"I'm Gonna Kick His Ask" ....

.... and for those of you who have no idea where that comes from, I have included one of my favorite YouTube videos.
You're welcome.



Now that you have watched the above video, you understand where that line came from.

You do not, however, understand why I am using it.
Yet.

That's the line that's been running through my head for most of the month of September.
Well, except that you'd have to take out the k and add another s.
But other than that, it's the identical line.

And who's ask, you might be pondering, am I going to kick?
C'mon.
Really?
Three guesses and the first two don't count.

Never mind.
Some of you are just very bad guessers.

Jim.
Jim's ask is going to be kicked from one end of Heaven to the other.
Yes, I realize that there's no sadness in Heaven.
Not a problem.
I won't be sad.
And Jim won't either.
Just maybe a tad bit scared.
As he should be.

He's a very smart man.
Always has been.
Smart, that is.
He hasn't always been a man.
I mean, many people (including moi) have said that he was born 40, but that's really just a figure of speech.
He was really born as a baby.
No.  Really.
I've seen pictures.

So, now that we've cleared that up .... smart.
Very smart.
And a lot of common sense.
So there's no way in hell, oops .... I mean, Heaven, that he's not up there, knowing what has got to be going on down here:  the longer I am down here (Earth, people .... c'mon, keep up!) without him, having to deal with the crapola (to put it nicely; incredibly, Shirley Temple-ish nicely) with which he, as a very smart man.... and father of 6 .... 3 girls, THREE BOYS (but really, who's counting?) .... left me to deal with ....
the more incredibly p***** off I am going to be when I finally get there.

I imagine he's trying to do a lot of bargaining with God ..... to, you know, either get me up there sooner, rather than later ..... or to make sure his mansion has round-the-clock armed guards.
Oh for goodness sake ..... YES I realize that there's no such thing in Heaven!!  EVERYONE knows that God doesn't keep time, so "round-the-clock" really wouldn't apply.
Sheesh.  I'm not a moron.

What?
Everyone also knows that Texas is like Heaven so don't even think I'm wrong on the armed-guard thing.
Whatever.

I really wish you Peeps would stop interrupting me .... it's getting very annoying.
Not to mention difficult to remember where I was in this post composition.
I'm sleep-deprived, remember?!
Stop judging!!!

Let's see ...... oh, yeah .... me,  p***** off.
Him,  hiding out.

Because here's what he's picturing will happen on JH Day.
WHAT NOW???
Seriously?
Janine's in Heaven Day.
(I can't believe there are so many remedial Peeps.)
Sigh .....

Me:  (arriving in Heaven and bursting through those pearly whites gates) .... "Hi, hello, hi there, oh yes, hi, Grandma .... I'll be right back, I promise .... by the way, have you seen Jim?  Not lately?  OK, thanks.

Oh, hi .... yes, it's nice to see you, too (wondering what her name is, dang-it ..... wait, can I say dang-it in Heaven?  Crap, I just said it twice!) .... OK, people, it's nice to see all of you and thank you SO much for the enthusiastic welcome, but I just need to push past all of you for just a bit.  Sorry, oh .... didn't mean to elbow you there.  Truly.  I'm just on a .... you know .... mission.

What?  Who?  Where?!  Oh ..... oh, ummmm, hi there, Jesus.  Can you please wait a sec?  I'll be right with you. By the way, have you seen Jim?  Really?!  Armed-guards?  I KNEW IT!!"

Jim: not saying anything .... just quaking in his boots sandals.  And praying that those armed guards realize that I'm most likely packin'.

What?  It could happen!

Happy Friday, Peeps.

:)

This Was One Box ....

.... that I didn't even unwrap.

I never cease to be amazed.
At life.
At what comes my way.
At people and what they say to me.
And .... at what some guys think is "attractive" to a woman.

I do not plan to write too much about what I experience on eHarmony.  I want to keep some things private and keep any man who I might "meet" private, at least until he either gives me the OK to write about him, or totally ticks me off.  :)

But this guy ..... Oh.  My.  Word.

For those of you who are lucky enough to not know how the on-line dating thing works .... you sign up, you answer a ton of questions, you take a couple of tests to determine your personality (and the results are amazingly accurate, in both good and not-so-good ways).  Then the eHarmony "gods" decide who "matches" who .... and they send you the "matches".
I have received around 25 "matches" so far.  I've deleted (or thought I deleted ... but more on that later) around half of them, and am "communicating" with the other half.
Today I received a few new "matches".

And one ...... one left me a bit .... well, I'm not sure how it left me.  I guess "speechless" is the most accurate word.
When you fill out all of their questions and tests they develop a "profile" for you.  Everyone sees this profile.  In fact, it's the first thing you see about someone.  It gives their age, height, interests, what's important to them, etc.  It gives them a chance to write a bit about themselves and what they are looking for in a relationship.

So this guy ..... I'm still a bit stunned.
I clicked on his name and his profile came up.  I saw his age, his height, his race, his religion, how much he drinks, how much he smokes (never -- one of my "will not budge on" choices), etc.  He wrote a bit about himself and what he's looking for.  Then I read his interests, what he expects in a relationship, what's important to him .... and then came the part where he writes a bit about himself.  And this is what he wrote, as God is my witness:
"Yada, yada, yada" (you know, the 'I'm sensitive, I like long walks, etc .... the stuff I don't really remember) followed by this:  "I have been told that I'm a very good lover.  I've also been told that God was very generous when he put me together."
Quote.
Unquote.

Now, those 2 sentences may appeal to some women.  I mean, I, and most widows I know, are starved for physical contact .... hand holding, a great hug, and yes .... sometimes we feel starved for sex.
BUT .... and this is a huge BUT .... I did not find those two sentences enticing in any way, shape or form.
In fact,  I think that after my mouth hung open for about 5 seconds, I burst out laughing.  Loudly laughing.
I mean, really.  This was in his profile .... his first impression on a woman.  And THAT'S what he chose to write?!
Seriously?!
W.T.H.???
Again, maybe some women would consider that a good thing.

I, however, deleted that sucker faster than one would have thought possible.

Maybe I'm strange, but I don't want my first impression of a guy to include how "God was very generous when he put me together."
There are some things that are better left unknown .... some things that should remain a mystery.  In my-apparently-very-Victorian-opinion.

I'd rather know if a man prefers cats over dogs than how well endowed he considers himself (or how "others" consider him .... What. Ev. Er.)
I'd rather know if he likes to play tennis.
Or likes to go to movies or sporting events.
Or maybe even .... if he likes to get drunk once a week.
That would have been preferable to .... well, you know.

Am I a prude?
Am I too uncomfortable with my sexuality?
Am I too old-fashined?
Am I too .... old?

Yes, this is all new to me.
And I am less than comfortable with it.
And now .... can you blame me????!!!!

Maybe you can.
Maybe you're thinking I judged him too quickly.
Or that I should have kept that option open.
And been able to judge for myself ..... well, you know.

But I think it's hilarious that a man would think it's OK to include that on his "first impression".
And it makes me wonder ... if God really was generous in putting this guy together .... (snicker, snicker) ...... why is he on eHarmony?
And .... how long has he been on eHarmony?

So there you go .... one box that I didn't even unwrap.
And I don't think that I will ever regret it.
But I will get many chuckles over it.
So I thank him for that.

And then there was this guy ..... a guy who I deleted, or thought I deleted, from the very beginning.
He sent me an "eHarmony e-mail", which is direct contact (still anonymously) which skips over the whole "guided communication" that they recommend).  I thought I had "closed" this match .... cut it off from the start.  But he somehow snuck in an e-mail before I was able to shut him down.  And here's what he said: "I was touched by your love story with your husband.  I am in the process of moving out of state due to my job, so I won't be available for a relationship in this state any longer.  But I wanted to tell you how much your story touched me.  And that you should grow your hair out.  All guys like long hair. Best of luck."

Ummmmm .... shallow much?
I wanted so much to reply to him and inform him that I had previously "closed" him, and that I didn't give two hoots about what he thought of my hair .... but I didn't.  I just made extra-sure that I had, indeed, deleted him.  And then closed my open-hanging mouth.

So, I'm off to a great start, doncha think?!
At least it's providing me, and thus you, with a bit of humorous entertainment.
Again, I don't plan to write about everything, out of respect for the privacy of any man that I may "communicate" with.
But trust me .... if there comes a huge loser, or man who leaves me speechless .... I will certainly share that with you.

I mean really .... why should I keep all of this entertainment to myself?
:)

Happy Thursday/Friday, Peeps.
Who know what/who tomorrow may bring?
:)

Even Though No One Reminded Me .....

..... I shall now tell you the story about the old harpie woman with whom we "hung out".
(Yes, Mom, I know that you asked me about her, which is kind of like reminding .... so I guess you win.)
:)

So, we are now back in the setting of the Charlotte airport.  The rain is pouring, the stale food has been mostly eaten and we've been waiting for our plane for over an hour now.

When the USless Air guy first announced that our plane would be delayed,  it was only to be delayed 20 minutes or so.  But then he added, "We'll be coming out every 20 minutes or so to give you an update."
Hmmmmmm ..... one would think that this man thinks all who fly on his airline are complete dorks, wouldn't one? (and evidently he was right)
Because if you're planning on coming out (over and over again) every 20 minutes .... you ain't expecting that plane to touch down for quite a while now ..... are you?!

Well, after about 2 hours they made an announcement that our plane had just landed and was now heading towards our gate.
The room was less than thrilled.

After that announcement a man who seemed to be in his late 70's or even older, got up and went to the desk.  He waved his tickets in front of the face of the lady who had just made the announcement and said, "Are these two tickets going to get us seats on the plane?"  She looked a little puzzled, and I felt a little puzzled as I was eavesdropping.  She said, "Excuse me?"  So he repeated his question.  Only his voice got a little higher and sounded like it had a bit of a ..... oh, how should I describe it? ....... it had a tone that indicated, to ME anyway, that he was irritated.
OK, that was putting it nicely.  He was p***ed off ..... WAY p***ed.
She didn't seem to pick up on that tiny hint of his mood.
Bless her little heart.
She works for a bad airline, thus she must deal with irate people every day, yet she can't seem to read emotions.
Come to think of it, maybe that's exactly the type of employee USAir wants to have!

Anyway .... she said something like, "Are those tickets for the Pensacola flight?" ..... and oh boy, but did she use the magic words or what.  Cuz his mouth opened wide and all his feelings and some spittle poured forth.
"YES, these are tickets to this Pensacola flight!  They were also tickets to the last Pensacola flight AND THE FLIGHT BEFORE THAT ONE!  But you guys keep delaying the flights and then putting everyone on ahead of us so that we get bumped.  We've been in this airport for 5 (I think) hours, going from one gate to the next!  Will THESE TICKETS get us on THAT plane?!!!" .... and there was much waving of the tickets.
Wow .... I didn't know who to feel sorrier for ..... the crotchety old man who been stuck here far longer than I had, or the clueless, hopeless USA employee.
He won.

She told them that yes, of course they would get him on this flight and she was very sorry for all of the trouble.
I think he may have huffed and puffed a couple of times and then went to sit back down.

The time came for us all to board the plane and from somewhere behind me I hear someone yelling in a high pitched voice that was getting higher and higher.
"Where's our other bag?!!!" a woman was shrieking.  "Don't tell me you left our other bag in the last terminal!!!!"  I didn't see who she was, nor to whom she was shrieking, but I was thinking, "Dang, I wouldn't tell her that I'd left it!".
I looked behind me and it was that man's wife.
What a great day those two were having!

She kept yelling at him about the bag, and he kept saying, "What bag?" which was hilarious ... to everyone but her.  I'm not sure she ever convinced him that there had been another bag and that he had left it at the last place they sat, but she sure tried.  She said it in line, she said it boarding the plane .... thankfully she boarded ahead of me.  I never saw him board.
As I trudged towards what I knew would be the last row I was focused on hoping that were would be a row 18.
I sat down and then D sat down and got her bag underneath her seat.  We started to talk and then I heard a woman ask, of her seat mate, "Would you mind trading seats with someone up there so that I can sit with my husband?"
OK, first ..... don't you just hate that????!!!!!  I mean, really.  I always choose my seats because they're the seats I want  (yes, much like I pack a carry on bag to carry on) .... not to think that I'll be able to trade up --HAAA!!! --- or trade down.
But this kind woman stammered a bit and then said ok.  The first woman indicated that her husband was sitting further up in the plane where there were several Navy guys sitting.  Then told the other woman that maybe she'd be lucky and get a nice Navy guy.
I will refrain from adding anything here.

I looked over there and saw that the woman asking was the shrieking woman at the gate (I will henceforth refer to her as SW -- shrieking woman).  SW, who .... last I saw, loathed her husband with every fiber of her being.  She wanted to sit with him?  Sure.  I'm thinking she just didn't want to sit on the last row.
The entire time SW was asking her seat mate to switch I was silently saying, "Yes!  Yes!  PLEASE say yes!!!" And then I silently did a little victory dance ... in my head .... when the lady agreed to trade.

I have no idea what happened next, but suddenly I felt like I was in "The Twilight Zone".  Because SW  had left her seat and then stood next to the woman sitting in front of D, and .... was asking if she'd trade seats with her!  What the what???

SW's seat mate looked a bit puzzled, but she asked the next woman again if she'd trade .... so that she could sit next to her husband.  I looked in front of me .... tried to peer between the seats ..... and there he was .... her husband .... in the row in front of us .... far from any Navy guy.  I must've turned into one of my other personalities while that whole thing went down, cuz I was surprised and a little dazed.

So the 2nd woman agreed and moved to the seat across from D, while the SW said, "Thank you.  I really don't know why I want to sit with him.  He lost our bag."  which is just what I was saying to D at that moment.
Then, having remembered said bag, she lit into him again.  He kept saying it wasn't his fault and just basically tried to ignore her.  Mother Teresa could not have ignored her.
Finally, about 30 minutes into the flight I heard him say, "Shut up!  Would you just shut up about that bag?!"
And she did.
Twenty minutes later she was cuddling with him, putting her head on his shoulder, kissing him on the cheek.

Ummmmm .... and I think I have alternate personalities??!

After that the love birds were quiet.
Until they realized that their bag had been lost, too.

Yee-haw!!!!  Never a dull moment.
Never!!!

Happy Sunday, Peeps.
:)

The Summer Saga ....

.... continues.

Let's see .... where was I?
Oh, yes .... we were boarding the USless (thank you, Mollie!) plane to go, eventually, to Destin.  We had to change planes in Charlotte.

So we slowly .... ever so slowly .... boarded the plane.
The plane with more p***ed off people than I think I've ever seen in one place.
Truly.
The topic of every row around us was how much US Air sucks.
It was almost sad.
Almost.

Funny, though.
The talk on that plane was NOTHING compared to the talk on the flight to come.
Who knew that an airline could p*SS off that many people in one day.
In one afternoon!

The flight was uneventful.
D and I chatted through most of it.
There was a fair amount of turbulence.
But I will refrain from blaming that on the US Air pilots.
I'm sure they catch enough flak.

We arrived in Charlotte with less than an hour to spare.
And we had to go from terminal E to terminal A.
And get something to eat.
It was a wee bit tight, but we made it.

We were huffing and puffing when we found 2 chairs.
We dumped our stuff and D went off to "powder her nose" (to those of you who've heard/used that phrase ..... how old ARE you???).
I sat down and tried to arrange D's bag so that I could put my much-swollen feet up on it.
And then I noticed the writing on the wall board.
The next flight was leaving in 2 hours .... not in 15 minutes.
And it was going to Cleveland.
Not Destin.

Now I certainly have nothing against the lovely city of Cleveland.
I've been there before,
Interestingly enough .... with D.
But we had packed for Destin.
Of course, my bag was being thrown into the dirty belly of a plane, so I wasn't sure I'd ever see it again, but still .... Cleveland?

So I got up and waddled over to the man at the gate.
He looked up and I said, "Ummmm .... Destin?"
Yes, that's exactly what I said.
I was still trying to compose my scathing email to US Air in my head, so I couldn't be expected to communicate on a high level.
Besides ..... those were evidently the only words he needed.
He pointed towards the opposite end of the terminal and said, "Gate 11."
That was all.
That was enough.
I think I said something like, "Crap!" and then ran back to our seats.

I managed to pick up all of our food, drinks, purses and D's bag (she got to take it on board because it fit underneath the seat in front of her .... after she stood on it, squashed it, and did some kind of dance on it.
Lucky D.
Anyway, I met her as she came back from the powder room ..... all 5'3" of me, carrying all of our stuff.
I somehow managed to point .... and say, through gritted teeth that I think were holding on to a purse, "Gate 11".
I don't think it actually sounded like "Gate 11" ..... it seemed to come out as "Ate heaven", but she got the gist of it.

So we ran all the way to Gate 11.
Which was much closer than we thought it was.
And immediately found out that our flight was now delayed ..... by over an hour.
Funny ..... the oh-so-helpful-US Air employee at the previous gate failed to mention that the "Destin" flight had been delayed.  Even when he heard me say, "Crap!" .... and knew that I was about to make a run for it.
Yet another oh-so-lovely less than helpful US Air employee.
Who didn't give a crap.

So we plopped down at Ate Heaven and proceeded to eat our stale, yet just-purchased airport over-priced sandwiches.
Thank God that the Charlotte airport has free wifi for their customers .... unlike the oh-so-welcoming Houston airport.
Don't get me started.

So we ate our lunch and surfed and Tweeted and read.
And finally saw our plane arrive.
One would think that when an airline has a flight come in almost 2 hours late, said airline would try to get all arriving passengers off in record time so as to re-load the plane with the next flight's passengers.  To try to make up for lost time.
Wouldn't one?
One would not be someone who had experienced US Air if one thought that.

At about ..... oh, I don't know .... an hour later .... we were boarding the plane.
And the amount of unhappy passengers .... oh my.
Of course, a huge rain storm had come into Charlotte while we were there .... but still.
Can't an airplane fly when it's raining?

To really top the day off .... to make a late, over-booked flight even MORE interesting .... USeless Air put us in Zone 3.  It seems there were many disgruntled passengers in Zone 3.
And here's an interesting point ..... as I walked down the aisle towards our row ..... which was only row 17, I slowly started to realize .... and yet hope I was wrong .... that row 17 was the last row.
You know, the row that doesn't have reclining seats.
The row against the restroom wall.
The row that nobody wants.
The row that we, indeed, were seated in.
God must've been laughing so much that His sides hurt.

We took our seats, D did her little squash-dance to get her suitcase underneath the seat and we breathed a sigh of relief.  At least we would make it to Pensacola.  We had started making plans for over-nighting it in Charlotte .... and Pensacola, since we didn't know how long the rain would delay our flight.

Remind me to tell you about the very loud lady who was ticked beyond belief at her husband.  She sat across from us, until she traded seats with another woman so that she could sit next to her husband (yes, the man with whom she was hugely ticked off).  She made it sound like he was way up front on the plane.  So I was secretly rejoicing on the inside.
The rejoicing was short-lived.
He was sitting in front of me.
She was very entertaining ..... for about 30 seconds.  After that she was just plain irritating.
But .... another time.

We made it to Pensacola ..... with nothing much going on ..... except the on-going harping of the woman in front of us.

We got off of the plane and headed towards the baggage area.
And then .... an uneasy feeling started trying to settle on my shoulders.
I kept shrugging it off, but it kept coming back.
It was trying to prepare me.

I watched all of the bags go around on the conveyor belt.
All of them .... except mine.
And the ticked off harpie from the row in front of us.
And a few other people.

Yes, I had arrived in Destin .... but my carry on/un-carry on .... did not.
Perfect.
Don't you think?
My much-needed carry on, which had been delegated to a non-carry on status .... had been lost.
Really???
I still don't understand how that can possibly happen.

Our friend L picked us up .... after we waited for the USless Air person to take my info for me about my bag.  Which evidently made it to Charlotte (duh!) but seemed to be circling in the atmosphere above that airport .... yet could not be found.

We went with L and her daughter and got something to eat before we headed to Destin.
It was well after 10:00 when we finally checked in to our hotel.
And then ..... we headed to WalMart.
Because there wasn't a Target in sight.
And Wallie World was open all night.
And I needed some toiletries .... and some clean, cute clothes.
I settled on "clean".

We were in Wal-Mart until 1:30 a.m.
And during that whole time I was composing my letter to US Air ...... and wondering if our attorney would be willing to put some weight behind it.
I'm sure he will ..... if I pay for his time.

So .... I think it was around 3 a.m. before I finally settled into bed .... in new p.j.s  I'd just bought at Wally World.
Which USeless Air had better pay for.

We shall see.

So that was my Saturday.
All in all, a good day.
I got to spend a lot of time with D.
I got to fly on an airline for the first ..... and last ...... time.
Lesson learned.

It is now 12:21 and my eyes keep closing, so I will end this never-ending" post.
Take care, Peeps, and enjoy the rest of your week.
D, L and I are getting up tomorrow and driving back to Houston.

Yes, you read that right.
Driving.
As in, spending around 11 hours in a car.
Not something I would usually choose to do.
Unless a friend suggested it and wanted the company to drive back home.

And so ..... here I am.
Getting ready to go to bed and then to wake up, pack the car and head out.

Hopefully we'll make good time.
One thing is certain ..... we won't have to run into any more USless employees.

Like Sand Through The Hour Glass ....

.... so are the white sandy beaches of Destin.

It's beautiful here.
And hot.
Quite hot.
So it's a good thing I live in south Texas and am used to heat and 143% humidity.

But the beaches are beyond beautiful.
And that is something that is never, ever said about the beaches in Texas.
Well, unless one loves brown sand ..... and water.
But hey .... at least we have a beach.
:)

My friend D and I flew down/over here on Saturday.
It was ...... hmmmmm, I'm trying to think of a good word here ..... (because you all know that I type as I think .... which would probably make for a very bad book) ..... let's say that Saturday was epic.
Yes, epic.
No, I don't know why I'm using that word.  It's not like that day was anything like a Cecil B. DeMille movie or anything.
No parting of any sea occurred.

But it seemed kind of epic in how many things could go wrong in just a few hours.
Nothing huge.
Just .... hugely irritating.
And frustrating.

It all started with our arrival at the lovely George Bush Intercontinental Airport (we down here still just call it "Intercontinental").
D and I had already printed off our boarding passes so we headed to security.
Where a woman who loves her job very, very much was waiting for us.
Yes, Peeps ..... that was dripping with sarcasm.

This woman, whom I will now refer to as UCF (Ultimate Control Freak) kept yelling out to all of the innocent people waiting in line, "Take everything out of your pockets!!  Wallets! Coins! Phones! EVERYTHING!!!"
She was the pocket gestapo.
I had no pockets so I just put all of my stuff on the conveyor belt and went through the simple security check.
D, however, was caught red handed.
And made to pay the price.

She carried, in her back pocket ....... are you ready?  It was horrible, really....  prepare yourselves ..........
her boarding pass.

Yes, she had a folded piece of paper in the pocket of her jeans.
And UCF was P***ED off!
To put it mildly.
D's family has no idea how close they came to never seeing her again.
It was kind of like a scene out of "Midnight Express".

She squinted at D and snarled (she may have even had a bit of spittle down the corner of her mouth) .... "Got anything in your pockets?",  to which D answered .... as she removed it and showed UCF ...., "Only my boarding pass."
That's when it seemed that UCF's head spun around.
And a demonic voice came out of her mouth.
(Why yes, I did major in Theatre .... why do you ask?)
"I TOLD YOU TO TAKE EVERYTHING OUT OF YOUR POCKETS!!!  Now you have to go through here!! ..... and she pointed to the new-ish security scan cubicle where some person sitting in a closet can see your inner-most thoughts .... and body parts.
D looked at her and said, "It's a piece of paper.  It's just a piece of paper."
I'm glad that I was in the other line, where all of the "good" people went and was busy putting my shoes on and my things back inside my bag or I would have surely been undone by what seemed to be D's imminent demise .... or imprisonment.
UCF snarled again .... only snarlier .... "I.  Said.  EVERYTHING!"
I think D may have muttered something about never having had to do that before, but I'm guessing that since she's sleeping in the bed next to me at the moment, whole and healthy .... she kept those words pretty quiet.

So just beware ..... if you ever have to go through security at IAH in the A terminal ..... the war lord(ess) of security works there.
Or maybe just a woman who longs to run up the corporate ladder .... all the way to the C terminal.
Either way, she's a very bitter woman.

After passing through there with all limbs and tongues intact (see: "Midnight Express") we headed to our gate to take what was ..... and would be ..... our first and final trip with US Air.
I'm not sure I have ever been through a slower boarding process in my life.
I think I could've stood in line, stepped out of line, caught a cab, gone home, made a loaf of bread, caught another cab back to the airport, gone through security hell with absolutely nothing in my pockets, and stepped back in line ..... before they were ready to board my row.
(Yes, a Theatre major .... quit asking me!)

US Air likes to call their row sections "Zones".
D and I were in Zone 5.  Out of 5.
Which means that we were totally screwed.
Even though we had seats in row 14.

Zones 1 and 2 got on the plane.
In about 30 minutes.
Maybe there was some test you had to take to get into Zone 1 and I missed that.
It must've been a test to prove you have the speed of a sloth.
And .... that you can take up all of the overhead space with your baggage ... or maybe just with lots of small articles.  Like bananas.  Or sweaters.  Or tiny backpacks.

Because before the first part of Zone 3 could even get on the plane .... the overhead bins were full.
And so they announced that everybody else ..... two thirds of the flight .... would have to have their bags checked.
And the grumbling commenced.
Because if you're like me ..... I pack a carry on to ..... oh, I don't know ....... CARRY ON!!  I had my medications, my Kindle, my toiletries, my make up ..... and my clothes .... in my carry on.  I did not want those things taken away from me.
But .... I got past that.
And we all waited ..... in now a much slower line, so that we could get the little gate-checked tags put onto our carry ons/un-carry ons.
But, as I finally made it to the front of the line I saw that they were not gate-checking our bags.  Nope, they were putting  baggage tags on them and checking them through to our final destination.
Only, they never announced that.
So ..... there was no time to grab the important I-don't-want-to-lose items out of our bags.
I managed to get my Kindle out of the front pocket, but that was it.  And then my bag was gone.
My nice, never-before-thrown-into-the-belly-of-a-plane-bag.

And it was at that moment that I knew.
I will never use this airline again.
As God is my witness ..... I, nor any of my kin, will ever go hungry ...... ummmmm ... wait .... (sorry, went a bit off there) ...... will ever fly US Air again.
And that was only the beginning.

Seeing that it is now 1:08 a.m. I am going to end this post.
And leave you wanting more.
Well, hopefully.

Peace out, Peeps.
And happy Tuesday.
:)

It's Been a Hard Day's .....

... week.  And I've been working .... like a dog.

Which brings up the question .... how does a dog work?  I've personally never seen a dog do much more than eat, play and sleep.  And sleep some more.
Hmmmmm ......

So I haven't been working like that, but I have been hurting .... like an old dog, maybe.
It's not been fun.
And it hasn't given me much to blog about.  Thus .... I haven't.
I spent the first two days of this week mostly on my bed.  The pain was almost crippling.
It's so strange that I've gone from a reasonably healthy blogger, to one who walks around like she's about 120 years old.
Every joint in my body hurts.
As do the bottom of my feet.
And one day, it started to get the best of me.

How does someone live with this much, or more, pain ..... day in, day out.  Twenty four - seven?
Depression reared its ugly head that evening.
It was pretty difficult to fight it off, but I did manage to keep it at arm's length.
And that was exhausting.

That night I decided to try using my pain meds for this joint pain.
I took a few last week but it didn't help.  So I stopped taking them.  Then I thought that maybe I should try taking it regularly, every 4 hours, and see if that helped.  So I took one that night and then went to bed.
About an hour later I woke up .... and realized that I wasn't feeling that excruciating pain in my toes, feet and hands.
And I thanked God .... for 30 minutes of feeling better.
I needed that.

The next morning (yesterday) I took a pill before I got out of bed.  And then took them every 4 hours.
And it was a really good day.
Not pain-free, by any stretch of the imagination.
But oh, so much better than the previous days.
Thank.
God.

Today was the same.  I seem to be staying on top of the pain .... I can certainly tell when the fourth hour is about to end .... my body seems to be like a Timex watch.  It keeps time very well (and yes, it takes a licking and keeps on ticking ..... those of you who thought that are SO old!).

Tomorrow I'm flying to Destin to hang out with a couple of friends and celebrate my birthday (ugh). (not "ugh" on Destin or "ugh" on my friends ...."ugh" on my birthday!)
I'm looking forward to sitting on the beach.
And reading.
Lots and lots of reading.  Hopefully.
Lots of reading, lots of talking, lots of laughing .... but not lots of pain.
Please.
God.

So, if you would pray for me, Peeps, I'd appreciate it.
I don't seem to do well when experiencing a lot of pain.
I'm not sure that anyone does, but I know I certainly don't.
I've been told by a few doctors that I have an incredibly high tolerance for pain.
But I feel like I'm a huge baby when I hurt this much.

And while you're praying for me, would you please pray for my friend, Susan ..... whose dad died this evening, after suffering a stoke several days ago.  Please pray for her and her entire family .... for peace, comfort, strength and love to fill each of them and surround them.

Thanks, Peeps.  Once again.
As always, I'm glad you're here.

And happy Saturday.
:)

Kentucky Was ...

.... hot.
Really, really hot.

Now I realize that "hot" is a relative term of indicating warmer than warm temperatures.  And I realize that some people like to say, "Well, 110 isn't too bad here.  At least it's a dry heat."
What.
Ev.
Er.

I think that I can fairly say that I am a professional when it comes to judging whether the temperature is, or is not, hot.

And it was hot.
We were in Louisville and the high was in the 90's.
It's in the 90's in Houston ..... I thought Louisville would be an escape!!
Evidently it's been their warmest spring in quite a while.
I have great timing.

So our trip started off, as many trips do, at the airport.
As the Daughters and I were waiting to board our plane I noticed a woman standing near us who looked quite familiar.
I racked my brain ... which doesn't take as long as it used to since I don't remember much of anything, and then it occurred to me that she looked familiar because she look quite a bit like Beth Moore.  But not exactly.   Just a bit.
Her hair looked lighter in color and a little shorter.
Besides, if she'd been Beth Moore she wouldn't have been traveling alone.
And she would've had a really cute, expensive bag.

The girls and I were the first ones to get on the plane .... one of those tiny ones that you have to walk outside to get on.  You know, when you climb up the stairs and turn around and wave like you're the President of the United States or the Queen of England.
What?  You don't do that?!
Sure.

This woman was right behind us.  I leaned over the aisle (which was very easy to do since the aisle was only about 6" wide) and pointed her out to the girls and said, "She looks a lot like Beth Moore", mostly just to show them what Beth looks like.  They'd never seen her.
One of the girls said, "Maybe she is."  So I looked at her again.  And looked at what she was carrying.  She did have a cute bag.  In fact, it looked kind of "Brighton-ish",  which sounds very much like Beth Moore (at least, the Beth Moore in my mind).
She was carrying a note book, and a Bible, which of course should have been a clear indication, but I also knew that the girls and I were not the only females on the plane going to Louisville.  And the 3 of us were also carrying Bibles.
So I wasn't convinced.  She still didn't look exactly like Beth.
In my "before" days, I would've just sat back in my seat and started reading, still wondering if it was her.  And I would've wondered all weekend, but still doubted that it would.  I would NOT have asked her, because that would be way too embarrassing.  Especially when she'd say no.
But the "after" Janine kicked in and came up with a less embarrassing way of being humiliated.
I peeked over my seat and said, "Beth!".  That way, when she didn't look up I could just duck my head down and hope no one saw me do that.
But she did look up.
And she didn't say no.
She said, "Yes?" to which I blubbered .... "Are you Beth Moore?"
She smiled and said yes and I told her that we were going to the conference.  She asked my name and said it was nice to meet me and asked the girls their names and introduced herself to them.  We talked about some of the Tuesday night studies I'd been to, plus some of the studies I'd done at our church.  I told her that I had been on our church staff until recently.  I told her about our women's retreat in February and that it was the first time I'd ever seen/heard Priscilla Shirer.  She was delighted to talk about Priscilla and Kay Arthur and told the girls that she was so glad they were getting to see Kay, since she's like the .... Moses to the Christian women who came after her, to teach as well as study (and no, she didn't say the word Moses, I'm paraphrasing here).  Kay has been many a woman's mentor and Beth has a very high degree of respect and love for her.
We continued to chat until everyone got on the plane and then I told her it had been nice to meet her and wished her God's blessings for the conference.

So there you go.
And .... just in case you were wondering .... it turned out that she looked EXACTLY like Beth Moore.
:)

We arrived in Louisville right on time and the girls and I were met at the airport by one of my Peeps!  Hi H!!!!!!
No, we'd never met but when she read that I'd be in Kentucky she sent me an e-mail asking if I'd be anywhere near Louisville.  Turns out .... I was smack dab in Louisville.  So we set up a meeting in her busy, family-filled weekend.  I was so blessed to meet her and to spend a couple of hours with her.  We went to a restaurant that is "famous" for its "chili pepper wontons" or something close to that.  So the girls and I decided we had to order them.  After all, when you visit a city you should certainly try to eat something it's known for.  And they were excellent!!
After lunch H dropped us off at the hotel (Thanks again, H!!!) and we rested until it was time to go to the conference.
We joined 8,000 other people there.  They had a great worship team so we had lots of praise music and praising going on.  Then each of the women got up and said a little something.  They introduced themselves and said a little about themselves and past conferences.  When it was Beth's turn to get up and say "a little something", she talked about meeting me .... and the girls .... on the plane that day!  Oh yes she did!
So now we're kinda famous.
And I think Beth and I shall become BFFs.
:)

Kay spoke that night, Priscilla spoke Saturday morning and then Beth spoke Saturday afternoon.  The conference ended up around 4:30 and we headed back to the hotel.  Fortunately one of my good friends reminded me earlier in the week that her lovely daughter lives in Lousiville with her hubby.  So we got in contact and the two of them came over to visit and then took the Daughters out for dinner.  I begged off, saying I was tired, but I really wanted the 4 young ones to go out and have fun without the old lady. And so they did. :)
I had a nice quiet evening in the room, mostly reading .... and eating Chinese delivery food.

We left yesterday morning to return to the heat of Houston, which is mostly always hot.

My shoulder is doing better.  It still hurts and I still can't move it freely yet, but it's getting better every day.
Now, if I could just say the same about my joints.
I think my body has developed an allergy to traveling .... which is too bad because I'm not going to stop.
But my joints hurt .... a lot.  My feet started swelling and are still swollen, though a little less today.
It's hard to walk around, but it's worse to sit for a few minutes and then try to get up.
I'm SO MUCH FUN!!

I have an appointment next week to see the specialist.  I hope we hit it off .... because this will be a very, very long relationship (depending on how long I live, I guess).  I don't want to go doctor shopping so I'm praying that he's really good.

So that's it for now.
I hope to rest a lot this week before heading to Florida on Saturday.

And since Mondays are usually my "Monday Memories of What I'm Thankful For" .... I'll leave you with what I'm thankful for today.

*A great weekend with Daughters 2 & 3
*A fun conference with some amazing women of God
*Safe travels
*the chance to visit a neat city
*the blessing of meeting a wonderful Peep!
.... and even though it sometimes sucks .... I'm thankful for medical insurance and for people whom God has blessed to help others, medically.

Happy Monday, Peeps.
:)

And So It Dropped ....

.... the "other shoe" that is.

Maybe my mission in life is to keep writing, so that all of you will be thankful for your lives. And grateful that you're not me.

I went in to see my regular dr last week, the day before my surgery. It was my regular 6 month check up, where we make sure my cholesterol meds are doing their job and not attacking my muscles or liver. All looked well on that front.

Then I told her that I thought something was wrong with me, very wrong. I explained to her how my joints started hurting about 3 months ago, when I went off all hormone-related meds. I told her that I had to have a ring re-sized because my knuckle, but not my finger, had gotten bigger in those 3 months. I also told her that the pain is getting worse and worse and that I had been absolutely miserable on the cruise. Yes, I had done a lot of walking, but I watched everyone else in our group and no one seemed to hurt the way I did. Not even my mom, who's 19 years older than I am!! In fact, I was the youngest person in our group. I hurt every day and never feel better. I haven't said much about it because, well because I thought for a while that this was just going to be my "normal" and, even though I play tennis a few times a week, I must be in really bad shape.

My doctor looked at my blood results again, and then said what figured she'd say, "Well no wonder! You're smack in the middle of menopause.". Great. But at least I had an answer. I had anticipated this answer because the other day I Googled "women and arthritis" and "menopause" appeared. I'd never heard this symptom associated with menopause before. So I felt a bit of relief at reading that, even though 8 months ago my body showed not one solitary clue that "the CHANGE" was approaching. Not one.
My body is strange.

So she looked at me, I looked at her and then she shrugged and said, "Sorry".
Sorry?! For what?! I guess she forgot that I am her patient who just knew I'd be standing in the "ladies aisle" at the grocery store, at the age of 80, wondering what tampon brand to buy that month. No sorries needed!!
Then she added, "Just to be certain, I'm ordering an arthritis work up on you,though I know it'll be negative."
I haven't thought about that since I left her office.
Then the shoe dropped.

Her office called me last night.
I was busy trying to talk to someone who's cell kept dropping and had my sister calling on my other phone so I wasn't paying close attention. In fact, it took me so long to answer that my answering machine came on at the same time I said "Hello."
We both waited until my recorded voice stopped and then she said she had test results to talk to me about and did I want to go turn off my answering machine. I said no, not really listening to her.
Then she said it again ... "We got your test results.".
Test results? I had no idea what she was talking about. What test? I was just about to tell her that I thought she had the wrong person when she said, "It came back positive.". Still confused I said "What?".
She said, "I'm sorry. It's positive. You have rheumatoid arthritis." I think I said .... Ok. Then she told me that I needed to see a specialist and gave me the name and number of one my doctor likes.
I wrote it down, said thanks and hung up.
And then started talking to my friend who's cell was now working again at that very moment.
And I didn't think of it again until much later last night.

I didn't know much about rheumatoid arthritis. Nothing, really.
And now ...... now I wish that still didn't know anything about it. I wish, very much, that I had no reason to research it.

The shoe that dropped .... was more like a combat boot.

I'm Home ....

.... and very, very woozy/fuzzy.
Make of that what you will.

I think it went ok.  The dr. didn't come back to talk to me afterwards but I'm going in on Monday to see him.
The good thing is that, for now, my arm is completely numb.  Dead.  My fingers, hand, shoulder and the right side of my neck and chest, which makes breathing a little difficult, but I prefer that over pain.
They gave me a nerve block through my neck before they put me out.  Now THAT was fun.   :-(
But at least I'll be pain free for the day.

OK, that's all .... I need a nap and Federer is playing Djokovic, so I'm tired, yet torn because it's a great match and I like both of them.

Thanks for the comments, please keep them coming.  p, thanks for the cat hint, I'll definitely try it.
Phyllis, I have those floss stick things .... thanks for reminding me.
Beth ... too funny!  I think Id have to smack him, though.  :)
H2 .... can't wait! And no, I've never played the banjo.   ;-)
Dawn .... I LOVE you!!
Patty ... I laughed out loud at the cussing joke!!  Thank you!!
Kathy ....thank you!

Well, this left handed pecking took me so long that the match is over (yay for Roger, sad face for Novak).
Time for a nap.
Please keep up the prayers .... when the pain hits it's supposed to hit hard.

Thanks, Peeps.
:)

Here Is A List ....

.... of the things that it occurs to me I will not be able to do after today.
Or at least, will not be able to do well.

1.  Eat
(OK, yes, I'm being a little dramatic here.  Of course I'll be able to eat, but not everything.  For example, I won't be able to eat corn on the cob, dang it, and I love corn on the cob.  Nor will I be able to eat anything that needs to be cut into pieces, like a steak.  But if there's no one around I guess I could just pick up a whole steak and eat it like a cave man.)

2.  Put deodorant on under my left arm.  Don't try to picture it .... it's ugly.

3.  Type.

4.  Write.

5.  Floss

6.  Sign anything .... like when checking out at the grocery store, pharmacy, etc.  If someone sends you a check written by me .... it wasn't me, so trash it.

7.  Blog

8.  Clasp my bra behind my back.  So I guess I'll have to go the old fashioned put-it-on-upside-down-and backwards way and then turn it around.  If I can get my arm through it.

9.  Paint my toenails.

10.   Butter my toast.  Or anything else.

11.  Change a tire.
     What?!  It could happen.

12.  Have sex.
     That was just to see if you're still paying attention.

13.  Put on pantyhose.
     It's a dang good thing I don't wear those.

14.  Scoop ice cream.

15.  Cook.
      Whatever.

16.  Change the cat litter.

17.  Fold laundry.

18.  Ride a bike.

19.  Go fishing.

20.  Put on make up.

21.  Use chopsticks.
      And yes, I can use them.  With my right hand.  I guess I could use one and just try to stab whatever  I'm eating. Although I probably won't be able to do that very well, either. Which brings another item to mind ....

22.  Stab anyone.
      Which is probably a really good thing.

23.  Clean a toilet.
       Darn.

24.  Play tennis.
      (Huge sob here)

25.  Put on a watch.
     So please don't expect me to get anywhere on time.

26.  Squirt the water bottle at my cat when he goes where he's not supposed to go.  He's going to take advantage of that.

27.  Get up from a prone position on the floor.
       Hey, you never know!

28.  Give someone the Heimlich maneuver.
      You might not want to eat with me.  Then you not only get the chance to survive, but you also don't   have to watch me try to stab my food with a chop stick.

29.  Play the banjo.
   
30.  Pass the physical to join the fire department.

I could go on and on, but I won't.
Not now anyway.
Maybe I'll come back on line later tonight and post some additional items.

I think I've run all of the errands and given enough blood to my doctors (had more drawn today).  I've paid the bills, done some laundry and cleaned the kitchen.
The hospital just called and said that my doctor changed the surgery time, from 7:30 to 9:30, so yay for not having to be there at 6 a.m.  Now I'm supposed to be there at 8:00.  Much better.

Hopefully I've made you smile.  Not just today but .... ever.
If so, then it's your turn.

I could use all the smiles I can get, so it would be great if you'd tell me something funny.
Or nice.
Or hilarious.
Or juicy.
Or .... just say hi.

I won't be able to type but I'll still be able to read (depending upon how drugged up I am, which I hope is a significant amount).
So drop me a comment or seven to make me smile .... or to just give me something to take my mind off of my shoulder .... and of my inept left-handedness.

Thanks, Peeps.  I'll try to send Twitters when I can.
Only if you promise to not laugh at my spelling, grammar, etc. when I've only got one hand to tap with.

Happy Thursday.
:)

And The Winner Is .....

..... getting ready to be named!

Got you there, didn't I?
You cannot be surprised by that fact.
Not if you've read my blog for more than a week or so.
Not if you know me IRL*.

First, before I reveal the big winner (really, Peeps .... don't salivate over this because I don't think I did that good of a job of finding something.  The pressure ended up being WAY too much for me.  Seriously.  How could I pick something for someone whom I've probably never met?  What if the winner is a man?  What if the winner hates what I choose?  See?  The pressure was freakin' HUGE (said with a heavy Scottish accent).  I almost could not enjoy the first few days of the cruise due to the pressure of finding the perfect gift.
Almost.
I mean really ...... do you think I'd let the pressure of choosing something totally ruin my Mediterranean cruise?!
I didn't think so.
Nonetheless ..... I still felt the pressure.
I think I felt it so much that I had to have 2 or 15 drinks every day.
I can't remember the exact number.
Don't judge.

Wow .... did I just digress there or what?!

So, back to what I was saying typing ..... before I announce the winner of said object(s) of humongous pressure .... I'd like to take a moment to shout out to all of the wonderful Lurkers (and to the rest of you) who came out of hiding to say hi (you greedy little lurker Peeps, you!).  :)

Hi to Mollie, who isn't a true Lurker as you've commented once or twice before.  And congrats again on being the first person to have the correct answer about our trip to hell and back to the oh-so-lovely  highly misleading excursion up the volcano of Santorini.
Very.  Very.  Misleading.
I cannot say who is to blame for that trip to Hell, but I think I can safely claim that it just might be someone who works for Celebrity cruise lines.
I will also add that yes, this excursion was included as an option on the Seaborn cruise, but I don't recall them extolling the virtues of it quite as strongly.  Though that could also be due to the fact that at the moment I saw the word "volcano" listed under the word "Santorini",  I had such a violent reaction that I almost threw the brochure across the room.

Wow #2, there I went again .... digressing.
I think I missed my Adderall dose this morning.

So hi again, Mollie and thanks for popping out to give a comment.

Hi also to Grandma Poppi, who is in no way a Lurker.  Don't worry, that's a good thing.  :)
I'm so sorry to say that I was not able to find a nice Greek, Croatian or Italian man to bring back for you.
Hell, I couldn't even find a mean one for me!
Thank you so much for your kind words about my blog and thank you for making comments.
I  LOVE comments.
(Do you think the true Lurkers caught that?)

LE ..... even though you try to be a Lurker, you are my sister-in-law and so you cannot be considered Lurkerish.  Nope.  Because I know you're there .... even though you rarely, RARELY comment.
Thank you for always reading.  Especially when you're reading it on your cell phone while sitting in my family room.  :)  Love you and thanks again and again for coming all the way to Texas to support Son #2 .... and me.

Alicia .... I don't consider you a Lurker, either.  I think you've commented a few times, and I read your blog regularly, so I don't feel that you're a true Lurker.  Thank you for reading.  And understanding.  :)

Anonymous #1 .... who was the 6th commenter .... thank you for coming out of Lurkerdom .... sort of.
Wait .... not "thank you" sort of, but "thank you" for sort of coming out.  You did not come all the way out, as you didn't post your name, initials or even your government-given Witness Protection Program name.  I'm so glad that you made a comment, but so sad that I couldn't put you in the pot to win since I didn't have anything to go on.  And if I picked someone who was totally "anonymous" ..... then most of my regular readers and I'm pretty sure many of the Lurkers would all lunge forward to claim that they had been that "anonymous person".  Not that I'm judging ..... but I think that's the kind of people that I attract.  :)
I hope you keep reading ..... and commenting.

OK ..... here's where you all witness the fact that I really do type the way I speak, as I think.    I rarely delete something I've typed that might be wrong, although I do correct it.  Just as I can't delete the words that have come out of my mouth, I don't delete the words that come out of my fingers.  Sometimes it makes for some humorous posts.  Sometimes it makes me look absolutely stupid.
As in this case.
I am going down the list of commenters .... mostly in the order they commented (except for Anna, who's getting my attention in a moment).  So I did not remember that Anonymous #1 really didn't remain anonymous, since she posted again immediately after the first post, giving me her initials.
Picture me ...... hanging my head in shame.
And now you know for certain that this is the way I write ..... very, very rarely planned out.  My fingers type the words as they come to my brain.
So .... a-hem .... Jo Ann C. ..... my wonderful friend, thank you so much for always reading and for always keeping up with me.  You mostly comment on FB, where my blog entries are also posted.
I love you.  :)

W .... where do I begin?  Thank you for always reading.  Thank you for having read for so long.  Thank you for letting me know how my honest rants and raves and very dark days have helped you and may have helped to prepare you for what lay ahead for you.  I treasure you.
Oh .... and thanks SO much for starting the whole "whorehouse" rumor ..... paybacks are hell, Honey.  :)

Roma .... thank you very much for coming out and commenting.  I hope that you will be able to check Greece off of your "to-do" list soon.  Thank you for living vicariously through me.  I hope you choose only the good parts.  :)

Heather .... you're right, you are not a Lurker.  You are a wonderful source of support when you comment.  Thank you very much.  :)   And I plan to come over to your blog later today.  Thanks for the invite!!

Anna .... as my naturalized niece, you, too, cannot be a Lurker.  But you come very close.  I suspected you read, but not as often as you do.  So that came as a wonderful surprise to me!  I love you and I hope that Hawaii is being wonderful to you.  :)

Hello Barbara .... it's nice to see your smiling face!  Thanks so much for coming out to say hi.  And thanks for keeping up with me.  :)

Cindy B from CA .... Hi!!!  California has such wonderfully nice people.  Thank you for your very kind words .... and for letting me know that you're there.  :)

Nat ... Thank you, my dear friend, for always reading and for always supporting me.  I love you.  :)

Andra ..... Hello!!!  It's so nice to meet you!!  And yes, you were very correct .... to say that I was "none too pleased" about the volcano trip is putting it very nicely.  And so ladylike.  Thank you for reading and thank you for letting me know you're here.  :)

Marcia ..... Of course you're a Peep!  Every single one of you Lurkers is a Peep, even if I don't know it.  :)   Thanks so much for popping in and saying hi.

RJ .... For someone who is most definitely not a Lurker, your addition of "seeing a donkey" was .... a bit off.  Not too far off because I did see a donkey .... or twenty.  But I totally mis-read your comment at first and thought you had said that I "rode a donkey".  My bad.
Thanks for being a consistent reader AND commenter.  I LOVE COMMENTERS.
Wait ..... didn't I write that earlier?
:)

Beth ..... you are not considered a Lurker .... at least not by me.  I know you're there and I'm grateful that you are.  Thanks for that and for the times you comment.  :)

Linds ... Yes, I do know you.  You've been here from almost the beginning and you've been in this horrible club longer than I have.  I love reading your blog and seeing how much you are enjoying life and what,  and who, it brings.  Thanks for being a great source of support .... especially back in the horribly black days that I don't like to think about.
And the weather was amazing while we were there.  It could NOT have been better.  It was like being in Heaven, I imagine.
And I, too, hope you can go to Camp Widow next year.  I wish you could come this year and am bummed that I won't get to meet you ..... yet.  But we'll work on asking God about that.  :)

Susan .... T.A.N.W. for the support you've given me and the encouragement.  Not just to keep breathing, but to keep writing.  I don't see you as often as I'd like to.  Not at all.  But I hope that you know that you and M are always in my thoughts and prayers.  I'm praying for him as he's gone and for you as you're single-parenting it for a while.  And for peace, strength, courage and God's love to surround you.  I love you.  Very, very much.

Bella ..... Hi!!!  So nice to meet you!  And thank you for not taking other people's answers.  As I said before .... I think many of my other Peeps just might think of doing that.  Heck, I would.  :)
Thanks for commenting!

Terryobx ..... Thank you SO much for posting!  I am humbled so much by the people who follow my blog .... and who have done so for a long time.  Yes, you are a Lurker .... or at least you WERE a Lurker.  And yes indeed ..... you are very much a Peep.  :)

Nlynch .... Thank you for letting me know that you're still here, my friend.  I love you.  :)

Raydene ....Thank you for commenting .... and for telling me how my life is helping you to help your friend.  That, after all, is what this blog is all about now.  I write totally for you.  For each of you.  For those who've been widowed, those who will be widowed, those who know someone who's widowed, and for those who just want to know what it's like so that they may, someday, be able to help someone they love.    Thank you again, for letting me know you're here.  :)

Chris ... You may think you're a Lurker .... but I don't.  Thank you.  Very much.  :)

Purejoy ..... You're definitely not a Lurker in my mind.  You, too, have been here for me from very early on.  Thank you so much for that.  :)

Wendee .... Hello, my friend!  And thank you for being honest enough to say that you commented just to get the prize.  Refreshing!  :)

SJE ..... Hopefully you commented only to look smart enough to know what Goodbye is in Croatian (so technically not Bosnian).    You cannot be a winner of the Greek stuff because .... you are my son and that would look terribly wrong.  And some disgruntled Peep might contact the FCC to complain of nepotism.  Not that I think of anyone in particular (W).  :)

Laura C ....Thank you for commenting .... and for remembering my trip last year.  This year no one stopped me.  Anywhere.  I was a bit disappointed.
:)


OK, I think that's everyone.  If I missed one of you, please accept my most humblest apologies and let me know.

There were 33 comments.  Those numbers were taken down and one number was chosen at random .... by one of my children.  I did not tell them why they were choosing a number, until after they did.

So ...... imagine a drum roll here ............

The Winner/Lurker/Commenter is ....................  RJ!!!!

And RJ is kind of a double winner because she kindly requested pictures of a Greek cookbook, which I complied with and will provide on this post.

So here's what you've won ..... again, don't get too excited .... and to the rest of you, don't be too disappointed:

I couldn't come up with one item, though I tried.  Again .... the pressure.
So I chose a sampling of items that represent Greece.
From the left ...
1.   A set of colored pencils from Corfu that are made from olive wood.
2.  A small bottle of Ouzo from Santorini, I believe.  If you like licorice ..... and alcohol,  you'll most likely enjoy it.  If, however, you are like me ..... you will most likely think what I thought (as I channeled my 16 - 17 year old self):  "Gag me with a spoon!!!"
3.  A package of sesame coated pistachio nuts (unshelled).  I really enjoyed these and brought extras home to snack on.
4.  A bar of olive and honey soap from Corfu.  It's very, very good for the face.  Gentle and great for cleansing and keeping wrinkles at bay.  For a while, anyway.
I have no idea what it does for already-existent wrinkles.
5.  A ceramic box-like-dish (box-like in that it has a lid) from Kotor, Montenegro.

So there you go ....  small samplings of Greece and Montenegro.  I hope you enjoy them.  Now I have to find a box to put it all in and make sure nothing breaks.  I will get this sent off this week (since I probably won't be doing much next week).

So please send me an e-mail with your name, address and zip.
You can send it to jeggerstx@gmail.com

And .... here are pictures of a few cookbooks I found.  I think it might be the first one that you were looking for, but just in case ... I threw in each one I saw.

I hope that helps.

Once again, thank you SO much to each of you who commented.  Thank you especially to you Lurkers.  I'm glad you took the time to let me know you're here, reading and silently supporting me.

I'm still asking for prayers ..... the sadness is still there,  kind of like a blanket laying underneath everything.  I think that when medical conditions arise, it just makes me more aware of how alone I really am.  The kind of, "If I died in my sleep how long would it take for someone to notice my absence?" or "If I were to slip and fall in the shower (God forbid .... please!) or start to have a heart attack, or even start choking ..... I wouldn't have a husband here who could help and keep me from dying" thing.  Not that I think about that a lot, because I really don't, but when medical stuff comes up, it's hard not to.
Ironically, if I'm in a lot of pain, I usually don't want anyone around anyway, but it sure is comforting and secure-feeling to know that a husband/significant other would be there anyway, just in case.

Thanks again, Peeps.  This was fun for me and I hope it was fun for you.
Have a great Monday/Memorial Day.
:)

*In Real Life

P.S.  I still have a few hundred pictures to upload and then go through more than 1,000 to edit them and get them ready for posting.
My computer is telling me that my iPhoto disk has very little room on it so I don't think I'll be able to upload very many until I can get my hands on a hard drive and move a lot of pictures over to it to make room.  I ordered one the week before I left on the trip from Amazon, but it still hasn't shipped.  Is it just me who finds that irritating?
So ..... that may be something that I'll be working on next week, as I'm recuperating from my surgery.  If so, it should prove to be pretty humorous, as I expect to be drug-filled for as long as I need to be.  So who knows what I'll write, or remember, about each picture.
I will also have the challenge of not being able to type with two hands .... so who knows what's going to happen or what's going to show up here.
Please know ahead of time that I am not holding myself responsible for what appears on this blog after 5:00 a.m. on Friday.

Ready or Not ....

.... ummmmmmm .... I'm choosing "not".

And here's why:
(Oh, and Son #1 came home Monday, to spend some time with me before I leave and to stay while I'm gone.  Isn't he great?)



  To put it bluntly ..... I guess you could say we've been torturing the cat:

You see, as I was purging the house I found a little OSU football jersey that we bought years ago for a much smaller animal (a dog).  I left it out and when the 2 of the Sons came into my room they saw it.  I tossed it to Son #1 and asked if he remembered it.  He chuckled and said that he did.  He asked what I was doing with it and I told him it would look good on the cat .... and then told him to try to get it on Oliver, though I doubted that he would succeed.

                 He does good work:

              But that good work led to this:

                  Which led to this:

  Which led to this (help me out here, does he look a little p***ed off to you?):

Yes, I can see that my bed skirt is a bit frayed.
Don't judge.

After a few moments he seemed to have recovered (at least enough to try and kill me with his green lasers of death):

Little did I know that he was forming a plan (and again, I hate to be a bother, but is he still p***ed?!):

                         Which led to this (look closely):

                       A little closer ......

                Well what do you know?!  He's a little smarter than I thought:

All of that is just an elaborate excuse for why my bedroom looks like this:

                          And this:

                           And this:

           And .... why my bathroom looks like this:

So .... yeah ..... I'm not ready.
Which is ok ..... since I'm not leaving until Saturday.
Morning.
Yikes!  That gives me 12 less hours than I had been thinking!

Wait ................................................. okay, much better.
That was me ..... waiting for the moment of panic intense stress to pass.
And I just noticed that "House Hunters International" is on ...... so I'm going to watch that now .....
and panic .... clear a space on my bed so that I can sleep on it get things a bit more organized later.

Because really ..... when I can find out how much it would set me back cost to purchase a home in lovely Honduras ..... why would I spend time panicking organizing?
I can always sleep on the couch.

Happy Wednesday, Peeps.
:)

And no, you may not ask me about the exercise ball.

;-)

I am SO disappointed .....

.... in my blog readers!!

How old are you, anyway?  Twelve?

I KNEW that my sis and bro would totally get this .... but I figured that many others would, too.

And kudos to Son #1, minus that "crazy" thing.  And to K1 --- she had to get it .... she's married to that crazy brother of mine who owns the DVD!  And double kudos for Lis!!!

Didn't anyone else watch "Land of the Lost" on Saturdays?? Right before "H.R. PuffnStuff"??

"Marshall, Will and Holly,

On routine expedition,

Met the greatest earthquake ever known...."

I'm at my mom's house again, using her wi-fi, because mine is gone.

Surprised?

Anyone? Anyone?

Bueller?

     OK, pull up a chair (just in case you're standing in front of your computer). Here are the many pics from my "routine expedition" today:

    This is from this morning .... a lovely sight, if you don't look at the not-quite-fallen tree:

     This is the beginning of my dock, which seems to have shifted a bit:
     This is the canoe that Jim and the boys made .... by themselves.  It took a bit of a beating and flipped over and filled with water:

     This is where our metal ladder used to be:
       Ditto (another pic to follow in a bit):
    

      I'm not too sure, but I think this is a close-up of a Slestak (pronounced "slee-stack" for all of you 12 year olds).  I was very scared!

                             This used to be one of my trees:

                                             So did this:
 

            This is one of my neighbor's flooded out carpet:

         This used to be part of my roof:


                                                 Ditto:
       

      This is where the tree landed on the house:
            This is my almost-fallen-tree:
                

                            And it's broken trunk.  It will be taken down tomorrow.  Sigh.

      This is my neighbor's house .... and fallen trees:

                     This is my sand pile that used to be about 5 times bigger than this:
         This is what's left of one of my chairs that was tied onto the dock:

                 This is somebody's "something" that floated up.  It was bigger than this ... I hope they didn't need whatever it was:
 

    This is a sideways view of my missing ladder (note the twistedness):

                This is the Slestak's feet!
                  I caught it resting:

             This is a picture of the local villagers:

      And I'm not certain, but I think these are some kind of saber-toothed cats:

         This picture was very dangerous for me to take.  It's the villagers' habitat.  Gag me.
    

   Still not too sure about this ..... all I know is that it was very, very still:
 

       Another dangerous capture!  It must've been exhausted from the hunt:

     I managed to tame the Slestak long enough to show what a freakin' huge paw it has ... at only 3 months!!

OK, that's it.

And NO, Dawn, I did not have a "beverage" when I made the post this morning.  Sheesh ... I'm not THAT desperate (........... yet).  I still haven't had one!

Which reminds me ..... I need to go back to my house and have a glass of wine.