Lou Who's Turn

Happy New Year - Just Some Jumbled Thoughts!

2010-02-26T18:45:00.005-07:00

Holy Cow...time certainly has a way of speeding by anymore. It use to seem so slow and the older I get the faster it goes!!!

It amazes me that my cousins are all grown up, most of them married and building families of their own. It use to bother me that I was the oldest grandchild, but couldn't have the first great-grandchild. But "it is, what it is"...there is some plan for me but I think I have taken several detours and one day it will all come together, either here or on the other side.

I have thought much about my life and why things have played out as they have...why didn't I get married in my 20's and have children? I always thought there would be children in my life and there are...they are the children of my cousins.

And let's not forget my four-legged furry children who I adore, sometimes they are as much as I can handle!

I talk to my Heavenly Father regularly and try to be grateful for the small miracles. Like today, I asked that the lights on 900 South stay green all the way to work and they did! So I was on time!!!

I have a friend who has many health issues but she is one of the funniest and most spritual people I know. She blogs and has such great things to say, especially about her Heavenly Father. I am grateful that she is in my life even tho we don't spend a lot of time together. She makes me smile!

I have decided that my "mission" in life is to be a caretaker...not exactly what I had in mind growing up. But I believe I am were I am suppose to be...my boss and I have conversations about what I believe and others. I can't give him concrete answers to why I believe a lot of what I believe, I just know I do!

I don't think I have ever questioned having a Heavenly Father. And the bad things that have happened are not because He didn't love me...they happened because of my choices or someone else's choices.

I read on a church sign recently: Fear God and man's sole purpose is to obey the commandments. Wow...what a concept, "Fear God"...it's not in my make-up to fear Him that I believe in with all my heart. Do I believe He loves me less because I don't go to church? I don't think so, I know He knows and understands what is my soul better than I do.

I am an open book (except maybe to my mom for her own protection)...I have no idea what this year is going to hold for me, but I am going to make sure that I find the joy and gratitude in each day!

Oh yeah, January was about Chicago and seeing my cousin Charles, his wife Joyce and their three beautiful girls. I was so impressed by Charles and Joyce's parenting skills...and the girls were so sweet! We had a birthday party for my mom. The girls made a big sign and Joyce made a wonderful cake! It was so much fun and so relaxing!

February has passed so quickly...soon it will be March and Spring is just around the corner and I still haven't got my 2008 and 2009 Christmas cards out...oh well, it is, what it is"...

Keith Olbermann on Proposition 8

2009-10-06T09:29:00.007-06:00

I got this clip off Facebook this morning from the National Equality March, so I'm not sure when it was actually aired...I agree with Keith and he said it so well...

Life is short and if you are lucky enough to find someone to love, it shouldn't matter what your color, what your religion, or what your sexual orientation is...what happens between CONSENTING ADULTS is no one elses business. LIVE and let LIVE, LOVE and let LOVE! Let our hearts BELIEVE IN EQUALITY for ALL of our brothers and sisters!

I want my name to be written in God's "Book of Love" and I know in my heart God does not make mistakes! The world has changed since the Bible was written...we no longer stone people to death, we no longer believe in slavery, we no longer offer blood sacrifices...as times have changed so have what we believe...

Women had to fight for equal rights, blacks had to fight for equal rights and now the gays have to fight for their equal rights.

A lovely "woman" by the name of Sister Dottie S. Dixon (she is a "marmon sister from Spanish Fark that wants to bring the gays and the marmon church together" and I just LOVE her!), posted a video clip on Facebook about a 10-year old boy who will not say the pledge of allegiance until "we have liberty and justice for ALL". What a brave young man!

And before you quibble with me...reread the part about consenting ADULTS!!! That's my point!!! The two key words: CONSENTING ADULTS!

Suicide - A Shift in Perspective -- 09/04/09

2009-09-04T17:43:00.006-06:00

For most of my life I have been on the verge of suicide, that seemed to me as the only answer when the pain got to be too much. This past week my perspective has been forever changed...let's start at the beginning...

When I was 15 years old, I took an "accidental" overdose of aspirin. I had been crying out for help/attention and no one noticed. I had been in pain for a long time, maybe someday the details of why will be important, but for this blog they are not.

Something happened that day that "broke the camel's back" and I sobbed so hard I got a headache. I took some aspirin about 3:00 pm and then some more and then I took the rest and diluted them in water and drank some of it. I went to my room and wrote my mother a letter telling her I was sorry (my father was in Iceland at the time) and put it under my pillow to be found when I was gone.

About 8:00 pm my ears started ringing and I felt hot and my stomach was starting to cramp. At that point I didn't want to be alone and went to the living room to watch TV with my mom. I don't remember that I said anything obvious to her, but she got up and went to the bathroom and came back with the aspirin bottle. It was empty so she asked how many I had taken...I said I didn't know. She told me we were going to the hospital and I said no...and then ran to the bathroom to throw up.

At that point there was no question about where I was going. I don't remember where my brother was...but off to the emergency room on the air force base about a mile away. When I got there they made me drink some ipecac and some water and told me it would take about 10-15 minutes to work...wrong, less than two. They took blood samples and when they came back I heard the doctor tell her that if she hadn't brought me in when she did I would have died in about three hours.

Once I was "stable" they sent us to the big AF hospital in San Antonio...when we got there I was put in a bed and left there to wait by myself. There was a heavy-set woman that was brought in who had taken an overdose of barbituates. I heard them say she had five children and then I watched as they proceeded to tube her and pour the saline in...then a nurse shut the curtain and all I heard was the sounds of her fighting them. I sat there and thought "how dare she do that to her children"...it never entered my mind what I would have done to my mother, to my extended family if I had died. I was in the hospital for three days.

I had to visit with the psychiatrist, he had on his white coat, coke-bottle glasses and hair that looked like he had stuck his finger in a light socket. He was so funny looking to me that I kept staring at the floor to keep from laughing at him and he told me that I didn't seem to have any emotions...little did he know.

In my sophmore year in high school a girl that I had been friends with in junior high committed suicide...the rumour was she had a brain tumor and she shot herself while her parents were away. Again my thought was "how could she do that to her family", still not getting what I had done.

When we were in England...a woman tried to commit suicide by taking rat poison. She had a four-year old son...AGAIN, "how could she do that to her child" and why would she kill herself over a man (another long story there). Still not getting it...

Fast forward to August 26th, 2009...my coworker's son hung himself...23 years old and the father of a beautiful little boy. As I watched my coworker cry, it broke my heart and I FINALLY got it!

IF ONLY...if only he could have held on for another day and then another day. We don't see the light at the end of the tunnel, we just feel the pain and want it to go away. We don't understand that our pain may go away, but those that have loved us, their pain is just beginning and will last them a lifetime.

There are times that you have to live day by day, somestimes it might be hour to hour or minute to minute. Some people call suicide cowardly and maybe it is, but unless you have felt the unending pain and the hopelessness that goes on inside the brain you'll never understand the darkness that seeps into the soul of someone who contemplates suicide.

Long Time, No Blog -- The Mom Episode!

2009-08-10T17:51:00.003-06:00

I can't believe it has been so long since I last blogged...when I started I really thought I had a lot to say...hmmm! And then there was Facebook!

I finally started to feel better, that was a plus!

My mother had to put her special Djiboutian cat DjiDji to sleep in April. It is very hard to see your parent so devastated by the loss. It seems that she has been dealing with many losses in the last three years, her mother, her brother, and her cat Smokey. Then last year was full of health problems, her heart, her brain, and then her foot, just one thing after another!

She took off to see my brother in North Carolina in mid-April and was to come home in early June. On May 5th, she developed SHINGLES...I went to NC to help out with her and we ended up putting her in the hospital after one of the doctors at the instacare said she looked worse than when he had first seen her and said she had "adult failure to thrive". Her heart rate was 161. (She has a heart doctor here and is on medication for it). When we asked him what he would do if it was his mom, he said admit her to the hospital. He arranged it and we took her to Wayne Memorial in Goldsboro. I spent the night with her. In the morning David came to get me to take me back to his house while they were running tests on her.

When David came back to get me they had determined that there was a "shadow" and she should have her heart looked at...because she had shingles she could not ride in the ambulance transport with another patient, so we had to wait around for another one to be dispatched from Wake Med in Raleigh. We left Goldsboro about 12:30 and got to the hospital about 2:00 am. Slept in the chairs in her room.

When they came to get her for the catherization, David and I went to the Heart Center Inn...a small, very nice "hotel" for those that needed a place to stay...mostly for patients that had traveled far from home so they had a nice place to stay prior to their proceedures and to recoup before going home.

I spent the first night in mom's room and David stayed in the room. Then she seemed to be okay enough to leave her at night, so David would go home and I would stay in the hotel room. I only spent two nights at David's house and extended my stay to Memorial Day.

I did get to see my aunt and uncle on the Friday before they left town to go to some car race...and my cousin, her husband and kids on the Sunday. And I finally got some NC barbeque on Sunday...I love the vinegar base and I soooo love hush puppies and sweet tea! We had tried to get some on the way to David's on Saturday as take-out and we got taken...there was no pork or coleslaw...I was so disappointed! We had stopped at a place that David had been to before and it was in the town (Wilson) where he works.

It was determined that mom needed some additional care after I left and David was running out of vacation, so the day I left she was transferred to a rehab. She stayed for about two weeks and then went back to David's. She finally came home on July 5th...David was doing the happy dance! He missed his annual trip to the beach in June, but he was a good caretaker while she was there.

The Men of Thunder Down Under and Me in My Tiara

2009-05-04T17:20:00.001-06:00

Facebook and Twitter, oh my!

2009-04-23T18:07:00.003-06:00

It is intersesting how caught up one can get with a computer...one can spend hours on Facebook with what seems like a million different applications. You can farm, save the rain forest, send hugs, gifts, have wars, whatever and have hundreds of friends...does the one with the most friends win? Anyone? Anyone?

But there is a sense of community that you may not have otherwise had, if not for the computer...

And then there is Twitter, 140 or is it 160 characters and that's all you write, a couple of sentences, short and sweet and usually to the point or not.

I personally like person to person communication first, then phone conversations, then email (although there is too much read or misread in emails that create major problems in relationships). The only three letters I really appreciate in texting/email is LOL...laughing out loud...at least there is a clue as to what someone might mean.

What do I do?

2009-04-21T18:33:00.003-06:00

What do I do?

What do I do
when my friends forsake?

What do I do
when my heart breaks?

What do I do
when my soul aches?

What do I do
when my faith shakes?

What do I do?

Can I Even Remember?

2009-03-26T17:55:00.003-06:00

January 2009: Wow, another year! The good news, my cousin Cherlyn married her very gorgeous man, Sean, on the third and doesn't even have to change her last name. His last last name is Jenkins too! How fun is that! They had a very nice ceremony and reception at Hertitage Gardens.

My mom celebrated the 34th anniversary of her 39th birthday on the 15th.

Still battling a cold...ugh..I just want to be healthy again! Trying to get all my medical tests done so that I can turn fifty and be Fabulous (yeah right)!

February: More tests...still sick. Finally went to see an ENT on the 13th, he said I had allergies, etc and gave me medicines to help.

Boss gone for a week. Long-lost friend came back into my life, I hope she stays!

March: Grandma's first great-grandchild was baptised on the 7th and I found my cousin Beth is going to have her first baby in September!

Turned 50 on the 10th! WHOO HOO!! Half a century! Had a last minute party at a friend's coffee shop to help her out (I hope we did)! Thanks Lori!

Still fighting something (I have been sick off and on since November)...on the 12th, went to Vegas with my friend Peggie, who treated me to "Thunder Down Under", I must have been sick as I was not impressed and didn't have a very good time. The next day we drove down to Phoenix for me to visit my friend Patti and her husband and for Peggie to visit with her cousin. Lucky for me Patti was not feeling very well so we didn't do much but rest. Mark fixed a couple of good meals and I played cards with his elderly mother and her friend.

Peggie and I left Phoenix for Vegas on Sunday midday. Wandered around the strip, went back to the room and while I was getting ready for bed Peggie fell asleep on her bed (she said she woke up about 4am to get in bed, poor tired girl). Got up and headed back to Salt Lake to our lives in "Paradise".

Barely survived the week...left early on Friday to take my mom to Koosharem to the "Old Folks Party" that is held every year on the 3rd Saturday of March. I did make another doctor's appointment for the Monday figuring it would make me better.

Thought I would sleep the whole weekend, but that didn't happen...couldn't sleep Friday night, must have been that fresh country air...it was about 4am when I think I drifted off, up around 9am. Went to the lunch, left while mom had family to visit with and went back to the room. Went to the dinner at 7pm, they had lots of jello salads...I love the one with cottage cheese and cool whip...it's not hard to make, guess I'll have to make some! Listened to the musical entertainment for a while then went back to the room. Watched a movie and went to sleep. Mom woke me up early. She failed to mention that she wanted to be home by noon. We made it exactly!

Monday went to the doctor's, no answers. Had blood taken on Tuesday, now just waiting for the results. So I am up to date and mom's foot shouldn't be the first thing you see anymore!

November / December 2008

2008-12-30T17:05:00.005-07:00

I thought this was going to be a good month because I refinanced my home and paid everything off...yippee!!! So now I just have a house payment and utilities.

Took a while but FINALLY got rid of the three week cold that caused me to miss Thanksgiving and my cousin's bridal shower. The family was kind enough to bring me some food.

We finally had some big snowstorms, so winter has offically arrived and people traveling have had such a hard time.

Christmas Eve day my boss took me and my co-worker to lunch and then we were off for a long weekend!!! Whoohoo! I'm in charge of the ham this year, so went to Costco on Tuesday the 23rd and got two 8 lb. hams...then I went to mom's house to give her a couple of things she needed and we saw the commercial for HoneyBaked Hams...I won't have to cook...so we ended up placing an order online and when I got there at 4pm on Christmas Eve there were not as many people as I had heard were there earlier in the day. They have a GREAT sweet potato souffle, that we got for Christmas Day.

Had a nice Christmas Eve with the family until I got hurt...not sure exactly what happened...was holding a plate of food with red jello in my left hand and there was a little person I was trying to avoid and in doing some contourtions we all heard my foot snap...I am proud to say I didn't step or land on the little person and I managed NOT to get red jello on the white carpet!!! Yea Me!!!

So we got me to a chair and put ice on it. Luckily it was my left foot, so therefore I could drive my mom home. She wanted me to go to the ER and I said why do I want to spend $125 for them to tell me there is nothing wrong. Her response was that they would at least x-ray and wrap it and give me drugs. Okay, she had me at drugs!!! LOL!! It only took one and a half hours so not too bad, I have a bone chip that they are not sure is new or old.

My friend Peggie came and got me on Christmas day to go to my mom's. Had a nice dinner and watched "Mrs. Claus" with Angela Lansbury. Then home with my foot up and iced until Monday when I got to come back to work. Still hurts...

My cousin is getting married on Saturday and I think I am starting another cold...

I just have to say 2009 has got to be better!!! If things come in threes...I am done!! And so is my mom!!!

May you be blessed with happiness, health, hope and peace in your New Year!

I hope this is true!

2008-12-17T10:08:00.005-07:00

I found a saying the other day that I just had to get under the circumstances...

God helps those that help themselves.
God REALLY helps those that help their Moms!

If It's Not One Thing, It's Your Mother!

2008-11-12T16:32:00.013-07:00

This was started on the dated listed, but completed on December 14th!!! These photos didn't line up the way I entered them, so you are looking at the good to bad...

My mother had a bizarre accident on October 30th. She left a kettle of water on the stove and forgot it. The house filled with smoke...she ran to the kitchen to throw the kettle into the sink and the bottom of the kettle fell out, she then stepped on the hot metal with her right nylon stockinged foot. The fire department came as well as the paramedics who offered to take her to the hospital, but she waited for me to come get her. So we spent the evening at the emergency room, she had a two members of her ward come to the hospital to give her a blessing and then I moved in for the next 22 days to take care of her. I slept on the couch for 10 days before I remembered that it was a sofa sleeper...oh duh!!!

When we went to the podiatrist on November the 3rd, he was planning to see her every week for four weeks before he took off any of the damaged skin. We rented a wheelchair and loaded up on bandages. She was pretty much bedridden for the first week, just up to the bathroom and back to bed. Mom had some friends and her Relief Society that brought her food while she was down. It was gratefully accepted!!!

The next appointment on the 10th, he thought it was ready to take off the dead skin and then told us to come back in two weeks.

I went home on Friday, the 21st of November and promptly caught an awful cold that I am just now getting rid of three weeks later! (I missed Thanksgiving with the whole family and my cousin's bridal shower, dang it all!)

We had her appointment on the 24th with me wearing a face mask so not to spread germs. I was SOOOO tired!!! The docotor looked at her foot and said we were done unless she had any problems. We were concerned as she is a type 2 diabetic. It has been very painful, but we finally got her out this weekend to do some of her Christmas shopping and she did pretty good!

No More...

2008-09-28T15:25:00.004-06:00

Well, my job at Desert Star was short lived...I'm not sure what happened to me but I went into melt-down mode after my first three shifts and just had to quit. I wish I could explain what happened but I can't...as perfect as I thought it would be for me it just wasn't. I still love Desert Star and will always have season tickets!!!

So for now I am helping my mom out and selling plasma. The good news on that front is that I had measles when I was little and so now I have an antibody that they want and I get paid an extra $7.00 dollars per time. WHOOHOO! Maybe they will find other antibodies that they need...it's too bad I'm not rh negative...they pay a lot for those people.

Odds & Ends

2008-09-04T17:34:00.004-06:00

Whoohoo! I dropped of my application at Desert Star on Saturday. I got a call on Tuesday, had the interview on Tuesday afternoon and got hired. I start training on Friday! That seemed so easy...I am looking at about 20 hours a week. We'll see how this works out for me! Wish me luck!

I will still sell plasma to keep money in my pocket. My third time was last night and seemed to go better and maybe it will get easier as time goes on. Had a nice conversation with the guy next to me. I donated part of my pay to them with a chance to win a VID pass, which gets you to the head of the line on days you are in a hurry. There are drawing for a lifetime pass, a year pass, some month passes and just a single visit pass. I haven't won anything in a long time, so maybe!

I am trying to win a trip to Disney/Florida for the ABC Soap weekend in November. I have a friend who wants me to go to Disney with her. She thinks she can make it fun for me...so if I win, she can show me the fun!

At the end of the month I am taking a Boomer Belly Dancing Class with a friend. I tried about ten yeras ago and ended up in a class with teeny boppers...not fun, I quit! So this is for "older" people...hope it will be fun! It's an eight week class that starts on the 25th.

That's it for today!

Selling Plasma

2008-08-28T20:14:00.003-06:00

Well, while in search of a new part-time job, I decided to try selling plasma. Let me say it was a most interesting experience!

I went on Wednesday at 5:30pm, having been told on Sunday to come in on Monday and then not being able to get in...it looks like this is a way for MANY people to make a few extra dollars. The staff was kind, I think they felt sorry for me as I had a "deer in the headlights" look about me. So how was my second experience...my first being about 20 years ago when they took the blood out of one arm and returned it in the other...well things have changed...only one arm is necessary. Unless you happen to be me...we didn't get too far into the process when my right arm's vein blew...so the tragedy of that happening is IF you don't get the red cells back in it counts as a donation and you can't do this again for 56 days...oh my! Luckily they were able to pump back into me using the left arm (which I usually avoid because of scar tissue) and despite not getting very much plasma, I was still paid! So all in all, I will try again this weekend...you can donate twice a week. It is amazing that you get paid MORE if you weigh more than 149 pounds...it's what I would like to weigh right now but we'll keep working on losing as I keep selling.

Would I recommend this as a way to make money, probably not...but it works for me right now!

Women & Voting

2008-08-28T18:17:00.008-06:00

I claim to vote so therefore I can bitch about the choice that was made...but this story is the REAL reason women should vote! And how much control of the country could we have IF we stepped up, like these women, and demanded that our voices be heard. I recently heard that women outnumber men again...so WHY in heaven's name are WE "letting" men control our destiny, our country? They've done such a brilliant job so far...(just a little sarcasm)

We have always known that some of the Presidents have cheated on their wives while in office...why are we not more outraged that our elected officials can't keep their pants zipped up and do the job they were elected to do? Just because it's always been done, doesn't mean it's the right thing to do!

I would love to have a woman President, but it has to be the right woman. Part of the reason I did not want Hilary in office is because she "let" Bill humiliate her before the country, not once mind you...MANY times! And I am trying to wrap my mind around why it bothers me and why I don't think she'd be a good President. Now if Ann Richards was alive and well and running for President...she is the woman and the democrat I would vote for...

I am SOOOO tired of trying to figure out who is going to be the lessor of two evils when it comes to electing someone to office. I want someone who has good business sense...that can lead our country out of debt...that can lead us back to being a RESPECTED nation...to have integrity and honesty. And it's not just about the Presidency either...it's the whole of Congress. If the President can only have TWO terms, let's set limits on Congress to three or four terms at MAX...NO LIFETIME MEMBERS! I think NEW blood is in order to stir things up!

I want a President like Geena Davis played on TV, like Kevin Kline played in "Dave" and maybe even Michael Douglas played in "The American President".

It is time to do away with the Electoral College (An electoral college is a set of electors who are empowered to elect a candidate to a particular office. Often these electors represent different organizations or entities, with each organization or entity represented by a particular number of electors or with votes weighted in a particular way. Many times, though, the electors are simply important persons whose wisdom, it is hoped, would provide a better choice than a larger body. The system can ignore the wishes of a general membership, whose thinking need not be considered.) and go to a popular vote so that we can feel as though our choice matters.

Okay...those are my ramblings about politics for tonight...

***********************************************************

This is the story of our Grandmothers, and Great-grandmothers, as they lived only 90 years ago. It was not until 1920 that women were granted the right to go to the polls and vote.

***********************************************************

The women were innocent and defenseless. And by the end of the night, they were barely alive. Forty prison guards wielding clubs and their warden's blessing went on a rampage against the 33 women wrongly convicted of "obstructing sidewalk traffic."

They beat Lucy Burn, chained her hands to the cell bars above her head and left her hanging for the night, bleeding and gasping for air. They hurled Dora Lewis into a dark cell, smashed her head against an iron bed and knocked her out cold. Her cellmate, Alice Cosu, thought Lewis was dead and suffered a heart attack.. Additional affidavits describe the guards grabbing, dragging, beating, choking, slamming, pinching, twisting and kicking the women.

Thus unfolded the "Night of Terror" on Nov. 15, 1917, when the warden at the Occoquan Workhouse in Virginia ordered his guards to teach a lesson to the suffragists imprisoned there because they dared to picket Woodrow Wilson 's White House for the right to vote.

For weeks, the women's only water came from an open pail. Their food--all of it colorless slop--was infested with worms. When one of the leaders, Alice Paul, embarked on a hunger strike, they tied her to a chair, forced a tube down her throat and poured liquid into her until she vomited. She was tortured like this for weeks until word was smuggled out to the press.

So, refresh my memory. Some women won't vote this year because--why, exactly? We have carpool duties? We have to get to work? Our vote doesn't matter? It's raining?

Last week, I went to a sparsely attended screening of HBO's new movie "Iron Jawed Angels." It is a graphic depiction of the battle these women waged so that I could pull the curtain at the polling booth and have my say. I am ashamed to say I needed the reminder.

All these years later, voter registration is still my passion. But the actual act of voting had become less personal for me, more rote. Frankly, voting often felt more like an obligation than a privilege. Sometimes it was inconvenient.
My friend Wendy, who is my age and studied women' s history, saw the HBO movie, too.. When she stopped by my desk to talk about it, she looked angry. She was--with herself. "One thought kept coming back to me as I watched that movie," she said. "What would those women think of the way I use--or don't use--my right to vote? All of us take it for granted now, not just younger women, but those of us who did seek to learn." The right to vote, she said, had become valuable to her "all over again."

HBO released the movie on video and DVD. I wish all history, social studies and government teachers would include the movie in their curriculum. I want it shown on Bunco night, too, and anywhere else women gather. I realize this isn't our usual idea of socializing, but we are not voting in the numbers that we should be, and I think a little shock therapy is in order.
It is jarring to watch Woodrow Wilson and his cronies try to persuade a psychiatrist to declare Alice Paul insane so that she could be permanently institutionalized. And it is inspiring to watch the doctor refuse. Alice Paul was strong, he said, and brave. That didn't make her crazy.

The doctor admonished the men: "Courage in women is often mistaken for insanity."

Please, if you are so inclined, pass this on to all the women you know.

We need to get out and vote and use this right that was fought so hard for by these very courageous women. Whether you vote democratic, republican or independent party -remember to vote.

History is being made! May God Bless America!

A First for Me...

2008-08-26T17:25:00.003-06:00

Wow, it has been a while since I last blogged!

On August 7th I was fired from my part-time job at Park 'n Jet after 17 years off and on...

I will admit that I wrote a snippy note about "it would be nice if management would do their job so I could do mine". It was over garbage bags...frustration just built up as time and time again I would show up to my shift and something was wrong. The outside lights didn't work, the carwash didn't work, the drivers didn't show up or the next booth person didn't show up on time. I just wanted to come to work and do my job which as I understood it was customer service. I was to make the customer happy that they had parked with us. Some days were easier than others.

Do I think I deserved to be fired over this...no, I don't, but it was their call. Personally if I were the management I would have had a sit-down conversation with me, because obviously something was wrong for me to write the note in the first place and then if need be I would have given a warning that the attitude needed to change and be on probation...but to straight out fire someone...not the right thing to do!

I was also told when I got fired (AT my regular place of employment, no less) that there were drivers that didn't want to work with me. Hmm...if there was a problem with a driver that had come to management's attention, you would think that it would be brought to my attention so that the problem could be resolved. I can guess which drivers didn't want to work with me and I can tell you that I didn't like working with them either (there are two sides to every story). I have never heard so many F-words used in my presence in one night as I had around them and with customers just outside the window. I was embarrassed and hoped the customers couldn't hear what was being said, especially if the drivers weren't tipped.

So I am counting on the fact that when one door closes another one will open. So if anyone know of a great part-time job in customer service, call me!

American Idol Tour Concert

2008-07-16T17:29:00.003-06:00

I have the coolest mom, she bought us tickets to the American Idol Tour concert for last night! It was a great concert! They were all good, some more than others! David Cook had recently hurt his leg or knee and for the most part I didn't notice. When he goes out on tour himself I will go to that concert and hope that he will do some ballads. I know he is a "rocker", but he can do the ballads well. I bought his picture to hang up somewhere in the house!

Thanks Mom, it was fun!!!

Pets and Death

2008-07-10T18:49:00.005-06:00

First off, let me say, I love my cats!! I really do! I also love them enough to let them go when it is time!

And what started this post was an article in Time magazine about doing stem-cell replacement therapy for pets...nor do I think we should be cloning our pets!! Enough already, pets are becoming almost as expensive as having children!!!

I was extremely blessed with my first cat, Sheena ("my baby"), I got her when she was eight weeks old...she lived to be 21 years old. She was diagnosed at age 15 with early renal failure. I didn't do much except change her food and once a year I had blood work done to make sure every thing was working as it should. Every day past her 15th birthday I felt was a blessing. She got to the point where she couldn't hear, she was having difficulty walking and her teeth were gone. I just knew when it was time.

The boys were a different story, they both developed diabetes. Max was put to sleep the same month he was diagnosed. Simon was diagnosed a year later and was put to sleep five months later. I personally could not see giving my cats two or three shots a day to control their diabetes...not the quality of life I saw for them. I was blessed to have them both and I miss them.

I have watched people hold onto their animals far too long for the comfort and well-being of the animal. How kind is that?

I know that pets are not disposable, nor would I ever give back one that I had (I walked away from my first condo for Sheena when she was seven, well worth it since she lived 14 more years). I just know that my responsibilty to them is to give them a good home, keep them as healthy and as happy and well-cared for as I can without going into debt because we have the technology. Just because we have the technology doesn't mean that it needs to be used to extend a life, and technology doesn't mean quality of life!

Just my thoughts as I live with the not so newest members of my household, Hunter and Bella.

"Every life should have nine cats!"

Family Reunion

2008-06-29T04:30:00.004-06:00

I went to a family reunion in a small town called Koosharem (it is near Fish Lake and Richfield). My grandmother was the youngest of 11 (I always believed it was 12, until our family was in charge and was I was set straight).

The reunion is always held the last Saturday of June.

There is not much in Koosharem except a school, a Town Hall, a cafe, a little country store and a five room motel. It is a nice place, about a little over three hours from Salt Lake City.

There seems to be fewer and fewer of the extended family members coming each year as the older ones pass on and the younger ones have other things to do...it will be interesting to see how many more years it will go on...

Friendships

2008-06-29T03:49:00.009-06:00

“Oh the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all right out, just as they are -- chaff and grain together -- certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and with the breath of kindness blow the rest away…” -- Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Friendship, what is its value to us? How do we determine who our friends are and how much of our lives are theirs to share? Who do we confide in? What are we willing share? How does that change as time goes on? How many friends are enough? What makes us separate and move away from each other?

I have been contemplating these questions for some time now...It seems as if there is a cycle to friendships. (see blog: "A Reason, A Season or A Lifetime" 10/07).

I value my friendships. Some have been started through school, through work, through other friends. I have had a few best friends in my lifetime. One of my best friends was when I moved back to Utah in 1979. She lived just west of my grandmother and that is how I met her. We became fast friends and I was her maid of honor when she got married. We drifted apart after that...I can't really say why, I have an idea or two. My other best friend has been recently. But things changed last year, I know exactly when and why it changed, but there wasn't any way to prevent it. I tried talking to her about it and all it did was make her defensive and obviously I was the only one with a problem!

I have learned the hard way that you really can't go back. I have tried to go back and rectify the things that went wrong, or at least what I thought I had done wrong. I have apologized, but some things just can't be fixed...sometimes you just have to let go (see blog: "Let It Go" 10/07) and move on...and if we keep looking back we miss all the blessings and new oportunities that are right in front of us.

Fathers & Daughters

2008-06-15T01:21:00.002-06:00

DAUGHTERS by John Mayer

I know a girl.
She puts the color inside of my world.
She's just like a maze,
Where all of the walls all continually change.
I've done all I can
To stand on the steps with my heart in my hand,
But I'm starting to think
Maybe it's got nothing to do with me.

Fathers be good to your daughters;
Daughters will love like you do, yeah.
Girls become lovers who turn into mothers,
So mothers be good to your daughters, too.

Oh, you see that skin;
It's the same she's been standing in
Since the day you two met.
I bet I was on your mind
Never never anytime.

Fathers be good to your daughters;
Daughters will love like you do, yeah.
Girls become lovers who turn into mothers,
So mothers be good to your daughters, too.

Boys you can break,
You find out how much they can take.
Boys will be strong, and boys soldier on,
But boys would be gone without warmth
From a woman's good, good heart

On behalf of every man, looking out for every girl,
You are the god, and the weight of her world.
On behalf of every man whose looking out for every girl,
You are the god, and the weight of her world.

Fathers be good to your daughters,
Daughters will love like you do, yeah.
Girls become lovers who turn into mothers,
So mothers be good to your daughters, too.
So mothers be good to your daughters, too.

********************************************

I loved this song from the minute I heard it. I don't think men understand the effect they have on their children, especially their daughters.

If a daughter has a father who treats her and her mother with kindness and respect, that is most likely the type of man she will seek out to be her life partner. If the father is abusive in any manner, verbally, physically or sexually...the daughter can be one of several ways; she can build a wall (usually gains weight to avoid unwanted attention), is depressed and will never trust or let anyone into her life or she becomes promiscuous and searches for love with the wrong types of men. She can become an overachiever, because if she is "perfect", the abuse will go away and sometimes she can be some of all of the above.

**************************************************

What most daughters (and sons) want is to know that the two most important people in their life are going to be the ones who will protect them, nurture them and make them feel loved no matter what...if you can't do that for your daughters and sons, then do the world a favor and get yourself fixed before you have the opportunity to destroy your children's lives!

My Favorite Monk Joke

2008-05-29T19:58:00.006-06:00

In an ancient monastery in a faraway place, a new monk arrived to join his brothers in copying books and scrolls in the monastery's scriptorium. He was assigned as a rubricator on copies of books that had already been copied by hand.

One day he asked Father David (the Armarius of the Scriptorium), "Does not the copying by hand of other copies allow for chances of error? How do we know we are not copying the mistakes of someone else? Are they ever checked against the original?"

Fr. David is set back a bit by the obvious logical observation of this youthful monk. "A very good point, my son. I will take one of the latest books down to
the vault and compare it against the original."

Fr. David went down to the secured vault and began his verification. After a day had passed, the monks began to worry and went down looking for the old priest. They were sure something must have happened. As they approached the vault, they heard sobbing and crying. When they opened the door, they found Fr. David sobbing over the new copy and the original ancient book, both of which were opened before him on the table. It was obvious to all that the poor man had been crying his old heart out
for a long time.

"What is the problem Reverend Father?" asked one of the monks.

"Oh, my heavens," sobbed the priest, "the word is 'CELEBRATE'!"

American Idol - Season 7 - David Cook

2008-05-22T18:59:00.004-06:00

I had only watch brief bits of the past six seasons of American Idol...but for some reason I got caught up in this one, of course it didn't hurt that there was a hometown favorite...David Archuleta. And Archie is sweet, but he just doesn't have enough stage presence...yet, and one day it will be his turn!

Okay, I admit it...I voted for David Cook!!! Even if I am old enough to be his mother, he just has incredible appeal and I love his voice. I read an article about women over 40 loving him and it was okay because he is OVER the legal age limit. I still wouldn't date anyone in their 20's but I can certainly "admire" them from a distance!

I was so impressed by his versions of "Billie Jean" and "Hello"...honestly, there isn't a song I didn't like and I have downloaded all of them!

Way to go David Cook!!!

How Time Flies...

2008-05-17T23:51:00.003-06:00

I really like my car, but my A/C went out just in time for the hot weather! No problem, I have a bumper to bumper warranty! I take it to the dealership, duh, the warranty has expired...last April. I can't believe that I have had my car for five years...dang, it seems like just two! What's a girl to do? And I can't count on the stimulus check because I owe the IRS lots of money, so they will probably keep it.

As my brother always tells me "it sucks to be you". This week it does...oh well, there's always tomorrow!! LOL!!!

Menopause

2008-04-11T18:16:00.000-06:00

Maxine and Cleaning

2008-04-11T18:12:00.001-06:00

What Happens on Sunday!

2008-04-11T18:10:00.002-06:00

Maxine and Hot Flashes...Power Surges!!

2008-04-11T18:09:00.002-06:00

Eat Right, Exercise Regularly...Die Anyway!!

2008-04-11T18:06:00.001-06:00

I Love Polar Bears!

2008-04-11T18:02:00.002-06:00

March Madness & April Stuff

2008-04-11T17:43:00.003-06:00

March was full of family events with my cousin Beth getting married. She was such a beautiful bride and it was great to see family, especially those from out of town.

Then I got sick for a week (of course it was the week my boss was out of town)! Finally went to Instacare to be told there was nothing wrong with me, except whatever bug was running around the area. Some day I will die of nothing...LOL!

Work has been stressful this week. I had my taxes done last week...just shoot me now!! I probably need to get two more jobs to finance my taxes. I will be quitting all my outside activities for a while. I just can't afford to be a social butterfly!

I have really cut back on my bowling as well, but did bowl this week with two reasonable scores and one "what the heck happened" score...185/116/160...

Nothing to get too excited about...til next time!

My 49th Birthday!!

2008-03-13T17:35:00.003-06:00

Monday was my 49th Birthday! Not much to get excited about, just another Monday!

My mom called at 11:30 and asked what I was doing for lunch, which was nothing. So she and my aunt Linda showed up with pizza and roses...120 roses to be exact!! Various colors and so pretty.

She knew and then promply forgot in the space of five minutes that Costco/Sam's does 24 per bunch not 12 and being that my age is an odd one...she needed two packages plus one flower and then started gathering them. I had red ones, yellow ones, white ones and pale yellow tinged with red.

After work, I trimmed the bottoms off and arranged them in the vases and took some back to mom. We met up at Marie Callendar's for dinner with Linda.

Got several cards and emails. It was a nice day after all!

Time of Day

2008-03-06T17:45:00.001-07:00

Pink Sparkles

2008-03-05T08:56:00.004-07:00

I called the radio station yesterday to talk to Shantele, the Angel Lady. Of course I asked about love...she said that I had a pink aura (which signifies love) with sparkles. I should just keep doing what I'm doing...whatever that is? So I guess I sparkle with love...woohoo! Better order a large supply of angel dust to spread around!

Grandma's Birthday

2008-02-28T17:49:00.006-07:00

Today would have been my Grandma's 93rd birthday! She has been gone two years. Some days it seems like forever and others it seems just like yesterday. I feel blessed that I had her in my life into my 40's and that she was able to attend my wedding.

There is something to be said for being the oldest child of two oldest children, you can be lucky enough to know your great-grandparents as well as your grandparents.

Happy Birthday Grandma!

Bad Blogger - current ramblings

2008-02-08T17:10:00.001-07:00

Somehow I imagined when I started to blog that I would just ramble on and on and on...how could I not since I have soooo many opinions about everything? Well it is much easier said than typed!!

So here I sit looking at the screen thinking and thinking and then mind wanders away...get back here!!

Okay, some general comments about what has been happening in the news:

I wish the writer's strike would be over soon (I watch too much TV, hmm, maybe this is the time to turn it off and find something else to do...wow, what a novel concept).

**********************************************************************************

My brother and mother watch Glenn Beck (mom thinks he's cute). I have to admit I have watched a couple of shows, usually when he has a guest. He did a delightful job of interviewing Michael Buble' and I watched his interview with Jon Huntsman Sr. and have a respect for Mr. Huntsman that I didn't before.

**********************************************************************************

I am disgusted with politics as they are. There needs to be an overhaul of the system, we need to get rid of the parties and make it a popular vote and the top two vote getters become President and Vice-President. Since there are more women than men right now, there should be more women in the politics. I would love to have a woman president, just not Hilliary. I think I would have loved to have seen Ann Richards there. I really just want someone in there that can balance a budget, can get along with congress and that has common sense! (I want a president like "Dave", the movie or one like whatever the TV show was that starred Geena Davis, guess it's easier to write good presidents than to be one). Yes, I also know that most of our problems are not the president's fault, it is congress. There also needs to be terms limits, 2 to 3 terms at most.

Electile Dysfunction : the inability to become aroused over any of the choices for president put forth by either party in the 2008 election year.

**********************************************************************************

It saddens me that our young "celebrities" can't deal with their own lives and that there have been several overdoses in this new year. And so much alcohol abuse...back to one of my previous blogs...if I had money do you think I would be driving myself...nope, hire me a good driver, preferrably handsome!!

**********************************************************************************

Well, that's it folks! Take care until next time!

It's a New Year!

2008-01-07T21:06:00.000-07:00

I think my favorite holiday is New Year (just as Spring is my favorite season) because to me it represents a "new" beginning (again) to dream about the possibilities of the coming year. What do I want to accomplish this year? What is standing in my way besides myself? How can I make things happen? "They" say writing down your resolutions and/or goals makes it easier to keep them in mind...

1. To make sure that all my family and friends know that they are loved!! Because they are!!! And to keep them laughing.

2. To let go of the "clutter" in my home and my life.

3. To find my passion...whatever that might be: a new job, a new love, a new adventure, a new experience, to be open to whatever is placed before me.

Right now three looks good and reasonable!

Best wishes for a new year full of love and amazing possibilities!!!

New Year's Eve "Date"

2008-01-03T18:01:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh...my first ever New Year's Eve "date". I put the word date in parenthisis because I'm not sure it can be called a date?

He called me at 4:00 at work to see why I wasn't at home getting ready for the girlfriends that were (I thought) going to come watch videos with me, but those plans had fallen apart (which turned out to be a blessing...thanks ladies). So I asked him what he was doing and he said he might be asking me to a clambake. "And when might he know if he was asking me?"...when he found out what time it started.

I picked him up and drove us to his friend's house. They had soooooo much food...corn on the cob, potatoes, rolls, three sizes of shrimp, crabs, mussels, clams, lobster and prime rib (for some people who were coming that didn't like seafood and then weren't able to come). His friends were wonderful, very fun and accepting!

He decided at 10:50 that there is another party we need to go to in the Avenues, but turns out it got cancelled...so we drove around the same streets about 10 times before we found a place where we could see the valley and watch all the fire works! Then I dropped him off at his house and was home by 12:45.

It was a great evening with a nice guy!

Christmas 2007

2007-12-27T17:20:00.000-07:00

I am so disappointed at how commercialized Christmas has become, especially when it begins on Halloween! Somehow the true meaning of Christmas has passed us by and it seems to be about presents and decorations. How many people go into debt each year to provide Christmas gifts and then spend all year paying it back to do it all over again?

I know that some of my friends are disappointed in me that I have asked that we not exchange gifts, but I honestly don't NEED more stuff. I want to celebrate birthdays and the birthday person one on one. One friend and I usually donate some time to the YWCA helping with whatever and then we have dinner together. We weren't able to do it this year due to many work commitments this year.

The coolest thing I got to do this Christmas was to do a last minute Sub for Santa. A friend of mine called me about 3:30 on Christmas Eve and told me about a family that she knew that wasn't going to have Christmas for their daughter because money was tight. We threw together stuff that we had that was new or gently used and wrapped it up and filled stockings with treats. It was such a good feeling to know that this child was going to have something to open on Christmas morning.

I just read a book called "The Christmas Jars" by Jason F. Wright. (Rising newspaper reporter Hope Jensen uncovers the secret behind the "Christmas Jars"--glass jars filled with coins and bills anonymously given to people in need. But Hope discovers much more than she bargained for when some unexpected news sets off a chain reaction of kindness and brings about a Christmas Eve wish come true.) It is going to be one of my new traditions for 2008.

I went to my Farnsworth Family Festivity on Christmas Eve and had a wonderful time dispite the snowstorm we had...I think a good time was had by all.

Christmas Day I had told my mom that I would cook a turkey dinner since I was away at Thanksgiving. So I got all the stuff and invited a couple of friends to join us. For years I have cooked BIG (25-30 pounds) turkeys when it was my turn to cook for Thanksgiving (we have now gotten smart and there are two smaller turkeys), but I haven't done a small one until now. It was just under 13 pounds. Got the stuffing made and the turkey in the ovening thinking about 4 hours to cook. Made the cranberry relish recipe that I got from the Heller side of my family. Check the turkey at 1:30, looked good.

Called the friends and said dinner would be at 2:30...oops turkey was done 15 minutes later and before I had had a chance to take off the roaster lid to brown it properly. Well the stuffing pan won't fit it with the turkey, darn, so I have to pull out the turkey and put it on the washer as I have no room in the kitchen. I'm now racing to start the mashed potatoes. After I have peeled them I am cutting them into small pieces so they will cook faster and I stab myself in the finger with the knife. OUCH!!! Managed not to bleed on anything until I get the bandage. OUCH!!! Next is the green beans with mushrooms and almond slivers in butter.

All in all it turned out okay and everyone thought it was pretty good (at least I think so?)...I even made homemade gravy for the first time all by myself (with a little telephone assistance from my aunt Linda). Mom went home and my friends and I watch "Little Miss Sunshine". I really enjoyed it!

I hope your Christmas was blessed with family, friends, food and fun!!

Okay folks, that's all for now!! I hope you all know how loved you are and how much you mean to me!

Oh, Sweet Charity -- "It's for the Children"

2007-12-11T09:36:00.000-07:00

Every year the Primary Children's Medical Center has a fund raiser called The Festival of Trees. Trees of every size are decorated and donated to raise funds for the children. There are all sorts of wonderful things there, a gift boutique, centerpieces, gingerbread houses and wreaths.

I go every year on opening night because it's less crowded and you get to bid on things. I take my mom and we wander around. We both found things to bid on...she a centerpiece and I a small ceramic angel that started at $10. I made the first bid and came back a short while later and someone had bid $15, so I went to $20 and left. I came back and the bid was $25, so I bid $26 and left again. When I came back "she" was there raising the bid to $30, so I bid $31 and spoke with her telling her how much I liked the angel and it had blue in it which is my favorite color, etc. So she pats me on the arm and says I can have it and isn't wonderful what they do for the children. So I get it!

On December 10th, I was doing a little shopping to finish up what I needed for my sorority group party. I had run into the dollar store and what was the first thing I saw...a shelf filled with my precious angel..."It's for the children", I kept repeating as I called my friend and laughed hysterically. I can't believe someone donated something from the dollar store!!! And I paid $31 for it...

I Have Been Fired...

2007-11-07T17:08:00.000-07:00

by my Financial Planner. How sad is that? Your financial planner fires you because you use your IRA as an emergency fund...

So unless or when I am actually in shape to SAVE money I can't have my IRA through his company. He feels he has enabled me (ALL these years) and so we're having an intervention...to stop the MADNESS of paying the early withdrawal fees. He's just trying to save me money and to save his company in case of an audit. I really don't blame him, it just made me a little sad that my whole world knows I can't manage my money and I have been fired. Wow! How many people can say that? He might take me back WHEN I win Publisher's Clearing House!!!

And of course, now I have to tell my boss and he knows how long I have been trying to work on my finances (soon to be 25 years)...the good news is that I have a home that is mine (as long as I make the payments), a car that runs, one credit card and I am healthy enough to have two jobs!!! WOOHOO!!!

I'm not sure I want to be a grown-up...(obviously I'm not being a very good one), but I guess I will worry about it tomorrow!!!

Happiness is a Way of Traveling, Not a Destination

2007-11-02T13:25:00.000-06:00

I subscribe to several "helpful" emails. I thought I would share this one...

Welcome to this issue of "Dr. T's Timely Tips" by Dr. Tony Alessandra. Please send your feedback to Tony@Alessandra.com!

Happiness is a Way of Traveling, Not a Destination

The only advantage of being a pessimist is that all your surprises are pleasant. But that's pretty small change compared to the big payoff that comes from projecting positive expectations.

Much of our happiness or unhappiness is caused, of course, not by what happens, but how we look at what happens. In other words, by our thinking habits. And habits can be changed.

George Walther, in his book Power Talking, shows how you can foster the mindset that interprets setbacks as positive opportunities. He believes this is a skill that you can develop - one word, one phrase, one sentence at a time.

For starters, purge the words "I failed ..." from your vocabulary, Walther urges. Replace them with "I learned ..." to help your mind focus on the lessons involved.

Similarly, you might want to get in the habit of using "challenge" when others would say "problem," "I'll be glad to" instead of "I'll have to," and "I'm getting better at ..." rather than "I'm no good at ..."

The subliminal effect of changing even a few words, Walther says, can prompt your mind to come up with creative solutions rather than dreading or fleeing the problem.

Here's to more personal insight, www.alessandra.com

Share these ideas with others at work and in your personal life. Being a mentor and helping others is one of the most rewarding things you will ever do. They may get their own free subscription by going to http://www.alessandra.com/abouttony/timely_tips_signup.asp

Let it Go (for 2004)...by Bishop T. D. Jakes

2007-10-23T21:12:00.000-06:00

I thought this message was very powerful, because letting go can be one of the hardest things we do in life. It made so much sense to me especially in 2004 when I first read it and helped me make a serious decision...and it still has meaning for me three years later.

Let it Go (for 2004)...by Bishop T. D. Jakes

There are people who can walk away from you. And hear me when I tell you this! When people can walk away from you; let them walk. I don't want you to try to talk another person into staying with you, loving you, calling you, caring about you, coming to see you, staying attached to you. I mean hang up the phone. When people can walk away from you let them walk. Your destiny is never tied to anybody that left. The bible said that, they came out from us that it might be made manifest that they were not for us. For had they been of us, no doubt they would have continued with us. [1 John 2:19]

People leave you because they are not joined to you. And if they are not joined to you, you can't make them stay. Let them go. And it doesn't mean that they are a bad person, it just means that their part in the story is over. And you've got to know when people's part in your story is over so that you don't keep trying to raise the dead. You've got to know when it's dead. You've got to know when it's over. Let me tell you something. I've got the gift of good-bye. It's the tenth spiritual gift, I believe in good-bye. It's not that I'm hateful, it's that I'm faithful, and I know whatever God means for me to have He'll give it to me. And if it takes too much sweat I don't need it. Stop begging people to stay. Let them go!!

If you are holding on to something that doesn't belong to you and was never intended for your life, then you need to...LET IT GO!!!

If you are holding on to past hurts and pains...LET IT GO!!!

If someone can't treat you right, love you back, and see your worth...LET IT GO!!!

If someone has angered you...LET IT GO!!!

If you are holding on to some thoughts of evil and revenge...LET IT GO!!!

If you are involved in a wrong relationship or addiction...LET IT GO!!!

If you are holding on to a job that no longer meets your needs or talents...LET IT GO!!!

If you have a bad attitude...LET IT GO!!!

If you keep judging others to make yourself feel better...LET IT GO!!!

If you're stuck in the past and God is trying to take you to a new level in Him...LET IT GO!!!

If you are struggling with the healing of a broken relationship...LET IT GO!!!

If you keep trying to help someone who won't even try to help themselves...LET IT GO!!!

If you're feeling depressed and stressed...LET IT GO!!!

If there is a particular situation that you are so used to handling yourself and God is saying "take your hands off of it," then you need to...LET IT GO!!!

Let the past be the past. Forget the former things, GOD is doing a new thing (for 2004!!! and any year after that.)

LET IT GO!!! "The Battle is the Lord's!"

Dancing with the Stars

2007-10-22T17:04:00.000-06:00

I have been watching this for several years now and am amazed at the quality most of the stars are able to perform with their partners. There are also those you know immediately that you want to see gone. For this season I am rooting for Cameron and Marie, I expect that Sabrina and Helio will be in the top three and I can't guess the third one right now, I can hope that Cameron or Marie will be there...I guess it will depend on the fan base for all of them!
On a more personal note, I'd love to find a man to learn to dance with or one who already knows how to dance and will teach me, especially the latin dances!

Cat Tale of 2000 - Written in January 2001

2007-10-14T18:01:00.000-06:00

There are some things I have sent out and you know about them, newer friends don't and might get a chuckle out of them, this is one of them...

Dear Family and Friends,

Happy New Year!

Some of you got Christmas cards and some of you didn't. For those that didn't, my sincere apology. Some of you have heard my tale (tail) of woe and some of you have not...

Being the person that I am, I had been feeding the neighborhood cat population (Cindy's Kitty Cafe). There was a cat that I did not know and he had been coming around for quite awhile. Not exactly the friendly type and quite nervous, but I tried to be as calm and as kind as I could be. I think he was finally getting use to me, I had actually managed to pet him while he ate one day. I know, you should never try to handle a male while he's eating. But I thought we were making progress and having a relationship...silly me.

On the 14th of December I decided that he needed to be adopted before the really cold weather hit. Well you all know that I have a 19 year cat and I certainly couldn't bring him in until he was checked out by the vet. So there I was before work, bribing him with turkey slices and getting closer and closer to the cat carrier. Then being one who lacks a lot of patience I decided to help him into the cat carrier. WRONG! Quick as a whip he grabbed my right index finger and bit me like there was no tomorrow. OUCH! and a few other well chosen (or not so well chosen) words escaped my lips. At this point it was a lost cause and I needed to go to work. So I washed my finger in hot water and soap and dumped half a bottle of peroxide on it and went to work.

I did all the right things and went for a tetanus shot. I mean really, I've been bit by a cat before, how much trouble can one cat create. Well, the next morning my finger is swollen and red and hurts like..., so off I go to the instacare place. Bad news...cats have the worst bites,then humans and then dogs. Oh great, now they tell me.

So I have to have intravenous antibiotics right then and I have to come back that night for more and then again on Saturday morning. Ok, so that's not too bad, three doses and I'm better. Piece of cake, right? Not even!

I go back that night at 8:00 to get dose #2 and at that point the doctor determines after marking my hand and watching the infection move a 1/4 inch in 30 minutes that maybe I need a hand doctor. So off they send me to the hospital emergency room (on a Friday night no less, but surprisingly I didn't have a very long wait). The doctor sees me and tells me I need to be admitted and am probably going to have surgery the next day. All because I got bit by a cat...

I was in the hospital for six days (I know people who've had open heart surgery that were out in three days). I hurt my mother's feelings, because I'm feeling really stupid and guilty that it's the weekend before Christmas and I'm keeping her from doing what she needs to do and I keep telling her to go and all she wants to do is be with me (I don't realize at the time how serious the infection is).

I have to admit I have THE best mother in the world. When I finally got out on the 21st, she stayed with me until Christmas day and was the best nurse. I was released with a pickline to give myself the intravenous antibiotics three times a day for another seven days, plus having to take an oral antibiotic once a day.

Now you're all probably wondering what happened to the cat (or not, but I'm going to tell you anyway). Animal Control came out the night I went to the hospital and put out a cat trap. He slept around it but never went in until I came home from the hospital and we had a talk. I told him how sorry I was for what had happened and what was going to happen and that I knew he hadn't meant to hurt me. He was in the cat trap the next morning. Animal control came to get him and I cryed all day, we figure that he was very sick and thank heavens he didn't have rabies. But he is now in kitty heaven chasing butterflies and rolling in catnip and having a much better time than he had here on earth. At least it makes me feel better to believe that!

And my saga continues, I am back on oral antibiotics and have to have physical therapy to get my finger back to "normal". I hope this happens really soon! I can hardly wait to see what 2001 brings to me! But hey, I'm always good for a laugh...it's why you all keep me around! Here's hoping that your holidays were much more fun than mine and that you have a wonderful 2001.

I appreciate having you all in my life, for your love, your friendship and your emails!
Beware of strays...

Love to all!

A Reason, A Season, or A Lifetime

2007-10-14T16:35:00.001-06:00

I didn't write this one either...just wanted to share...

People come into your life for a Reason, a Season or a Lifetime. When you know which one it is, you will know what to do for that person.

When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually. They may seem like a godsend and they are. They are the REASON you need them to be. Then, without any wrong doing on your part or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end. Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away. Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand. What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled; their work is done. The prayer you sent up has been answered and now it is time to move on.

Some people come into your life for a SEASON, because your turn has come to share, grow or learn. They bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done. They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe it, it is real. But only for a season.

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons, things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life. It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.

Thank you for being a part of my life, whether you were a REASON, a SEASON or a LIFETIME.

The Scars of Life

2007-10-14T16:27:00.000-06:00

I did not write this...it was a forward that I liked and wanted to share...

The Scars of Life

Some years ago, on a hot summer day in south Florida, a little boy decided to go for a swim in the old swimming hole behind his house. In a hurry to dive into the cool water, he ran out the back door, leaving behind shoes, socks, and shirt as he went. He flew into the water, not realizing that as he swam toward the middle of the lake, an alligator was swimming toward the shore.

His father working in the yard saw the two as they got closer and closer together. In utter fear, he ran toward the water, yelling to his son as loudly as he could. Hearing his voice, the little boy became alarmed and made a U-turn to swim to his father. It was too late. Just as he reached his father, the alligator reached him. From the dock, the father grabbed his little boy by the arms just as the alligator snatched his legs. That began an incredible tug-of-war between the two. The alligator was much stronger than the father, but the father was much too passionate to let go. A farmer happened to drive by, heard his screams, raced from his truck, took aim and shot the alligator.

Remarkably, after weeks and weeks in the hospital, the little boy survived. His legs were extremely scarred by the vicious attack of the animal. And, on his arms, were deep scratches where his father's fingernails dug into his flesh in his effort to hang on to the son he loved The newspaper reporter who interviewed the boy after the trauma, asked if he would show him his scars. The boy lifted his pant legs. And then, with obvious pride, he said to the reporter, "But look at my arms. I have great scars on my arms, too. I have them because my Dad wouldn't let go."

You and I can identify with that little boy. We have scars, too. No, not from an alligator, but the scars of a painful past. Some of those scars are unsightly and have caused us deep regret. But, some wounds, my friend, are because God has refused to let go. In the midst of your struggle, He's been there holding on to you. The Scripture teaches that God loves you. You are a child of God. He wants to protect you and provide for you in every way But sometimes we foolishly wade into dangerous situations, not knowing what lies ahead.

The swimming hole of life is filled with peril - and we forget that the enemy is waiting to attack. That's when the tug-of-war begins - and if you have the scars of His love on your arms, be very, very grateful. He did not and will not ever let you go. God has blessed you, so that you can be a blessing to others.

You just never know where a person is in his/her life and what they are going through. Never judge another person's scars, because you don't know how they got them. Right now, someone needs to know that God loves them, and you love them, too, enough to not let them go.

God Bless all of us!

Celebrities & Drunk Driving

2007-10-14T16:07:00.000-06:00

As I read and listen to the latest news/gossip about Paris, Nicole, Britney and Lindsay...all I can say is if I had as much money as they have and felt the need to drink myself into oblivion, do you think I would be driving myself...

Hellooooo, I don't think so, I would have one gorgeous SOBER driver to take care of me! I do wish them all well and hope they grow up and sober up soon!

Divorce & Marriage Ramblings

2007-10-12T16:40:00.000-06:00

Friday, the 19th is the 1st anniversary of my divorce...who would have thunk it? I waited so long to get married and it didn't even survive to my 1st anniversary. Do I regret getting married? No, it was a learning experience and I got a lovely wedding out of it with family there that are no longer with us. But do I consider myself divorced? Nope, it was just a little bump in the road of being single.

(as a side note: I do hate having to fill out forms that ask your marital status and having to use the divorced box...am I lying if I check the single box and who's business is it anyway?)

I was reading an article the other day about "starter husbands". It is the one you marry knowing that it probably won't last, but you do it anyway for whatever reason you think you need to...I want to say that I have now had my "starter husband", but I believe it was my starter and my ender. I am not sure I am cut out to be married to anyone.

I have heard that Katharine Hepburn was quoted as saying "I often wonder whether men and women really suit each other, perhaps they should live next door and just visit now and then."

Seems reasonable to me...LOL!!!