Posts filed under 'Uncategorized'
I had an epiphany this morning over my yogurt and granola. I’m actually quite smart. People respect my opinion and look to me for guidance. I know that seems like a ridiculous epiphany. I’ve always known those things. The primary difference was the epiphany was prompted by someone who is far better educated than I, with a very successful business, who runs in some swanky circles.
I tend to walk around feeling like my knowledge isn’t up to par. Friends don’t hesitate to tell me I’m wrong or offer suggestions about how I can improve my diet, my health, my relationships, my job etc etc. Admittedly I’ve set that dynamic up by constantly asking for advice in the past, always questioning my own skills or contributions. I figured out some time ago that I have a great deal more value than I give myself credit for but not everyone has caught up to that change in attitude.
It makes me wonder if I’ve missed changes in other people. Have I seen their growth or do I continue to behave as if they are the same old person with insecurities or negative thought patterns?
We all evolve. It’s part of life. I suppose sometimes we slip backwards as well. But how aware are we of the evolution of those around us?
It’s not that the person who respected my opinion yesterday was special or better than my friends. I think in part it was because they don’t know me as the insecure, underconfident being who looked for answers everywhere. Not to implie I’m self-contained and have no need for those friendships, advice or counsel. Friendships are important. History is important. So is listening.
I’m going to actively listen to those around me and see if perhaps I’m not the only one who has changed. I’m thinking Bob is right. Change is extremely difficult. So is recognizing it.
October 8th, 2008
Notes to self: 1. Don’t bother taking pics with the cell phone of the sun rising. Too much contrast. 2. Don’t challenge a log truck on the highway. They simply take any lane they want whenever they want. 3. Write the highway depts. of NC and VA thanking them for the many rest stops. (I know them all.). 4. Turn on the Sunday AM Bluegrass gospel radio station to keep awake while driving after going to bed at 3:00 AM. Singing along helps. Especially “I’ll Fly Away.”
A good time was had by all at the Chesapeake Bay Whack. 4 CBs and 2 guests. I personally worked hard on indolence, and I think maybe everybody else did, too.
We didn’t work very hard on laughter. It just came naturally. This time we all brought meal fixin’s. Supper Friday was spaghetti, fancy salad with weird colorful things in it, and bread. RSS and McB did that one. Saturday breakfast was scrambled eggs, bacon and more bacon, and biscuits by Dee. Saturday supper was bean and tortellini soup and chicken Caesar salad by moi. The really big food surprise was when I got up Sunday, tiptoed down stairs all packed, only to discover Dee had already got up and made coffee and started her sausage and egg and cheese and biscuit casserole baking so that I could leave at 8:00. Just about made me cry, someone getting up and fixing a meal to accommodate me*. She’s a jewel.
And speaking of Dee, she attempted to catch a fish and succeeded in catching a sunburn instead. Meanwhile McB and I listened to the trials and tribulations of RSS’ wonderful work in progress. It’s gonna be a winner. By the way, I took them on a little trip in the Geekmobile and didn’t even force them to take off their shoes to get in. The gracious Geekmobile Goddess did speak to them all about plotting our trip into uncharted territory.
Another by the way, the Geekmobile had to have an infusion of 10% ethanol + gas, since that was all that was available at the Bay. The mileage is noticeably lower, but it would only be a calculated guess since I topped the tank off with the stuff and would have to assume complete mixing of gasolines, etc.
We had a marathon discussion after Saturday supper on … Ta Da … novels, good and bad and writers, good and bad. They’ve convinced me to try Dick Francis.
Thank you, OH; none of us could remember who wrote the Malory series. I tell you true, if we did Trivial Pursuit on novels with that Whack of CBs, I would definitely be the loser.
October 5th, 2008
As you know we’ve been busy installing new awnings, windows, 
screen doors
and fences 
as well as scraping and painting the porches. 
But by far the biggest change as been this addition to the family.
His name is Whitney but for some reason we all want to call him Casey. We’re fostering him while the Ky-ropractor attempts to save his leg. He was scheduled to have it amputated this morning. He loves Ky and Tara.
She’s getting used to him.
Whitney was hit by a car three weeks ago. The owner called the police(this was a small town in the Far North) to shoot him. They didn’t have the heart to do so. Instead they found a rescue organization to take him in. He was flown down then treated by a vet. The original injury was to his shoulder but his paw curled in and they waited for the nerves to heal. About a week ago, it was determined that the bones had fused right above his paw and that the best course of action was to amputate. Scope read that and called me*. I spoke with the Ky-ropractor and she asked several key qustions about the paw. I called the rescue organization and together we came up with a plan. We are fostering him while we take him for alternative treatment. He had his first consult last night and while initially it seemed the vet up north was on the right track, after some treatment there was a deep nerve response. The foot is not dead. We’re in the process of having that paw x-rayed and consulting on options. I will be doing hydrotherapy with him this weekend in my brother’s pool. I’m researching how to keep myself warm as the temperature has really dropped up here. I haven’t been able to find wetsuit rentals 
I’ll keep you all posted.
September 10th, 2008
Continuing the theme started by CC in the last post…
Given that at heart we all are a bunch of reading addicts, I figure this is the place to ask this question. (Well, ok, any question really, but this is one that’s been plaguing me* for a while now.) How do you make yourself put down a book that you’re into when you need to go to bed, or go grocery shopping, or feed your family, or go to work, or really do just about anything else?
This is something I find really, really hard. Really. Hard. I regularly stay up too late reading, which quite often means I’ll be getting a beaut of headache the next day. I’ve been known to binge read 3-4 books on a weekend, ignoring the need to do laundry, feed myself, or interact with human beings outside my own head.
And this is not a new thing. As I child, my mom would call us to dinner, and I would reluctantly walk to the table in slow motion, reading my book along the way. I wouldn’t put my book down until the very last minute before the prayer. At night, I would often pretend to sleep, but have my book smuggled under the covers, ready to read by my night light once the coast was clear. No wonder I’ve always had lots of headaches.
So how do you do it? How do you make yourself put a book down? Because short of hiring a hunk to forcibly remove a book from my hands when needed, I’m out of ideas.
September 4th, 2008
If I’m reading the schedule right I think Dr. T posts tomorrow/later today/whatever the Scottish equivalent of Wednesday is and since we’re over 100….
I have a parent question. I am going in to get tested this fall to see if I have a learning disability. Will telling the folks be seen as a slap in the face, “Why didn’t you take care of this when I was a kid?” type of thing. Should I wait and tell them only if my suspicions are fulfilled? Should I ignore it all together? If my suspicions are proven correct then it will go far in explaining why I process things weird and differently than others. I know this is something no one would have thought to look at when I was a kid so I’m not blaming anyone, I’m just wanting parental feedback. So, what do you say parents?
And if this doesn’t appeal to you then I would like to submit KL’s pic from the comments in the previous post as a topic for discussion.
September 2nd, 2008
My Aunt Miriam showed up at my door this last week. She is 80 and lives 3 hours away in Detroit. She had been working on my dear departed Grandma’s scrapbooks and found items in there that were about me. She had a box, tied in twine, for my Dad. Since she had never been to my house before, I was somewhat surprised to see her. And I was in my PJ’s.
My Grandma has been dead for 11 years and Aunt Miriam just got through the FIRST of the scrapbooks. She gets easily distracted! She thought I might like some of the items back. Bob knows how many years until I see anything else.
There I was in second grade, a member of the Von Trapp family in the high school musical. My campaign literature from my school board runs. The pictures of me winning Miss Wapakoneta. Yep! I have my OWN TIARA! The best part was my Grandma’s little comments on the side. Only a few words, but just so precious. I was always writing poems and she had so many of them…..how she got them to keep- I’ll never know.
I have had a lot of changes in my life this year, as you all know. Getting the treasures from my Grandma, and reading the love in the comments..(”Wasn’t she pretty, but her skirt was a bit short.” was my favorite in my cheerleading picture. *snort*)- was a GREAT and NEEDED Blast from the Past. Life is still all a lot to deal with, but thanks for sending Grandma. I feel better when she is around.
Have you ever reached in an unused purse or coat pocket and found something that brought back great memories for you? Find anything while cleaning out old closets or attics? Besides mismatched shoes and cat fur- (my usual!)
I think if MAX! ever looks back on his Gamma’s life, he will find himself pretty well adored. The other two to come are progressing well- doctors say momma’s all healthy and happy. And an adoring Gamma waiting for them to appear.
Speaking of Adoring Gamma’s…….17 month old MAX!
August 27th, 2008
Okay, so I’m up to here in alligators so I’m not going to do much writing tonight. But I am home before ten, barely, but I am home. So… here’s some linky love or with this group we’ll call it conversational fodder.
Knit? Crochet? Want to help improve the life of a college age orphan right here in North America? The Red Scarf project is for you.
I know we have some long lasting marriages among us but it’s nice to hear someone comment on their marriage and why they think it’s lasted so long.
Do you like dresses? Even if you don’t sew visiting Erin’s blog is always fun. And if words are more your style… Well, Erin edits dictonaries for a living and likes words.
Like odd, weird, or even time wasting? Fred Flare is your place. They are the home of everything from the “Holly Golightly Sleep Mask” to the “Undy Rug” that is a pair of tighty whities designed to be walked on. Do you need a phone in the shape of a giant pair of lips or a cheeseburger, maybe you need a banana shaped cozy for your cell phone? Fred Flare has it for you.
I’m trying to alleviate my debt and increase my savings all while working for an employer who doesn’t believe in raises. I’ve found Get Rich Slowly a font of advice. Some of it useful, some of it not really applicable to me, but all if gets me thinking.
My cousin Travis and his dog Presley are contestants on The Greatest American Dog Show. I think he deserves to win. I’m biased, but it’s true.
Want to really know what’s going on in the world? Not the canned news the pundits give but the real and exciting things like weird tattos or the guy who is going around doing acupuncture on the town of Portland. Weird Universe is the place for you.
And for some exciting news… was pulling weeds in the back yard Monday and the allergies hit me so hard and so strong one eye swelled shut and the other wasn’t far behind. Am almost back to normal, but it was a bit scary there for a while.
August 20th, 2008
Do you ever wonder what makes a person like a certain type of weather? Is it buried within our genetics? Is it the way we are raised? Is it the month in which we were born? Is it parents who bundle their children up in too many clothes all the time so that they don’t develop a tolerance for the cold?
For instance, I love cold weather. I don’t get cold the way other people do. Even when I’m out in the cold and come back inside with skin that feels like ice, I don’t feel cold or chilled. And if I’m moving, I often have to remove my jacket because I get hot easily. People who know me, and ask me if it’s cold outside, know that they will need a jacket when I say, “No.” I was born in February and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area where (when I was growing up) the temperature during the summer rarely got above 75 degrees. A heat wave was 85 degrees. For a long time I could not tolerate hot weather. It actually made me feel somewhat sick, and lying on the beach in the sun was out of the question. However, when I began to show horses, most of the horseshows were in the central valley where it gets really hot, so I learned how to sweat and hydrate. But given a choice, my body will always prefer cold weather.
Most people I know love hot weather. They go out in weather that makes me run for the air conditioning. I see them outside, a lot of them without hats, turning their faces to the sun, lying on the hot beach in the hot sun, going to the State Fair in 100 degree temperatures and actually enjoying it. I wonder how they can stand it. They apparently don’t feel the heat like I do. And most people I know get cold easily. I’m endlessly baffled by people who need their jacket in 65 degree weather, but I know they do.
So why do people like either hot or cold weather? Are they born that way? Is it the way they are raised? Is it the weather they grew up with? What do you think?
August 16th, 2008
It’s awfully quiet in my house right now. Scope should be at Churchill Downs by now. She sounded very excited when I spoke with her this morning. It’s their first real vacation in a long time. I hope they enjoy themselves but I don’t want to hear all about it if you know what I mean (nudge nudge wink wink, say no more)
An older woman athet library felt the need to tell me yesterday that her sex life is still quite healthy. Good for her. I guess when you’re in your 80’s that’s something to be thrilled about. But I’m not sure why she felt the need to tell me* about it. Although I can write hot, I don’t want to know details about other people’s lives. There’s a huge ick factor there for me*. Some things should stay private and between the involved parties. I feel intrusive and awkward hearing certain information.
There are a lot of things I don’t want to know about other people. Personal body functions are high on the list. Sexual preferences and activities. The entire day’s food consumption(unless it involves a recommendation or dessert). Personal financial statement. Anything that may lead to them being the lead story on the Evening News.
There are exceptions to all of the above and I don’t know what they are until they come up. Close friends and CBs can always share with me*. Vent, rant, rail, commiserate, meditate and analyze. There are times when anyone of those can lead to a life-changing decision or action. I’d hate to let my personal squeamishness get in the way.
Do you have any boundaries when it comes to conversation and personal sharing?
August 13th, 2008
I haven’t written in days. I can’t. I’ve tried but I just can’t. It won’t come. I have an idea for an ending but I can’t get it there. I sit down in front of the computer and nothing happens; nothing good anyway. Oh my Bob I suck.
But apparently “Oh my Bob I suck” is not a valid excuse for not writing. So here are some that might be:
I have writer’s block.
I have writer’s cramp.
I’m sleepy.
I’m hungry.
I’m thirsty.
I’m drunk.
My pen ran out of ink.
My computer ran out of electricity.
Dirty Jobs is on TV and I must watch it, um, to study it as research … for my main character … yeah, that’s it. Research.
Telemarketers wanting me to donate to the Fraternal Order of Police called and broke my deep concentration.
My cat had a hairball attack that left me emotionally scarred.
My horoscope said today is not a good day for creativity.
It’s raining.
It’s too hot.
It’s too cold.
I have to take my pet rock for a walk.
Mei spel chek brocke.
What’s your excuse?
July 28th, 2008
Previous Posts