I'm back!

I'm baaaaaack!! Miss me??

Sorry for disappearing like that - I've been swamped with work stuff. This changing jobs thing is complicated! First we interviewed candidates for my replacement 2 weeks ago - part of the deal was they each had to work a day with me shadowing them to see how they handled things. Then I spent last week training the one they selected - God that was tedious. I mean I was the receptionist -- I didn't do enough to warrant training someone for a week. Two, three days maybe, but not five. I went home after lunch Thursday & Friday - what were they going to do, fire me? LOL

I was officially unemployed as of Tuesday this week. I've spent this week calling and interviewing with agencies. I swear, I'm totally brain dead from all of the skills and computer tests I've taken. Every time I go through this process, I always wish I could take those damn tests once and just share the scores with all of them.

Anyway - I'm now officially registered with three agencies. Two are branches of larger corporations, and one's an independent firm. Hopefully I'll start getting assignments and get back to work next week.

Not around much

I know I know... I haven't been around much lately. I was swamped last week at work, and unfortunately I'm going to be swamped again this week. We were interviewing candidates for my replacement last week, and I trained them each for a day - sort of a working test day. My last day is this Friday the 23rd. We selected someone; she starts tomorrow -- I'll be training her all week. I normally do all of my blogging at work. After surfing the web and goofing on the computer all day, I rarely get on the computer at home in the evenings.

So... I'll try to check in, in the evenings this week. Keep you posted on my random thoughts of the week.

Goodbye Ron Stone

"Veteran Houston news anchor Ron Stone dies at 72"

Wow. Ron Stone died. If you're outside of Houston, you've probably never heard of Ron Stone, but I grew up watching him on tv every day. He was a fixture on Houston newscasts from 1972 to 1992. He was an anchor at our NBC affiliate KPRC Channel 2, and hosted a weekly program 'The Eyes of Texas' which "focused on unique people, events and places throughout the state of Texas". He was a local celebrity, and really more of a member of the family to most of us. I remember seeing him eating lunch at the counter in 59 Diner about 12 - 13 years ago and being starstruck.

Houston has lost an icon - one of the good 'ole Texan gentlemen. He will be greatly missed.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/chronicle/5776076.html

http://www.click2houston.com/news/15925957/detail.html

Mother's Day Presents

Hubby did really well this year with my Mother's Day presents. He got me exactly what I wanted! I told my mother a month or so ago that I wanted 2 pendants from James Avery for Mother's Day. (I spotted them while buying my cousin's charm bracelet.) Mom passed the word, and hubby listened...

Here they are - I want to wear both on the same chain. I'm dropping the first one off today to be engraved with Benjamin's name & birthdate.

"Sweep The Leg" - No More Kings

I just HAD to post this video. With Benjamin starting Karate that's been about all I've had on my brain for the past week. And his Sensei calls the younger students "Karate Kids". "Are you Karate Kids? Do Karate Kids act like that, or are Karate Kids disciplined?" etc etc.

It's a long video, but oh so worth it... (I think anyway...)

Band Adjustment - I'M HUNGRY!

Okay - so I totally fell off the diet wagon recently. I've gained 10lbs since March - not happy!! I noticed that I've been able to eat a lot more lately, it takes more food to fill me up. That's a sign that I need a band adjustment/fill. So, I got one this morning. This is my 4th adjustment so far. I swear, I don't care how many times they do it, having someone stick a needle in my stomach FREAKS ME OUT every time! Ugh! I get more nervous and anxious about this than I did with the surgery itself! and really - the needle she uses is TINY - I'm actually stuck with two needles - first she injects something that numbs the area and then she sticks me again to do the actual fill - I don't feel any pain with the fill. It's just a bit uncomfortable. And it's over before you realize.

Now comes the hard part... I'm on liquids only today and tomorrow, soft foods Sunday and Monday, and I can go back to real food Monday or Tuesday. But I swear, I don't care how many smoothies and protein shakes I drink, I'm always hungry! I know it's a mental thing, but I just want to be able to chew my food! Ugh! Oh well... it's only 2 days... I can handle it...

I think...

Bumper sticker of the week

THURSDAY THIRTEEN - Movie Quotes

Here are some of my favorite movies to quote. They all have more than one quote, so I decided to pick my top 13 movies not 13 quotes.

1. Real Genius -

"I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates when he said, "I drank what?"

"You get even with Kent. It's a moral imperative. "

"Think before you ask these questions, Mitch."

"Kent, this is God."

"This? This is ice. This is what happens to water when it gets too cold. This? This is Kent. This is what happens to people when they get too sexually frustrated. "


2. Ghostbusters -

"Ray. If someone asks if you are a god, you say, YES!"

"Nimble little minx, isn't she?"

"You're right, no human being would stack books like this."

"Listen... do you smell something?"

"Somebody blows their nose and you want to keep it? Egon, your mucus."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Nice shootin', Tex!"


3. Twister:

"Uh... yeah, trust me. Rabbit is good, Rabbit is wise. "

"Cow. Another Cow. Actually I think that was the same one"

"Honey, your car is in a tree around the corner. "

"Find this road... it's like Bob's Road... "


4. Lion King:

"She's gonna EAT ME!" "Let me get this straight. You know her. She knows you. But she wants to eat him. And everybody's okay with this? Did I miss something?"

"Tell me about it. I just hear that name and I shudder. Mufasa! Ooooh! Do it again! Mufasa! Ooooh! Mufasa, Mufasa, Mufasa! Ooooh! [breaks into laughter] And it tingles me! I'm surrounded by idiots"


5. Jurassic Park:

"Must go faster. Must go faster."

"Is it heavy? Uhh yeah. Then it's expensive, put it back."

" Now eventually you might have dinosaurs on your, on your dinosaur tour, right? Hello? yes?"

"Oh, yeah. Oooh, ahhh, that's how it always starts. Then later there's running and screaming. " (that's actually from Jurassic Park 2)


6. Steel Magnolias:

"In a good shoe, I wear a size six, but a seven feels so good, I buy a size eight."

"Pink is my signature color."

"All gay men have track lightin'. And all gay men are named Mark, Rick, or Steve."

"Looks like two pigs fightin' under a blanket."

"Well, you know what they say: if you don't have anything nice to say about anybody, come sit by me!"

"They'd been smokin' everything but their shoes."

"You are evil, and you must be destroyed."

"you sound almost chipper. What happened today - you run over a small child or something?"

"Well, these thighs haven't gone out of the house without lycra on them since I was 14."

"Oh! He's a real gentleman! I bet he takes the dishes out of the sink before he PEES in it!"

"He is a boil on the butt of humanity!"


7. Fried Green Tomatoes:

"Face it, girls, I'm older and I have more insurance."

"How many of them hormones you takin', honey?"

"Towanda! Righter of Wrong, Queen Beyond Compare!"


8. Adventures in Babysitting:

"Don't fuck with the Lords of Hell. Don't fuck with the babysitter."

" if either of you give me any grief I swear to God I'll kill you. Dead, murdered, stabbed."

"The chick is losing it."


9. Emperor's New Groove"

"No touchy! no touch!"

"I'm sorry, but you've thrown off the Emperor's groove."

"Yay. I'm a llama again! Wait..."


10. Dude Where's May Car?:

"Dude... SWEET!"

"And then? No "and then"! And then!"


11. Lilo & Stitch:

"Coconut cake AND coffee!"

"Also cute and fluffy!"

"I like fluffy!"

"No more caffeine for you."

"Stitch is troubled. He needs desserts! Desserts!"


12. Sneakers:

"I want peace on earth and goodwill toward men. We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing."

"Cattle mutilations are up."

" "Give him head"? "Be a beacon" ?"

"I want a Winnebago. Fully equipped, big kitchen, water bed...AM-FM, CD, microwave. Burgundy interior."


13. Toy Story:

"YOU! ARE! A! TOYYYYY! You're not the real Buzz Lightyear! You're - you are an action figure! You are a child's play-thing!"

"You are a sad, strange little man, and you have my pity."

"What's wrong with him? Laser envy."

"Ages three and up! It's on my box! Ages three and up!"

"You're mocking me, aren't you?"



The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!http://www.thursdaythirteen.com/

Karaoke Man

Hubby & I were reminiscing recently and brought up KARAOKE MAN. Oh wow, I hadn't thought about KARAOKE MAN in ages!

So... I met Karaoke Man about a month after I moved into my last apartment I lived in while I was single. (was that a sentence?) It was a nice day out and I'd opened my windows to let the breeze in - when some music drifted in. At first I thought it was an outdoor concert down the road, then I realized it was coming from next door. My Asian next door neighbor was singing karaoke, and if that wasn't enough, he had a MAJOR accent and serious difficulty with English. So, instead of hearing "Feelings, nothing more than feelings" I heard"feewing, noting more dan feewing". If THAT wasn't enough, it turned out that was the first of an almost daily serenade of the SAME song from Karaoke Man. Day or night, 2am, 12pm, 3pm, 8am or 4am - it didn't matter. As he went on, he'd get louder and louder until it was coming through the walls. I complained to the apartment managers several times. Of course they died laughing thinking it was the funniest thing they'd heard. I told them you wouldn't think that after your fourth sleepless night of "feewings" vibrating through your walls. They sent him several letters, but he ignored them, and there really wasn't anything they could do - he wasn't breaking any laws, just being an inconsiderate neighbor. I'd started dating hubby during this time too. OMG, the first time he heard Karaoke Man, he nearly died. Again, of course it's funny the first time you hear it - around 5pm, but oh wow was hubby ticked off the first time it woke him up at 3:00am. After the 4th or so night of it, he asked me, "does he EVER stop?" Nope! That's his favorite pass time!

I was tortured with Karaoke Man for about 4 - 6 months until he moved out. Wow - I' never loved silence so much in my life. The new neighbors weren't perfect, they had a noisy kid who loved to play on the landing right outside my front door. But I didn't care, I'd take a noisy kid any day over "feewing, noting more dan feewing"!

Ladies Restroom Etiquette

I was listening to XM Radio's comedy station this morning on the way in to work, and a female comic was talking about the unwritten etiquette rules of the ladies restroom. It's funny, I recently had this talk with hubby - asked him if the same rules apply for public men's restrooms. His answer was - well after first looking at me like I was insane, I believe he made some comment about women being nuts. Apparently, no - men's rooms don't have the unwritten etiquette rules. Two classic examples of this are 1) hubby's coworker, upon emerging from the men's room at the office made a comment along the lines of "that would have killed a normal man" - and 2) unfortunately my desk at the office is directly across the hall from the restrooms. My male coworkers will actually warn each other not to go into the men's room for a while until the haze clears.

There are just a few clear rules for the ladies restroom that are never spoken about, but for some reason everyone knows and follows them.

- If there are several open stalls, do not go into the stall immediately next to someone. Always leave an empty stall on either side when possible. Same with the sinks. If you're in a large restroom like a movie theater or airport with tons of sinks, do not pick the sink immediately next to someone. We have very large comfort zones in restrooms.

- Do not fart or poo if there is someone else in the restroom. I have on several occasions left the restroom when I REALLY had to go because there was someone else in there. I've waited until the person left, or at work before gone to a different floor to use the restroom.

- If you must pass gas or 'go potty', flush repeatedly so no one else can hear you. Now of course you obviously know what's going on if you hear the repeated flushes, but of course that's not spoken of. AND - if you're still in there when the flusher emerges from the stall, do not make eye contact. She's embarrassed enough as it is.

This last one isn't one of the "written in stone unspoken rules" but more of a common courtesy request. Please don't talk on your cell phones while in the stall. One, the person you're speaking to most likely doesn't like hearing the toilets flushing and all of the other bathroom noise. But also, it makes the other women in the bathroom very self conscious.

So anyway... just my contribution to the manners of society...

Chimney Swifts

We have a family of chimney swifts living in our (what else?) chimney. They adopted us last year. I called a chimney sweep company last fall and asked what we could do about it. I didn't want them killed, I just wanted to put a cap or something on top of our chimney to make sure they didn't come back this year. What I was mainly worried about was lighting the fire last winter and having the nests catch fire possibly causing the house to catch fire! The chimney guys came out & inspected the fireplace/chimney, and actually told us that birds aside, we shouldn't light another fire in the fireplace. We do not have a cap on the top of the chimney (obviously) and the rain washing down the sides had worn away the mortar in between the bricks inside the chimney. That meant the heat from the fires was not being vented out the top of the chimney, but into the walls and attic. SERIOUS fire hazard. The guy basically said that even one more fire could catch the house on fire. Umm... okay, no fire for us! So... how much does it cost to fix a problem like that?? about $4,000! Yikes! I'm sorry, I LOVE my fireplace - especially the ease of having a gas log, but we live in Houston - the South, basically the face of the sun! No fireplace in Houston is worth $4,000 - not for the, what - 3 times a year it's cold enough to use it? No thank you! So - we decided that we're going to remove the hearth, and use the brick from that to brick over the fireplace, leaving us with one brick wall in the living room.

AND - because there's no worry about a fire anymore, we left the top of the chimney open for the chimney swifts. I've actually learned a lot about them. For one, they're protected - it's illegal to kill or even just disturb their nests. The chimney people said that they'd have to wait until the family leaves to remove the debris from the next. It's a BIG fine if you're caught removing a nest. Also, once they find a nesting place, they come back every year for life, and then the babies come back every year too. So, unless we put a cap on top of the chimney, we're the hosts of families of chimney swifts. Which really, is fine with me. They're noisy little suckers, but honestly I like it. I've gotten used to their chirping. They're usually loudest at sunrise and sunset, that's when the parents leave & return with dinner so the kids are all worked up. And it's the babies who make the most noise. They'll stay with us for about 6 months, until the babies are old enough to fly away, and then they'll migrate where ever they go in the winter. But we'll see them again next spring and it starts all over again.

http://www.chimneyswifts.org/

Quit my job - yikes!

Oh my goodness. I just turned in my resignation at work. May 23rd is my last day. YIKES! I hope I'm doing the right thing! Actually, I know I am. It's just a big change and really hard for me. I miss so much time being out sick, I've already used up all of my vacation and sick time for the year. I did the same thing last year, used up all of my time by April and so I had no days off for the rest of the year. Besides, it really is hard on the office for the receptionist to be out so much. They have to scramble to get a temp in to cover the switchboard every time. It's not like a general admin position where my work can just wait until I get back. Plus, I really hate that I've missed out on several chances to volunteer at my son's school this year. Like next week is his Field Day, I REALLY wish I could take the day off to be his cheerleader for the day, but I just can't. BUT - with quitting my full-time job, I'm going to work temp again. That way I have a more flexible schedule and I can just choose to work certain days or not. I've been here 4 years though - the longest I've been at any job. This is going to be a big change for me. I'm soooo scared! My stomach was so queasy this morning when I had to tell my boss, my nerves had me all tied up in knots!

Wish me luck! and I'll keep you posted...

Buddhist Thought for the Day

Okay - I'm a relatively intelligent person, and I've been studying Buddhism for a little over two years now. But I have NO IDEA what this means. I get daily "Buddhist Thought for the Day" on my igoogle home page, and I really have no idea what they're trying to say with this one. If you understand it, please let me know - thanks!

Buddhism: Your Daily Meditation
A myriad bubbles were floating on the surface of a stream. 'What are you?' I cried to them as they drifted by. 'I am a bubble, of course' nearly a myriad bubbles answered, and there was surprise and indignation in their voices as they passed. But, here and there, a lonely bubble answered, 'We are this stream', and there was neither surprise nor indignation in their voices, but just a quiet certitude. - Ask the Awakened by Wei Wu Wei

Karate Boy!

Okay I have to be a bragging Mom for a sec here... Benjamin started karate class this week. He has class Tuesday and Thursday evenings. He's SO CUTE!! I know I know, he'd probably die of embarrassment if he heard me call him that, but he IS! Hiya! Yes Sensei Sir! LOL He gets his uniform and belt tonight. I'll post pics as soon as I can.

Oh and I'm turning into a total soccer mom... The school has stickers for your car. I always said I hated that when you see the big SUV's with "Kaitlyn's" dance school sticker on the back. But I'm SO tempted to get one from the martial arts school!

Thursday Thirteen 05/01/08 - Strange Illnesses

In honor of having yet another obscure illness recently, I thought I’d list my top 13 weird illnesses or hospital stays.

Thirteen Strange Illnesses/Conditions I’ve had so far:

1. Hand Foot & Mouth Virus
2. Viral Meningitis
3. Chickenpox TWICE as a kid
4. Thoracic Outlet Syndrome
5. Interstitial Cystitis
6. Scarlet Fever
7. Whooping Cough
8. Tadpole Pupil
9. Basilar Artery Migraines
10. Repetitive Motion Sprain of my right thumb from playing my ipod & texting too much.
11. Herpes on my left knee
12. Bursitis of my right knee
13. Hypothyroidism

My friends are taking bets on how long until I get the plague…

Thirteen surgeries/hospital stays:

1. This should actually count as three, cause I’ve had three, but… laser surgery for endometriosis.
2. Top right two ribs removed because of Thoracic Outlet Syndrome.
3. Tonsillectomy (at 31 I might add)
4. Sinus surgery from sinus infection that lasted 6 months.
5. Surgery to repair tendonitis in right wrist
6. Lap-Band
7. C-section when my son was born
8. Does stitches count? I had my right foot slammed in a car door as a child, requiring stitches.
9. Hospital stay for viral meningitis 1999
10. Hospital stay for pregnancy complications 2001
11. Hospital stay for migraines 2006
12. Hospital stay for tachycardia & migraines 2007
13. Hospital stay for hand foot & mouth disease 2008



The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!http://www.thursdaythirteen.com

Cooking at home

This may come as a serious shock to some of you, but I have actually been cooking meals at home. YES you heard that correctly!! Now while most of the weeknight meals have been from a box or frozen (for time's sake), I've cooked Sunday meals from scratch for the past 3 weeks or so. I have to give myself a little pat on the back for this past Sunday's dinner - homemade chicken noodle soup. Hubby & I were both having serious allergy attacks this weekend, and chicken soup just sounded good to me. I cheated a little, it wasn't COMPLETELY from scratch - I bought a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken from HEB and just pulled the meat off. But other than that, the veggies & everything else were fresh. It was seriously yummy! I'm starting to love my new oven too - baking chicken & such is soooo easy now (dinner the previous two Sundays). Now if I could only get over my phobia of the crock pot... I'm always afraid it'll catch on fire & burn the house down if you leave it on while not home...

Bumper sticker of the week 04/28

The most heard phrase in my house recently... Oh the joy of being a parent...

Books books and more books!

I am sooooo dangerous in a bookstore. Hubby and I stopped into Barnes & Noble on Saturday. An hour and $87 later he had to DRAG me out of the store. I'm such a bookworm. I absolutely LOVE books. I always have a huge stack waiting to be read. Here are my current selections:

1. I'm currently reading the complete set of The Chronicles of Narnia, starting with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

2. I'm halfway through Christine Feehan's GhostWalker series - there are 5 of those, I've read 3 so far.

3. I just bought the first in Christine Feehan's Dark Series (vampire series) - there are so far 18 in that series.

4. Bought the first in Kelley Armstrong's Otherworld Series - I read book 8 last year, now I want to start at the beginning. There are 11 so far in that series.

5. I have all three of MJ Rose's Butterfield Institute series. I've started book 1 twice now, but put it down.

6. I picked up Lisa Jackson's latest hardback "Lost Souls" on Saturday.

7. and The Ghost Map by Steven Johnson. It looked interesting, about the cholera outbreak in London in 1854.

8. I started reading "Beautiful Children" by Charles Bock a few weeks ago, but it didn't really grab me, so I switched to something else. I may go back to it after I've read all of my others.

9. I still need to finish the Incarnations of Immortality series by Piers Anthony. I've read the first three of seven.

10. I started George Orwell's 1984 too. That one's so small, I need to just finish it.

11. and The Glass Books of the Dream Eaters by Gordon Dalhquist. That one's HUGE and lost my interest about 1/3 into it.

12. I have Ghost Story by Peter Straub

13. and Velocity by Dean Koontz

14. and TONS of Meditation and Buddhist books I read from time to time. I love reading the Dalai Lama's books.

I think that's it for now. I have about 20-something waiting to be read. Wow - I didn't realize it was that many -- I need to hop to it!

Letter from CS Lewis

I just had to share this...

I'm reading the Chronicles of Narnia for the first time, starting with The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe. CS Lewis wrote the following dedication for the book:

To Lucy Barfield...

My Dear Lucy,

I wrote this story for you, but when I began it I had not realized that girls grow quicker than books. As a result you are already too old for fairy tales, and by the time it is printed and bound you will be older still. But some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again. You can then take it down from some upper shelf, dust it, and tell me what you think of it. I shall probably be too deaf to hear, and too old to understand a word you say, but I shall still be

your affectionate Godfather,

CS Lewis


One of my favorite sayings (and I have it on my blog profile) is "we don't stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing." Maybe it's because I get my name from Wendy in Peter Pan or maybe because I'm a tad obsessed with Alice in Wonderland, but I don't think we're ever too old for fairy tales. The world can be a magical place filled with fairies and unicorns, trolls and elves, princesses and godmothers, witches and warlocks, and all sorts of mythical creatures and characters. You just have to believe in the magic that's all around and inside each of us.

The little things

I love the little things that make you smile & giggle... Like when my boss called my cell phone at lunch, and the ringtone I've set for the office is "Take This Job and Shove It"... makes me giggle every time... Same thing when my mother calls and the evil emperor's Imperial March from Star Wars plays...