Terrific

The weekend was terrific!


My husband is terrific!


My sister is terrific!


The fun we had was terrific!


Antiquing and going to the antique tractor show was terrific!


The 24 hours of a life size dragon were totally terrific!


The Siamese cat lamp my sister bought me is totally terrific!


The gifts and cards and phone calls were - you guessed it - terrific!


Turning 60 - not so terrific....


Although, a friend at work today told me that his old boss used to say, "It is better to be 60 and have halitosis than not to be 60 and have no breath at all."


Is the saying terrific??? Or just weird.....

Florida Welcomes You - Time Does Not

This may be a longer than normal post.

I went to St. Augustine – as you know – this weekend. On the way to that destination – or any destination that I have to take 19 South to get to – I go by an old welcome station situated at the Florida line. It is old, and neglected, and uncared for. And it breaks my heart.

I want to find who owns it, buy it, and restore it to its former glory. A place to welcome people in with a smile, orange juice, a picnic table, and a bathroom. A place that makes them feel glad that they stopped. But I can’t and it makes me even sadder every time I pass it and see one more vine growing up a wall, one more window broken, and one more piece of history fall apart.

You see, I am old enough to remember when welcome stations like this one were alive. Travelers stopped at these places hoping to get a cool drink (orange juice for FL), stretch their weary bones for a moment, eat a picnic lunch, and/or yes, go to the restroom.

These places were a happy respite from the monotony that sometimes came with traveling.

I know you are thinking, “Big deal – they have those now.” And you are right, giant interstate monstrosities that smell of sweat, old vending machine food, and dirty bathrooms. Sure you can picnic, if you want to sit at dirty tables with trash scattered around them from the previous picnicker who was too lazy to make it to the trash can. Oh, let us not forget the diesel fuel smell from the semis. But Florida still has orange juice. Hooray!?

That picture of a welcome station is a world away from the picture of a welcome station from that long ago time that I keep in my head: and not in a good way.

I miss those welcome stations. What am I talking about? I miss that whole era. 

It was a time when people had manners, everyone was not angry at the world, houses could be painted pink and still be upscale (think “Sandlot”), children could go out and play in the neighborhood without their mom knowing where they were every second because there just weren’t that many maniacs lurking in the bushes hoping for easy prey, we didn’t have to check our Halloween candy for hurtful things before we ate it. Life just felt lighter! Happier. Easier. Less frightening.

So, on this trip, I stopped and took some pictures of this derelict oasis of my past. It reminds me of when there was hope in the world. I realized it reminds me of when I had hope.

Where did it all go?

I took pictures of the picnic tables and the building – or rather a picture of side of the building. 

When I went to take a picture of the front of the building, I could not. All I could see when I looked at the front was my face. Both building and person faltering, cracking, decaying, losing itself in vines – losing itself in the years. 

In my mind I could still see what it had been – what I had been – and now I saw how time had ravaged its warmth, its spirit, its joy. In that, I saw me too, and I had to drive away.

Florida Welcomes you Now....the name has been changed to protect the innocent.

Monday Again

Had a GREAT weekend. Too bad it had to slide into Monday and involve going to work. I advocate for a three day weekend and no more Mondays.

Although, I suppose, we would just start to hate Tuesdays in the same manner that we now hate Mondays. I do not want to do that to Tuesday. 

Never mind.

Past, Present, & Future

Tomorrow I will be travelling to St. Augustine to meet up with a very good friend of mine. It took 2 years, but we finally got tickets to go see the Avett Brothers. WHOO HOO!! GIRL'S WEEKEND!!!

Because of that, I am posting for today and pre-posting for the days I will not have a computer handy. Thus the title.

Past: At 2:00 o’clock today in a meeting at work, an enemy was defeated, and an evil, thoughtless, unreasonable, & crazy plan was foiled – for now. It was a small win – but a win none the less. Oh, and thank you son for helping with my homework. I could not have done it without you! Enjoy the candy corn! :)

Present: I am packing and getting ready for the aforementioned trip – while I open an inordinate number of birthday cards from the most wonderful sister on the planet.

Future Friday: St. Augustine! I love St. Augustine! What a cool house from AirBNB! So great to see you Chrissy! I miss you so much!

Future Saturday: Boy we had fun in downtown St. Augustine today! Chrissy is the best. The Avett Brother’s concert was AMAZING!

Future Sunday: Hopefully TBA!!!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Young, Dumb, & Broke

Apparently, this song can spill over to college students too:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPfJnp1guPc


I deal with this every day. I wish I didn't have to.

This is the future........

Too Many Meetings

Today, I have nothing. I had so many meetings today, that even usually non-vocal coworkers commented on the number of hours I was not in my office.

AND - all those meetings could have actually just been an email...

AND - I have such bad internet service at my house, I cannot even get a cute meme to load. 

W.T.F....

Play the Horses

My sister posted a funny post about the cost of things and what she remembers our dad always saying.


https://gracefulgrandma.blogspot.com/2017/10/how-much-is-it.html?showComment=1508174922516#c5536145626877809415 


She almost nailed it too - with one exception. On the rare occasion we went out to eat dad would always say, "You can have anything you want as long as it doesn't cost over a dollar."


I think he said that if we went to the Five & Ten cent store too. (Most of you people don't even know what that is anymore. Think Dollar Tree, only 50 years ago)


No wait, I think the 5 & 10 was our Grandmother. God love her. She would buy us a toy and even put a nickel or a dime in the mechanical horse, or train, or car, or wagon, or spaceship and let us ride for a few minutes.


That is the kind of wealth I thought I would have by now. Like my sister, I thought that by the time we reached this age we wouldn't have to worry about every nickel, or dime, or horse, or spaceship. We would have the 'Ride the Mechanical Thing at Any Price' kind of wealth.


I was wrong. So now I tell myself that I can have anything I want as long as it doesn't cost more than a dollar.


Here's to spending big...

Just By The Hair of My Chiny Chin Chin

I almost didn't make it today. Working 2 jobs in one day will do that to a body sometimes.

Thought for the day?

Being ‘over whelmed’ is different than just being ‘whelmed.’ Why is ‘whelmed’ not a word, or a thing, or a place to be.

Definition of ‘whelmed’: A feeling that you have more to do than you have time to complete, but yet, not enough to set you off in a full-fledged panic.

Just too much to do, infused with your own personal small time frame in which to complete it.

Today (and possibly in the future) I am ‘whelmed’ - and I don't know what to do with that.

Prayer

Dear Lord, help me not to be stupid today.

Give me wisdom in everything that I do.

If I do make a mistake, please forgive me,

And teach me not to do it again.

Amen

Rich Praytor

"A Stand-Up Comic Sits Down With Jesus"



4 in 1

You may think I already lost my drive to post daily since I haven’t posted since last Thursday, but really I haven't. I was quite literally driving.

Friday’s Thought – Wow that 6 hour drive didn’t seem to take as long as it usually does.

Saturday’s Thought – There is sooooo much work to be done in my daughter’s new house…and her Wi-Fi is as bad as ours now! Ahhh, country living.

Sunday’s Thought – Red in the morning; sailor take warning. I better get back on the road and get home before the storm sets in – but I want to stay with my daughter. L Also, a lot of rain and wrecks. What a drive.

Today’s Thought – If a chicken and a half lays an egg and a half in a day in a half, how long would it take for a centipede with a wooden leg to kick the seeds out of a dill pickle. NONE – because peanut butter doesn’t come in spray cans!

Think about it…

But wait, what if the chicken WAS a centipede, sort of???

Today, I Just Want to Believe

And for all the years you borrowed
And for all the tears you cried
And for all the fears you had to keep inside

I am the light
I am the dark inside the night
I hear your hopes
I feel your dreams
And in the dark
I hear your screams
Don't turn away
Just take my hand
And when you make your final stand
I'll be right there
I'll never leave
All I ask of you
Believe

https://youtu.be/F_7xevfdixY

All Dogs Go To Heaven & I Hope These People Did Too.

Today’s thought is that I don’t like what I am thinking.


Too much bad juju lately. It is happening to people I know and to people I do not know. There has been too much sadness and death in the last week.

It started with Moose Saturday - not sudden, but unexpected on Saturday. We will miss you Moose.


Then the shooting in Las Vegas - sudden and unexpected. We mourn for all of you.


Next was Tom Petty - sudden and unexpected. We will miss you Tom.


Now, Peeby Doos, my daughter’s dog - sudden and unexpected. We will miss you Peebs.


I am going to have to add another name to another Halloween gravestone in my office.

This has to stop….

Tom Petty

I decorate my office for Halloween every year. It is fun and people get a kick out of it. They honestly believe Halloween is my favorite holiday - but it isn't. Christmas is. 


I never dreamed I would add a name to one of my grave markers. I never have before. But this year is different.

"You belong among the wildflowers
You belong somewhere close to me
Far away from your trouble and worries
You belong somewhere you feel free"

I am not going to lie, this one hurts. I love his music. He was great in concert.


I hope he is resting in peace. I hope he is free. Thanks for the music. You will be missed.

School, AARP, & Midterms

Today I have a midterm. Quantitative Statistics. God help me.


I slipped the AARP in the title because as I was logging in on my phone to use my universities (also my employer) Wi-Fi this morning I noted a strange new addition. "TU-AARP." Now we have TU-Guest, TU-Student, TU-Secure, & TU Faculty, but this AARP version was new. Must be for the 'older learners' like me I surmised. Not so said IT! But I think they were just being nice.


Wish me luck!