Very interesting .......

I must not be! I'll have to think of something more exciting to write about than just my life. I don't get any comments. Sniff ... sniff ......

First cold day!

Not freezing cold or winter cold but cold compared to last week. It got down into the 40's last night and the high today is only going to be in the 50's! So I wore a long sleeve shirt for the first time this season, one with pretty fall leaves on it!

Had company for a few days this week. Big sister came for a little visit. Got to see G'ds new place. And to accompany us to the ER when G'd had an accident Tues night. He cut open the back of his left hand, clear from one side to the other, just busted it wide open. It bleed more than anything I've ever seen. He doesn't remember how it happened but we've deduced that he had to have had his hand resting on the arm rest of the scooter and caught it between that arm rest and the door jam, as he was just entering his apt. when it happened. Took 10 stitches and about 3 1/2 hours in the ER (not sitting and waiting, but being worked on for the most of that time). Was a tedious operation, due to the delicate and fragile nature of his skin and the severity of the wound. They did manage to get it pulled back together and although he'll definitely have a major scar, he won't lose any use of his hand or fingers. He's staying at my house until he gets better, as he needs more assistance with the daily things such as getting dressed. He's a tough ol' bird, never has even had to take a pain pill, just some extra strength Tylenol. When the dr. mentioned he'd have a scar, he just chuckled. Guess after living all these years with a whole finger missing on that hand, a scar won't be any big deal!

As far me, I'm living for Friday night. So I can go out and party? hahahaha! So I can go home, go to bed early and sleep until my heart's content! Can't sleep all day, however. Have a baby shower to go to on Sunday afternoon and have to make .... 1) Mocha punch 2) Curried Chicken Salad Puffs 3) Mini Shrimp Quiche 4) Ambrosia Trifle 5) Sausage Quiche Squares 6) Ham Roll-Ups 7) Chocolate Mousse Tarts 8) Praline Cheesecake Squares. Hhhmmmm ..... did I say I was going to sleep in?? Maybe not. Yes, I actually volunteered to "take care of" the food part of the shower. I think they thought I meant go to Sam's and buy some stuff. Yeah, sure. Guess I'd better get started on all that stuff tonight or I might not get to go to bed Saturday night!

OK, gotta go! Later gators!

AAAHHH, COOL BRISK FALL WEATHER .......

What a RELIEF from the miserable, oppressive heat we had last month, with more than 1/2 the month being days over 100 degrees! It's so nice and cool out this morning, almost chilly!!! The high today MIGHT be 70 - HOW I LOVE IT!!!!! Being able to go outside without busting into a dripping sweat or struggling just to breathe, feeling like you're melting into a little puddle on the hot asphalt, riding in the car with the windows down and a refreshing breeze blowing in on you, instead of sweltering heat that feels like you just opened the oven door and stuck your head inside - what a welcome change this is! Sure makes it hard to sit inside the office all day long. I'm itching to get out and go to the park, throw a blanket & pillow down under a shade tree and kick back with my new issue of Southern Living and just read, relax and snooze and enjoy the beautiful outdoors (not beautiful as in "Colorado scenery beautiful," just beautiful in the sense of lovely, invigorating outdoor weather).
Well, I have company this week. Mother and Daddy came out last Saturday on a spur-of-the-moment plan. I am enjoying the company. And Granddaddy is staying with us this week, too, so they can visit during the day. But it makes me need to go home exactly at 5 o'clock and that's not working out too well with my work load. I had to take some work home with me last night, but was able to do it while sitting in the living room keeping "company" with the family. I did go outside and water my flowerbeds in the back yard. Some of the plants are bouncing back from the damage that the horrible heat caused (the ones that didn't fully croak) and are looking like they might make it now. Still, the beds need an awful lot of work right now, but I just don't have the time to devote to them. Have more company coming Saturday, which I am thrilled about! As mother and daddy are leaving, sister #3 and grandbaby are coming! And nephew and his father-in-law will be coming that night too, but just passing through on their way to the wild desert land, so just spending a night. Hope they feel up to dinner out so we can take them out to somewhere nice and visit for a little bit, otherwise, I might not see him again for a long, long time, as I don't get out to the desert much!
Get to have a new culinary experience today - going to the new CHEESECAKE FACTORY restaurant that just opened nearby. One of my girls' last day is today so I'm taking her and two others out for lunch to say farewell. Will let you know how it is, I've heard nothing but great things about it, except for the long waits because of its popularity, of course.
By the way, just a note of caution regarding something I never even considered would/could happen. Do you use a debit card? And do you use a credit card? And do you keep them side-by-side in your wallet? Well, words of experience ...... ALWAYS LOOK VERY CAREFULLY AT WHICH CARD YOU GRAB BEFORE USING IT TO PAY FOR A PURCHASE!!!!!! Giving the debit card when you meant to give the credit card can end up being VERY VERY VERY VERY costly!!!!!!! Words of experience!!!!!!
Bye now.

TGIF AGAIN!

As you can see, I live for the weekends! 'Twasn't so when I was a happy homemaker! Saturday was just like any other day! But not anymore! They're few and far between, precious as water in a desert and highly prized like a State Fair blue-ribbon winnin' nanny goat! (I know, where did goats come in the picture?) Well, I was thinking of the state fair just while ago and recalled that we walked through all the animal barns with Granddaddy last year and the goats were a HUGE affair, there were thousands of them, all cleaned and brushed and vacuumed and groomed perfectly, why I'd swear some of them even had their toenails (hooves, I mean) polished! So, that just happened to be in my head. Anyway.....
It's been another killer week here at work so I'm ready for a break! I REALLY should come in and work tomorrow because I KNOW that come Monday morning, a certain client is going to call wondering "where are my logs?????" and it won't even make any difference to him that I didn't get his information to print until late Friday afternoon and was already overloaded on work that had come in earlier and ended the day printing 531 logs, he'll still wonder why we didn't get his 93 logs done too! We just can't do enough! Oh, well, I have way too much stuff I need to do at home so I most likely will not make it back in here tomorrow. I can only give this company so much of my life and life's blood before I have to say "enough already!" and consider my own personal life. I mean really, does anyone REALLY care that I give up my precious weekend time to come in here and slave away printing out logs over the weekend just to make some customer happy? No, in the end, probably not. Is it my fault that the f.e. didn't get the information in until 2 days late so therefore the customer will get it late? No, I don't think so.
So, for the weekend, my big plans are ...... work work work around the house! I have SO many projects that I MUST get done in the next 2 weeks, as I'm having some out-of-town company and I don't want them to faint dead away at the cluttery mess I have allowed to accumulate, trying to wait until I can get everything done "just so." So, I'll just have to dive it and do it the best I can and at least make it look good on the surface, something that goes against the grain for me! I have a tendency to put off doing things if I know that I don't have enough time to do it completely and obssessively and perfectly, so I just don't do it at all. Doesn't sound logical, I know, but that's how it is.
Well, gotta go get started on this big wild weekend of mine. First on the list, stop at Granddaddy's and watch Wheel of Fortune and Little House on the Prairie with him. Then, home at 8:15 to get started on the major picking up I have to do before my cleaning girl comes tomorrow. It will help immensely that she can do the routine cleaning (vacuuming, dusting, etc.) while I work on those projects I mentioned!
Talk to you all later! Have a good weekend everyone!

STATE FAIR TIME

The state fair starts tomorrow! Yippee! I love to go to the fair! We have a great fair here. It's nice and clean and big and interesting and fun! It's a good place to take the family (if you have one!) and have a great time! I used to love to go for the rides (that now make me nauseous) and the junk food (that now makes me fat). Now I enjoy going just to stroll around and look at the displays (that used to make me bored), the new cars, the home and garden building, the arts & crafts building, the cooking contests and demonstrations, etc. We like to go out there during the first few days when everything is still new and fresh. It is "fair weather" - it always turns cooler or rains the week the fair gets here. Right now, it's just nice and pleasant. Could be cool at night though. Last year we took Granddaddy out there with us and I pushed him around in a wheelchair for .... get this .... SEVEN HOURS!!!! Yes, my hands were killing me and I was exhausted by days end! But he was having a good time and so were we so we stayed! I kept saying "are you tired? do you want to go?" and he'd say "oh, no! I'm not tired at all, I'm just fine!" Finally, I had to say, "ok, I'M the tired one, we're gonna have to go!" :) I always have to have a corn dog. Too bad a corn dog and a Coke now add up to $6.50, a ridiculous price to pay for that! Well, that was last year, it could be $8 this year! We used to eat a lot more of the junk, like funnel cakes, cotton candy, candied apples, fried cheese on a stick, etc. but now, by the time you eat all that and pay the price for it, you could've had a great steak dinner at Outback or somewhere nice for that amount of money! So we cut that out. I might have to take an afternoon off work on one of hubby's days off so we can go out there and check it all out.

TGIF!!!!

Yea! My second-most-favorite day of the week is here! It's Friday! And a beautiful one, at that! The temperatures have just been awesome this week - pleasant and mild! Something we have not seen for many months! After having weeks and weeks of over 100 degree temperatures, 80 seems like nothing but enjoyable! Yesterday, a paper sales guy came up from Dallas and took us out to lunch. I always get to pick where we go (with the input of my girls, of course) so we chose to go to Bahama Breeze, not so much for the menu, but for their wonderful outdoor patio right on the waters of the lake (we were desperate for a dose of the outdoors since it's been so pleasant outside!). It's a huge white wooden structure with a high ceiling and big ceiling fans, open on 3 sides with big glass windows all around that slide open (and are always open except in the winter time) so that the nice breeze comes right off the lake and makes you feel like you're in a "whole 'nother place" other than in the middle of the city! We had a nice, relaxing lunch and hated to come back to the office. But, we did and we finished up the day and I actually got out of here before 6, a rare feat. Went over to Granddaddy's and we did our usual "Wheel of Fortune/Little House on the Prairie" routine. I'm catching up on a lot of lost episodes of Little House! He enjoys it because he can "relate" to how they did things back then. On last night's episode, old Houston was plowing behind a mule and Granddaddy said "yep, I've done that many a' time! That's hard work!" And then they were reading by the light of an old kerosene lamp and he said "oh, I've studied late many a' time with a lamp just like that one!" I guess it brings back fond memories for him, so he enjoys it, even though he doesn't keep up real well with who's who and what they're doing. He can't remember that Mary is the blind one and Laura is the other one. Or that Almanzo is Laura's husband and Albert is their brother. So, I just explain it whenever necessary and he gets it for the time being.

My helper is leaving early today, about noon, so that puts me in a bind for the rest of the afternoon. This is not a one-man (or one-woman) operation in here and it cannot be done efficiently with just one person. We're going to have to institute some new guidelines in here to avoid this in the future.

My plans for the weekend include sleeping late tomorrow morning (until about 9:30, I hope) and then getting some major projects completed at the house. A couple of weeks ago, I discovered, quite by accident, that the carpet on the east wall of the dining room (an outside wall) was soaking wet, and had apparently been that way for some time, as the bottom of the feet of the sofa table were turning black with mildew!!!! Much to my horror! It was all along the whole wall, about one foot in. So, I had to empty BOTH of those big white cabinets, the ones that contain all of my 250+ cookbooks and all of my special occasions serving pieces and put everything into the middle of the living room floor, so we could move those two cabinets, and clear off the sofa table and take it into the entry way and then pile stuff back on top of it. Then we dried out the carpet with a big box fan and Jimmy worked on the outside wall to seal up any cracks that might be allowing water to come in when it rains. He also used to water the yard over there on that side of the house and sometimes even squirt the bricks with the water hose, so he said maybe water had come in like that, so he will discontinue that practice! Anyway, it hasn't gotten wet in there since, and we've had a couple of rains, so I assume the problem is taken care of. I hope it is anyway. BUT the problem is, all of those cookbooks and those dishes are still sitting in the middle of my living room floor and have been for 3 weeks now!! What a mess! But I don't want to load them back into those cabinets yet for a couple of reasons. First, I want to move those cabinets into the middle guest room, along the south wall. But I can't do that until I unload the shelves that are there now, that hold all of my "craft junk" and miscellaneous stuff, and I haven't had a chance to do that yet. So, hopefully tomorrow, I can start in there and get those shelves cleaned off and get rid of most of that stuff, since I no longer have time to do craft stuff anyway. And then I can move those 2 white cabinets in there along that wall and put that stuff back in them. I've been lucky that no one has "dropped in" on me lately or I'd be highly embarrassed at the mess. It's much worse than normal.

Wednesday was my dear friend Esther's birthday! And I forgot to send her birthday wishes! What a bad friend I am! Well, maybe not a bad friend, just a forgetful one! And a tardy one! So, I sent her a funny e-card yesterday saying I was a rat, a dog, a slug, scum, dirt, etc. and apologized for my oversight! I sure wish she didn't live so far away and we don't get to see each other but about once every 3 or 4 years! :( It's sad! I did see her back in April, when she went to TX to visit her brother, I drove down on Saturday and came back on Sunday. It was a very quick visit but was so great to see her and meet one of her new best friends from Canada.

Well, that's two posts in one week. I hope you're happy! :) I'll try to continue on this way and be a better blogger buddy, since I do enjoy reading the blogs of others, I guess I should contribute a little of my own as well, huh?

Ya'll have a great weekend!

Don't fall off your chair .....

But here I am again! What? You're surprised? Well, good grief, it's only been 6 months since I posted anything! And I must admit, I was "prodded" into writing by someone who needed something to read! :)

So..... let's see, what have I been up to lately? Well, we've been looking at dining room furniture for a few weeks now but haven't found anything that we liked that we could actually afford. There was nothing at Mathis Brothers or all of those other furniture stores down around there (also owned by Mathis Brothers!) that I liked, and there was one set at the Thomasville showroom that we both liked but it's outrageoulsy expensive - wouldn't you know? The 3 pieces (plus 6 chairs) I wanted come to about $8,000, and I just can't bring myself to spend that kind of money on furniture. Even though it is really nice stuff and very well made and would last forever, and be the kind you pass down to your kids and grandkids! It's not like the stuff that they throw together with staple guns and glue in a big warehouse, it's really fine craftsmanship, but I'm just not that wealthy! Then we found some yesterday that was real nice, too, and it was only about $5,500 for that set. It has to be ordered, they don't carry it in the showroom, so I haven't seen it in person, and I'm not going to spend that kind of money until I can lay my eyes on it and then decide if it's really what I want. So, I'm still shopping around. It's unfortunate that I have such expensive taste! But, I'd rather wait and save up and get what I really want, like I did with my bedroom suite, and get a good quality, than get something just because it's cheaper but won't last. We've never had a dining room suite, just that wood & glass table that we've had for the last 21 years, the same one we had in the apt. We got our $100 worth out of it, that's for sure! We sold it for $40 a few weeks ago, to a friend of the lady across the street from us. She was thrilled to have it, so I was glad to let it go. Mom and Dad are going to give us the set they have that belonged to my dad's grandmother, and were going to bring it out on Memorial Day weekend, but that didn't work out, so now, I don't know how long it might be. Could be a year or more before they could manage to get it out here, and I don't think I want to be without a table for that long! Can't have anyone over for dinner! And the card table and folding chairs in there just don't quite do it for me! :) Well, maybe I'll be patient and wait for the furniture from mom and dad. It's "family" furniture, you know, heirloom stuff. We want to keep it in the family, that's for sure.
Yesterday we were going to go for a motorcycle ride, something we haven't done in a very long time, but wouldn't you know it rained off and on all day long!!!! The good thing was that it kept it cool all day, it was a very pleasant 70-something day, so that was nice. We went out to an early dinner at Johnny Carino's and that was good too. Well, I'm back at work today and hubby is off, so he calls while ago and lets me know that TODAY is the PERFECT DAY, sunny, mild temperatures, perfect MOTORCYCLE WEATHER!!!! Aaaarrrggghh! Well, I'll just hope that we have the same type of day on Saturday and maybe, just maybe, we can get the bike out and put some miles on it!
On another subject, Granddaddy really does seem to like it out here but I know he misses my older sister and seeing mother more often, plus he used to get to see the nephew every week (my nephew, his great grandson) because he came over to my sister's a lot, she picked him up from school sometimes. So, now, I'm the only family member out here to come visit him. And even though I go every day, I'm sure sometimes he'd like to see the others come through the door, too! But he's doing very well and getting settled in. Luckily, it was his suggestion that even got us looking for the place, so at least we didn't have to try to convince him or persuade him to do this. But I really believe it is the best place for him, because there is always someone around and close by in case he needs them, whereas at our house, and at my sister's house, too, he was there by himself when we had to all be at work, so he was alone too much of the time. He has a little thing he wears on his wrist and all he has to do is push the button and it summons help for him so someone can be there in less than 2 minutes. They serve him 3 good meals a day, which is more than I can say for when he was at my house! His breakfast was always cereal, unless it was Sat. or Sun. and I was home, and his lunch was usually nothing special, just something to tide him over until I could get home, then I'd try to fix something decent, but it wasn't always a full-fledged "good hot meal." He gets much better food and nutrition this way, and on a regular schedule too, not on our hit & miss schedule. We sometimes eat supper so late, as late as 8:30 or so sometimes, and he just needs (and likes) a much earlier dinner. They bring him his daily medications right on schedule every day, morning, noon and night, so that is a good thing, too. They have activities in the main room by the dining room every day, such as bingo, dominoes, Scrabble and other board games, plus they have a choir, which he wouldn't sing in but enjoys listening to, and they have a church service twice on Sundays and once on Wed. afternoons that he can just walk to, right down the hall in a nice little chapel. The girls that work there are just super. They are so nice and friendly and just make him feel real special. They give them a lot of attention, which I sure am glad for. He gets confused as to what day it is sometimes, even though I got him a big atomic clock that shows the day/date/month/year/ time/am/pm/temp(outside & in) but I guess he forgets to look at it sometimes. So I just call and remind him what day it is and let him know I'll be over later. He spends every weekend with us at our house and goes to church w/ us Sun. a.m and p.m. And he spent the night this Sun. night since we were both off work on Monday. We went to IHOP for breakfast then back to his apt. around 11:30, he thought Jimmy and I should have some time to ourselves, he said, which I thought was very thoughtful, so we did spend the rest of the day together, just the two of us.

OK, Tam, have I written enough yet?

Too busy to blog

Well, I have come to the conclusion that I am too busy to be a good blogger. I probably do have a lot to say and a lot to tell, just no time in which to say it or share it with you.
Things are crazier than normal around here lately and it just seems like they're not likely to smooth out any time soon. I see no light at the end of my tunnel!!! :( I definitely need a vacation! Two months, if I can just hang on for two months, it'll be here!
I don't have time to attend to regular email, much less "specialty" projects such as blogging!
I have houseguests right now who are at home waiting for me to get there and visit with them, but I must wait for these printers to quit before I can even think about going! Last night, it was 8:30 before I got home from work. Tonight will not be that late, hopefully it will only be about 7. I have been keeping track for about 3 months now and it is clear that we are killing a lot of trees in this business. Hope we own our own forests! We are using an average of $14,000 worth of paper every month! And that's just in this room, doesn't even count anything from the rest of this large office! And we spend over $4,000 a month on ink! And the printers we use cost about $20,000 each. Talk about operating expenses - holy cow!!!!!
Well, I must run or I'll be camping out here all night.
Will return when I can but don't hold your breath!

Here I am again!

Well, two days in a row, whaddaya know?? I have enjoyed my Saturday, even though the major portion of it has been spent cleaning house and doing laundry. There was no sunshine today at all so the plan of doing outdoor things did not materialize. My cleaning girl was here today and while she cleans, I clean also. I just clean "other things" and do projects I wouldn't ordinarily have time to do (like clean out the refrigerator and closets, ironing, going through mail and bills, etc.). We have a good time while she is here, mostly just trying to communicate. She speaks no English, well, very little, and I speak no Spanish to speak of! But we manage somehow and things get done. We do a lot of gesturing and laughing and shaking our heads or shrugging our shoulders. I am beginning to recall more Spanish words that I knew a long time ago but had forgotten. I took Spanish in high school, just a few years back (ha!) and could've done OK back then, but since that was 30 years ago, the old memory has faded. But with the help of a translation site on my computer, I can recall some and look up some. But trust me, the translation sites don't necessarily translate accurately. When I try to get the translation for "dust the furniture" (or something like that) it comes back with something like "dirt the furniture." So I have to be very careful or I will have Abelia Bedilia "drawing my drapes" or "dressing the chicken" or something such as that (for you youngsters who have no idea who she is, never mind!). I hope to brush up on my Spanish and maybe eventually be able to actually converse in that language. I have been wanting to really know how to speak Spanish for many years now. Maybe we can teach each other our own languages. She knows a few words now, such as "sister, husband, work, house, pretty, baby, shoes, birthday" etc. Well, I must go now and get a few more things accomplished before Mr. G gets home. Later alligators!

TGIF!!!!!

I am SOOOOO happy it's Friday - you just can't imagine! It's been such a busy week I am very ready for some down time! And for the first time in over two months, I will have the house to myself for the weekend and enjoy some "alone" time! Well, not completely by myself, hubby will be home on his off hours but still .... it'll be peaceful. And the weather is so gorgeous today, if tomorrow is anything like this, I will be in hog-heaven! I can work out in the back yard and get some things ready for planting new flowers and clean up old dead leaves and stuff! Maybe get to clean off the back porch a little bit. Yea! Might even take time to lay in the hammock and soak up some beautiful sunshine and read my new Southern Living magazine. Won't that be great? Oh, yeah!
Our missions conference started Wednesday night and was really great! It being the first night, they introduced all of the missionary families that were here (14 in all) and they all came down the middle aisle of the church with one person carrying a real big flag of the nation they represent, then they each told a brief blurb about their family and how long they had been on their field. We had some great music and then one of the missionaries brought a good message. We didn't get home until 9:30 but it was well worth it. Then last night, we went also but before going we met a couple of friends at Abuelo's for dinner (which was great) then went on. The first missionary we heard speak was from Taiwan. He showed slides and answered questions, in a small group in one of the Sunday school classrooms, before the main service. He and his family have been over there for 16 years. Would you believe he actually knows Mark Lehman, of all things, isn't it a small world after all????? He had nothing but great things to say about Mark. Of course, Mark grew up in that country so it was no surprise when he said that Mark's knowledge of the language was superb! Then the missionary that brought the message was from the Ivory Coast, he and family have been over there for 20 years. We also heard a brief testimony from a single lady missionary who works with the deaf in the remote jungles of Mexico. It was inspirational to say the least. Very moving. Home late again, but again, well worth it. Such a minor inconvenience compared to what these folks go through on a daily basis on the mission field, in some cases.
Well, time to go wrap things up so I can hit the road and hopefully beat the 5 o'clock traffic!
Talk to you all soon!

Don't pay the ransom, I got away!

That's what hubby says if he comes home late from wherever he was (which is almost never!). He is a very on-time person! Wonder what that's like?!
Anyway, I haven't been kidnapped, just unable to post any new news because I've been busy with out of town company. Had the parents here for a week, which was nice. Got to visit a lot. They got to come see my office for the first time (yippee, I'm sure that was exciting!). I did get to show off my pretty, new Louise Dunavant picture that now hangs on my office wall, courtesy of a friend and his wife. It's a nice big one, about 28" x 32" or something like that, nicely matted and framed. It's called "A Greater Memphis" and when people come in and admire it, I get to tell them it's my hometown and that I used to work in "that" building right there (the UP building). The folks headed home this morning and took G'dad with them. He's been here with us for the whole month of February and January, with a 4 day break, when he went back home then came right back so we could go to his sister's funeral. He will probably be glad to be back home for awhile, then will be ready to come back here for awhile. Great that he can do that kind of traveling at 90+ years of age!
Well, it's been a hairy Monday, as they all are and I am about ready to call it a day. Plan to get to bed early tonight for a change! It's catching up with me. And I must get some rest tonight and tomorrow night, as Wed. and Thur. will be late nights - our missions conference starts Wed. and we'll probably not get home until about 9 p.m. both nights. But I'm excited about it - it is always a joy to attend. It is so encouraging and moving to hear and see what the missionaries are doing in different parts of the world. Makes me feel pretty inadequate to see how they turn their whole lives upside down to spread the gospel and I do so little in comparison! God bless 'em!
Ya'll take care and keep in touch. (I think this will be my shortest post, besides the first one anyway.)

Sweet Valentine's Day

And thank goodness, it's about over! It was a very busy day for me, with a lot of work and preparation involved! And since hubby is working til the evening hours, we won't be doing much celebrating for the day. We'll have to do something special another day. Back to the work part - the women's group here at work, of which I am the "leader" - we put on a big, special event for the whole office (which is about 80 people). We decorated the break room with big red cut-out hearts and little red cupids and brought tons of food for them to munch on all day. Our purpose, other than celebrating Valentine's Day, was to use the "heart" theme to promote the annual Heart Walk which will be in April. Our company is big into doing community and charitable things so are pushing for us to have a good number turn out to walk and others to raise money also. It's for the American Heart Association and the funds go to research and development to find cures for heart disease plus on education regarding same. So, Sunday, on the way to church and back (a 30 minute drive each way), I used that hour and my trusty laptop and made several "posters" using my good ol' faithful Print Shop program and we hung them around the room. Last night, after work (and yes, working late) I had to go to the grocery store and get stuff to make my share of "the goods" to bring - I made a huge platter of 7 Layer Dip (w/ equally huge bag of tortilla chips), two cheeseballs (w/ Ritz crackers) and a big pan of butter pecan cheesecake bars (which are quite tasty, I might add). I also brought a meat & cheese platter, but must confess, that I did not make it "from scratch" - I actually bought it "premade!" Gasp, gasp! I know..... that's not like me! :( But I could only do so much in the hours before midnight so I had to cut a corner SOMEWHERE! I also had to come to work on Sunday after church (before going back to church Sun. night) to get started on the workload, since one of my assistants was not going to be here Monday and there's no way I could've even kept my head above water Monday without doing that. Mondays are like getting hit with 3 days work instead of one, since the work keeps coming in steadily throughout the weekend. So, considering that last week consisted of regular work, 2 funerals, one trip to Texas and back, and the weekend consisted of work, church, housework, not to mention last night's marathon in the kitchen, today's "putting on the dog" for the office (67 trips to the break room and back throughout the day to keep things clean and orderly - you know how it is when some slobs come in and drop cake crumbs everywhere and leave them laying! can't have that!)..... well, I am really tired and actually very glad that there are no big fireworks planned for this Valentine evening. I think the extent of my plans will be to stop at the store and get G'dad and cute little decorated Valentine cake (personal size) and take it home to him - he will be very happy with that, then I will call it a day. I can't wait to go get in my pjs and houseshoes and kick back on the couch for some Wheel of Fortune (if I can make it home in time)! Whoopee!!!! What a thing to look forward to! But, man, I do, just because I can RELAX! (You KNOW we have to watch WOF every evening, it's G'dads favorite show! That, and the weather channel, that is!) OK, I realize my posts are extremely long when I read other people's posts and they are .... well, not nearly this long. Am I being verbose?

Have a good one!

One of those weeks!

Well, it's been "one of those." Monday we were slammed at work, which is not unusual for a Monday. Hubby & G'dad were driving back from T County and I knew they wouldn't be here any too early so I decided to go with all of the office compadres to a nearby bar & grill where the office "big cheese" was treating us all to drinks and hors d'oeuvres in appreciation of our hard work which resulted in a record "high" month business-wise. It was nice to sit around and relax and chat (and EAT) with the coworkers. They serve my favorite crab dip so I enjoyed some of that, but unfortunately, we had had a late lunch so I wasn't very hungry! :(
I got home about 2 minutes after H & GD drove into the driveway, they were still unloading the car. As you might know, H (hubby) had taken G'dad home just 5 days before but ended up bringing him back out here because G'ds 95 year old sister passed away on Sunday. So I am taking him down to the funeral in TX. It was originally going to be on Wed. so I called and cancelled Wed morning dr. appt. Also on Monday, an old friend called and HIS dad had passed away on Sunday also and his funeral was going to be here Wed. so I told him I wouldn't be able to attend as I would be in TX. Then I found out AV's funeral was changed to Friday, so without thinking of other funeral I called and got dr. appt. put back to Wed. then found out the funeral that was here was at exact same time as my appt. so had to call and cancel it again. I'm sure they think I am a moron. Took Tuesday off work as a personal day, had anticipated hubby's return home and would've been first time in over a month we'd had any time alone so thought it would be fun to just hang out together, relax, and do whatever we wanted. Also, it was one year anniversary of my hairy appendix ordeal so I wanted to bake some goodies and take up to the hospital to the nursing staff, to show my appreciation for their care. So, I made a crockpot full of Penny's good sweet-n-sour meatballs (with the pineapple tidbits in them) and some German chocolate bars and took that up to them Tuesday afternoon. But since we weren't actually alone, we didn't just go out running around so stayed at the house most of the day, which I did enjoy. I miss my time at home, now that I am working full time + some. Had to put my car in the shop that day for transmission problem so yesterday had to get up at 5 AM (an ungodly hour for humans to be up and about) and take H to work then stop by hosp and p/u my crockpot (and leave some Butter Pecan Cheesecake bars for the day shift people) then got to work by 7:30, left at 8:45 and went to that funeral. By the time it was over and I was back to work at 10:30 I felt like I'd already put in a hard days' work!!! (Car is still in shop and should be finished today - I hope so, or I won't be making it to TX for funeral!) Then found out that AC & UJ were also going to attend the funeral in TX so asked them to stop by and get G'd so he could be there in time for the visitation tonight, as I wouldn't possibly be able to be there before about 11 p.m. tonight. So they are. But I am now thinking I will not even head down there tonight but would rather get up at 4 a.m. tomorrow and leave here by 5 to get to the 10 a.m. funeral. BECAUSE, if I get down there at 11 p.m. tonight, (we are staying at cousin J's house) and she would keep us up talking until at LEAST 1 a.m. then since I would be sleeping on pull-out sofa in living room (not the most comfortable thing I can think of) then when the first person wakes up in the morning for coffee, probably about 6 a.m., then it would be "get up" time for me. So, I figure I can stay here, sleep in my own comfortable bed and get 7-8 hours of sleep and still make it. So, that's the plan for now. Still have to call and get that dr. appt. rescheduled if they'll even take me again! Plus had projects at work that I MUST get rolling on so that's another pressure on my time! I just feel a little ...... out of sorts? .... no, ... flustered? I don't know what the word is but just suffice it to say I don't feel like things are rolling along smoothly like I'd like them to be. People dying really puts a crimp in your schedule sometimes, doesn't it? :) It was not a good week for all that! But seriously, I know AV is much better off now and was very ready to go. I don't know about other person, just pray the same goes for him as well.
Well, guess I should get busy on some of those pressing projects I was speaking of. Sorry such a boring post but I don't have time to be creative or witty at the moment.
Maybe next time it will be more interesting.

Where am I? What am I doing?

I have no clue. I went onto my sister's blogsite to see some new pics and boom! a click here and a click there and now I am apparently "blogging" myself! Kinda like falling in a hole and waking up in the Land of Oz. Spooky! I have no idea what I am doing or why I am doing something that will apparently take more of what precious little time I already have! I must be outta my ever-lovin' mind! But I like reading the blogs of my family members (sister, niece and nephews) and seeing the pics they post and keeping up with what's going on in their lives, even the mundane little details and thoughts and ideas and comments on everything and nothing. So here I am. Don't know if I will ever be back to write anything else but we shall see. Adios!