Time, time, time

This summer has flown past!

It started out a little slow, but then it gained huge momentum.

The Boy is now officially a Boy Scout and, boy, are those guys busy. Meetings every week, camping, food. A bunch of them just got back from hiking in the Black Hills and on Sunday, a different set of them (The Boy included) are heading up north for a week-long camp. This will be his first parentless Scout camp. We bought a nifty new Coleman cot and I now get to pack and pack and pack everything up for the trip.

Last week, he was at church camp and Shorty was away at Army camp for the past month. They are now both home and we are still trying to get caught up on the laundry!

Yesterday, I chaperoned the school band to the amusement park. It was fun, but it is hard because I like the roller coasters and big thrill rides and The Boy likes the smaller, less thrilling rides that go round and round. I can't do round and round. I ended up not riding much just so we could spend more time letting him ride the things he wanted. Oh well, I guess that is what parents do for their chirrun.

I have to finish writing a grant, work on a video presentation for a memorial service and get a package in the mail today. Boring, but needs to be done. That will free me up next week to party like a rock star!

Woot!

Ha!

I used to shave on Mondays, but now we weigh in on Fridays and since I wear shorts....

Are you a redneck?

I got this in an email and just had to pass it along. Enjoy.

You might be a redneck if: It never occurred to you to
Be offended by the phrase, 'One nation, under God..'

You might be a redneck if: You've never protested about seeing
The 10 Commandments posted in public places.

You might be a redneck if: You still say 'Christmas'
Instead of 'Winter Festival.'

You might be a redneck if: You bow your head when
Someone prays.

You might be a redneck if: You stand and place your
Hand over your heart when they play the National Anthem

You might be a redneck if: You treat our armed forces
Veterans with great respect, and always have.

You might be a redneck if: You've never burned an
American flag, nor intend to.

You might be a redneck if: You know what you believe
And you aren't afraid to say so, no matter who is listening.

You might be a redneck if: You respect your elders and
Raised your kids to do the same.

You might be a redneck if: You'd give your last dollar to
A friend.

Wow

Hey there. It's been a while. That darn Facebook is taking away all of our time together. I would say that I will try to do better by you, but we all know that's pretty funny right there.

We had a scare with one of the dogs. We pretty much thought he was dying. Seven different medicines later, he's better, but still not 100%. They think he has Erlichiosis. It is a tick disease our vet has never diagnosed in his 30 years up here. Imagine that. He talked to a vet in San Angelo, Texas, and got the diagnosis. Thankful for that.

Everything else is pretty much the same. Still bowling. The Boy is still in Scouts and taking piano lessons. He did join band at school and is learning the trombone. Doing pretty well, too. The Commander is still going to community college. Still cussing the computer out on a daily basis. Oldest Boy is still at Iowa State and hanging in there.

What about you?

Questions

I'm borrowing this from Andria. I may even borrow some of her anwers just to show that, even though we have never met, we think along the same lines!

1. What curse word do you use the most?
Andria says...
I have to pick a favorite? I work in profanity the way artists might work in oils or clay. It is my true medium.

I say...
This was me when I worked. Now I don't have much of an opportunity to let it fly. I did say, "sh*t" the other day. I was alone though so it was sort of a waste.

2. Do you own an iPod?
I have a mini and an iTouch. The iTouch is used to watch movies on the go and to check FB and email when the computer is occupied. Also? I can kick butt on Bejeweled with it. I use the mini when I remember it! I just charged it the other night so I could take it to Sleeping with the Dinosaurs. One of the Scout dads snores like crazy. (I heard him during a camp out last year.) I'm hoping I can drown him out with some Nora Jones.

3. Do you still remember the first person you kissed?
Yes. And the second!

4. Would you rather take the picture or be in the picture?
Andria says...
I would love to be in some pictures so my kids will remember what I looked like, but no one else in this house will ever use the camera.

I say...
Amen, Sister!!

5. Has anyone ever called you lazy?
*I* call me lazy.

6. Has anyone told you a secret this week?
Nope.

7. What is the first thing you notice about someone to whom are attracted?
Eyes, shoulders and butt.

8. To what are you looking forward?
To when people can end a sentence in a preposition without shame!

9. Do you own any band t-shirts?
Rolling Stones, Harry Connick, Jr. and Riders in The Sky. Can you tell my taste in music varies?

10. When is the last time you slept on the floor?
Last year at Sleeping with The Dinosaurs at the museum. (If by "sleep" you mean tossing and turning on the floor, curling up on a three foot long padded bench, and finally resigning myself that sleep wasn't going to happen.) This year, I've got my air mattress and battery operated pump ready to go!

11. What did you do last night?
Went to eat pizza at Jake's, tinkered with my new Nook, watched Modern Family and had a pretty good night's sleep.

12. Do you get along better with the same sex or the opposite sex?
I've always gotten along with guys. I was a big tomboy growing up and I still have a lot of that lingering. I worked closest with guys at my two real jobs. It was like having a butt load of brothers! That is one of the big things I miss living up here. No guy friends. I miss my boys!

13. Who was the last person to make you mad?
Hi Husband!

14. To whom would you want to be tied for 24 hours?
Andria says...
Does an extra soft king size bed with 1000 thread count sheets count?

I say...
Sweeeeeeeeeet. Can someone bring me food?

15. T or F: All’s fair in love and war?
Andria says...
No. Just because I want to say no.

I say...
Exactly.

16. What’s something you’ve always wanted?
I don't know. I'm pretty good with what I have. More money is alway nice. (Money can't buy happiness, but it can take you places where you can look for it.)

17. Do you enjoy spending time with your mother?
Yes! I love my mom!

18. Do you want a bright yellow ‘06 Mustang?
How about a blue '08 Sebring convertible? With heated leather seats and a remote start?

19. Where is/are your best friend(s)?
In Oklahoma and sitting across from me.

20. Would you rather swim in the ocean or a lake?
I grew up swimming in lakes so I'm gonna have to go with the ocean.

And now for something a little more upbeat.

1. It's 2AM and you are not home. You are more than likely:

Somewhere else. (This is pretty easy so far.)

2. What's the last thing you spent more than $100 on?

The disaster that was the National Bowliing Tournament (Tourney, plane ticket and hotel. I could have bought a fancy new mattress!)

3. What do your bank checks look like?

They're rectangular. And were free.

4. Where did the shirt you are currently wearing come from?

It was a used t-shirt swap from Swapbot.

5. Name something that will be on your Christmas wish list:

I would like a new mattress.

6. What color is your toothbrush?

White and pink.

7. Name something you collect and tell us about it.

Dust. You can write your name in it, just don't date it.

8. Last restaurant you ate at. Who were you with? How was it?

Los Agaves. Me and the family. Good as usual.

9. Who was the last person you bought a birthday card for?

I'm into the whole rubber stamping thing so I make homemade cards now. And I can't remember that far back.

10. What is your worst bad habit?

I recently acquired a twitch in my left arm when I drive. I don't know why and I'm trying to stop. (Is that a habit?)

11. Name a magazine to which you subscribe?

How about the ones I want? People and Readers' Digest. I actually get Mad Magazine and M@rth@ Stew@rt's Everyday Food (Shut up. It was free. I hate it.)

12. Your favorite pizza toppings?

Ham and Pineapple or Pork Sausage and Jalepeno.

13. Whose number were you looking up the last time you used a phone book?
Why? What did you see?

The Dogs' Inn. I needed to board the dogs. I saw their number. Duh.

14. Other than family, who is the person that you love most?

Love love or like love? No fair. I'm not taking sides.

15. What is the last thing you cooked?

I'm making meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans and garlic herb biscuits as I type this!

16. Name something you wouldn't want to buy used.

Underbritches.

17. Which shoe do you put on first?

I don't play favorites.

18. What is the last thing you remember losing?

I can't find my set of keys to my husband's vehicle. They'll show up.

19. What is the ugliest piece of furniture in your house?

I like everything in this joint, but I guess I would have to say the sofa in the basement that has the one cushion that Scotch decided to make a meal of. It has a slipcover on it so you can't really tell.

20. Last thing you bought and ended up returning?

Nothing in a long time.

21. What perfume/cologne do you wear?

I have been spritzing with Bath and Bodyworks Sensual Amber. I don't think they make it any more, but SprawlMart has a knockoff.

22. Your favorite board game?

Sorry!

23. What was the last board game you played?

Sorry! or Spongebob's Life.

24. Where did your vehicle come from?

Johnson's of Enid, Oklahoma. As did the vehicle before it.

25. If a movie was made about your life what would the theme song be?

Bobby Brown's That's My Prerogative.

26. You're sad, who can cheer you up easily?

Vinny.

27. What was the color of the bridesmaid dresses of the last wedding you went to?

Uh....the bride wore white. I don't know. I don't pay attention to that stuff.


28. What house cleaning chore do you hate to do the most?

Dishes!


29. What is your favorite way to eat chicken?

Sitting at Eischen's with my friends. And with a side of fried Okra with Ranch for dipping.

30. It is your birthday. You hope the cake is?

Not chocolate and has that crazy good Crisco frosting like they used to make years ago.

Don't let me interrupt your interruption

I'm not as forgiving as I used to be.

I used to get interrupted every now and then and I suppose I was just used to it, but lately, that nonesense has worked my nerves.

Just recently (and this happened MORE THAN ONCE! with various people, both young and old), I was talking to person "B" and out of nowhere, person "C" would start talking to "B" and then "B" would turn to "C" and totally leave me hanging.

I felt like yelling, "Hello! I was talking here!"

We teach kids (for the most part) to not interrupt and to wait until someone is finished talking before they ask a question or put their two cents in. And while many kids grasp this concept, it isn't sinking in for some and for some adults, if it did sink in, it fell out the bottom.

So what should I have done? Waiting until they were finished talking and complete what I was saying? Waiting until they were finished and refuse to continue what I was saying? Jumping in on their conversation to let them know how rude they were?

I started thinking that I was just boring people to death and they relished the interruption, but then I remembered what a brilliant personality I have and realized that wasn't the problem.

R.I.P. Black Dog

I killed a dog tonight.

I was driving down the highway out in the middle of nowhere, doing a little over 55 MPH (Thanks Iowa! for giving me great gas mileage.) and I noticed a dog sniffing around in the ditch on my right.

I was getting ready to turn off of the highway, so I started slowing down while looking at the dog. I was saying to myself, "That dog looks like (The Commander's cousin Joe's dog) Sammy. But it doesn't have the white tipped tail."

When all of a sudden, Not Sammy made a bee-line for the other side of the road. I barely had time to slam on the brakes and no time at all to swerve. I hit him dead center. (No pun.)

He looked like an adolescent dog. Medium sized. Gangly. Sorta doing the "yup, yup, yup" gallop across the road.

I looked in my rear view mirror and didn't see him. I thought, "Great, he's stuck under the car." (Not really cold hearted. More like OH NO!)

Then I looked in my side mirror and saw him come to a floppy stop on the opposite side of the road. I wanted to stop, but I didn't want to stop. Know what I mean? I ended up not stopping. I was on my way to take The Boy to piano and didn't want to be late for the first lesson with the new teacher.

The Boy glanced over at me and said, "What was that?"

I told him I hit a dog.

He didn't say anything for a while. Then he asked me why I looked so sad. I told him that I was sad for the dog and sad for the owners if it had any.

He didn't say anything for a while, then he reached over and patted my leg. "Was he dead?"

"I think so."

"What position was he in when you hit him?"

"He ran out in front of me."

Oopsie. He didn't know I had hit a live dog, he thought I had ran over an already dead dog.

I'm still sad. I have never done that before. I have been in the car when my dad hit a dog, but I have never been the driver.

It isn't pleasant.

I lied.

But not intentionally.

I had every intention of staying off the computer while I was here in Oklahoma, but since I have been up for two and a half hours and my parents are pretending to be teenagers by still sleeping, I decided I have watched enough GMA and read enough of my book, Sherryl Woods' "The Inn at Eagle Point" (love Sherryl Woods), have had my Cheerios (Cheerios or Corn Flakes, thanks boring cereal parents.) and a few sips of Pepsi, I figured, what the heck.

I'm am almost caught up on my feed reader (Cursing Mama! I see what you are doing! I'm on to you. You'll have to send me your secret restaurant names.) and have checked Twitter.

I guess I'll go back to my book. Oh, and Neil Patrick Harris is in Regis' chair this morning.


WAKE UP, PARENTS!

A quick note

Dear Internet,

I am going to be leaving you for one week (give or take a day).

So I'm asking you to please, please not do anything remotely interesting while I am gone.

My reader has 40 some-odd unread posts as it is and I don't think I will be able to get to them before I leave. (Unless I wake up at 4 in the morning which is highly likely.)

Take care and stay out of trouble.

I'll try to bring you a souvenir. Or send a postcard. Or something.

Love,
Me

I have no words.

This chick JUST NOW CALLED ME BACK.

7:20pm CST.

To make an appointment for TOMORROW at 11:15ish.

Gah.

Miss Manners would not be happy with her. Nor am I.

Sometimes...

...you just have to close your eyes and sigh.

I have to have a physical for a life insurance application.

The nurse called me the other day and asked when would be a good day for her to come to the house to do her thang.

I said Mondays and Tuesdays are best for me.

She said she would call me back and let me know.

She just called me back and asked if Monday the 20th would be good for me.

I replied that would be fine.

THEN! She said she would call me back and let me know what time!

Seriously? Seriously?!

Listen lady, that's not how scheduling works. You have your little appointment book there in front of you. When I say Monday or Tuesday, you find a day you have openings. Then you ask me if that day is okay. When I say yes, then you take your finger and slide it down the page to an open time and ask me if that time would work for me. Then I tell you yes or no.

YOU DON'T KEEP CALLING ME.

I know I'm not the most organized person in the world (We missed the Easter festivities at the city park yesterday because WE ALL FORGOT.), but when you work with the public, you need to have a little bit of a handle on things.

Different colored highlighters are wonderful.

Is your monitor dirty?

Here is a link to an automatic computer screen cleaner.

It is weird the way it works.