My Laundry Hamper List

Today I went to a training and part of it dealt with goal setting.  Part of our warm up exercise was to make a list of some fun goals for ourselves for 2013.  I wrote down some goofy stuff, but I'm thinking it's time to get serious about making a bucket list and put some of those down as obtainable goals for the coming year.  Does anyone out there have a bucket list??  I'm not sure what kind of things are on them....


So here's what I've come up with so far...

1) Zip Lining- I've done a very small version of this at the May's Corn Maze back in October. (When I say small, I mean really small)  I want to do the kind where you zip line through a forest or something.  I don't need to go over some deep ravine or anything.

2)  Clogging- I'd like to find a clogging group and join it.  When I was younger, I can remember seeing some groups perform here and there and I'm convinced I could do a great job.  (I have a long history of dance....lessons, performing,etc)

3) Hand Bell Choir- I also dabbled a little in this when I was in Key West.  I went to a church that had a bell choir and I got to participate some.  I really enjoyed it and wish that I could do that again.

4) Yoga-I've always thought that participating in yoga would be good.  I don't really like to exercise but I'd like to try this and see how I'd like it.

5) Professional Actress- I think I could do a really good job at doing commercials or being on a regular TV show.  Also related to this--I think I should have my own reality show.  I'm pretty entertaining and I KNOW that my job is entertaining.  As I've said before, If Honey Boo Boo can have a show, I can have one.

6) The Northern Lights- Someday I'd like to see the Northern Lights.

7) Alcatraz- I'd like to visit Alcatraz, not be an inmate there.  I've been to San Francisco before but wasn't able to visit.  It bummed me out to be so close, yet so far away.

8) Sign Language- For some reason, I feel very drawn to sign language.  (Side Note- I do have Meniere's Disease which has caused hearing damage but I'm not deaf.)  I'd really like to learn sign language enough to be fluent. I could then be an interpreter.

9) What Not to Wear- I need to be a contestant on this show.  I need someone to show me how to dress properly.  Right now, my current style could be labeled as "tacky."

10) Eiffel Tower- I'd like to go up the Eiffel Tower.  I'm not sure if they let you spit from up there, but if you could, I'm guessing it would be fun.

That's all I have at the moment.  I'm not sure how this compares to other people's list.  Do you add stuff like "cure cancer" or "meet the president" on a bucket list?  I saw parts of the movie Bucket List, but I didn't finish it because you know that someone dies in that movie.  Hence, the bucket list.

Also, I'm not sure if I want my goals hanging out in a bucket.  I know that the whole reason the word bucket is there is because of the reference to "kicking the bucket."  I'm not fond of buckets.....they remind me of moping floors or people throwing up and I'm not a fan of either.  I think I'll keep mine in a laundry hamper.  It doesn't have the same ring to it, but if you know me at all, you know I don't do things like everyone else.  If you have any ideas that could added to this list...let me know.  I'll add them to my laundry hamper.

Toodles!

A Tapas of Topics

I am determined to blog. This is my fourth attempt today.  There are times that I truly feel inspired and writing comes very easily.  Then there are the other days.  I think today is one of the other days.  I had several topics floating around but none of them took off.  Or it could be that those topics were fine but I didn't have enough coffee in my system.  Regardless of any of these problems, I will blog. I can't promise it will be interesting...but I don't make that promise any time I blog. So there.

It's currently too late for coffee, but I just made some sugar free hot chocolate so maybe that will help.  (On a sidenote...I'd like to mention that I realize that hot chocolate also contains caffeine and if it's too late for coffee than it must also be too late for hot chocolate. My mind knows this but it still seems illogical to drink coffee this late because of too much caffeine.)

So I went to see The Guilt Trip last night with my friend Kathy.  It was pretty cute.  There was a scene where she mentioned "tapas" and I've heard of it before but never had it.  (I also Googled it to be sure I was sure I knew what it was before I mentioned it.) For those of you that may not be sure what it is either, tapas is basically bite sized appetizers that originated in Spain.  In some places, tapas consists of the entire meal, since it is thought to take the focus away from the food and people can talk more  Okay, now I know why I've not had tapas before.  I like to eat and have no problem talking before, during, or after the meal.  But really, I'm not going to talk about tapas....I'm just going to offer my blog topics in a tapas format.  Small...bite sized nuggets of my thoughts.

In no particular order...

1) I tried to blog earlier about one of my typical days in the classroom.  Fact:  No day is typical in my classroom.  Also, being on vacation has made me soft (on many levels) because I had trouble remembering all the stuff I do.  I will keep notes one day and then see if it makes for an interesting topic to blog about. I'm convinced I could have my own reality show.  If Honey Boo Boo can have a show, I KNOW I could.

2) I made a batch of buttermilk ranch salad dressing from the packet today.  Is it just me, or does it taste better from the packet than the bottle?  Also, I'm a firm believer in the fact there is no "Lite" ranch dressing that tastes good.  While I was making the dressing, I was also cooking English peas.  I went to drop some butter in the bowl but instead dropped the stick of butter in the dressing.  I picked up the stick of butter and rinsed it off and then used it in the peas.  Is this gross?  Has anyone else ever washed off a stick of butter?

3) Which leads me to think of the "3 second rule."  I'm betting it's one of those things that people do but no one will admit to.  I'm not saying that I adhere to a 3 second rule or not, but I think it's funny that it's the type of thing people do but won't talk about.

4)  Apparently I think that my hot chocolate can tell what time of day it is.  Like somehow, if I drink this hot chocolate now, I won't be wired later and will be able to fall asleep with no problems.  We'll see.....it may be a blog topic tomorrow.

5)  Over Christmas break, I developed a taste for turnip greens.  I've never liked them before, but my mom made some and they were yummy.  Since then, I've made them three more times, both frozen and from the can.  They taste okay, but not as good as my mom's.  I have noticed that they taste better with pepper sauce on them.  My brother told me to try "pot liquor" which is basically eating cornbread that you've soaked in the juice from your turnip greens (also with pepper sauce.)  It was yummy.  (Sidenote..the pot liquor was only at my mom's.  I've never made cornbread before.)

6) I am excited about the return of American Idol and Switched at Birth.  David can't really stand either of these shows and we have one TV.  He does suffer with me weekly as I continue to watch Finding Bigfoot. I am a believer.  He's out there somewhere.  I also believe that the next American Idol winner and deaf people are out there too.  I don't think there will be a show about them together though.

7)  I miss the big hair of the 80's.  Not mullet hair or anything, just the big hair.  Like old school Reba big hair.

8) I love Christmas. And I love Christmas songs.  But I despise Christmas songs out of season.  I can stand to go into a Christmas shop in July but it doesn't excite me.  However, I think Christmas stuff should be put out in the stores right after Thanksgiving.  I think eventually Thanksgiving and Christmas will become one big holiday.  Christgiving.  Thanksmas. 

9) I recently discovered that Happy Days and The Brady Bunch both come on in the afternoon on a particular cable channel I get.  I had forgotten how much I enjoyed both of those shows until a couple of days ago.  I know I have seen every episode of The Brady Bunch.  I'm guessing that show came on during prime time at some point.  I don't remember it then.  I only remember it as something I watched after school on reruns.  Anyway, I've enjoyed watching those shows this week.  On an episode I watched today, Mr. and Mrs. Brady snuck out of the house to buy Bobby a bicycle and Alice called all their friends looking for them.  Ah....the days before cell phones.  I imagine their problems would look a lot different if it was set in the current year.  But honestly, I don't think I'd want to watch it then.

10) I was thinking today about work and it dawned on my that my work has now become my hobby.  Somehow, that doesn't encourage me.  I need to find a balance of work and the rest of my life.  Especially if I plan on working for 15 or 20 more years.  I figure I'll need to work as long as it takes for Raelynn to land a career she enjoys.  If I plan on staying around that long and not going off the deep end, I need balance.


So there you have it....a tapas of topics.  I'm actually proud of myself.  I've made it to the end of this post.  I hope you've stayed with me as well.  I enjoy blogging.  Some days more than others.  And like I said earlier, I think this was one of the other days.

Toodles!!

Choose Hope. Always.

So I may have spoken too soon about being able to blog more frequently.  Okay, let me revise that....I may not be able to blog in the way that I'd like to more frequently.  And by that, I mean blogging that includes pictures.  I am using our fabulous jet pack thingy that is allowing me to get online, but much to my dismay, it doesn't provide high speed Internet access.  More like Internet access that will work on that "no patience" flaw of mine.....  But I'll try to load another picture before I post this.  Either way, I'll blog.


So, thanks to everyone who read my post yesterday....and a special thanks to Harvey S. who posted a comment.  He mentioned an assignment we had in high school to write our own obituaries for the year 2030.  I don't remember that assignment.  And that bothers me a bit.  It just goes to show that you remember some things that are important to you and others not so much.  What I remember about the class that Harvey mentioned was that I had to memorize the poems "Anabelle Lee" and "O Captain, My Captain" and recite them in class.  I also remember that she gave oral tests on the tape recorder.  She taped herself giving the test to her first period class and then just replayed it for everyone else.  Too bad for you if you had a question or needed to hear number 3 again.  If someone from first period didn't need to hear it a second time, then you didn't either.  Her name, Harvey, was Mrs. Robinson.  I also remember that she also called us "Little Chickadees" and said "Now get in the barn, little chickadees...."  We all thought she was strange.  And I guess when you're a teenager, most grown-ups fit in that category.  (But really....she was strange.)


But I digress.....Mrs. Robinson isn't today's topic.  For some reason, I feel led to put the message "Choose Hope" out there.  I don't know if someone reading this is feeling a lack of hope in their lives or not...but I still feel like I need to say it.  I can't really offer much else in the way of any particular encouragement, but I do know this.  God has a plan and He is mighty.  He will provide when  you least suspect it and need it most.  When I encounter people that are lacking hope, I relay this metaphor. 


Life is like one big cross stitch project (especially mine.)  We live our lives underneath the project, looking up at all the knots, the tangles of colored thread, the loops that weren't pulled all the way through, and the thread that stretches from one side to the other.  None of it makes sense.  We can't see what we're doing and it all seems random.  God, on the other hand, is seeing our life from the top view.  He already knows the beautiful picture that our lives will become.  How looking at this exquisite piece of art will inspire others....how it will cause others to see something in themselves they didn't know was there.  We can't see it yet...and for that matter, have no idea what the outcome of the design will be.  We just get caught up in the tangles underneath.  God takes the knots of our lives...the trials...the heartbreak....and makes beautiful things from them.  Know that is what He is doing for you right now.  Have hope.  Hope always.  Hope doesn't make you weak.  It makes you strong.


So, I don't know who that is for but I feel that I was led to share this.  I hope that this finds you well, with a smile on your face, and love in your heart.


And if not....choose hope.  You are a masterpiece in the making!!!!


Toodles

So......What Was I Saying????

It would be really awesome if I could start this post with  "So...." and keep going like we were in the middle of some important exchange and I was simply picking up where I left off.  But that's not going to happen....see....I love to blog but haven't been very regular at it for over a year now.  That's sad because I'm sure that I lost some readers during that time (maybe one or two out of a total of five) but I've got a really good excuse.  For over a year now, we've had no land line here at home.  That was my only means of logging online at home. 


See...David and I both went for smart phones in August 2011, and cut our land line.  This means that we had Internet capacity on our phones, just not on the computers.  And as my luck would have it, I wasn't able to blog on my phone.  But anyway....we still don't have a land line.  We now have something called a "jet pack" with which we can log on wirelessly. So voila....I can now blog again!  Aren't you excited about that?  (If not, just nod and fake it.)  I love to blog and have missed it terribly.  I'll have to start my list of potential blog topics again....I had a mental list going at one time, but it's been so long that I've forgotten most of them.  If you have any ideas, let me know.

So it's 2013.  That blows my mind.  I can remember being in fifth grade and figuring out how old I'd be when we got to the year 2000.  At that time, I doubted that I could ever be that old.  So to think that we've gone past that to 2013 seems even more unbelievable.  Last year was a year of ups and downs.  But really...aren't they all?  So far this year, nothing up or down has happened.  Tomorrow I may even try to stay in my pjs all day.  Vacation time is good like that.  Maybe in the meantime, I'll think of an interesting rant.....which will lead to more frequent posts.  I love to blog, but I love knowing others are reading it as well. 


Toodles!!

What? She's Blogging? The World Must Be Coming to an End!

Hello world...

I am starting this blog post with a picture to remind any of you faithful followers that this is what I now look like....after what seems like YEARS since I blogged.  Time has been good to me and I look the same as the last time you anxiously read my newest blog post, right? (The correct answer here is to nod in agreement and say "Why of course!")

So you may have wondered what's going on with me and why I've not blogged much.  And if you haven't wondered that, you just haven't followed my blog much so after you read this you should get comfy and do some reading of my older posts.  Then follow me.  I'm not sure what that is on Blogspot, but I like the idea of having followers.  (Please note that I realize that my previous statement makes me look really dumb in the technology area.  I DO KNOW what followers are.  I am a proud member of the facebook, twitter, and pinterest cults and plenty of people follow me there.)  I wish I had more "followers" of my blog and if you know how I can do that without being too "techy-like" (yes, I just made that word up) I'd be appreciative.


So, here goes nothing.  Or something.  It could be long.  It will contain tidbits of what's swimming around my head.

1) Reasons/excuses I give for not blogging: You must have an Internet connection, computer, and time to blog.  I have none of these at home at the same time.  I do have these at work but those kids keep me from blogging because I WORK FOR A LIVING people.  But seriously, I don't blog at school because I barely have enough time to take care of basic needs like eating and using the bathroom there so I'm all about prioritizing what needs to get done there.  If I have to pick between blogging and going to the bathroom, I'm going with the bathroom. Sorry about that.

2) My summer thus far: I started my summer battling some pretty bad staph infections (thank you stupid diabetes for the weak immune system) and I've been somewhat crabby due to pain from doctors cutting me open.  Things are appearing to improve on that front so I'm happy about that.  Pinterest has taken over my life and my list of things to do this summer is a gazillion miles long.   I'm on project number 6.  I like being crafty.  Join pinterest and check out some of my cool pins.  Follow me and you get even more brownie points.  And who doesn't like brownies, right? (thanks again stupid diabetes for not letting me enjoy real brownies anymore.)

3) Movies: I think I've seen most of the movies that have come out this summer.  I enjoy the movies.  Best job I ever had was working at the Cobb/Regal Cinemas in Key West.  I must state here that I do have some standards, though.  I think that movie producers are ripping us off by making all these movies in 3D.  Is is necessary to see Madagascar in 3D?  I think not people.  (Will it keep me from going to a mediocre movie because it's 3D? Probably not.  Way to go producers...you win.)

4) Blogging:  I REALLY miss blogging. Blogger.com is a great site but it's been awhile since I blogged and they've changed their format and all since then.  I don't like change.  It was perfectly fine the way it was.  And I had more readers then.  Maybe that's why no one reads my blog much anymore....Blogger went and changed...it has nothing to do with the fact that I haven't blogged. 

5) Dot dot dot and parentheses:  I find that I use these two things quite a bit when writing, emailing, texting, tweeting, facebooking.....Does it bother people?  I sort of like it.  I just wonder what everyone else thinks.

6) Purple highlights: This week I went and got my hair done with purple highlights.  Yes, I am serious.  Why?  I think the better question is "Why WOULDN'T I? And why haven't I done this sooner?"  I like it.  David doesn't.  He loves me anyway.  We agree to disagree. 

7) Obvious Observations:  Today while eating lunch with a friend I noticed the number of people that had on maroon or Mississippi State related clothing.  It was quite a bit, but then I stated the obvious....we live in the hometown of Mississippi State, so that makes sense.  I just thought that it was interesting that in a deli at lunchtime, there were about 20 people all wearing MSU stuff.  And yes, I checked to see if any group came together like maybe the MSU bowling team showed up.  They didn't.  We may have a bowling team....I don't know.  I'm not really into sports.  Unless you count Pinterest because if you do then I totally am into sports.

8) Ice ice baby: As I've written about before on my blog, I am an ice connoisseur.  If you are in my area please visit these locations to enjoy the ice.  You can get a drink if you want but it's the ice that makes the experience....In no particular order of awesomeness: Sonic, Oby's, Zaxby's, and Snow-Biz for the obvious reason that they sell snow cones.

9) Hip Cancer: Is anyone looking into whether or not carrying your cell phone in your front pocket affects your hips?  I find that I can't deal with wearing clothes without pockets because I carry my cell phone everywhere.  It doesn't feel right unless it's with me.  Anyone else out there like that?  Cuz I'd hate to think I'm going to be the only one getting chemo in the future from their cell phone.

10) AT&T bad/Verizon good:   David and I divorced AT&T back last August and upgraded to smart phones with Verizon.  He has an Android and I have an iphone.  I don't think can ever go back.  However, the down side is that I no longer have dial-up (did you think anyone would ever say that NOT having dial up would be a bad side) or a land line.  This is why I can't blog as much.  I love to blog but I love my phone more.  I'm sorry people, you're just going to have to deal with it.  If you miss me that much, you should look me up on Twitter or Facebook and follow me. I can do these on my phone and they are sort of like mini-blogs. It's a win/win situation. I get my phone and you get a mini-blog...and let's face it...a little of me is better than no me, right?

So that's it for now.  I'm currently sitting in Hardee's nursing a watered down Diet Coke and using their Wifi to bring you this blog post.  Maybe I can come here again soon so I can write more.  You'll read it won't you?  The correct response here would be to nod your head in agreement and say "Well of course I will!"


Toodles my friends!!!!!

I'm Feeling Old and This is the Proof....

Hello faithful followers....


I hope this finds you all well....Me? Not so much...... Here's how I know-


I just bought a Medical Alert bracelet.


Yes, you read that correctly. If you haven't followed me on Facebook or in any recent blog postings (and if this is you, why wouldn't you want to???) I was diagnosed with Diabetes this past Thanksgiving. Honestly, I think I knew for awhile that it was a possibility, but I didn't really let myself believe that it could really happen.


You see, my parents are both diabetics. My paternal grandmother was a diabetic...all of them type 2 and all of them (seemingly to me) older when they received their diagnosis. My grandmother died when I was 13 from complications of a stroke. As far as I know, she never took insulin. I laugh because I can remember her telling me that she'd drink the sweet tea from the TOP of the container since it had "less sugar." I'm thinking she probably ate what she wanted, when she wanted.


My parents both take insulin and have for years. My mother is quite the cook and can make anything sweet taste good and be sugar free. I just never thought I'd be diabetic and would have to eat sugar free.


Earlier in the fall, I noticed that I had to urinate a lot more than normal. On a side note, I take a diuretic pill for other things (high blood pressure and Meniere's disease) so in the back of my mind, I attributed it to that. So I did a little experiment and stopped taking it. My frequent urination urges decreased a little, but not enough to have the answer as to why I was having to go so often. Also, I've been a light drinker...meaning that I don't require much to drink during the day. During this period, I found that I could drink close to two liters of water in one sitting without a second thought. Then, I noticed the weight loss. It seemed that in a matter of a few weeks, I dropped close to 25 pounds.


So I did what anyone would do in that situation: I made a doctor's appointment to find out what was going on. Of course they wanted me to fast to get some blood work, so I did. I wasn't happy about that at all. They took my blood glucose sugar reading and it turned out to be 285. If you don't know what that means, well, a normal blood reading after fasting is under 100. Given my other symptoms and that blood sugar reading, my doctor told me that what I feared was true: I was indeed a diabetic.


My doctor wanted to start me off on insulin, but I asked him to wait until our appointment to go over the blood tests later that week. At that appointment, my doctor told me that my A1C number was a 13. For those of you that don't know what that is, it's a 3 month reading of your average blood glucose levels that is converted to a number scale. Most normal people's A1C is a 6 or under. Someone at a 7 or 8 is considered borderline diabetic. A high score for a diabetic is a 12. Did I mention that I WAS A 13???? That would explain why I started taking insulin that day.


So what does that mean? It means that I have had a drastic life change in regards to diet and exercise. I eat very few carbs....I know...sad, right? No bread, no rice, no pasta, no potatoes, no corn, no peas, no fruit, no sugar......so sad. I exercise more than I did before, and hope to make it a regular part of my daily life.


The only good news in all of this, is that I've maintained my weight loss. Also, for awhile, my vision was very blurry, but now that I'm getting the blood sugar levels under control, my eyesight has returned to normal. I'm hoping that I'll be able to become more healthy and lose a few more pounds.


The bad part of weight loss is that your wrinkles become more prominent. But that comes with old age, right? All I need now is to contract gout or arthritis....and now that I have a medical alert bracelet, I can add those ailments. I left plenty of room, just in case.


Until next time, friends.....


Toodles!

The Niftiness of a Caboodle

I am moving forward through this post assuming you know what Caboodles are. It's only the most amazing makeup container EVER. If you don't have any idea what I'm talking about, take a second and do a Google search and learn some stuff. Then come back and finish reading this.


I have to stop for a second and give my usual apologies and excuses for not blogging. For starters, I live in the STICKS. There is no high speed Internet here of any kind. I know because I've checked. You can not get Internet through cable or phone lines. For the longest time we had dial-up and it was TORTURE. We got rid of our land lines a year ago and went completely cellular. Our connection to the Internet at that point was through "tethering" using a cell phone. It was minimally faster. Then, back in August of 2011, David and I upgraded our old flip phones for smart phones. We like these so much better, but we're still relegated to tethering. And only with David's phone. So this means that if David isn't home or is using his phone, I can't get online to blog. Not convenient. So, that's part of the issue. I am, as always, incredibly busy. But I think everyone is busy, so that's not a valid excuse. You just don't meet people who talk about how much free time they have. At least I never have. And in case you've thought, "What about Hugh's Net? Can't you get Internet through them?" My parents (who live about 1/2 mile down my road) have Hugh's Net and if anything, their Internet service is slower and worse than ours.


But I digress....back to our topic..........


I love blogging and don't do it nearly as much as I'd like. At one point, I was debating about whether I should keep a written list of interesting blog topics. I never did get around to it. Over the last month or two, one topic has been reoccurring and since I had a dream about blogging on this topic last night, I'm taking it as an omen that I should proceed.



Many, many years ago, my mom bought me a green Caboodles makeup case for Christmas. At least I think it was for Christmas. My parents let me start wearing makeup around 8th or 9th grade so it was probably about that time. What is amazing to me is that after all these years (close to maybe 30 years or so) I still use the same case. It hasn't broken or let me down in any way. There aren't many items that you use on a daily basis that you can say that about. Over the years, my makeup collection has increased and I've tried to use my Caboodles case as best I can. I've filled it and the extra stuff I've acquired to put on my face ended up in assorted baskets and stuff. Not as organized as I should be and given the time of day that I put my makeup on, I need all the help I can get.


Somewhere about 10 years ago, I started using glitter as an accessory to my makeup on Fridays. If you are my Facebook friend, you'll know from my Friday Get Ups album that I go all out on Fridays. I consider it part of my public service. As I've gotten older (and of course more wrinkly), I've decided to use glitter on a more regular basis. I'm talking glitter eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara, blush, lip gloss....the whole 9 yards. I think that somewhere I thought that the glitter would reflect light OFF of my wrinkles. Maybe it does, maybe not....but it makes me happy so I'm going with it.


My glitter collection has grown and a few weeks ago, I found another Caboodles case that was purple! I transferred all of my everyday makeup to the new purple case and put all my glitter in the green one. I'm very happy with both. I'm also more organized in the mornings now, so that's a plus too.


Just so you know.........I took a long time trying to load pictures of my two Caboodle cases. My connection is so slow it wouldn't load. Oh well.....maybe next time!


Until next time.....toodles!