Oh, how the mighty have fallen...again!

David and I are in to clutzy accidents this week. He came in one afternoon and showed me his elbow, which he had bumped on a car at work. The collision made enough noise that a coworker heard it over the assembly line, so we know it was a mighty wallop. He made a pretense of crying and said, "I need to go home and let Susan kiss this one!"

Not to be outdone, I left the house just a little too confident and too quickly yesterday. I made it down the front steps safely, but hit a slick patch at the foot of the steps. Somehow, I landed on both my knees and my hip--how, I'm still trying to figure out. My co-volunteer at the hospital, Martha, said I must have ricocheted. Anyway, I have a couple of bruises "where the sun don't shine". I haven't asked David to kiss them yet.

And then today, David made the mistake of trying to close his truck door before he got his leg out. I can't say a lot, because I bumped my head in pretty much the same way recently.

Let's just say we're not getting any brighter as we age. Love to all, and God bless.

Snow Pics

For those of you who were wishing to see the snow, all I can say is, "The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away." It was gone noon yesterday. Sorry about that!

Snow Day!

Wonder of winter wonders, we're having a snow day today! I can hear the children next door at Darlene's, playing in the snow, and I start thinking back to my snow day memories.

For some reason, there didn't seem to be many "snow days" when I was a child. If there were, they didn't impact me like they did my own kids, I'm sure. I can remember riding around Greenfield Circle, the loop at the end of our street, on a sled pulled behind a car--there weren't many hills in LaGrange. I know we had a flexible flier, but I don't have many memories of enjoying riding on it. One sledding memory does stand out, though.

I was spending what may have started off as the end of Christmas vacation with my twin friends, Betty and Barbara. They lived over on US 42, about 10 miles or so from my house, and I probably wouldn't have had a chance to ever know them, if we hadn't ended up sitting near each other in high school chorus. They were my very best friends for a while, and like so many high-school very best friends, we have completely lost touch with one another. I learned a lot from the twins--talk about naive, I was the champ. But that "snow day" was one special time, let me tell you.

It was probably in 1964, I know they graduated that year. I had gone to spend a couple of days with them, and while I was there, it SNOWED. I have no clue how much, but enough to close schools in Oldham County, which I guarantee did NOT (and still doesn't) happen very often. The twins' father owned a garage and motel, so there was no shortage of inner tubes around. We inflated them and spent the better part of a day sliding down the hills around their house--no Great North slopes or Aspen, for sure, but still way too much fun! Probably the neatest thing about inner tubing is that you have NO control, so plowing into one another was part of the fun. Mike and I tried to recapture the fun at home, but it just wasn't the same. (Did I mention there were no good hills in LaGrange?)

I will admit that I am thankful I don't have to "car ski" to work today. Winter driving didn't scare me a lot when I was younger. I learned to drive in the summer of 1976, which was followed by the winter of 1977. The snow that year after Christmas left kids out of school until February! Our niece had just come to live with us, and her first day in Scott County schools was Valentine's Day. In order for us to do about anything, I had to drive, since David was out of town almost every daylight hour working. Fortunately, we had a great little snow car, a Chevy Vega with a standard transmission. As long as I was driving here in town, I knew NO FEAR.

Fast forward to 1983. I got a job with an independent school district which shall remain nameless. This independent district was about 20 miles from here over a two-lane road that had a few hills, twists and turns. (Actually there were two routes to work, one of which was over an interstate highway, but I chose not to go that way. Believe it or not, sliding off the road into a ditch is less dangerous to one's health than getting hit by a semi that has lost control.) When snow was predicted, I was up bright and early to see if I would have school that day--at least the first couple of snowfalls, I was looking to see if we were going to have school. After that, I just got ready to leave early, unless someone called me to tell me otherwise. Seems this district NEVER canceled school.

Many a day I drove there over roads that had barely been plowed. I often had the feeling as I crested a hill and looked down to the creek below, that I was skiing in my car. It was beautiful, quiet, and not particular scary...until others would marvel at the fact that I got to work! One day I made a stupid mistake and passed the snow plow--don't ever do that. Yes, I made it that day, too, but playing snow plow with a car just isn't a good idea.

I'm sure you have good snow day memories. I hope this post stirs a few. Love to all, and God bless.

Job Hunting

Our good friends Sam and Ting are job hunting. Sam has just graduated from nursing school with an RN degree, and his wife, Ting, has just finished her dissertation for a doctorate in chemical engineering. Sam is very computer proficient (he has a master's degree in computer programming) and has great people skills. Ting's dissertation was something to do with protein markers, ,and she would like to do research (if possible, post-doc) in an academic setting, maybe on Alzheimer's Disease. If you know anyone who can use their skills and would be willing to sponsor them as they work toward getting a "green card", let me know. They would like to live in a community with more Chinese folks around, and we would like to see them living somewhere with a welcoming church.

Let's do what we can to network and get these folks hired! Love to all, and God bless.

The coming election

I have been watching election news with not a lot of interest, other than to think, like an acquaintance's child, "There's a woman and a Black man running for President! Has that ever happened before?" Part of me says hooray, we've come a long way! while part of me wants to return to the status quo when all the Presidential candidates were white men, Protestant, happily married (at least as far as we knew), and SAFE. I had no idea whom I would be supporting, when push came to shove, until I discovered this website.

Now at least I have a clue. If you're wondering who my candidate will be, I'll admit to this much: the majority of the candidates I supposedly support are Democratic, although there was a Republican in the top 80% as well as one I had only occasionally heard of--

Go and see where you are. Love to all, and God bless.

First Dates

Ever have a bad first date? Heard this story before? I hope not--even if you had, it's worth reading again. Love you all!

Shopping

Anyone in the mood to do a little shopping? Are you having withdrawal after Christmas? Take a look at the HEMA company's website (give it a couple of seconds before you start scrolling down). Love you folks.

Intelligence

Ever wonder if you're smart or stupid? Here's your test. Once you've completed it, go find your own sign.

One of these days I'm going to write a post about smart/stupid. I have too many friends who think they're stupid, often due to bad teaching and circumstances way beyond their control. Just let me say this about that: teachers have a darn lot more influence on young children than they are given.

Love to all, and God bless.

News Flash!

Over the weekend, I was given the all-clear to make this official announcement: Geron and Lydia are going to have another baby! We found out the day after Christmas, when we got to see the "walking billboard", Miss Cora Sophia, wearing her "Special Sister" t-shirt. However, we were forbidden to share the news with the rest of the world.

Friday night, on the way to visit Ann and Dan in Nashville, Lydia called to say that they had visited the obstetrician and seen an ultrasound--they were officially pregnant, and were going to post the ultrasound on their website. Soooo, I could tell anyone I wanted. She then asked, "Who have you told?" and I could proudly answer, "No one."

If you go there to view the picture, you'll also see that they have a new header, and you'll get a chance to catch up on the antics of the world's cutest granddaughter.

Love to all, and God bless.

I think I'll use this line sometime...

A strained voice called out through the darkened theater, "Please, is there a doctor in the house?!"

Several men stood up as the lights came on.

An older lady pulled her daughter to stand next to her, "Good, are any of you doctors single and interested in a date with a nice, girl?"

Of course, I'm going to have to modify it a little...

A strained voice called out through the darkened theater, "Please, is there a doctor in the house?!"

Several men stood up as the lights came on.

The voice continued, "Are there any female doctors in the house?"

When some women were standing, the older lady pulled her son to stand next to her, "Good, are any of you doctors single and interested in a date with a nice young man?"

I love that boy, but sometimes he drives me crazy.

Anyone for geography?

David and I have found a new way to waste our time. I hope you enjoy it as much as we have! By the way, David has made it up to Level 12, I believe. Me? Not nearly so good--after all, one of my two most appalling college grades was in geography. (For those of you who might be interested, the other was in PE.) Have fun, and God bless!

New Year's Resolutions II

Remember a while back when I gave you an example of resolutions that would be oh-so-easy to keep? Well, my good friend Mikey sent me this list today, and I felt called upon to share it with you.

NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS YOU CAN KEEP

Are you sick of making the same resolutions year after year that you never keep? Why not promise to do something you can ACTUALLY accomplish?

Here are some resolutions that you can use as a starting point:

~ Gain weight. At least 30 pounds.
~ Stop exercising. Waste of time.
~ Read less. Makes you think.
~ Watch more TV. I've been missing some good stuff.
~ Procrastinate more. Starting tomorrow.
~ Spend more time at work, surfing the web.
~ Take a vacation to someplace important, like to see the world's largest ball of twine.
~ Don't jump off a cliff just because everyone else did.
~ Stop bringing lunch from home--eat out more.
~ Don't have eight children at once.
~ Get in a whole NEW rut!
~ Start being superstitious.
~ Personal goal: Don't bring back disco.
~ Don't ride in a car driven by Britney Spears.
~ Speak in a monotone voice and only use monosyllabic words.
~ Only wear jeans that are 2 sizes too small and use a chain or rope for a belt.
~ Spend my summer vacation in cyberspace.
~ Create loose ends.
~ Get more toys.
~ Get further in debt.
~ Don't believe politicians.
~ Break at least one traffic law.
~ Don't drive a motorized vehicle across thin ice.
~ Don't swim with piranhas or sharks.
~ Spread out priorities beyond the ability to keep track of them.
~ Wait for opportunity to knock.
~ Focus on the faults of others.
~ Mope about faults.
~ Never make New Year's resolutions again.

today'sTHOT============================

Aim low. Reach your goals. Avoid disappointment.

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PASS IT ON!
Yeah, you can send this Funny to anybody you want. And, if you're REAL nice, you'll tell them where you got it! www.mikeysFunnies.com

Have a great Monday, and God bless!

I thought I could

Today in Sunday school, our lesson was on "rendering unto Caesar". Yes, I've heard that lesson more than once, so I'll admit my mind wandered to some extent. However, I did come to my senses in time to hear this statement from the teacher: "If you have no control over it, it isn't your responsibility."

How deep. I had to sit there and think about that for a minute. There are some things we obviously have no control over (the weather, for instance), and others that are not as obvious (the actions of our children, spouses, significant others, or bosses). In this modern world, though, we try to assume control of those things. We're like the little engine that could: we think we can, we think we can, we think we can. We think we can change someone else's thinking. We think we can keep someone else from engaging in harmful actions. We think we can make people love us. We think we can make someone happy.

As Shel Silverstein once told us, sometimes thinking you can isn't enough. How true is that! If you're in a situation where something isn't going to suit you and you feel responsible, stop and take a step back. See if you have any control over what is happening. If you do, change what you can. If you don't, stop feeling guilty! It may not be your responsibility!

I had a rotten work situation a couple of years ago. I loved my profession (teaching), but I didn't like my job. It didn't seem that there was anything I could do that was right. I tried to do what I felt professionally was best for my particular students, but folks who supervised me had differing ideas of what should be done. The goals they put in place were impossible to be met with the resources available to me. I realized that and realized, just like Shel Silverstein said, thinking I could wasn't enough. I couldn't. No one could. Long story short, I turned in my resignation, (written in red crayon, by the way--at least addressed that way), and walked out of the job.

I miss teaching terribly at times, but I don't miss trying to attain the impossible. I couldn't do it, I had no control over it, it didn't need to be my responsibility any longer. I feel peace with the decision and joy over being in control of things that I can control.

Take a look at your world. 1. Do you have control over your situation? 2. Is there any way you can get control of the situation? (Here's a hint: if there are other adults involved doing things their way and discussing the matter with them hasn't helped, you probably don't have control.) If the answer to those questions is no, then stop making it be your responsibility. Stop taking the blame for it.

Think it over. You make be woman, you may be able to roar, but there are some things you can't do. You are NOT invincible. Stop discouraging yourself by trying to do the impossible. Give the problem to God--let Him deal with it. Guaranteed, it IS His problem, and He CAN control it. This doesn't mean He will--after all, we don't know what His plan is for the situation. But we DO know that His plan is better than ours.

Good night to all, and God bless.

Yes, they are

I have this great friend, Becky, who lives somewhere out west. I won't say where, so that she and the rest of the parties involved can rest in their innocence. Anyway, I rather enjoyed this last post of hers .