I’m Still Standing

 

It’s been a very busy week.  Training my replacement at work . . . for some reason it strikes me a little odd to train a replacement when I don’t know when I’m leaving the current job or even have a replacement job to go to for that matter.  Oh, well, I’m taking it on faith that there’s something wonderful waiting just around the corner.  I just wish that I had a little more idea of what the "something wonderful" was going to be!

 

Working on getting the office part of Hubby’s fishing rod repair business organized.  For some reason semi-retirement for Hubby has turned into a second full time job for me . . . okay, explain to me how this semi-retirement thing will benefit me?

 

Beautiful spring weather means that I’m walking Luci every night.  She’s having a grand time exploring the neighborhood and seeing all the friendly faces that have been hiding indoors all winter.  That dog sure loves her adoring public! 

 

Okay.  Back to work for me.  I’ll update more later. 

 

 

High School Musical

 

I saw a high school musical yesterday.  No, not the wildly popular movie . . . a real High School Musical.  Every year my high school puts on a musical – this year it was "Beauty and The Beast"  It was a "girls day out" with me, Mom, my sisters, and my nieces.   

 

When I heard that this year’s musical was "Beauty and The Beast" I wondered how in the world they would be able to pull off such a production.  When I was in high school, we did the traditional Broadway musicals – "Oklahoma," "The Music Man," and "South Pacific".  And even though each musical was wonderful, you could tell that it was a high school production. 

 

Oh. My. Gawrsh.  Was I ever surprised.  It was a fabulous production!!  Okay, it wasn’t Broadway quality and certainly not the quality of the Disney movie, but it was very good.  The set was gorgeous and I couldn’t believe that they had made it all themselves there at the school.  And the cast!  The director did a great job casting the parts.  The kid that played Gaston was perfect.  At one point I thought to myself, "Gee, I hope he’s not like that in real life,"  because he was having a little too much fun throwing the kid that played Lefou around.  The boy that was Lumiere was hilarious!!  I couldn’t believe he was just a sophomore.  Belle, Mrs. Potts, Cogsworth, Maurice, Babette . . . they were all perfect.  And the little kids that made up some of the Enchanted Items during the "Be Our Guest" segment were just too cute for words.  All the cast did a great job – not a bit of nerves to be seen anywhere.  No flubbed lines or forgotten words. 

 

I don’t know why, but I’m always amazed at the wonderful talent of the students that attend my little high school.  It’s not a big city school – just a small school out in the middle of nowhere.  Farm kids.  Small town kids from the middle of nowhere Ohio.  But the talent they showed yesterday was amazing . . .

 

For three hours yesterday afternoon those farm kids and those small town kids made me forget that I was in a small high school auditorium and made me believe in an Enchanted Forest and the power of true love.

Mixed Up Friday

 

It’s another one of those days when I have a bunch of stuff in my head that I don’t know what to do with.  The only way to get it out of my head is to write it down.  Hang on, it’s might be a bumpy ride . . .

 

• ·        Why, why, why is Dr. Phil involved in the Anna Nicole Smith thing?  Does he think that he can make sense of the crazy mixed-up mess?  I want to ask Dr. Phil . . . "what are you thinkin’?"  This is seriously affecting my respect and affection for the man. 
• ·        "How come we can put a man on the moon but we can’t figure out what is in the dog and cat food that’s making all the pets sick?"  That’s a quote from Dad from Tuesday night.  
• ·        If one company in Canada is making all these different brands of dog and cat food how can Iams and Eukanuba expect their customers to believe that their dog food is better than the Wal-Mart brand?  Another quote from Dad . . . and something I didn’t think of until he mentioned it.  I might have to seriously re-think whether it’s worth it to feed Blacky and Luci the high priced Iams.
• ·        The AC in my building is still broke.  It’s probably 80 degrees in my office right now.  I’ve had to get out some of the summer clothes a little early so that I’m not roasting when I’m at work.  There’s just something really weird about wearing light summer clothing in Ohio in March.      
• ·        Hubby has a cold.  He’s not a very good patient.  I’m not looking forward to this weekend.  Wait and see if I don’t end up with the cold in about a week or two – just in time for our wedding anniversary! 
• ·        Heard a song on XM radio that I could have sworn was something that Mom made up to sing to us when we were little.  She used to sing "I love you a bushel and a peck" and I thought she made it up just for us.  She would do that sometimes.  Lo and behold it’s a real song.  I heard it on the 50’s channel yesterday.  The song "Bushel and a Peck" was sung by Perry Como.  Perry Como happens to be Mom’s favorite all-time singer.  Yes, it’s still stuck in my head! 
• ·        The Kroger store that I go to each week has installed the new e85 ethanol pumps at the gas station.  My brother is a service writer for a General Motors car dealer and told me that I have to be careful not to accidentally put ethanol in my car instead of gas.  It won’t do a whole lot of damage to the Dog Mobile, but I’ll have to drain the tank and the clean the fuel system.  Just what I need to add to my irrational fear of accidentally putting diesel in my car . . . .
• ·        It’s raining again.  The yard is a swampy mess.  Luci’s having a grand time slopping through the mud.  I’ve discovered that baby wipes are a great way to get mud off dog feet!  Blacky is a nervous Nelly and won’t go outside if there is thunder and lightning . . . unless Mommy or Daddy go outside with him.  I was outside this morning at 5:30 in my jammies and hiking boots with an umbrella over me and Blacky so that he would go potty.  Do you think maybe the dog is just a tad spoiled? 

 

Thanks for listening.  I feel better now . . .

Tuesday Night Madness

 

This is the blog that I was going to post on Wednesday before I got severely sidetracked . . . . 

 

Every other Tuesday my siblings and I – along with the nieces and nephew – trek on over to my folks house for the evening.  We get there between 6:30 and 7:00 and leave about 9 p.m.  (That’s so the nieces and nephew can get ready for school in the morning.)  We visit, watch American Idol, eat cake, the kids play games, the teenage girls try to listen to the "adult" conversations . . . there’s 11 of us in a little 3 bedroom ranch style house.  

 

• Since we’re all there, Mom makes some kind of dessert.  God love her, she’s always got something yummy for us to eat when we come to visit.  Ever hear the old saying, "If I’d known you were coming, I’d have baked a cake."  That’s my mom.  
• Because my youngest niece thinks we need to sing "Happy Birthday" everytime we’re all together, Mom puts two candles in the cake and we sing "Happy Day" to the youngest niece (she’s 5) and my youngest nephew (he’s 7).  "Happy Day" is really "Happy Birthday" with out the word "birth" . . .
• My brother and my dad usually leave to do the "guy bonding" thing.  They usually go to Target, Best Buy, or Wal-Mart.  They check out the new movies that have been released or just wander aimlessly. 
• This week, though, Little Brother had a meeting at work and got there late.  He decided to stick around and watch "American Idol" with us.  Then proceeded to tell us that he’s one of the Howard Stern listeners that’s voting for Sanjaya.  Do I need to tell you just how much abuse we gave him for that? 
• Mom was getting her Easter decorations out.  She has a rather large collection of little houses and figurines for a miniature Easter Village.  It takes over the entire dining room.  My 5 year old niece has to inspect every piece and make sure they are placed properly.  It sometimes takes Mom a week to get the village set up.  
• My two middle nieces (Big Sister and Little Sister had girls 9 months apart back in 1994-95) were working on the essay they have to submit for their application to join National Junior Honor Society. 
• My oldest niece showed off her prom dress. 
• Mom’s dog sat next to me the whole time I was there . . . because she knows I’m a softy and I’ll give her dog cookies!
• We watched American Idol and tried to explain to my nieces exactly who Peter Noone and Lulu were.  My oldest niece kept calling Peter Noone "Peter No One" . . .

Yea, it’s little noisy, a little hectic, a little crazy.  It’s also the highlight of my week! 

 

Please Make It Stop

 

Okay, it’s been 41 days since Anna Nicole Smith died.  I am so totally sick and tired of the media coverage that I could just scream!  Yes, it’s tragic that her son died suddenly right after the birth of her daughter.  It’s tragic that she died so young and left that little baby girl without a mommy . . . . and a gaggle of men that want to be her daddy.  But do they really want to be her daddy or do they just want the money the baby will inherit?  Do we need to hear something about this story every single day?  Do we need to know that the boyfriend from California has changed lawyers?  Do we need to know (or care?) that the judge was busted for smoking pot in the park? 

 

Entertainment Tonight devoted entire shows to this story for the first week after she died and has at least one story a week about her since.  The tabloids all have at least one screaming headline about Anna Nicole and baby Danilynn.  The E! channel has aired the same special Anna Nicole shows every weekend since she died.  I’m surprised they haven’t brought out re-runs of her reality show.  Arrrggghhhh!!!  Enough already.  It’s enough to make me want to pull my hair out. 

 

The poor woman is dead.  Leave her and her daughter alone and move along.  There’s nothing left to see here.   

Did Ya Ever Notice?

 

Today is the last day the boss will be in the office this week.  He’s taking three days of vacation.  I’m working just as hard today to get him out of the office as I do when I’m getting ready to take a few vacation days.  Geeze . . . but at least I’ll be able to appreciate the peace and quiet when he’s gone. 

 

I guess all the goofing off and catching up will have to wait until tomorrow. 

 

 

Lucky Me

 

I think I finally figured out the amount of exercise that a 18 month old Black Lab needs in order to sleep through the night.  Now I just have to work on my "Wake up at 4:30 in the morning all freaked out because I think I overslept" panic attack. 

 

 

 

Ain’t It Funny How Time Slips Away?

 

Okay, how can it possibly be Thursday already?  Where in the world did my week go?  Could be a combination of the time change and the wonderful spring weather we’ve had the last couple of days that have made the week so far a big blur?  In any event, here’s a few of the things going on in my world this week . . .

 

Can someone tell me why it would ever be necessary to tailgate someone inside a parking garage?  This happened to me the other day and it annoyed the heck out of me.  Yes, I know we’re all in a hurry to get home but is it really necessary to push my Dog Mobile down the ramp?  Geeze.

 

Earlier this week it was sunny and we had temperatures in the 70’s.  Spring weather brought everybody out during the day.  I had a great time sitting on my beloved bench watching people walk by during lunch.  Saw lots of flip flops and lots of shorts.  Saw one thing that I still haven’t quite figured out.  Guy wearing khaki cargo shorts.  You know, the long kind that go to the knee.  But instead of wearing his shorts low on his hips and having his underpants sticking out of the waistband, this guy appeared to have his underpants sticking out of the legs of his shorts.  I didn’t want to get too close to actually figure out what the heck was going on but it was rather odd to see . . .

 

Since it’s still daylight when I get home from work now, I been taking Luci and Blacky for a walk each night.  I take Luci first because she’s more active and really needs the exercise.  The more exercise she gets, the more of a chance that she’ll sleep through the night.  Blacky doesn’t need a lot of exercise but he gets jealous sometimes that Luci gets all the attention so I’ve started walking him around the block at night too.  I haven’t quite hit the right amount of exercise for Luci needs to sleep through the night and she’s still getting up about 1 or 2 in the morning to outside.  And when Luci’s awake, the whole family is awake.  The downside of this, besides me getting up at 1 in the morning, is that Mommy is very tired after taking both doggies for walks each night and isn’t a happy camper when she has to get up because Luci thinks it’s time to play. 

 

Hubby has his first fishing rod repair job this week.  He’s so excited he can’t stand himself.  It’s wonderful to see him so excited about something.   

 

I got my resume updated and have sent it out to a couple of places.  I hadn’t updated my resume since I got this job and was a little (okay very) intimidated by the task.  Once I got it all done and saw what I’ve accomplished in my long secretarial career, I was pretty impressed.  Pleasantly surprised at what 20 years of secretarial experience, 9 years experience as an executive assistant, and 5 years experience as an office manager looks like when you write it all down.  All I need now is to find the right position to benefit from the greatness that is me!

 

Finally, what would a "random thoughts" entry be without an XM radio comment?  Does anybody remember the song "Harry Truman" by Chicago?  I heard it the other day on the 70’s channel (yes, it’s the one I listen to the most) and I swear I’ve never heard this song before.  Very catchy tune and I’ve been singing it all week.  Even Hubby doesn’t remember it (and he’s a lot older than me!).  He swears I’m making this up.  

 

Remember earlier when I said it was sunny and 70 degrees this week?  Well that only lasted a couple of days.  It’s now cloudy, rainy, and back in the 30’s.  Oh, and the best part.  There’s a problem with the heating/air conditioning in the building I work in and it’s 80 degrees in my office.  To quote Hubby, "you’re going to get pneumonia." 

 

As if I don’t have enough stress in my life already . . .

Life Comes At You Fast

 

I remember being 16 years old and cruising Main Street with my high school boyfriend in his Chevy van.  Yes, the kind with the purple shag carpet and a bed in the back.  No, my folks didn’t particularly care for the van.  It was a warm spring night, the windows were down, the radio was blaring "Slow Ride" by Foghat.  Life was good.

 

Fast forward about 27 years.  I’m driving to work this morning in my Ford Focus station wagon listening to my favorite XM radio station – the 70’s station.  All of the sudden I hear the opening of "Slow Ride" by Foghat.  I cranked the radio and sang along as I drove into work.  It was still blaring when I pulled into the parking garage. 

 

What a great way to start a Tuesday morning!   

Emotional Rollercoaster

 

Man, what a week I’ve had . . . I feel like I’ve been on a rollercoaster.  Happy, stressed, happy, stressed . . . and now I’m back to happy.  No sooner did I make the decision to find a job with benefits and some long-term security than an opportunity that’s perfect for me fell into my lap.  

 

Right after I talked to my boss on Thursday afternoon, I sent an email to a girlfriend of mine that I used to work with and who I promised I would call first if I ever decided to leave my current job.  She invited me to lunch on Friday for some girl talk and to help me with a strategy to find a new job.  Little did I know that part of the strategy involved me coming to work with her.  She might have an opportunity in her office that is exactly the same job that I do now in my current job – but on a larger scale.  Wow.  Is that perfect timing or what?  There’s some details that she needs to work out but there’s a good possibility that I will get this job.  I just need to keep my fingers crossed that she can work out the details. 

 

But if not, I have some other options.  Boss has offered to do some networking with some of his business contacts to help me find a position.  So it’s not looking quite as dreary as I thought it did yesterday morning.  Like Beth said in her comments yesterday – 99% of the stuff we worry about never happens . . . which is good to know considering the dire things I’ve been imagining.  Just the fact that I was able to find an opportunity so fast . . . and the other opportunities that are presenting themselves . . . make me feel better that Hubby and I have made the right decision.  I just need to be paitient to see what happens next.