I'm resolved to NO new Resolution

I'm not making any new New Year's Resolutions this year folks.

I'm keeping last years. *grin*

I have been working on a story and it's gone through the fine toothed comb of three edits. The process is long for me because I've not dedicated myself exclusively to it. If you've been reading my blog for the last few months, then you know what has been distracting me. Initially it was my being a reviewer, then came the crisis with my son. That saga continues. I have an apppointment with an attorney tomorrow BUT that might be affected by the 2 inches an hour of snow predicted for Late tonight into tomorrow morning. My appointment is in the morning. Oh Joy.

My other goal was to lose weight. Lose weight? Hahahahaha.

All I wanted was to lose 5 pounds...I GAINED it. Can anyone say "Stress Eating?"

I tried a new flavor of coffee the other day... Double Chocolate. Can you say "YUM" ?

So, What are YOUR plans for New Years Eve?

For the first time in years, we have plans. We've been invited to my co-workers house and it should be good. We're bringing the wine: Blackberry Merlot.

It has become my absolute favorite. It goes well with food, never looses its flavor and is smooth and tasty. I'm not a wine drinker but I make exceptions for this wine.

I have to make chocolate chip cookies and brownies too...who won't eat chocolate?

BTW - My Christmas dinner was Hot Dogs and Beans. LOL

We ended up not going anywhere because my DH and youngest ended up with colds. The two houses we were to visit on Christmas had people with compromised immune sysytems. We couldn't expose them to germs so we stayed home. Since we anticipated eating well and coming home with left-overs because we always do, we had nothing in the house. Hence, Pork and Beans for supper.

You make the best of things when you have to.

The best thing? Staying in our PJ's all day! And playing Monopoly with my little one for 2 hours. Eldest built a LEGO masterpiece - tried to anyway. It has over 1300+ pieces and he had to stop when he found he had legos missing. Replacement parts are on thier way. The Lego Company is really awesome in customer service for replacing missing parts from their kits.

Anyone have a Wii yet? Three families got together to get it for my kids.

Oh my goodness! It is SO COOL!

My kids were playing the baseball game and begged me to try it out.

Woot!

Mom goes up to bat. Not only do I get all bases loaded, I HIT A HOME RUN!!

My kid's jaws dropped to the floor. Mom is GOOD!

**VBG**

OH! I promised to show you my Cyber-Buddy, Bubba. You know, the cat who claimed me via rubbing on the PC screen? He is SO cute!

Holiday Message

Merry Christmas, Everyone!

May the Spirit of the season bring you warmth, joy, peace and comfort.

May you eat happily, sing gustily, and have plenty of reasons to laugh.

May the day after bring you Alka Seltzer, an ice pack and a foot rub.

May you have plenty of great pictures, left overs and no hangovers.

Whether you've arrived at my blog by accident or design, Hugs to ALL!

I've Been Cyber-Claimed by a Cat

It's true. Honest!

You know Bailey?, one of my blog buddies?

Well, she has four kitties. We both have MySpace IM.

When we chat, we like to use their sound effects, limited as they are.

One that we utilize and which works incredibly loud is the 'smooch'.

We accidently discovered that Bubba responds to my cyber-smooches, muchlike if I were right there calling him.

And last night, I was cyber-playing with Bubba and Bailey said he was rubbing all over the screen.

HE WAS CLAIMING ME!!!

I was so tickled pink! I mean, here I am, a person allergic to cats in general (I pet, hug and get scratched anyway, I"m a glutton)

and I get to play with a kitty hundreds of miles away! And with no sneezing and runny eyes?

How cool is that?!!

Yep, when I MySpace IM with Bailey, I get a Very Big Grin on my face cuz I like sending smooches to Bubba.

Oh, and she nicely sent me the CUTEST picture of the furry dear so I can put in on my computer.

I had a happy moment last night.

******************************************

In other news:

More serious, so you might want to quit reading now if staying in a happy mood is important to you.... because I will now VENT my displeasure.

******************************************

I only sent one Christmas card out - to my little sister.

I finally went shopping yesterday and was ready to drop by the end of it.

It was nice to finally be free of the shackles that bound me for a month.

Son was discharged from the program.

We had an attempted IEP meeting Friday morning.

The school is fighting me.

THANK GOD FOR MY ADVOCATE!!!

The school liason tried their hardest to NOT allow me to have in writing my request that my son be allowed to be in a special program even in light of the fact that he is NOT to return to the only program they're willing to put him in upon his return. There are NO supports for him there. Yet they claim that what they have is enough. Is it geared towards teaching children with Aspergers? No.

But still they claim it's 'enough'.

NOT!

Anyway, back to the special program - we requested that he be allowed to be entered into the SCIP program for 8 weeks. They declined. Said that they couldn't, that it wasn't possible.

My Advocate forced the issue, reiterating that I still wanted it in writing that I requested it and they very reluctantly allowed the formal request to be included on the IEP meeting summary.

In the meantime, the LLP program they have him in is all they'd offer.

Oh, I take that back; they generously offered a tutor to come to my home for 2 hours a day in place of schooling.

Like THAT IS A SUPPORTIVE EDUCATION FOR A CHILD WITH ASPERGERS WITH SOCIAL SKILLS AND MEDICAL ISSUES?????

That is their bright idea for him while THEY come up with a plan to teach him. No time line given to accomplish that BTW.

So, like, I'm supposed to lose time from work and he lose ground in learning for what - Weeks?? while they see if....Grrrrr, I am NOT able to be gracious with my wording the more I think about what went on in that meeting.

What I find disturbing is that their offer came after they admitted that they do NOT have the ablitiy to provide everything we asked for that WOULD give him the education he needs. AND deserves. I'm supposed to be OK with that.

Because it's the holidays, my hands are tied.

The fact that the psychotherapist that helped us so much is gone - on an emergecy medical leave of which no one knows if he's alive or dead and have had no contact with since this journey started - is causing a major stumbling block.

I have to find a NEW child psychotherapist AND child psychologist. And I have to do it yesterday. The school demands letters and info from a therapist I no long have and one yet to be assigned.

It's a very difficult position to be in right now.

The unknowing, the uncertainity, the feeling that I will possibly have to miss work and my child's educational needs are sorely not being met and will continue to be unmet because my child won't be allowed back to school come January 2nd, is daunting, disturbing and frustrating.

And I think I rambled and perhaps wrote out of sequence, sorry about that. But I'm venting, writing as the thoughts come to me. Sharing my fears and worrys.

How the heck have other parents gotten the educational compliance they need for their children with Apergers?

Is it like this in every school district?

Doesn't anyone anywhere OFFER services without a price in blood and migraines? Not to mention serious funds having to be invested in pursuing what's best for our children.

*sigh*

It's the Christmas season; a time of miracles and hope.

I need both, but I'm also willing to work for my child to make it happen.

HUGS to all parents out there who have to deal with similar issues.

How do you keep your sense of humor alive???

If you read all this, you need something to pick your mood back up...here you go.

*******************************

Help! Get me Outta Here!!! I don't wanna be clean for Santa!

And if you want to see a pic about what said disgruntled kitty could DO with dear old Santa..click here for this cute pic!

I wanted to actually HAVE the pic, but it wouldn't load.

LOL

TTFN!

Holiday Fa-La-La-La Folly

This is a lament. No cards sent. No shopping done. Almost got hit by a car when my vehicle slid on the snow and ice, propelling me into the street, into the path of an oncoming car. The same day, went to work in my heavy clunky boots and forgot my shoes. Had to walk bare foot at work. That same day, was the holiday party at work. I remembered at 9PM the night before that I needed to make brownies. So, I was up late. Said party, I refused to attend. Barefoot with a wrinkled shirt? A shirt that I thought was OK in the light of my home but in the glaring flourescent lights of the workplace, looked like I slept in it? The same day, DH's brakes failed. Yesterday I almost hit a tree at the bottom of my driveway. A BIG tree. I was saved by the snowbank I got stuck in. I looked to my right and spied a UPS truck parked in the driveway next door and a UPS guy was looking at me. I watched him get out of the truck and as he's heading over, I think, "Oh, how sweet, he's coming to help me." I rolled down my window on the passenger side just as he walked up to my window. I opened my mouth to say something but whatever it was popped right out of my head when the UPS man leaned over and popped a PACKAGE through my window and said, "Hey, thanks for waiting!". WAITING? I was stuck! I just narrowly missed a TREE. Men. On top of all of that, Eldest is getting discharged from the program this Friday. I called the school to set up the re-entry meeting which will actually be an IEP restructure session and was told they'd do it after the new year. WHAT? That is not appropriate! Without a program to go back TO, what use would his going back to that school be without an academic program to meet his needs? I fought. I got an IEP meeting for Friday. Called my advocate. My academic commando. My firecracker of a guide. I have a meeting with her tonight to make battle plans to fight for my son. That means I have to get all my documentation in order. I had to chase down the OT report - it was never forwarded as promised. I spent an hour and a half in my cellar looking for documents from three to five years ago. Never thought I'd need them again, you know? **sigh** At the meeting yesterday, I was informed that when my eldest was four years old, the neurologist supposedly put in his report that my son did NOT have Aspergers. At FOUR. I never knew or saw that sentence. I wasn't even there for that but for his epilepsy! (He had had multiple seizures just after he turned four years old ) The school had put it in their reports and now I have to find that neurologist report they quoted from to find out in what context that statement was made. Then I was told by the neurologist's office that I need to come in and sit down with the medical records department head and sift through the records MYSELF. I have to do that today and my boss was counting on me being there one last day to tidy up things before I'm off for a week and a half. Can you say Chaos? Can you say Stress? Can you say Why now? Why does it have to be so hard? So convoluted? So Crazy when this time of year is inherently crazy to begin with? Fa la la LOOPY That's me. Wish me luck, please. I think I may need it.

12 Inches!!!!

Yep, we got our first major snow of the season.

If you click on the pic it should enlarge.

Why would you do that?

Look at the snow coming out of the CHUTE. It looks like it came out like a solid ribbon and is shattering in the air!!!!!

And all the sparkles in the pic?

Light reflecting off of the snowflakes that are STILL falling! Pretty- yes? Best thing? Being inside while it's falling and swirling like inside a snow globe.

Worst thing? Having to drive in the aftermath tomorrow and HOPE that I make it back up our driveway.

It IS beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

*grin*

It was pointed out to me that I TOTALLY FORGOT THE BIG NEWS FOR ROMANCE READERS!

Humans Suffering from Elevator Syndrome

I've noticed an interesting human phenomenon during these past few weeks while taking my eldest to that program.

I've mentioned before that the program is in a locked down facility, right?. You need a code to get in AND out.

Us parents/guardians have to enter a waiting room which is actually a part of the hallway - the separation is made by huge metal doors. The hallway becomes a room slightly bigger than an elevator and is partially soundproofed.

My observations are driving me barmy. Why? Because I want to TALK. I want to say something. But I believe even a simple "Hi" and eye contact would result in dragging these people kicking and screaming out of their comfort zone.

Seriously.

No one makes eye contact.
They ALL stare at the floor - men and women alike.
It is so silent, you can hear the whisper of fabric while the people fidget and shuffle their feet on the berber carpet.
It's very eerie.

The ceiling must be enthralling - everyone stares at that too.

I lean against the wall and make it a point to look at every one there. No one makes eye contact. No one smiles. Heck, they hardly even move!

If, say, someone leans against the emergency exit (no alarm sounds) and accidently opens the door with their back, they will quietly chuckle, briefly make bashful eye contact, hurriedly shift to a safe spot and hunch into themselves and/or angle themselves away from the person who've they made eye contact with.

I've been the one they avoid because I'm the one watching, daring to breach their visual personal space. I can't help it. The Elevator Syndrome fascinates me.

When their child is brought through the program doors, they can't herd themselves back into the hallway fast enough.

I don't get it.

In essence, we all are there for the same reason.

It's a curiosity as to why they exibit as being uncomfortable and awkward.
There is no reason to deny the situation, their reality.
Hey, it's my reality too.
Nothing to be embarassed about.

Have any of you experienced the Elevator Syndrome OUTSIDE of being in an elevator?

Where and what, if anything, did you find amusing?

Or is it that I have a perverse sense of humor?

Marmite

I just tried Marmite for the first time today. You know, the British Version of the Aussie Vegemite?

This is a picture of the exact product I bought.

I spent $6.79 U.S. for 4.4oz or 125g of the stuff.

It said to "spread a thin layer on toast".

So I did.

This morning.

Amazing texture - almost like molasses, looked like it too.

What was my reaction?

Projectile Spitting.

I've heard it's an acquired taste. They're right. No questions, no doubts, - they ARE right.

I had put a swipe of butter on the toast beforehand, did that make a difference?

I might try it again without the butter to see if it does.

It also suggests "as a treat" to have it with a bit of cottage cheese on a "crisp bread", whatever ever that is.

Is that a CRACKER?

I may do that.

Just to give the stuff a fair shake - or should I say, a fair spit?

Have YOU ever tried this stuff???

What was YOUR reaction?

HOW does one acquire a taste for this stuff anyway??

Or maybe I should ask, WHY?

LOL

Crash and Burn

Did you ever have a day where the end didn't end? When you stopped moving but your head kept spinning? Where you looked back and asked "Where did it go?"

Surely in a day like that, something happened that you wished it hadn't, or that you could have done differently.

See my hand raised? Today counts as one of those.

I was up just after 5:30AM. Why? Your guess is as good as mine. I certainly didn't want to be up before the sun.

I had stayed up late (12:20AM) to try to get in most of the latest in the Black Dagger Brotherhood Series by J. R . Ward - I finished it ...well, that comes later, but before I forget, I will go on record as stating that all the hoopla about Vishous and Butch is silly. I totally "got" what J. R. wrote and enjoyed the story as written. One line by Butch says it all; connected the feelings and emotions and made it plausible and solid.
How did everyone miss that?

Anyway, today was work.
At work I got a call. My son is now being treated for depression on top of Aspergers.
No. I'm not surprised.

At 8 yrs old he was diagnosed but there were so many things going on at the time, what with his epilepsy, ADD and med changes - the depression wasn't deep enough to medicate.
The next two years had teachers mentioning the word, but never followed up.
They wrung their hands and cooed yet no real red flags went up.

During those years, the epilepsy changed. It morphed from a single location to engulfing his entire brain. Neurologists are seeing more of that phenomenon and they don't know why.

Again, medications were being tweaked and blood was drawn. He's an expert now, doesn't even flinch.

We needed a calm period - a time for no changes to see, really see him as his is.
That came this year.

So, it came to pass that he has Aspergers, which as of last post, you already know.

But the depression has followed him and hasn't changed. Praise Be, it has not gotten worse. But, it's gone on long enough. We now have clinical proof in addition to the historical proof that it is real.

He'll start new meds tomorrow.

Then,

From work to home
Race to trumpet lessons
Race back home , Cook supper but no chance to eat..put it on low and rush out again to bring youngest to the library.
The Paws For Reading Program started tonight and he got to read to the cute black and white dog that does tricks.
Rush back home, inhale two tacos
Rush out to the book reading by John Robison.

Yep, I made it. I went and I'm now the proud owner of his book AND it's signed. Woot!

I didn't have too many questions. Heck I didn't ask a one. I sat there and absorbed.
I found myself smiling at his stories but I don't think I LOL'd in a robust manner like I'd heard around me. I envied that. I was so into listening that my response seemed dulled.

I did raise my hand as the last person to pipe up. Told Mr. Robison that my son was diagnosed last week and how listening to him, hearing what he had to say, was a light for me.

And you know what? I felt like I crashed and burned. I knew that I'd get all flustered and hot in the face. I raised my hand anyway. And I felt my comments to be so ineffectual.

So, I got in line to have my book signed. A first for me. It was kind of cool but I still felt like a fish out of water.

Upon my turn, I had a two pronged mission. First to clarify the one piece of advice he shared that I felt would mean the most to my son. There was so much to take in but this one thing struck a chord for me.
I understood right, so now I have a new goal to set and reach.

The second was a bold and brash thing to do.

Previously, I had told my favorite librarian, Jennifer, the coordinator behind the Paws for Reading program, that I was going to attend my first book reading and why and her eyes lit up like an excited and hopeful kid.
She hurried into her office and came out with her business card, gushing about how wonderful it would be if Mr. Robison could speak about his book and Aspergers to our community. AND would I ask him and give him her card.

ME??? Me, talk to someone up-in-coming-famous and ask him to consider speaking at our library?
Isn't there some kind of protocol to follow for something like that?
Heck, I don't know, but for Jennifer I'd do it.
I did it.

Crash and Burn.

I have my book, my memories of a moment in time not to be forgotton. Just to make sure, I'm here blogging about it because this is one day, as crazy and filled with life as it gets, that I don't want to forget.

A Smile, Aspergers and Education

Thanks to everyone who entered my poll. I am So glad to see that I'm not the only one that burns pans and things BUT I'm the ONLY one that burnt a soda bottle.
Figures.
:-)

*****************************
Just reporting that Santa was in a Jolly mood over the weekend. I was freezing my tuckas off while he was cracking jokes and Ho Ho Hoing - must be because the frigid temps and slicing icy winds reminded him of the North Pole. For the first time ever, Mrs. Claus was in the house. She was a delight but- Man!!!! She looked like she ate half a dozen batches of her own cookies!
ROTFL

They both were a treasure and my kids had no qualms about listing the few items on their lists.
Wouldn't you know it, the items were all electronics. My, how times have changed.

******************************

As far as Education? I went to a presentation last night that featured a group of mothers who shared with standing-room-only attendees, thier trials, joys and successes in raising children with full blown Autism and Asperger's Syndrome.

The height of the evening was when the lead speaker, a man named John Elder Robison spoke.
He has Asperger's and has written a book called Look Me In The Eye. I WILL be reading his book. He was a fantastic speaker and he taught me a few things in relation to my son. He gave advice that only another Aspergian would be able to give. He gave me hope and showed that a sense of humor is necessary in shoring up my low levels of patience when I'm facing a moment of not understanding when a behavior isn't intentional but a sign of the syndrome. My emotional response is to be...well, emotional. Hysterics teach nothing and will get me nowhere fast. I need to learn where my son is coming from - what HE sees as going on in that moment because when I do, I'll understand that he's no where near the same page as me. He's forcing me to think "Out of the box", if you will. And some of the greatest thinkers of our time and times before have all thought that way, garnering civilization with advances and amazing leaps in mathmatics, technology and understanding of our world.

THAT is what I need to remember. I need to remember those mothers - I need to remember Mr. Robison; that Aspergians CAN succeed in life, there IS a healthy future in front of my son AND not to be so concerned with what he can't do, but on what he CAN.

I saw those moms do it last night and I need to do that too. Going to the program last night was the first step of many on a road to knowing my child.

And, I'm taking you readers along for the ride because education of this sydrome is not just beginning for me, but for society as a whole. You'll be hearing more and more about Aspergers as time goes on - there are more undiagnosed adults than you can imagine -and that blows me away.

Lighten the Load

I have this urge to bring a little lightness to my blog.

Gee, I wonder why?

I heard the CUTEST song today on the radio - Dominic, the Italian Christmas Donkey.
If anyone has heard this one, isn't it a riot? Today was the first time I'd ever heard of
it and I couldn't get over the originality and humor of it. It's better than Grandma Got
Run Over By a Reindeer.

THANKS TO JUDY I HAVE A short LINK TO SHARE WITH YOU!!!


Please enjoy - I"ll have more cerebral conversation later!

Gee, did someone ask for a change ?

I know, it has been awhile.

I have news:

Not great news.

Three things have transpired to affect my day.

First, my son was diagnosed with Aspergers syndrome. He is considered high functioning but it has made an impact on his life - not in the positive.
Other than that, I have NO idea what that means.
What I DO know, is that it will take us on a different journey into understanding our child.

I called the school. Found out his special teacher has been fired.

Then a call was placed to his therapist and found out he's on medical leave until early 2008!
No idea why or who is taking over the case load.

It's just been a dandy day.

Last night...well, Brandy and Marianne got to hear all about that.

I was torquing my body from washing machine to dryer with a load of towels. Just as I dragged the final towel from the washer, it caught on the spout of the opened laundry detergent, and you guess it, knocked it right off the dryer and onto the floor.

Bam! Whoosh!

An upswell of soapy, slimey liquid covered one entire leg, my shoe, the freshly cleaned towels, the dryer, the floor, the other innocent laundry baskets ... basically everywhere except the ceiling and wall.

I had to RE-wash the entire load, extra rinse for all that extra soap I mopped up and had to wait until it dryed to put in the other load that I needed to do, which was supposed to have been the LAST load.

Then! Then! at 11PM, I found out that the Towels didn't dry all the way!!!!
Another 30 minutes waiting!
At Midnight, I finally was able to put my poor head to bed.

It should have been 10PM...NOT 12AM.

Now I have to wonder..was that the start of some bad karma or what?


So, now you have an update .... And I most certainly wish I had something funnier to talk about , but this is a major emotional roller coaster...and I'm just getting on the ride.

Ouch.

Wish List

Have you started your wish list?

I have.
Not for the family, or for what you THINK you should wish for on behalf of others, but for YOU.

I want a can opener. Yes for me ... my wrist is killing me! I need a new one.

I want a dust eating Gecko. Truly, a critter than can walk vertically up my walls to grab and gorge on all the cobwebs from the corners of my vaulted ceiling is worth his green scales in gold! Never mind all the dust bunnies behind the refrigerator and on top of open topped cabinets. Why wouldn't you want one too?

I want a makeup mirror. You know, the kind that manipulates your reflection to show you JUST how to apply the right color and swipe of the brush?

That's just for starters.
So, What do YOU want?

Oh, and I have a Lori Foster fan who wanted me to spread the word about her review she did for a book that has a story from Lori and other authors that she's excited about.
What are friends for, right?
See Bailey's review


And to top off the smiles....





SMART ASS ANSWER #6 -- It was mealtime during a flight. "Would you like dinner?" the flight attendant asked John, seated in front. "What are my choices?" John asked. "Yes or no," she replied.

SMART ASS ANSWER #5 -- A flight attendant was stationed at the departure gate to check tickets. As a man approached, she extended her hand for the ticket and he opened his trench coat and flashed her. Without missing a beat, she said, "Sir, I need to see your ticket, not your stub."

SMART ASS ANSWER #4 -- A lady was picking through the frozen turkeys at the grocery store but she couldn't find one big enough for her family. She asked a stock boy, "Do these turkeys get any bigger?" The stock boy replied, "No ma'am, they're dead."

SMART ASS ANSWER #3 -- The cop got out of his car and the kid who was stopped for speeding rolled down his window. "I've been waiting for you all day," the cop said.The kid replied, "Yeah, well I got here as fast as I could." When the cop finally stopped laughing, he sent the kid on his way without a ticket.

SMART ASS ANSWER #2 -- A truck driver was driving along on the freeway. A sign comes up that reads, "Low Bridge Ahead." Before he knows it, the bridge is right ahead of him and he gets stuck under the bridge. Cars are backed up for miles. Finally, a police car comes up. The cop gets out of his car and walks to the truck driver, puts his hands on his hips and says, "Got stuck, huh?" The truck driver says, "No, I was delivering this bridge and ran out of gas."

SMART ASS ANSWER OF THE YEAR 2006 -- A college teacher reminds her class of tomorrow's final exam.
"Now class, I won't tolerate any excuses for you not being here tomorrow. I might consider a nuclear attack or a serious personal injury, illness, or a death in your immediate family, but that's it, no other excuses whatsoever!"
A smart-ass guy in the back of the room raised his hand and asked,
"What would you say if tomorrow I said I was suffering from complete and utter sexual exhaustion?"
The entire class is reduced to laughter and snickering. When silence is restored, the teacher smiles knowingly at the student, shakes her head and sweetly says,
"Well, I guess you'd have to write the exam with your other hand."

Ba-dum-bump. LOL

Have a wonderful weekend All!

How did it go?

How was your Holiday?
Did you enjoy yourself?

I ate some of everything! The greenbean casserole, the broccoli casserole, the butternut squash, mashed potato, sweet potato, orange glazed carrots, turkey(dark meat), bread stuffing, black olives, snowflake roll, cranberry sauce - I passed on the pickle beets and meat stuffing though.

For desert, we were offered,
pumpkin roll with cream cheese filling
pumpkin pie
chocolate cream pie
apple pie
vanilla ice cream

I ate only a thin slice of the pumpkin roll and chocolate cream pie with a side of ice cream.

Most everyone else had one of everything!

We stayed longer than we usually do and that was really nice. My neices are great and I can't believe how much they've grown!
Of course, the gameboy competition was held...sheesh, that is so absorbing for this generation.

The youngers went out side and played tag and kick ball while the elders traded Pokemon and battled.

How times have changed, and yet, not. Guys still gather around the TV watching football and talk politics. Women clean up and talk about medical conditions. Have have to ask...WHO Has more fun?

ROTFL!!

Happy Thanksgiving to all my visitors

I hope you have a peaceful and fun day with family and friends and that no one succumbs to

playing with their food!

Silly sayings

I was driving past a lake and the temperature shifts made a fog/mist cover the water like gray ghosts on parade.

My eldest says" Wow, look at that! It almost looks like a mist!"

My Youngest says, "Yea! Scary mist ... Rated R!"

Tell me television commercials don't influence kids. Sheesh. That was a reference to a recent ad seen on TV about the lastest , I can only assume, slasher flick.

Then, at supper, youngest asks with all earnestness, "Why can't roosters hatch eggs on a roof? Because they roll off?"

We had to explain to him that Roosters don't , um ... lay eggs. Hatching isn't an issue for them.

You never know when the birds and bees will strike, do you? *grin*

****************************************************************

Imagine the following:

You have just made it through your wedding ceremony and have stepped out on the front steps of the church.

The photographer raises his camera. Following a family tradition, both of you hold white doves which you will release together.

You and your new spouse stand shoulder to shoulder, each with a dove in your hands, as your friends and family eagerly wait.

The photographer gives the signal and you both open your hands toward the sky.

Not a dry eye anywhere, the camera flashes; the moment is saved for eternity...



(You think the doves are going to poop, don't you?)

The Motto??

That's why fit is soooooooooo important!!!

ROTFL

The highlight of my weekend

Have you ever had a surprise that came out of no where that made an impact that you know will affect you years in the future?

Eighteen hours was all it took to make that a reality for me.

Have you ever entertained the thought: What would you do if you had a chance to meet a blog buddy? Would you meet or pass?

Eighteen hours was all it took to make that choice a real decision for me to make.

I chose; MEET.

They were the fastest two hours of my life.

I met Marianne, the Operations Guru at LASR - Long And Short Reviews.

She was delightful, funny, gracious and no longer VIRTUAL! *gg*

Just think, if not for blogging, this would never have been possible.

What an amazing time to be alive.

I hope some day everyone has at least one beautiful experience just like mine to remember into their golden years.

Don't you?

A Bumper Sticker

Today on the way to work, I saw this bumper sticker for the first time.

Wiccans are Spellbinding People.

That has to be a first for me. It was on a huge fire engine red pick up truck with "manly" stickers all over the tail gate.

So out of place.
Or is it?
**************************
So, who watched Moonlight this evening?

This one was more active and well done. The bad guy was creepy and perfect in fangs.
I didn't care for last week's, with his ex dead undead wife come back as human because he toasted her to save Beth all those years ago and for some reason that purging by fire remade her human.
I have to say, HUH?
Next week they're going back to that Coraline thread and I am NOT thrilled. Give us a real doozy of a curve or conflict or antagonist. Drop the Bitch for good and give us a more original villain.

And Mick? He sure is handy with a sword. So Medieval ... So authoratative, so romance book hero worthy.
And did anyone else get the feeling that the "blood" he was drinking was actually GRAPE JUICE? It sure looked like it to me.
**************************

The romance book site that caters to those of the erotica line is up and running.

http://whippedcream2.blogspot.com/

Check it out.
They're always looking for reviewers. Remember that if you ever read a romance book that inspires you to want to share.
It's a crime to keep silent about those.
***************************************
Well, it's true.
They finally said the dreaded four letter word. I hoped this year would be like last year, but nope. They said it.

SNOW

**shudder**
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Did I tell you that my camera was either lost - fell out of my pocket book at the band concert - or Stolen - out of same pocketbook - at the band concert.
I am extremely bereft.
I bring a camera everywhere because you never know when that perfect moment will occur.

It obviously is going to be perfect for someone else.

***********************
That's all the update.
Have a great Saturday and Sunday!

Third Floor Blackout

Yesterday was wild!
Our building lost power, even the phones.
So there we were, stuck on the third floor. Thank goodness no one was in the elevator!

The odd thing? Even without power, there was still noise. Beeps from alarms, and a strange humming from somewhere inside the building.

Faint light from the emergency lights didn't do a thing, especially when you had to go to the bathroom. It was pitch black in there. But the bladder didn't care about any of that. You know?
And no one had a flashlight.
What to do??

CELL PHONE TO THE RESCUE !

Yep, open cell phone and work fast. LOL

We still don't know what caused the outage, but by the time my work day was over, the power was back up and faxes and computers were humming.

And I discovered a new use for my ER cell phone.
Guess it was an emergency.
*grin*

Review Time: Seducing the Mercenary

Today I have a guest Reviewer visiting me. She LOVED this book and really wants to pass the word along. So, Please folks, enjoy reading Bailey's ode to a new Fav of hers.


Seducing the Mercenary
By Loreth Anne White
Reviewed by Bailey Stewart

The book was done, the last page read and yet I sat there holding it in my hands, unwilling to let it go. The sounds of the neighborhood slowly emerged from the jungle in my mind; I had been so engrossed that they had been shoved back into the shadows of Ubasi. Usually when I like a book, I jump up immediately and write the review; but not this time. I want to savor the feelings that still pour through me; its story holds me in its grip. What to say, how to articulate the sensations brought on by Emily/Emma and Jean’s story; the emotions that still hold me tight.

Ubasi, an African nation in the middle of turmoil, its tyrannical leader Souleyman ousted by Jean-Charles Laroque, Le Diable, son of the merciless Peter Laroque. Emily Carlin is a psychologist who works for the Force du Sable, a mercenary group that has been commissioned by the U.S. to help Souleyman regain power. She’s an expert in tyrannical pathology, alpha dogs as she calls them. Her job is to determine the best way to control Laroque, whose rise to power makes the U.S. uncomfortable because he can not be controlled as easily as Souleyman. The adage, better the devil you know than the one you don’t, comes easily to mind. Emily has to identify the dictator’s weaknesses in order to help the FDS devise their strategy; do they take him prisoner, or do they assassinate him? She has one week to find out.

Jean-Charles Laroque, a man with a mission, distrustful of everyone. Burdened with the legacy of his father’s cruelty, he must deal with enemies on all sides. Betrayal is dealt with quickly and ruthlessly. How will he handle the duplicity of the woman that he not only let into his castle, but into his heart.

Wildly Zipping by

I don't want my blog to get stale.

I'm here only to change the words.

I got a thrill went I went to the library tonight. I found a 7 DVD box set of the WILD WILD WEST TV SERIES!!

I loved that series.

My cousin and I would call each other on the phone and gossip about what we had just watched. It was FUN. Made for great memories too.

Loved Dr. Loveless, what a great villain. He may have been small in stature but ginormous in creating wicked and devious plots.

Look at that wild eyed enthusiasm!

Of course, even as young as I was, I had the hots for Agent James West.

The man with the cool shoes that

predates Get Smart's gadgetry.

At least West's shoes were lethal.

I mean, he was the MAN.

The Alpha.

The male with the charisma to charm even the most jaded lady's petticoats up and off.

Just look how he dressed ... short waist coat to frame his flat stomach and what had to be a nice chest covered in fine fabrics.

Only the best for the bestest spy in the West.

*gg*

LOL - did you know its debut was in 1965 - I was so cute back then. *wink*

I can't wait to share with my kids the wonder that was the Wild West.

What TV show or Series are you excited to share with YOUR family from your youth??

A Rumor

Did you hear about a new review site that needs reviewers?

Truthfully, I think there's quite a few sites out there.

But there's one on Blogger that kinda touches base on the kind that I like, romantica.
You know, romance stories with situations that push the envelope past mainstream and topple into their own body of steamy and volcanic waters?
They have the mandated HEA which qualifies for romance but along for the ride is more adventurous explorations in the expression of physical love.

The alphas are bit more alpha; the paranormal embraces the need for three lovers to handle the powers of their universe; a little tie me up, tie me down to test the boundries of trust between the main characters - all of these additions enhance, not detract from the story and plot.

I refer to the supreme mistresses of this literary art: Emma Holly, Lauren Dane, Jaci Burton, Shelly Monro, Robin Schone and Jaid Black - just to name a few.

This is a new site and lots of input is still needed.

Gee, did I forget to mention something? Oh yea, that's right - you might want to know the Blog's name, right?

Whipped Cream

Cute title, eh?

Are there any readers that visit my blog that might be interested in reviewing romantica books for this site? Print or Ebooks. Although, truth to tell, I don't see as many Romantica books in print as I do in Ebook format. It's changing, but not fast enough to suit me.

I'd love to hear from you.

I mean, a bunch of posts down, I did one for a story I read by Kaitlyn O'Connor that I simply gushed about. I'm thinking this is going to be a perfect spot for me.

So, I'm game, how about you?

Gotta make up for the shock

Seems my last pict-o-man was shocking to one reader.

I was told she didn't like hairy men. LOL

Gee, I thought it was a clever depiction of the point I was trying to make.

But I understand her POV and I feel bad I made her eyes water. Well, she said something else, but I'm going to tone it down. *snort*

To appease the tender and sensitive eyes of my trusting reader(s), I'll post some Pict-o-man bandaids...

I like to call them, Inspirations for Heroes ... since she's a word sorceress. From my perspective, one can never have enough ingredients for the bubbling pot of literary brew.

So, Am I redeemed?

Moonlight cliche and twist

OK, raise your hands if tonights episode started to sound like Charlain Harris' Sookie Stackhouse series. First book was it, or second?


::waves hand:::



Moonlight put its own spin when it was Lola {{...and how many of you started singing the Kink's, LOLA, when they said that name ...}} who was doing the dirty deed to other vamps. The interesting twist was the silver.


Remember the old movie, COMA? Or how about the scene from the original series, Battlestar Galactica?

Seems we, of the shivery stomachs, don't like thoughts of naked people being "harvested"by being laid out in vats or restraints while their bodily innards are sucked out or utilized for something other than their own survival. Anyone catch that cliche? Does it still work as a vehicle for horror? If so, then I guess it worked here.


However, when Beth wakes up 'the day after', it was incredibly like a scene out of a romance book. I could hear Mick's thoughts ...

"Beth looks damn good wearing my shirt."

Classic, absolutely classic scene.

Dare I add,

"She belongs in my shirt, she belongs with me."

That gives me a nice shiver. *grin*



Remember, he's easy on the eye.But why do women get to wear the man's shirt but guys can't wear the woman's?
Oh yea ... the shoulders don't fit.

Well, who says they have to button them?

Darn, that's right, it's a T-shirt - too tight.

Hey, wait a minute, what's wrong with that?



Oh.

A Fungus that puts the Stool in Toad

Alright, I'll admit - this is a VERY strange title. Then again, look at the picture! It's a very strange example of fungi.

Hmmm, and WHY do they call it Fun-Guy when there are no fun guys around?

Well, I can't really say that, I had my family with me and they can be very fun, but we're not talking animal kingdom here.

Have you ever seen a large Toad Stool? That's what I think it's called when they are this big. Can't call it a mushroom because I see small wrinkled gray things popping up in my head with the word, mushroom.

Now, Toad Stool, that's a word of grand proportions.

And what about Toad the Wet Sprocket? It should have been Toed, but I guess it sounds like they were a little too daring with electricity and got a bigger kick than expected so they stuck to making hit music and changed it to Toad.

Where was I? Oh yeah, Toad Stools. So anyway, driving along, my DH slams on the brakes and says,

"Did you see that? Did you see that huge mushroom?"

This, from a man who never notices I changed the shower curtain or lightened my hair. He STILL doesn't know that I've lightened my hair.

So, he does a U-ey, I get out with my camera - I always have my camera with me - and I take pictures to prove it's the biggest mushroom (he says) /Toad Stool ( I say) that we've ever seen.

But I have to ask, What KIND of toad stool is this? Why did it grow so big? Can you eat it? What conditions bring about such a large fungus? Why is it yellow on the outside but white on the inside? Why is the center brownish in color? Why are there dots all over its surface?

Unfortunately, I don't think I'll EVER find out. What are the odds a fungi expert will ever see THIS blog?

Happy Halloween!

Went first round last night celebrating Halloween at my kid's school.
Tonight is the BIG one.

I hope all of you have a wonderful time with however/whatever you do to celebrate this sweet and spooky holiday.

Most of all, Stay Safe!

Hugs!

Haunting Mists - Holloween's Harbinger

These shots are not too far from my street. Early in the autumn morning, fog drifted in whorls of dancing ghosts streamed across the lake, onto and over the road before me.

I grabbed my camera and took pictures: the top is from the my left, the second is smack in the middle and the bottom pic is to my right.

I wanted to give you a bit of panoramic view of the fall colors barely peeking from behind the rising ghosts of moisture. Pretty, yes?

Remember to click on the pic so it can load to a larger, more detailed image. Enjoy!

Halloween Inspiration

We did it! Carved our pumpkins. Last year we ran out of time. The year before that, we forgot.

This year ALMOST didn't happen.

Seems this year's weather is the pumpkin's enemy.

Most of them are on the ground, rotting. My DH bought three good sized ones on Wednesday

so we could have them for today. By Friday, they were rotting out from the bottom and sinking into themselves.

Yes, he checked them before he bought them, but you can't see what is going on INSIDE the fruit.

And they were not cheap! So, yesterday in the pouring rain, we went back to the farm and asked to exchange the rotting pumpkins in the back of our car for solid ones.

The lady who answered the door was snippy to my DH and told him, "Just do what you have to do." {{HUH?}} She turned around and went back into the house. She didn't want the rotting pumpkins back.

So, he roamed around and around, picking up the pumpkins and trying to make the best decision. So we now have three imploding pumpkins probably only good for seeds and three carving gems.

I will tell you, it's not fun to carve outside with frigid winds ablowing through your coat as if you were in your shirtsleeves.

Brrrrrr.

We did it, though. Want to see? Two were templates we got off of the computer and one is from a design my eldest drew himself. Isn't that cool? Can you guess which pumpkin design is my eldest's???

Bear With Me

Lately, I've been beary absorbed by bears.

Specifically, Black Bears. Which aren't black. They are LOTS of colors. See?

This is a Spirit bear, NOT a Polar bear. The Spirit Bear is a Black bear. Isn't it Gorgeous?

Did you hear about the lady who got bit on the butt? NO? LINK

My co-worker has a remote camera-feed attached to his house. He has it aimed at a deer feeder at the edge of the woods. Bears LOVE to investigate. They don't eat the pellets, it's just fun to play in them; tossing the pellets to the ground, pounds at a time. Sometimes the feeder is a victim too.

He showed me a clip of a sow and her cub. Momma bear was determined to investigate the whole thing, even though it was lashed and bolted and harnessed to the tree. She ripped that sucker off in seconds. Their power is immense!

The cub had the poop scared out of it; all you could see was it's hiney hightailing it out of there at the crashing sound of the huge bin.

It was pretty darned funny to watch and, they move at warp speeds!

No wonder they say you cannot outrun, climb or swim a black bear.

Even an adult bear can climb a 75 ft tree in seconds. As you can see,they don't need branches to use as holds like us humans would.

Pretty impressive, yes?

Grizzley's can't climb trees or so I've read.

Also, neither can you play dead with Black bears because they eat carrion. You will look good regardless.

You can play dead with a Brown bear or maybe a Grizzley, but not a Black. Did you know that?

Good thing the Black bear is, for the most part anyway, a laid back and easily startled creature, PROVIDED no one was stupid enough to allow them to get used to humans as a food dispenser.

I'm getting more interested in them because their population is growing. Sightings are becoming more frequent, even in the suburbs. I think it's really important to find a way to live with them BEFORE they are commonplace. LINK Mostly because once they figure out that you had food for them once, they'll keep coming back.

Persistence, thy name is Black Bear. Don't believe me? Look what Google found for me.

CUTE, yes?

See what I mean?

As much as I enjoy this photo op provided by this very acrobatic bear,

the truth is, this type of behavior will someday cost it it's life.

And that's what I"ve been learning. There are times during the year where bird feeders need to be put up responsibly or not at all. The human and bear contacts will always have one result ; the bear will die.

And it's not fair to THEM. Just because we want our photo ops does not give us the right to endanger them. And justify it by claiming "But they endangered us first!".

WE are the humans, the higher intellect and the stewards of the Earth. And the Black bear deserves that same respect.

And those are just some of the bare bear facts.

*****************************************************

YES I WATCHED MOONLIGHT TONIGHT!!

Oooh, ICK!

My DH was funny. He said, "I thought you had to kill a vampire with a stake through the heart."

LOL!!!

Um, nope, decapitation works quite well too.

And when Beth confronted him about his avoiding her, she's like Hello... "I FED you!"

That is such a funny line.

LOVED IT!

Did you see the PREVIEWS for next week? Tell me they didn't read any Sookie Stackhouse books. I dare you.

It's sooo there!

Amazing Photoshopped picture

This is rated: Spooky









With Halloween coming up, this pic I found by accident is perfect. It truly embraces the holiday spirit. Darth Vader never looked so ... cute?





The caption should read





"Surprise!"





I think someone who is politically humorous would come up with a better caption but I don't do politics per se.
This hit my funny bone juuust right.
How about you?

Plants gone wild

I am a bit tired. Recovering from lack of sleep dealing with a recovering little one.

So...here are a couple more pictures of ... plants.

Fall has some lovely colors this time of year. Everything has matured and bees are buzzing like crazy, trying to get all the pollen they can from the last of the autumn blooming flowers.

Enjoy! and Happy Monday to you!

Picture Perfect Weekend

I decided to knuckle down and write this weekend. I received my last batch of edits over two and a half weeks ago and for one reason or another, namely life issues, I never got around to doing them.

The past few days I found tackling them to be therapeutic in a way. I have so much going around me that I can't control, delving into Addi-baby's world is one that I can.

I was up until 1AM writing. There was no reason to attempt to go to bed earlier as my youngest caught a virus that has a history of producing fevers of 103.9 and higher - much higher. I'm glad he topped out at 104.1 but still, the fever induced nightmares were not a joy to deal with last night.

So, I wrote. A short story that from beginning to end stopped at 2,300 words has now morphed into a longer 6300 word short story.

I read about other author's spitting out eight to ten pages of story every day and wonder how they do it? What is their hourly total when all eight to ten pages is written? It blows my mind.

I see how much time it's taken away from house, kids and general living and I'm only talking about 2, 000 words. I can't fathom how it impacts other's lives when they produce so much more.

Will the words come fast the more I write? Is it because I'm a slow typer? Too much of a perfectionist when I should be only writing? Why does it seem time escapes so quickly when I'm immersed in trying to get words out of my brain and onto paper or keyboard?

All, I know is that I finally did the second batch of edits and am pretty pleased on not only the suggestions and guidance I've recieved, but how it is shaping the story.

What wonderful people I have helping me!!

And yes, I DID catch Moonlight this time. I absolutely appreciated the fact that they did NOT use the "bite that immediately heals" technique. It was more real to see her still bleeding, that it hurt and yet was willing to do what needed to be done to save him. I'm thinking these people who wrote this series must have read Christine Feehan, Laurell K. Hamilton and even Charlaine Harris to get the feel that this series seems to have.

If so, and with research like that, maybe this series won't tank after the first season.Keeping my fingers crossed!

Oh, and the pictures? Also from that Salt Marsh Walk I went on when I vacationed on the Cape. I like sharing pictures, don't you?

Wrong Choice about Wine

I HAVE to shout and Spout about this.

I just saw on the news that WINE makers are dragging their feet about deciding whether or not they should disclose the OTHER ingredients in their products, namely; water, oak wood chips, and, get this ...EGG WHITES!!

I'm steamed on behalf of ALL the LTA (Life Threatening Allergy) sufferers out there who are allergic to egg.
Who would EVER think there'd be EGG in Wine?

They'll never have a chance to die from drunk driving or cirrhosis of the liver; one sip could do the deed within seconds to minutes - depending on if they're anaphalactic.

One 'Wine Writing Expert' claims that the disclosure should NOT be put on the bottles because it will "clutter up " the label. Clutter up the label?

WTF?

Good Cat Hunting

I've heard of a dog on point, but never a cat!

LOL

Isn't it purty? This lovely kitty was at that wedding I went to. All the females at the reception gravitated towards this furry feline to pet and admire it.

I think this clever cat has a good thing going, don't you?

BTW- I say 'it' because I never...um... looked to figure out if it was a girl kitty or a boy cat.

I was thinking ... a guy could take lessons from that scenario at the reception. Have a cute animal and girls will flock to ooh and ahhhh, then it's up to the guy to win some points or hit a foul ball in the game of amour.

Now, this pic is a SPEAKING pic.

What does it say to you?

To me, it says, "I'm too sexy for my fur."

*GRIN*

What I did on my Mini Vacation

Yes, you got it in one. Went to the shore.

Walked the salt marsh.

Took LOTS of flora pictures.

Enjoyed the sunny weather.

Ate lobster.

Wrote more on my story, in the spacious bathroom no less. *grin*

(as weird as that sounds, it is VERY hard to concentrate and write in the same room while Spongebob, Ben 10, Jimmy Neutron and other assorted cartoons are blasting. )

Bought black licquerish strings... I like candy I can play with and then eat.

Played mini golf where I got, get this, THREE holes-in-one. I kicked DH's butt.

**snicker**

Gotta toot my horn whenever I can because I played a rare Excellent game. I guess I wasn't Blonde that day. *gg*

All in all, it was a glorious break from the stress that has lately spiced my life like an ill-placed Habanero.

So, did anything interesting happen whilst I was gone??

BTW- Does anyone know what THIS is???

It looks puffy like seaweed yet was growing in full sun amongst the salt marsh grasses.

I couldn't get near it to touch because it was too far and I'd fall into the brine, or stagnant DEEP crevices of the marsh. So, I used my telephoto option as far as it would go. Can you see the detail enough? Enough to identify this very strange plant kissed with the color of autumn??

In any event, sure is pretty, yes?

Have a great Monday, all!

Hiatus Time Again

Not much to say because I don't have the time to say it.

I'll be having a bit of a rest for a few days, so don't expect to see this blog change. I know, it will be boring, sorry about that.

I went to my library book sale last night and purchased five Audio Books and 29 print books.
Even Lightening by Dean Koontz, upon vigorous recommendations by Marianne and Judy.

Once I read it , won't be able to say I've never read him because I will have.

I hope you find yourself some good reads whilst I'm away.
I hope that the weather cooperates whereever you are.
I hope that if you win the lottery, you'll remember me monetarily. **GRIN**
Well, I can dream, can't I??

Have a terriff Weekend everyone.

Drives me Buggy

I came home from work the other day and there on the foundation by my back door was, what I thought anyway, a carpenter ant. A REALLY BIG ant.

We've had battles with them before but never this late in the season and NEVER such a huge size.

When I walked closer, I noticed it was a bit piculiar. I had mail in my hand so I used it to flick it off of the foundation and onto the ground. It moved FAST!

So now I am wondering,

What is this bug???? Can anyone identify this creepy crawlie?

I really would like to know if this is related to the ant family in any way. What can it harm? Is it harmless?

I was afraid to let it crawl on my hand. But not so afraid not to get some interesting shots so I could identify it. Except I can't figure it out.

Does any one research Bugs? I'd LOVE to know what this is.

BTW - if you click on the pic above it loads bigger so you can get a GREAT idea how the body is segmented and the brilliant blue/black color of its body.

If I wasn't so nervous about it biting me, I'd be fascinated.

HOW does seeing this bug make YOU feel?

The Next Day

I'm officially a year and a day older. Yeah.

Today was crazy!

We had a wedding to go to at 1PM and before that I needed to clean the house, go food shopping so the sitter and my kids had munchies, come home, make Ham and Pickle for their lunches and then get my new duds on.

The sitter arrived while I was still sprucing up the bathroom.
I finished, threw on my new clothes I got from J C Penny the day before ( ON SALE) and we went out the door.
I felt confident that I had the card, the $ for the gift and the most important thing, the directions to the church.

Well! Wouldn't you know, unseen by me, the directions had fallen out of my purse and were still in the house. We were about 3 miles away when I went looking for them and found they weren't there.

That's when the shit hit the fan.

Seems I'm PMSing and I didn't realize it.
My DH and I don't really fight ... we argue but we're basically civil about it. Not today.
My ADD antics got to him today and it was bitter and angry and very UNcivil.

When we got back home, I raced to where I had my purse on the table and sure enough, there were the directions as plain as day.

I grabbed them, hugged the kids again and off I went.

At that point I was pretty emotional. I Hadn't forgotten them. I Hadn't Messed up. It was a simple ACCIDENT that could have happened to anyone.

I said, "it was an accident, it was right were my purse was. The paper fell out."
The response wasn't what I expected or appreciated and I let loose.
I did something that in 22 years of marraige I'd never done.
I screamed at my DH.
Literally screamed.

"I wasn't WRONG!!"

Needless to say, the drive was quiet after that. I won't tell you what we said to each other but profanity was never used.

I am not sharing this for you to take sides and say "Awww, Michele" .

No, I'm saying that God still works even when you are angry at yourself and you feel like shutting the world out. You can't keep HIM out.

He works when you least expect him to.

He was working overtime today.

Seems I, due to procrastination, sent in the reply late so my friend had to find a place for us to sit since the seating arrangements had already been done before my reply was received.

We ended up sitting with the BEST people we could have sat with. The people we NEEDED to sit with.
Turns out that this couple has been married for over 35 years and SHE also had ADD.
After questions and answers vollied back in forth it became crystal clear that I have the same issues as her. She has the same problems as me.
We were and are kindred spirits.

She was God send, a gift.

I almost was in tears to hear that the things I do, or in my case DON'T do are inherent in my condition and are not because of laziness, or defects per se and most certainly are not done to be contrary to my very organized and structured husband.

We ranged on topics from our house needing cleaning after our cleaning, our laundry battles, our procrastination tendencies, our forgetting meals in ovens or defrosted food in microwaves, or the fact that we both, BOTH are on the computer a lot more than our husbands are comfortable with. And BOOKS...she's worse than me. Her books have taken over half her basement! I've 10 years to catch up. LOL

The point of this is that after meeting and talking to these people, my husband felt better able to cope with me and I felt better about me.

When I'm PMSing, I am very sensitive and emotional. To say that I was on the road to a depressive episode today is an understatement. I think it's been about a year and 1/2 since I"ve been on one and Praise to God, this one got derailed by being with people who not only understood but are THERE in a way regular folk who have no dealings with ADD could ever understand.

What started out as Hellish kind of day ended up life affirming and positive.

And, I feel loved.

These past two days have been an emotional rollar coaster. Yes I had a wonderful birthday yesterday, but you also know what stressful episode snuck in to keep it interesting.
Here comes today. I was at a low point but now am on the upswing.

You never know what you're going to read when you come to visit me on my blog, do you?

Have yourself a good Sunday and remember, things ALWAYS find a way to get better - because you have someone up there who loves you.

Birthday Girl

That ME!


Today is VASTLY different than last year.

This year, my boss cooked me a CHICKEN dinner at work!

I had roasted chicken, Acorn squash, new baby red potatos and CAKE!! a Lemon Cream Cake!

I had LOTS of spicy and delicious Comments on my MySpace.

My MOM sung me Happy Birthday on my answering machine.

I had wonderful outpouring of well wishes from my LASR family.

I had Awesome and cute E-Cards from my blog buddies.

AND the BEST thing that happend ot me???

A nice gentleman burned rubber and had smoke POURING from his rear wheel wells as he slammed on his brakes in order to avoid killing himself at a high rate of speed if he'd connected with the back end of my van. He swerved and did some amazing side of an embankment driving in order to miss me. What would have happened to me? I wouldn't be here typing. My kids would not have had anyone to get them off the bus. No one would have known about my catastrophe.

So see? It was A GREAT gift this stranger did for me. He controlled his out of control car enough to leave us both unharmed.
I pray to God that he doesn't make the same mistake again on that stretch of road.
The next person may not be so lucky.

Of all the gifts I could receive on my Birthday, safety is the best.

Wouldn't you say?