That Darn Lost Hour...

...actually turned out to be a good thing.

In the last hour of daylight, the kids (plus two) headed outside.

Outside.

I heard strange conversations that involved the tossing of the football. The sound of go-cart (yerf cart, I mean) filled the evening hours. I even heard something akin to laughter. After a dreary, unusually cold winter, it might as well have been the angels singing.

Has spring truly sprung?

A pic from a year or two ago, but the youngest did do some planting today.

Ice, Earthquakes, And A Wake-Up Call

Okay.

So I live in a part of the country where people tend to panic at the first sight of a snowflake. Flurries are breaking news and schools shut down at the mere mention of possible icy roads. We've got our quirks, that's for sure. As someone who grew up in the Midwest, I have often found great humor at the sight of southern belles wearing their fur-lined boots in sixty-degree weather. I have shook my head more than once at the sheer panic that breaks out when the phrase "wintry mix"' enters the forecast.

I gotta say, I'm not laughing anymore.

We got hit hard with an ice storm earlier in the week that still has thousands of people without power. I've seen tornado damage on more than once occasion; what I have seen driving around the last few days rivals that same sort of devastation, let me tell you. No, there are no empty foundations or mile-wide paths of destruction... just trees down everywhere. Hundred-year old trees, beautiful live oak trees, majestic pine trees... broken, splintered, snapped. Piled up alongside the roads, in the roads, precariously perched on rooftops.

I have seen convoys of electric trucks from at least four different states. I was stopped in traffic by the Air National Guard as they removed a huge tree from the road. I've seen random citizens direct traffic at the many stoplights that are still not functioning.

And to top it all off, we experienced an earthquake last night. Not severe enough to do any kind of damage, but just so you know, in case you've never felt the earth shake, a 4.1 will rattle the walls as it rumbles beneath you. Very eerie, indeed.

I ventured out today only to discover gasoline is virtually non-existent on my side of the river. I felt lucky to find a package of chicken at Walmart. It really does make you stop and think...

We have been so blessed in our part of the world. We truly are a pampered, spoiled people. Now I'm not saying we're not grateful or ignorant of what we have; but my goodness, how fortunate we are! I was whining earlier in the week at the lack of electricity to power up my Keurig. Now I'm just thankful to have electricity.

Nothing like getting your perspective changed.

Winter Blues

My one chance to sleep in this week and I'm wide awake. I'm stressed from the work week, stressed from the decision to start graduate school, and stressed about the cats needing food and litter this week. Thank goodness I picked up some awesome coffee creamer the other night. The thought of it was the one thing that motivated me this morning.

We had a winter blast in our neck of the woods this past week. In fact, three days later, there are still random patches of snow on the ground where the sun doesn't shine. I've said it before and I'll say it again, the cold is one thing I do not miss about my beloved home. I think the snow is pretty as it's falling and when it has completely covered the ground- stumps and all, it truly is a sight to behold. After that, though, I'm done with it. Bring on the sunshine and flip flops, please.

A rare picture of my childhood sled with actual snow in the background.

Maybe it's this cold weather that has me down. I certainly do function better when I can sit on my front porch with the sun streaming down. The forecast shows nothing but clouds for the next few days. Football is practically over. I've not started any good books lately, and now I've got papers to write. Our family rarely sits at the table together anymore.

I'm in desperate need of a visit home.

Even so,

The sun will shine. March Madness is coming.
I have a ton of unread books. Papers I can handle.

Dinner at the table I can demand.

Spring Break is the perfect opportunity to drive.



We just gotta make it through February.

Of Obnoxious Brides And Clueless Politicians

Darn this nice weather.

I woke up in a bad mood. Maybe it was due to an overload of Bridezillas on Netflix last night (not good, I know). Maybe it was due to that teleprompter-reading-commander guy we've got in the big house and that ridiculous, threat-ridden virtual speech I caught a few minutes of on the late news (manipulation, for sure). Maybe it's because we once again have no hot water and I simply cannot bear the thought of a cold shower (get over it, I will). At any rate, when my eyes opened my first thought was of a for sale sign and a moving truck, but here I sit on this blasted front porch.

The air is cool. My cat is beside me. A string of motorcycles just went cruising by. Those old men looked pretty darn happy, if I do say so myself. It's quite difficult to stay in a bad mood.

I gotta tell you, though, those bridezilla women are crazy. It's like a train wreck that I can't look away from... I know I shouldn't watch, but good grief... do people really act that way? All that stress and drama wrapped around what some girl thinks perfection should look like. I just don't get it, but then again, I've never understood the pressure of having the perfect wedding. I would rather shoot for the perfect marriage (which we all know ain't gonna happen) than strive for an hour or two of me "being the princess for the day" while those around me are made to feel like cra--

Back away from the Netflix and nobody's gotta get hurt.

And what about our head guy? The guy in the big house? His eyes were bouncing back and forth so much reading that teleprompter that it was hard for me to follow a word he was saying. He threatens to shut this down and shut that down- even had the nerve to say that if the other side doesn't get on board with what he wants, "the soldiers, even those serving overseas, will not receive their paycheck come October 1st." Really? I don't believe him, or any other politician for that matter. I've not seen or heard one smack-talker who will ever convince me they have a clue what is going on outside their glass walls, at least not at this particular moment in time. That entire group of overly-paid, public-elected officials sit in padded leather chairs and blah-blah-BLAH-blah all the day long while we can barely afford one family pack of GROUND BEEF a week.

We have never lived in a home where the American flag is not displayed. We have honorable discharge papers under our belt and military achievement awards on our wall. We pay our income taxes, our property taxes, our vehicle taxes, and what will soon be our healthcare taxes-fines-whatever. We abide by the law.

It's enough to put a person in a horrifying, bad, bad mood...

Except for this wonderful, refreshing cool breeze. The cat is looking inside the boys' bedroom window. I don't know what he thinks he's gonna see... there won't be anybody moving on that side of the window for a while yet. I can hear the husband rattling around inside the house. I've been blessed with a man who knows how to wield a wrench and isn't afraid to use it. He's fixed that water heater before, Lord knows he can do it again. I've got a kid who helps buy groceries, a kid who wants to serve his country, and a kid who is just plain happy.

A God who gives me hope.
So much for that bad mood.

I just hope those bridezillas get their act together quick.

And Today's Forecast Is...

Rain.

Imagine that.

The weather always makes for fascinating (?) conversations, does it not?
Extreme heat; severe drought. Record cold and record snow. Tornadoes. Hurricanes. Dust storms.

Rain.

I cannot remember the last day when we did not have rain at our house. It's come to be expected, like the daily afternoon coffee that I know I will enjoy (even at this moment, as a matter of fact). But enjoy the rain? Not so much anymore.

Oh, it has its advantages:

The weather is cooler. The grass is greener. The flowers and the trees are thriving.

It also has its disadvantages: weeds, mosquitoes, washed out yards and driveways and roads.
Swollen lakes. Flooded homes. Water moccasins and alligators and other creatures of the river on the move.

Consider this combination of the good and the bad: I'm sitting outside on a front porch that faces the west on a mid-July afternoon because the weather is cool. This has not been known to happen since we acquired the property in 2007. At the same time, I am fighting mosquitoes while the rain drips off a metal roof. The air is humid. The cats are lazy.

Is that a gnat in my coffee?

And so it goes. Next year we may very well experience the typical dry, hot summer and long for the wet days of 2013. The weather can be a fickle beast.

Much like my old man cat.
Some things just are expected.

Wet Cats & Country Music

We are the home for two cats.
Two very, MAD cats at the moment.

I would take a picture, but out of respect for their self-esteem (do cats have such I thing?), I will refrain. Let's face it, nobody looks pretty coming straight out of a bath... especially a cat.

That daughter of mine is a trooper. She jumped right in and gave the first one, the old and clawless one, a Dawn-infused soapy bath without too much excitement. For cat number two, the younger one with claws, she sported a long-sleeved shirt at the advice of her older brother and fearlessly battled the flying suds for the one she loves.

And once again I cannot help but wonder,

How in the world did we end up with animals in the house?

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Summer marches on our house. In our neck of the woods, it's been nothing but rain every day. The sun will shine for brief moments and if you're lucky, you might catch a glimpse of blue sky before the clouds close in. Our grass has never been so green. Seriously. That's the plus side of our rain-soaked forecast. The down side? It's almost impossible to get that green grass mowed. Oh, and if your job happens to involved the outdoors, like the husband's... well, that just throws another curve into the already curvy road of life and bills.Typically at this juncture of July I would be complaining about the heat.

I know. Some people are just never happy, huh?

Speaking of bills and never being happy, I'm thinking of taking my education to the next level. I figure I've got student loans that aren't going anywhere anytime soon, the rates (for new loans) just shot up anyway,  and hey, who knows what might be around the next corner.  I keep thinking there's got to be something more.

Which makes me think of a song that brings me to this video.

Don't worry. I have no plans of hitchhiking or running away and I am happy, but if I ever do pack a suitcase, I'm taking my mom with me.

Right, Mom? ;)

When There's Nothing Left To Do, Grow Tomatoes

It's one of my favorite times of year.

Spring Break.
Beautiful Weather.
Chirping Birds.

Final Four.

I woke up this morning with a single thought: Atlanta and four teams. Because of that, I have the laundry practically finished, dishes washed, porches cleaned, and not a hint of makeup on. I mean really... there's no need to do much beyond the brushing of the teeth and a half-done ponytail when leaving the house is not an option.

The youngest is not happy. She is an on-the-go kinda girl who does not understand her mother's obsession with basketball. She's standing on the porch talking to me now about growing tomatoes. Looking over my shoulder she says, Oh, you're writing another blog (and her emphasis on the word blog tells me she is not impressed).

Nothing like a kid to keep you humble.

She and her brother are out of school for the week. I've promised them a trip to the mall and a trip to the beach. It looks like both are going to work out for us in the next few days. Thank goodness. The weather is too nice to just stick to housework and besides, after the BIG game on Monday night, what else is there to do?

Apparently grow tomatoes.

I better get back to the conversation at hand. =)

Signs Your Mind Might Be Slipping

This morning I sat in the midst of a huge, scrap-metal junkyard / recycling kind of place and thought to myself, "I really need to get out of the house more." I had no idea such places existed. Surrounded by massive, moving machinery and watching men in hard hats maneuver swinging cranes this way and that, the unsolicited image of Bob the Builder infiltrated my mind. I had sudden impulses to see if the bulldozers had round eyeballs where the headlights might be. I half expected Bugs Bunny to pop his head out of a hole only to duck quickly at the sight of Elmer Fudd and his rifle peeking around a mountain of metal.

I swear I'm okay, Mom.

All the sights and sounds at the junkyard did fascinate me, however. No wonder kids are so attracted to that kind of stuff, whether in real life or in the animated form. I can remember years back watching my two youngest kids sitting outside on a sidewalk, ice-cream in hand, watching the city street crews dig a trench for new water pipes. That was better than television for them. Even today, if it's got wheels and power, the oldest will pause whatever he's doing to investigate (of course, it's gotta sound like it's got power, if you know what I mean). Granted, that's in his blood. We come from a motor-oriented family.

At any rate, the weather is chilly and I'm going through the I can't stay warm mode. Pretty sad considering it's in the fifties, I think. It's the wind that does it for me. That and a lack of sunshine streaming through the windows. January has never been my favorite month. Or February. Things really don't perk up to mid-March as far as I'm concerned.... and even that seems a ways off.

This is probably why that scrapyard captivated me so.

Who wants to bet my dreams are animated tonight?

Tuesday

I'm looking out on what our local weather guy has deemed a blustery day. The forecast this morning included smiling warnings to bundle up! and I've seen no less than seven stocking caps, three scarves, and one pair of mittens so far this morning. Is it really that cold out? No, but then again, I know what a blustery day is suppose to feel like. I remember the days of long johns under the clothes and the mandatory two pair of socks. I'll take southern cold over mid-western cold any day.

The weather is the big headline, though, isn't it? I hate it for the people being affected by the latest big wind to blow in off the ocean... times like this make me rethink that fictional house on the beach (the one that exists inside my head anyway). The only good that has come from the latest turn of events is that the media has something else to talk about besides politics, Lindsey Lohan, and Octomom. When you think about it, it must be pretty tough to come up with enough stuff to talk about in this constant news-hungry world. I mean, I don't ever remember thinking, Boy, I wish I could watch/read/listen to news twenty-four hours a day; but evidently somebody out there had that thought (and I bet it was the same person who decided Lindsay Lohan and Octomom were newsworthy to begin with).

Anyway.

Last night we did the parent-teacher thing and collected a few report cards. I presented this account to my mom: No Drama. No Lecture. No Tears. The two remaining school-age kids are doing very well as they muddle through their high school years. In fact, I was so relaxed afterward that I willingly watched an hour of The Voice. I'm not a fan of any kind of music show that does not include a live singer in a cowboy hat, but it was entertaining nonetheless. Actually, I think I might like that show better than the rest of the wanna-be-a-star series. Listening to the opinions of the kids as they watch it is entertainment enough. That's about as much television as I can take on a week night.

And that's about all I can do for right now.

It's just another Tuesday. Life goes on.

We May Need That Ark

I was standing at the front door looking outside and thinking what will make some people in other parts of the country cringe. Everything is so green here. By this time of the year, the grass (if you can call it that) usually crunches under our feet and the trees look hopelessly withered. We don't water with sprinklers and typically, by now, I have even given up on flowers in my pots. Not so this year. The flowers are still blooming with no help from me. It almost looks like we have an actual lawn. Even the fountains have not required extra water from the hose.

All this thanks to rain.

Constant rain. Almost every-other-day rain. Rain that is flooding the streets and causing havoc on some homes. Rain that makes the outdoor working people have to stay inside. Rain that makes the indoor staying people want to actually go somewhere. Rain that lulls the cats into a stupefied slumber as they watch the water run off the roof.

Or maybe that is me.

I am fighting the urge to join my husband in a pre-noon nap. Not that I'm opposed to napping, but I'm one of those people that this kinda weather drives out of the house. I have an un-natural urge to go to the mall. Maybe eat a gyro. Possibly roam a used bookstore while sipping an overpriced coffee. This is when I wish I had some of those cute rainboots with a jacket and hat to match. I would so be one of those people.

Good grief, it is pouring. It's been like this about all summer. Sure, we've had the heat and the humidity and all other things southern, but I'm not finding much to complain about this year. Let it rain.

Meanwhile, I may have changed my mind.
A nap before lunch? There are worse things in life.

Winding Down

Well, this past week we had a chance to put miles of pavement on our odometer and cross more than a few state lines in the process. We traded triple-digit heat for triple-digit heat, scoped out a few houses for sale, spent quality time with family and friends, and fixed a flat. Not bad for a whirlwind of a week.

I always dread the drive back and the world to which that takes us. It's nice to be in the place I think we should have never left to begin with, but that's an old story. We had a nice break anyway. This trip was a little bit different because the oldest was not with us. He's a working man, you know.

I guess I don't have any room to complain. The fellowship was great. The food was fantastic. The coffee reigned supreme (a plug for THE best coffee shop east or west of the Mississippi). I do feel recharged and ready to go back and face whatever may come. Besides, there might be something brewing.

In the meantime, I'll go back to doing what I do best.

Holding the fort together.
Reading way too much.
And taking up space in the shade.

At least I got that road trip out of my system.

My Gas Tank Is Happy

The air is practically chilly outside... kinda weird considering it's the end of June and triple-digit temps are on the way. For now, though, I have half the windows flung open and cool breezes streaming in. Anything to air out the house and give the a/c a break.

Speaking of the a/c, our electric bill has gone up.  Thanks to the handy-dandy online electric usage tracker that our provider provides (chuckle), I've compared our current usage to this time last year and can see no changes on our part. It's the cost of electricity that has gone up according to the handy-dandy pie chart and that handy-dandy pie chart shows an increase per kilowatt hour of twenty-three percent. Good grief. I'm going to have to be more diligent about unplugging things that are not in use (groan from the children). One more thing for me to add onto the mom patrol hour.

Gas in our neck of the woods was at an astounding low of $2.84 yesterday. Funny how that actually feels like we're getting a break. It sure helps with me feeling not so guilty about driving here or there. The middle has some longboarding plans for today and I really have no good reason not to drive him where he needs (or wants) to be. There's a bookstore nearby and a coffee shop conveniently located right inside... a perfect place to kill a couple of hours. He's happy. I'm happy. The gas tank is happy.

Wow.
Cool breezes.
Happy thoughts.

If it wasn't for that darn electric company increasing their profits,
this could almost be a perfect day.

Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled ~ John 14:1

This time last month I was resisting the urge to turn on the a/c (a urge which I eventually lost by the 16th or so). This month I have been fighting the coolness of the house in a steadfast refusal to turn back on the heat. I lost that battle today when I kicked on the fireplace. Crazy weather. It's not that it's cold outside. It might be seventy out right now, but the nights have been downright chilly. From what I hear from others across the country, this up-and-down weather pattern is the same everywhere. Oh well. It won't be long till we're roasting in one-hundred degree temps that won't let up. At least that's the normal way of summer. Who knows with this year. I use to say midwestern weather was unpredictable. Now I say it's that way in the south. I'm thinking maybe this craziness is the new normal for everywhere.

Today our community is hosting the funeral of a fifteen-year old who attended our kids' high school... he drowned on Easter Sunday. This morning I read in our local news of a nineteen-year old who was killed by a manufacturing accident as he began his work day. The middle told us a story of a six-year old that was killed in a freak accident while with his dad. The youngest recalled a news story she just read of a newborn being found alive in a hospital morgue. Evidently it's not just the weather that is crazy.

Oh, and today is my first day of cutting back on the coffee.

Craziness everywhere.

Losing Track Of Time

I looked at the date of my last entry and have been trying to figure out what I have been doing in the past week. I'm thinking a whole lot of nothing... and a whole lot of everything. Know what I mean?

I've been watching what started out as just a few blooms on this tree literally explode with flowers in just a matter of a couple of days. Beauty can be deceiving, however, as we all know. This tree, as pretty as it may seem, stinks horribly when in bloom. The oldest compares the stench to that of wet cement... not pleasant at all. Speaking of the oldest, he is still job searching and watching his savings account dwindle and worrying about his friend, the one we had as a surprise guest not long ago. Her situation has only deteriorated since she last stayed with us and it's hard to look your child in the eye and admit that you don't know what to do about the whole thing.

I've spent a lot of time of the front porch reading schoolwork (see next picture), listening to kids talk, and occasionally letting the cat out. Although we had a lot of rain over the weekend, we thankfully dodged all the rough weather that seemed to envelope most of the nation, the Midwest and eastern half, anyway. The husband is currently in the midst of digging and planning a storm shelter and is bewildered by my insistence that I am more afraid of being underground than I am in the wide open. Personally, I don't know why we have these discussions anyway because I can assure you, I am no fool. I've watched the footage on the news. I've looked at the pictures online. I have no doubt that if our home or neighborhood or county was under an imminent threat of a tornado, my petty fears would vanish and I would be knocking someone out of the way to get underground (sorry, kids).

Here is all that reading I was talking about (ignore the obvious dusting that needs to take place). My nook is buried under everything that must come before it; for that reason it hasn't seen the light of day for at least a week. I am in the middle of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, or maybe the title is the other way around, and I must say that I am not impressed. This is one of those rare occasions when I hope the movie is better than the book. Snore. As far as my schoolwork goes, though, SIX (and a half) weeks left. I received great news last week in the form of a job doing substitute teaching work. I am excited and nervous and scared about the whole college thing coming to an end, but the day I hold that degree in my  hand will be a happy day indeed.

And not to leave out the other cat (you're welcome, daughter), this is where she spends much of her time. Sometimes it's there by choice... that cat loves watching the birds, and sometimes it's there due to a cat-imposed time-out... yes, having this cat is like having a small child in the house. Looking at this picture reminds of something that I devoted an entire day to last week and that was cleaning the screened-in porch. I was reluctant to do so because I noticed the pine trees have the tell-tale signs of what I call baby pine cones. All that means is that in a matter of weeks everything will be covered in a fine, yellow pollen to the extent that even twice-a-day sweepings will not control it.  I never experienced anything like it until I moved south. It's one of my least favorite things of spring.

So I've been busy with cleaning and reading intermingled with lounging on the front porch and just generally dealing with life as it comes. I look at the calendar and find it impossible that we are already five days into the third month of the year. It seems like February was just getting started.

Time flies when you're having fun.

Didn't The Wicked Witch Of The East Die Under A House?

Not that I consider myself wicked or a witch, mind you, I just remember those shoes of hers sticking out from under Dorothy's house.

Here's my dilema in the midst of a severe thunderstorm... would I rather be crushed or trapped under the house (my words) or sucked out through the top of the house (my husband's words)? We have this discussion every time a storm blows through and today one hit just after lunch time. The husband had his shoes on ready to go under the house while I eyed the computer desk thinking that's where I'd hang out- underneath it, of course. Now before you ready to tell me what you think, let me describe the situation.

We don't have a basement, but you can walk under the house and for at least half of it, stand up straight (and it is closed in, just so you know). It's all sand underneath with lots and lots of storage space. On the flip side, the computer desk sits in the middle of the house next to a stone fireplace and no windows in sight. The root of this dilemma is that I have a very profound fear of being trapped somewhere, plus I'm a little bit claustrophobic. I can ride an elevator, but I hate every second of the ride. I can go in a cave, but I don't enjoy any of it. We all have our little quirks, right?

Anyway, we kept an eye on the sky and the radar and ended up never leaving the living room. We were on the north end of the storm (that did end up spawning a tornado, by the way) and by the time it roared through, all we had were some limbs on the ground and a shed door blown in. The discussion over where to hide out, though, continued on. So, other than praying and believing Psalm 91, where would you go?

Reading Makes Me Happy

The Rifleman is on. Supper is over.
And my boy's not back from his bike ride yet.
Does the child not know it's dark outside?

Scratch that. I hear his truck pulling in now. One of his favorite things to do is to throw his bike into the back, meet up with a friend, and find a long path that leads to nowhere. And okay, now that I've opened the door I can see that it's not actually dark yet. Guess I'll save that lecture for another day.

I've got the week off from school and have been pleasantly surprised at all the extra time I've had. Sunday night I downloaded a few new books to my nook and have been hooked on The Help since page one. I know it's been out as a movie for some time, but I'm just not much of a movie person. I'd rather read it anyhow. I also got Extremely Close and Incredibly Loud. Yeah, I know it's a movie, too, so don't tell me how either one of them ends. The point is that I'm glad to have the time to be reading again. This is one week I'm going to hate to see come to a close.

Other than that, things have been pretty quiet around the old ponderosa. The weather has been beautiful, although I'm quite certain the flowers are a bit confused. I was raking some today and noticed a few buds on an azalea bush already. The husband has been busy doing some work around the house and the middle is recovering quite well from his accident the other week. All in all, I sit back and look at our quiet and ordinary life and think things are pretty good. Of course, watching Dr. Phil on any given day will make any quiet and ordinary life look pretty good.

As for now, another episode of The Rifleman is coming on.
There's a kitchen waiting on the oldest to eat his dinner and clean up.
And I've got a good book to get back to. You may not hear from me for a while. =)

Melting In The Rain

What a dreadfully dreary fog-filled-no-sunshine-present kind of gloomy day. Good grief. The forecasted high today was something like 69; tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and 72. At this rate, though, we'll be lucky if we break the 50-degree mark. Hope that isn't a sign of things to come with tomorrow's weather... and after a rainy weekend, too. If this keeps up, this girl is going to be having some serious weather-related issues. I need sunshine. Literally. Since my husband has been home these last six months (sheesh!) he has found me on more than one occasion sitting on the front porch steps in the afternoon. What are you doing? he'll ask (even though he can plainly see me surrounded by school papers and a laptop and the ever-present cup of coffee). Sittin' in the sunshine, I'll tell him. He'll give me that look that says he doesn't quite understand the way I think and then go about his business. Can you relate, though? Sunshine puts me at ease. Even on a tremendously hot day I've been known to escape the a/c for even a brief, five minutes of sun. It just makes me feel better.

Speaking of an unemployed husband of six months, I learned a term today for him in my economics class. Discouraged worker. Really? See what twenty-thousand in student loans will do for ya? Sheesh. (And yes, I do think that will be the word of the day). A discouraged worker is an unemployed worker when after six months of searching for employment becomes discouraged and thinks there is no job out them for him or her. Granted, I think he hit that after the fourth month, but hey... let's not argue with the textbook. My point in that process was probably after the first month, a dozen resumes, and an equal amount of no thank-you's. Lucky for me, though, I hit the numb part after the first year and now experience nothing more than the occasional,  paralyzing, horrific feeling of panic that sets in every time I look at the calendar and count back to that fateful day of July 3, 2009. Ain't life grand?

My computer is also giving me fits. Logging into facebook is something of a one-in-ten chance it will happen (not that big of deal) and receiving up-to-date email is sort of a challenge (could be a big deal). I have broken pages, slow pages, not going anywhere pages... you get the idea. Even Pandora is not cooperating with me. I was talking to the computer earlier this morning and when Pandora refused to let me skip a Christmas song I said, Fine. I'll just turn on the radio. Pandora did not respond to my strongly-worded threat so I shut it down and flipped on the radio. Commercial after commercial after commercial. Maybe it's time for me to invest in one of those funky i-pods my kids keep raving about. I could fill it with the likes of George Jones and Waylon Jennings and Barbara Mandrell (that would ensure the kids, or the husband, from ever wanting to borrow it, you see). Gotta plan things ahead around here.

I'm done with football (the Superbowl no longer interests me). I'm done with opinions regarding who somebody plans on voting for (just place your vote and move on with life). I'm done with ridiculously weak coffee (I do not recommend Wolfgang Puck's Breakfast in Bed Blend... thank goodness it was a sample pack). And lucky for you, my dear reader, I am done with this post.

Oh, and for the record, I am in no way depressed.
Just a little weary of the weather and moody technology.

Sheesh.

Confetti Between My Toes

So the new year has begun. I'm exhausted already.

We stayed up too late with good times and good friends followed by the booming thunder of fireworks that popped and sparkled till well after midnight. The kids, most likely one in particular, covered the living room floor with confetti and had a horn blowing contest from the front porch with the people across the street. We still made it to church with time to spare this morning, had a filling lunch afterward that pretty much did me in, and drifted home with zero motivation.

The confetti is still on the floor.
The tree has yet to be undecorated.
And I think there may still be leftover (last night) pizza in a box on the counter.

I could really care less.

This is the last day of spring-like weather and windows wide open for at least a week or so. The wind is already starting to pick up bringing with it colder temperatures. I'm thinking all the mess that surrounds me will still be there tomorrow. A roast in the crock pot is sounding like a good plan. Of course, that means I'll have to find time to change out of these pajama pants to troll the aisles of the grocery store. That might be the biggest challenge of my day.

Life is pretty good, though, for this first day of January.
The message this morning was encouraging and timely.
And the Atlanta Falcons are off to a scarily awesome start.

Positive thinking, people.

24 Days Till My Birthday!

December. December. December.
How did it become December so quickly?
The last time I checked, November was just beginning.

But here we are, the sixth already. The kids just have this week and next to finish up before the highlight of every school year (other than Spring Break and the Last Day, of course)... Christmas Vacation. All I can think is, How in the world am I going to entertain them for two solid weeks?

And at this they chuckle.
No need to entertain us, Mom.
Just keep the fridge stocked and the electricity on.

We've been enjoying some beautiful 70-ish degree weather around here. The windows have been opened, the short sleeves on, and the flip flops still getting plenty of use. My hometown back west got its first snow today. Do I miss it? Not a chance. Sweet tea and warm weather keeps me happy.

The Christmas decorating around our house has come to a blessed halt. The husband never did get that manger scene up or his personal message to the President made, and Santa Claus is still awaiting his stuffing, but other than that, all decorating came to a grinding halt last Friday for the birthday party of the oldest.

I have never been so glad to have people over.
One day of faster-than-lightning cleaning and hauling boxes to the attic.
Now that's how we get things wrapped up around this house.

I started my next-to-last class this week. Hallelujah. Come April 3, 2012, that nifty piece of paper with my name on it will be all mine. Thank goodness they don't hold 'em hostage until the student loans are paid. I may never get the chance to gaze upon it if that were the case. Oh... student loans.

I'll think about that tomorrow.
And enjoy my Christmas today.
Cold weather (that's 50s for me) is on the way.

The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow

The weather is cold in our neck of the woods today, but like the husband says... cold for us is now any temperature where we can't have the windows open. We've had a fire going most of the day to avoid running the furnace and I'm planning on soup and grilled cheese for supper tonight. It is most definitely a stay-in-kinda-weather day. I think we might pull out some Christmas decorations tonight and if the kids play their cards right, I might treat 'em with some Hershey's hot cocoa.

My three-week visit to the Midwest ended Saturday night when I arrived home to find a very upset cat, a spilled bowl of water that was mixed with litter (some used, some not), and an empty food bowl. Mr. Kitty did not seem to understand that I was not the one who left him in that predicament, but he blamed me just the same. Time heals all wounds, though, and seeing as he is now spread across my feet lazily content, I would say he has forgiven me. Moody cat.

Our job search continues. I am putting in for some substitute work and the husband is drifting back toward law enforcement positions. Between the two of us, we have applied for five jobs in the last 24 hours. Things can get kind of snippy when you have two people who are tired of filling out the same information over and over again. Yesterday was the 19th anniversary of our first date, but I don't think either one of us really cared. We'll celebrate when we get through this.

And get through this, we will.

Thank God for savings.
Thank God for a working fireplace.
Thank God for a happy cat.