they
so important? I don't know who Lindsay Lohan is either, and I do not
care at all about Tom Cruise's wife.
Am I going to be called before a Senate committee and asked if I am
a subversive? Maybe, but I just have no clue who Nick and Jessica are.
If this is what it means to be no longer young. It's not so bad.
Next confession:
I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it
does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful
lit up, bejeweled trees Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I
don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are: Christmas trees.
It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, "Merry Christmas" to me. I
don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a
ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers
and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at
all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near
my beach house in Malibu. If people want a creche, it's just as fine
with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.
I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't
think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I
think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed
around, period I have no idea where the concept came from that America
is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution,
and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.
Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that
we should worship Nick and Jessica and we aren't allowed to worship God
as we understand Him?
I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too.
But there are a lot of us who are wondering where Nick and Jessica
came from and where the America we knew went to.
In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this
is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke, it's not
funny, it's intended to get you thinking.
Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane
Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this Happen?"
(regarding Katrina)
Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She
said, "I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for
years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of
our government and to get out of our lives.
And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out.
How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we
demand He leave us alone?"
In light of recent events...terrorists attack, school shootings,
etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered,
her body found recently) complained she didn't want prayer in our
schools, and we said OK.
Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible
says thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor
as yourself. And we said OK.
Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when
they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we
might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We
said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said OK.
Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why
they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill
strangers, their classmates and themselves.
Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure
it out. I think it has a great deal to do with "WE REAP WHAT WE SOW"
Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why
the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say,
but question what the Bible says.
Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like
wildfire but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people
think twice about sharing.
Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely
through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the
school and workplace.
Are you laughing?

Football!

2006-09-20T20:34:00.000-04:00

Okay, the first week, my system got 8 picks correct, this past week I had 11. So here are my picks for the weekend:

Carolina
Chicago
Pittsburgh
Detroit
Indianapolis
NY Jets
Tennessee
Houston
Baltimore
Seattle
San Francisco
St. Louis
New England
New Orleans

Brrrrr......

2006-09-20T17:39:00.000-04:00

Oh my, there is a definite chill in the air tonight. It has been a long week already, but I have accomplished quite a bit and am still quite happy with my new old job.

On Sunday I made a pot of chili, and it is what we have had for dinner for the last two nights, and it still sounds good for this evening. Considering my kiddos are all gone for the evening, I guess I don't have to argue about what's for dinner!

They are calling for a frost advisory, so I am not sure if my morning glories will survive or not, but they sure have been pretty bloominig all around my deck. Its ok though, I am ready to dig into some fall yard work and tear out the summer flowers and plant tulip bulbs for next spring.

So anyhow, I think I am going to take a hot bubble bath after dinner and after that light a fire in the fireplace and just relax. I may pour a glass of wine, but its doubtful....not a good idea to drink alone. But I really am looking forward to a fire in the fireplace!

2006-09-18T00:08:00.000-04:00

How Do Crazy People Go Through The Forest?
They Take The Psycho Path

How Do You Get Holy Water?
You Boil The Hell Out Of It.

What Do Fish Say When They Hit a Concrete Wall?
Dam!

I'm a happy girl....

2006-09-16T17:34:00.000-04:00

I feel like snoopy doing the little happy dance. I went to lunch with my mom today at the Boat House in the Village at Winona and we just had a good time talking girl talk and all. I think she and everyone around me can see that I really do have my life on track now, its just up to me to keep it there.

Mom let me drive her Mercedes convertible and I am sorry but there is only one speed to drive that thing and it is FAST!!! We had a great time.

After that I went and got my fingernails done. I cannot type worth crapola, but they really look nice...hehehe.

I have talked to several of my friends and we are celebrating a birthday with another friend tonight so that should be a good time, only thing missing is manly man off on his manly weekend...sigh. But he really deserves it and we will see each other soon enough. I think I am off to take a bubbly bath and a short nap before the party.

Saturday Is All About Me....Kinda!

2006-09-16T00:45:00.000-04:00

Ok - the weekend is here. Its been an emotional rollercoaster week but I have survived. Everything turned out just fine, one small worry left that I am more at peace with, feeling certain it too will turn out just fine. So life is good!

This year has been kinda tough on the old budget. Its been very difficult for me to scale back in some places, the hardest part has been when I have had to tell the kids no to something. It was horrible at back to school time when I was scrimping and saving and trying to get everything they needed. I had to say no to many things they wanted. It hurt my pride to realize I was failing in my ability to provide for them. The worst was when I emptied the change jar and cashed it in to be able to purchase their school supplies so they wouldn't be embarassed at school for not having what they need. Kolt questioned me about why I was using our vacation money. I just hate that, it is so hard to put it back once you "borrow" from it. But today, I was able to replace the money in the vacation jar. I bought rolls of quarters and made a huge production out of it with the kids - I needed to reassure them (probably more me than them) that I will keep my word.

I used to get my nails done, acrylics. I have maintained them for the last several months. But the last couple of months I had to give that up. It was hard to do that. But - for the sake of the kids - it was an absolute no brainer at that point. The nails was just a thing I did for me to make me feel good. So tomorrow, I am going to get my nails done! You really probably think I am nutty, but its just something that matters to me. It is for me and for me alone. To me it will symbolize me on my way back up - I let life bog me down a bit and have really fought to regain control. Now I just want to maintain control and see things as onward and upward.

The job situation is in order and I am where I belong. The child support issue is being handled by the prosecuting attorney's office and is under control. An issue with a former employer has finally evoked a response. The kids are settled into their routines and seem to be managing school and everything pretty well. My sweetie is much better and all is well and the biggest issue - well there are two I suppose, but one is whether Molly is Molly or a Mulligan. The other issue is in the hands of God and well, He and I, we are ok.

So tomorrow, I will get my nails done and I would like to find a fall wreath for my front door and get a couple of mums. Tomorrow night, I will catch up with some friends at another friend's birthday party and just be happy that life is good.

2006-09-14T21:11:00.000-04:00

At five til six my cell phone rang. On caller ID I could see that it was my ex. I deliberated if I wanted to answer it. I figured it would not be pleasant. I decided to get it over with and answered.

Me: "Hello"
Him: "Where are the boys?"
Me: "Why"
Him: "Where are the boys I said."
Me: "Why?"
Him: "It's six o'clock, where are they?"
Me: "Well considering that it is only Thursday night, I thought perhaps they should go to school tomorrow, before I bring them to you for the weekend. Maybe you should sober up by then."
Him: "Oh."
...click

Perspective

2006-09-14T18:22:00.000-04:00

Over and over - I have been told - don't sweat the small stuff and it's all small stuff. Sometimes life will add perspective for you and you learn, it really is all small stuff. The things that matter most are the people in your life you love.

Baby, I will wait for you.

2006-09-13T21:25:00.000-04:00

Bob Seger
Wait for Me Lyrics

I will answer the wind
I will leave with the tide
I’ll be out on the road
Every chance I can ride

No matter how far
No matter how free
I’ll be alone
If you’ll wait for me

There’ll be times when I’ll rise
There’ll be times when I’ll fall
There’ll be times when its best to say nothing at all

Knowing you’re right
Letting it be
I’ll be around
If you’ll wait for me
If you’ll wait for me

And I’ll fight for the right to go over the hill
If it’ll only mean something to me
I will not be persuaded
I wont be still
I’ll find a way to be free

In the cool of the night
In the heat of the day
If you’re ever in doubt
I’ll be on my way
Straight to your side
I guarantee
I’ll be around
If you’ll wait for me
If you’ll wait for me*

A True Friend...

2006-09-13T16:03:00.000-04:00

1. When you are sad -- I will help you get drunk and plot revenge against the sorry bastard who made you that way.
2. When you are blue -- I will try to dislodge whatever is choking you.
3. When you smile -- I will know you finally got laid.
4. When you are scared -- I will rag on you about it every chance I get.
5. When you are worried -- I will tell you horrible stories about how much worse it could be until you quit whining.
6. When you are confused -- I will use little words.
7. When you are sick -- Stay the hell away from me until you are well again. I don't want catch whatever you have.
8. When you fall -- I will point and laugh at your clumsy ass.

Trans-Siberian Orchestra

2006-09-13T11:56:00.000-04:00

The Trans-Siberian Orchestra is coming back to Fort Wayne on Thursday, November 9. Last year my parents took our whole family, including all of my kids, I went kicking and screaming... It turned out to be the best concert and light show I have ever seen and my entire family, including my youngest - who was six at the time, was thoroughly entranced and entertained, never bored. I give it a two thumbs up!

As usual, I am still a ditz......try this link and take a look see....its actually a house that set the lights to the music, but it is a small scale idea of what the concert is all about.

http://www.lightorama.com/Videos/WMV-Files/CarsonWilliams-WizardsInWinter.wmv

Wow

2006-09-12T20:51:00.000-04:00

I had forgotten some of the details of my job. I had forgot about all of that arbitron stuff. Hehe.... So I am going thru training 101 again, a refresher course. Its ok actually, sometimes it takes more than once to sink in. There comes a time when things finally start to click and it really does all make sense. Or perhaps my enlightenment came when I decided this really is the job I want and what I want to do.

Its kind of tough getting everyone into this routine, I had my routine before so that I could stay home with Kolt until he got on the bus in the mornings at 8:30 and then I could hit the road running. But for this week and next I need to be in Fort Wayne by 8 every morning. Which involves Kolt and I leaving the house by 6:55 so I can drop him off at my mom's and start the drive on in to the Fort. After that it will settle down and I will only do that twice a week. I have my fax, email, scanner and copier and all of that at home. So I can begin and end my days from here, but for the most part, my vehicle is my office.

I will state again, I have an unbelievable peace about this job. This peace is overflowing and soothing me in the other areas of my life also. I just feel that I am finally ok and everything that is to be will be. I know I sound like such a flake, but I am just sharing with you. I am not sweating the little stuff and the stress is not so stressful anymore.

I think Molly is a ......Billy?

2006-09-12T14:25:00.000-04:00

I have spent a few months blogging now. I have worked to earn your respect and friendship. I have tried to prove myself to be a smart, strong, independent woman who is making her way in this world. So, it disheartens me to make this confession, I think I am about to shake the very ground we all stand on.

My daughter got me a kitten for Mother's Day. I didn't really want or even need a kitten, we have a cat. Molly has wormed her way into all of our hearts, a pretty darned cute and playful kitten. She has staked a claim in our home.

I dropped in at home for a late lunch before another meeting with a client. Molly was playing and rolling around and walked away from me, and I noticed something. Oh how I hate making this confession. But as she was walking away, I did a double take and thought to myself, "what on earth?".... I think my cat has balls! Hmmm...I thought she was a girl. I picked her up and looked at her stomach to see if she has nipples. Well, I think I found one. Maybe two... I assume male cats would have nipples considering some men have man boobies and all... Yes, I know, I have made a huge departure from myself here and you are all starting to really wonder about me...

So, do you think maybe Molly is a Billy? Girl cats don't have balls do they? Yeah, I know, its time to take he/she/it to the vet. But I tell you now, there will be no psychiatrist for this kitten - it will just have to overcome the identity problem itself. And the picture I chose? I suspect it may develop some anger issues.

Kind of a bittersweet day.

2006-09-11T22:06:00.000-04:00

Today was my first day back at my old job. It felt really good to be there. It was like it is where I belong. I have a passion within for that job and believe in the product I sell. It started out really rocky however. Someone who enjoys watching media people posted first thing this morning that I was returning to work there. Then directly underneath commented on the place I had been working before. It totally stressed me out, because I had it set up to meet with them at 10 this morning to actually resign. (Please note, this is not my normal method of operation, but it was the way the chips fell in such a short amount of time.) Remember it was just last Monday that I realized I wanted my job back.

So.....after the sales meeting I ventured over to my other place of employment and took in all of the files and sat down and went through all of the accounts with them and gave them the current status on each and every one, turned in my laptop and things and returned back over to the station. It was sad, I really enjoyed the magazine, but I don't think I am cut out to sell a bi-monthly product. I am a I want it and want it now person, and radio has the sense of urgency and the immediacy that I like dealing with.

The rest of the day was going thru information and trying to put a work spot in order and gathering files and information on inherited accounts. Another guy started today who is brand new to radio...he just kind of followed my lead and I was very intent on getting settled in so that I can start getting some sales on the books. I found a lot of the files, I found most of my old files. I discovered I was one of the few who kept very detailed files. I wish they could have found my old computer for me....it was loaded with lots of good information, I am sure it is still around there, but it is hard to convince people to let me look at their computer for very long. Its ok, I will soon have all of my information gathered anyhow.

I can go to sleep tonight feeling very good about the job decision and know deep down that I am back where I belong.

This really isn't so funny.

2006-09-10T22:41:00.000-04:00

25 SIGNS YOU HAVE GROWN UP

1. Your houseplants are alive, and you can't smoke any of them.
2. Having sex in a twin bed is out of the question.
3. You keep more food than beer in the fridge.
4. 6:00 AM is when you get up, not when you go to bed.
5. You hear your favorite song in an elevator.
6. You watch the Weather Channel.
7. Your friends marry and divorce instead of "hook up" and "break up."
8. You go from 130 days of vacation time to 14.
9. Jeans and a sweater no longer qualify as "dressed up."
10. You're the one calling the police because those %&@# kids Next door won't turn down the stereo.
11. Older relatives feel comfortable telling sex jokes around you.
12. You don't know what time Taco Bell closes anymore.
13. Your car insurance goes down and your car payments go up.
14. You feed your dog Science Diet instead of McDonald's leftovers.
15. Sleeping on the couch makes your back hurt.
16. You take naps.
17. Dinner and a movie is the whole date instead of the beginning of one.
18. Eating a basket of chicken wings at 3 AM would severely upset, rather than settle, your stomach.
19. You go to the drug store for ibuprofen and antacid, not condoms and pregnancy tests.
20. A $4.00 bottle of wine is no longer "pretty good shit."
21. You actually eat breakfast food at breakfast time.
22. "I just can't drink the way I used to" replaces "I'm never going to drink that much again."
23. 90% of the time you spend in front of a computer is for real work.
24. You drink at home to save money before going to a bar.
25. When you find out your friend is pregnant you congratulate them instead of asking "Oh shit what the hell happened?"

Bonus:

You read this entire list looking desperately for one sign that doesn't apply to you and can't find one to save your sorry old ass.

Suzy Q. Homemaker...NOT!!!

2006-09-10T11:46:00.000-04:00

Ok. I am not a domestic goddess. I admit this. I keep things picked up, I cook meals on a fairly regular basis...I do the laundry, dust, sweep, clean toliet bowls...all of the necessary things of running a household. I tackle the outside chores, repair and maintenance, learning more and more! My home is not immaculate. I do not fret and worry over the small stuff. I have learned there are times when its more important to just enjoy the times. Especially as the kids grow older and wiser. Last week Trying To Hide posted a handy dandy little article on her website about how to be a good wife. Mr. Manly man decided to email it to me to make sure that I saw it. My response was along the lines of....I could probably do that if I didn't have to be a single career mom too...hehehe I suppose if there were a pretty little band of gold on this finger and all the good stuff to go with, I could be a very good wife. I once was. Anyhow...

Tomorrow I start my new old job. I am very excited about this. Its been a long time since I have been excited about work. Its been a while since I have had an inner peace about my decisions. I have had three jobs since I quit my old job. I regretted quitting the day I quit, I cried all the way home. At the time I was overwhelmed with my divorce, gas prices and trying to juggle three kids and their activities. I lived life in limbo land and did not know where I was going to end up. I still did the job well. Now - I can do the job even better. I am settled into my home and its where I want to be. I live close enough to family that I have a back up plan in place always for my kids, I did before, it just was a bit more hectic. The kids are older now, can you believe I worked in Fort Wayne while my youngest was in kindegarten and would have to orchestrate his pick up and delivery from Fort Wayne most of the time? Guess I should clarify, I lived exactly 38 miles from my place of employment, now its 44 miles. I never minded the drive, enjoy it actually, conducted a lot of business on the cell phone to and from, accumulated 10 points on my license for speeding...down to 4 now...and they raised the speed limit, obviously there was a problem since they raised it and on that decision alone I think they should credit the other 4 points back to me....hehehe.

So today I am preparing for the week ahead. Getting caught up on laundry, I must admit I have backslid on laundry... I am cleaning and organizing my closet, kind of gathering all of the summer clothes into one area to put them away for the season in the next few weeks. I am also putting the closet back into order of casual weekend, blouses, blazers, slacks, suits and dresses. But definitely not color coding. You know I have a huge walk-in closet and it is absolutely full. Maybe I should discard some, but no, I really like some of it some of the time, many days I hate all of it.

I am making a big pot of vegetable soup today. That will provide a quick easy meal a couple of nights this week. I will put a roast in the crock pot tomorrow morning before I leave. And I think we will have toasted ravioli one night. There! That takes care of the week! Next weekend the boys go to their dad's and our daughter has already made plans to spend the weekend with my sister. I have a feeling I will be brain dead by the weekend. I am so excited about my new old job!

Recipe for a good night of sleep

2006-09-09T22:39:00.000-04:00

I am ready to fall into bed and sleep like a baby. Pretty sure that I will tonight. Just came in from the lake a little while ago. It cooled down considerably but still enjoyed a nice ride and drank a couple of glasses of wine. We just drifted and talked for awhile. Such a beautiful evening with an absolutely wonderful man. Who could ask for more? There is just something about the lake air, the gentle rocking of the waves against the boat - it always relaxes me and soothes my soul.

Sweet dreams to all.

Very Sad News....

2006-09-09T12:43:00.000-04:00

After many happy years together, it appears Mickey and Minnie are going to get a divorce. Mickey recently met with his attorney.

"But Mickey, you two have been together for so long, are you sure you can't work things out. I mean, you two are getting along in years, of course she is getting a little forgetful, perhaps it does seem like she is losing her mind..."

"I didn't say she was losing her mind, I said she was fscking Goofy!"

I am so excited!

2006-09-09T08:35:00.000-04:00

It's not often that I hear a song that forces me to instantly go buy a cd. But this morning I had on CMT and I heard "Wait For Me"...I was in the other room and I was like "Gosh, that sounds like Bob Seger" I have always loved Bob Seger. I came into the room and watched the rest of the video and sure enough.... So as you can see I looked around on the net and there is a whole cd to go with it...appears to have just been released this week. I am excited. I am going to buy the cd today. You know, considering it was on Country Music Television, I can probably find it in the prize closet on Monday when I get back to my new old job...but I can't wait that long. I am a dedicated fan I tell ya, that is if its someone who trips my trigger. I think I may actually pick up two copies while I am at it, I am pretty sure I know of someone else who will appreciate it too....that's just the kind of friend that I am you see.

mY sYSteM

2006-09-08T07:10:00.000-04:00

Ok, so the football season started last night - right? Well, two years ago and years prior I used to get into the football pool at work. I have a system. Two years ago I won at least 6 of the weeks by picking the most winners the most often. It really ticked off the guys that I worked with. Really. Last year I did not work there but they let me play anyhow. My system didn't work last year. I didn't win any of the pools. It was frustrating. However, my friend who is a sports editor at a rather large newspaper would bet against me and my system worked better than his all-knowing ways. So go figure.

So this year I am betting my system again. It already worked...my system picked last night's winner against the technical odds and "the way you are supposed to bet." I know, I know, you are dying to know what my system is. Well let me tell you what my system is not. Its not about the colors. And its not about the tight ends. It takes way too much time to look up colors and derrierres.... It's quite simple really. Each week it usually takes me a minute to go thru and make my picks. And the final game each week I pick a combined total score just in case there is a need for a tie-breaker.

Ok, here you go, I know the suspense is killing you. I like Indianapolis. ALWAYS. I like Chicago unless they are playing Indianapolis. I like Baltimore. I like San Diego. I really dislike Florida. Really dislike Florida. So much in fact if its two Florida teams I pick the one furthest to the north because its the closest way out of there. Guess that makes Jacksonville the Florida team of choice if I must. The rest, its based on where I would want to visit the most. Hey! Stop laughing at me. My system already worked last night. I have made my pics for this week. I will let you know Tuesday how it all came out for me. To be honest, I printed off the whole damned schedule this morning and went thru and made all of my pics. Yes, I know that really should not work, based on the scientifics of it all that you men folk especially like to incorporate into this....but I am doing this just for kicks and giggles. And Monday, when I get back to my new old job, I am going to track down that football pool and get right back into it with my silly azz ways! hehehe