8:15 p.m. - 2006-07-02
Weekend happenings
Sunday, July 02, 2006
HAPPY 4TH OF JULY, 2006 TO ALL MY XANGA FRIENDS ...
I hope you are enjoying the long holiday weekend with your family or
friends or even alone. It is a great time to reflect on the first half of 2006 and think about what you want to accomplish during the second half.
I have quite a reason to celebrate this year.
As you know, I retired as of June 30, 2006. I was given a very nice
Retirement lunch and gifts from my company. Also my sister in law
and her husband came into town due to a death in our family. They took my husband, son and DIL and me out to dinner along with 2 friends of my sister in law. We ate outside on a patio for dinner. They also had
a cake and flowers for me. It was such a nice way to end the day.
My husband and I were going to
visit my cousin and her husband on Saturday but unfortunately, her father (My uncle) became very ill and had to go to the hospital and was put in intensive care. Obviously, our planned visit was postponed to another time.
Instead, we also had a visit from my oldest brother in law and his wife. They stayed at our house It was a "mini reunion" among the 3 older siblings and their spouses.
They were thrilled to have Eckrich bologna and hotdogs for dinner. They can't get that brand where they live and they were in "hog heaven" as one of they put it. They fried up
everything in my pan including some turkey bacon and a few left over Bob Evans brats. We also had ham salad spread and macaroni salad and Krispi Kreme donuts for dessert. It was a real carbo meal ..sugar included.
We had a great visit and they all decided to leave this morning.
One couple is on their way to their new home in North Carolina
and the other is going to Branson, Mo before returning to Colorado where they live.
My husband and I have been trying to stay awake most of the day. It is always hard to have other people in your home. No matter how good a guest they are, it is a disruption to your routine. Along with the fact that I was working Thursday and my husband worked through Friday, we had the
memorial service to attend so it was a busy few days for us.
Our cats are all relaxing now too. Two of them hide when strangers
are in the house. Now they are all out and sleeping to catch up like
we are.
We are happy to have 2 more days to enjoy for the holiday and then....I will be working out my new life style for retirement.
####
HOME DEPOT SCAM...
Here's how the scam works:
Two unbelievably good-looking, extremely well endowed, 19 or 20 year-old girls come over to your car as you are packing your shopping in the trunk.
They start cleaning your windshield with a rag and Windex; all the while
their breasts are almost completely exposed over the torn top of their
skimpy, holey wet T-shirts.
Trust me; it is impossible not to look.
When you thank them and offer them a tip, they say "No" and instead
ask you for a ride to another Home Depot.
You agree and they get in the back seat. On the way, they start having sex with each other. Then, one of them climbs over into the front seat and performs oral sex on you, while the other one steals your wallet.
The same man had his wallet stolen April 28th, 29th, May 1st, 2nd, 3rd,
5th, 7th, twice on the 10th, and three times yesterday, so, be careful,
this is a serious scam.
#####
Aprons
I don�t think our kids know what an apron is. the principal use of grandma's apron was to protect the
dress underneath, but along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.
It was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.
From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven.
When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids.
nd when the weather was cold, grandma wrapped it around her arms.
Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove.
Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.
From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.
In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.
When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much
furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds.
When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron,
and the men knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.
It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that "old-time apron" that served so
many purposes.
REMEMBER...Grandma used to set her hot baked apple pies on the window sill
to cool.
Her granddaughters set theirs on the window sill to thaw.
####
A Heavenly Welcome
A contractor dies in a car accident on his 40th birthday and finds himself
at the Pearly Gates. A brass band is playing, the angels are singing a
beautiful hymn, there is a huge crowd cheering and shouting his name,
and absolutely everyone wants to shake his hand.
Just when he thinks things can't possibly get any better, Saint Peter
himself runs over, apologizes for not greeting him personally at the
Pearly Gates, shakes his hand, and says, "Congratulations son,
we've been waiting a long time for you."
Totally confused and a little embarrassed, the contractor sheepishly looks at Saint Peter and says "Saint Peter, I tried to lead a God-fearing life, I loved my family, I tried to obey the 10 Commandments, but Congratulations for what? I honestly don't remember doing anything really special when I was on earth.
""Congratulations for what?" says Saint Peter, totally amazed at the man's modesty. "We're celebrating the fact that you lived to be 160 years old! God himself wants to see you!"
the contractor is awestruck and can only look at Saint Peter with his
mouth wide open. When he regains his power of speech, he looks up
at Saint Peter and says "Saint Peter, I lived my life in the eternal hope that when I died I would be judged by God and be found to be worthy, but
I only lived to be forty."
"That's simply impossible son," says Saint Peter. "We've added up your time
sheets."
###
A Florida couple both well into their 80s, go to a sex therapist's office. The doctor asks, "What can I do for you?"
The man says, "Will you watch us have sexual intercourse?"
The doctor raises both eyebrows, but he is so amazed that such an elderly couple is asking for sexual advice that he agrees.
When the couple finishes, the doctor says, "There's absolutely
nothing wrong with the way you have intercourse." He thanks them for coming, he wishes them good luck, he charges them $50 and he says goodbye.
The next week, however, the couple returns and asks the sex therapist to watch again. The sex therapist is a bit puzzled, but agrees. This happens several weeks in a row. The couple makes an appointment; they have intercourse with no problems, pay the
doctor, and then leave.
Finally, after 5 or 6 weeks of this routine, the doctor says, "I'm sorry,
but I have to ask. Just what are you trying to find out?" The old man
says, "We're not trying to find out anything. She's married and we can't
go to her house. I'm married and we can't go to my house. The Holiday
Inn charges $98. The Hilton charges $139. We do it here for $50, and I
get $43 back from Medicare.
Good Night.
7:43 pm - 6 eProps - 3 comments - email it
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Currently Reading
The Hidden
By Kathryn Mackel
see related
YES, IT IS TRUE
AS OF 9 MINUTES AGO, I AM OFFICIALLY RETIRED.
I don't know how to feel about it yet. It just doesn't seem true. I feel like
I am going on a vacation for a couple of weeks. I guess it will take
about 3 weeks before it seems like it is real.
The agency I work for had a small lunch for me of pizza, salad, buns,
some kind of pasta dish with spicy sauce, fruit, soft drinks and a cute
cake.
The cake has a picture of a sports car with the top down, the rear
of the car was crumpled up like an accident had happened and a
box in the back of the car said CLAIMS CLOSED. Happy Retirement!!
I also got flowers, a gift card for $50 for a choice of 3 restaurants,
a $70 gift card for Barnes and Noble and $1000 from my boss!!!
We do have a busy weekend already. Friday I will be cleaning my house
and getting groceries and doing laundry as usual. Saturday I am getting
my hair cut, we are driving to a memorial service for a relative and then
driving to Kankakee, Illinois to meet my cousin and her husband to
spend the afternoon and evening together, have dinner, spend the
night in a motel and have breakfast together and just talk and catch up.
Sunday we will come home. Monday, we have a couple of errands to run.
Then it is July 4th and we....I mean....I HAVE THE REST OF THE WEEK
TO MYSELF. I will get getting ready to fly to Texas to visit my 2 sisters
for a whole week. Then I will be home and ready to start my NEW LIFE.
I I don't plan on becoming a
hermit and I dont plan on dressing in pj's and a robe all day either.
I am updating my list of books I want to read, I am planning on learning
Sign Language. (my sister in law is here because of the memorial
service and she already asked me if I have started studying yet. LOL)
Ooops, hope that NO PAY PART ISN'T TOO BAD......
THESE ARE SUPPOSED TO BE RETIRED HOOTERS GIRLS!!!!
4:33 pm - 14 eProps - 7 comments - email it
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Currently Listening
Take This Job & Shove It
By Johnny Paycheck
see related
In spite of writing the blog last
week on LOVE, LAUGH AND LIVE, I find that I still get impatient.
I have been training a co-worker to take over my job. She has been
an insurance adjuster before. In fact, we worked for the same company
for a period of time.
She has been sitting with me for over 2 weeks while I showed her what
I do and explained the procedures. This week (the third week), because
my computer monitor took a dump yesterday; we were working out of her
office. It was a good opportunity for me to get her to do the work while I
watched her. I had noticed last week that she didn't want to try anything;
she wanted me to do the work while she watched. Well, Duh....
When I came to the agency, I created the Claims Dept. and I planned out
how it would run. It has taken me 6 years to get it to this point. I am very
proud of what I have accomplished. I do things a certain way for a
particular reason...it works best that way. In spite of my explanations,
she is doing things her own way. I can already see that she will need
more time to accomplish the same things I did because she is not doing
it the way I told her.
Today I was going to correct her but I decided it wasn't worth the effort.
Last week, I told her to take the open claims from A through L. and
check them with the various insurance companies on whether there
were payments, activitity by the adjuster, if the claim was closed and
so on. I did from M through Z. It took me 2 days to do my half and then
I started re-checking the A through L. It took me one day to get to H.
She was still working on K today.
My computer was finally brought back to life about 10 A.M. today.
I started checking the claims going backward. Z through L. I was
on R. when I realized she wasn't even working on the claims. She
was in the office of her previous supervisor helping HER do her work.!!!
So, I will finish up the rest of the alphabet tomorrow because I want to do
the end of the month report on Thursday. It won't be the entire month
but at least I know I have given my boss as much information as possible.
Who knows what will happen next month.
And besides, I have 2 days left and it won't be my problem anymore.
I did write a closing memo for my boss which I will give him on Thursday.
I went in today and changed it to "co-worker and I" did .....instead
of "co-worker" did because I did 75% of the work.
I guess I am a bit obsessive about my work but I have always believed
in doing my job while I am there. I guess I will have to find a new plan
for living the rest of my life. I hope I don't sound like a witch but this is
important to me and I just get upset when it isn't done properly.
Of course, I am well aware that any employee can be replaced....but
the work isn't always done as well.
####
I will be writing again later this week.
6:38 pm - 18 eProps - 13 comments - email it
Friday, June 23, 2006
Today I was thinking
about all the journals that I read and how many of those writers are
dealing with serious illnesses or tragedies in their daily lives. Most
of them keep their spirits high and try to find enjoyment in every day
that they have.
I was thinking how easy it is to get depressed with our every-dayness.
We go to work at a job that may not be fulfilling at best and may be
a place that just sucks the life out of you. Maybe we had a fight with
one of our children before they left for school or maybe the husband
made a nasty crack just before he left for work and we wouldn't kiss
him Goodbye. But, the reality is that any problem isn't worth worrying
about because at any moment, our lives can change.
What if you never saw or spoke to or had any of your friends or family
around again after today? What would you do differently...? How
important was the argument you had?....Was it worth saying something
mean?...Did you feel good if you made someone cry?.... Have you made
that phone call to someone that you keep putting off?... Are you estranged
from one of your family members and just can't quite remember what
the fight was about?
Now.....how. do. you. feel.about. it and what.are.you.going.to.do.about.it?
No matter if your problems are miniscule
compared to someone else...they are your problems and you can
choose to dwell in your misery and whine about your life or you can
choose to thank your higher spirit for every morning you wake up.
I have noticed that most people who have a terrible situation in life
are the ones who are the most thankful. They KNOW that every day
is a gift. They LOOK for the silver lining. They are GRATEFUL to
smell a flower or listen to the sound of a child's laughter and hold
a baby or play with a kitten or a puppy. They REALIZE what is
important... LIFE. It's the only one we have and we should make
the most of it.
You can have a "heart talk" with yourself. You
can blog, write in a journal in long hand, draw a picture, sing a song,
kiss a loved one, laugh out loud, dance around outside in the rain,
and LIVE your very best life.
and then you can do this....
What would be your dream life?
Living on a paradise island?
Buying everything new?, a Mansion?
Traveling the World?
Adopting a lot of children?
Writing a Best Seller?
Lots of great adjectives
to think about and what you could do with them if you. ....
just...BELIEVE.
Don't worry
You can do it
that's all it takes....
I don't know why these thoughts came to me today but they were
just running through my head all morning...maybe there is someone
out there who needs to hear it.
I certainly don't pretend that my life is harder than most...in fact,
in spite of some problems in my childhood and sadness in losing
some family members, I feel I have been very fortunate in my life,
with my husband, my son and his family, friends and other family
members. We all have our own problems and certainly many are
devastating. But we also ALL have a choice to make for ourselves
every day...are we going to dwell in the sadness or are we going to
look for a bright ray of light to make us...
and we women can switch that pronoun to "him".....
Well, enough of that sermon, I think I have it out of my system now
and I hope you will think about it.
Just one more little thing. Please link to this.
Who I am makes a Difference
########
Four men were bragging about
how smart their cats were.
The first man was an Engineer,
the second man was an Accountant, the third man was
a Chemist,,,,,,and the fourth man was a Government Employee.
To show off, the Engineer called his cat, "T-square, do your stuff."
T-square pranced over to the desk, took out some paper and pen and promptly drew a circle, a square, and a triangle.
Everyone agreed that was pretty smart.
But the Accountant said his cat could do better. He called his cat and said, "Spreadsheet, do your stuff." Spreadsheet went out to
the kitchen and returned with a dozen cookies. He divided them into 4 equal piles of 3 cookies.............
Everyone agreed that was good.
But the Chemist said his cat could do better. He called his cat and said,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"Measure, do your stuff." Measure got up, walked to the fridge, took out a quart of milk,, got a 10 ounce glass from the cupboard and poured exactly 8 ounces without spilling a drop into the glass. Everyone agreed that was pretty good.
The three men turned to the Government Employee and said, "What can your cat do?" The Government Employee called his cat and said,,,,, "CoffeeBreak,,,,do your stuff." CoffeeBreak jumped to his feet,,,,,,,,,,, ate the cookies,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, drank the milk,,,,,,,,, sh*t on the paper,,,,,,,,,,,! screwed the other three cats,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
claimed he injured his back while doing so,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, filed a grievance report for unsafe working conditions,,, put in for Workers Compensation...............and
went home for the rest of the day on sick leave.............
AND THAT'S WHY I WANT TO WORK FOR THE GOVERNMENT......
@@@
True story or not. Read and try not to laugh
A photographer for CNN was assigned to cover southern
California's wildfires last year. He wanted pictures of the heroic
work the firefighters were doing as they battled the blazes. When
the photographer arrived on the scene, he realized that the smoke
was so thick it would seriously impede, or even make impossible,
his getting good photographs from the ground level. He
requested permission from his boss to rent a plane and take
photos from the air.
His request was approved and he used his cell phone to call
the localcounty airport to charter a flight. He was told a single
engine plane would be waiting for him at the airport.
Arriving at the airfield, he spotted a plane warming up outside
a hanger.He jumped in with his bag, slammed the door shut,
and shouted, "Let's go!"
The pilot taxied out, swung the plane into the wind and roared
down therunway. Once in the air, the photographer requested
the pilot to, "Fly over the valley and make two or three low passes
so I can take some pictures of the fires on the hillsides."
"Why?" asked the pilot.
"Because I'm a photographer for CNN," he responded. "And,
I need to get some close-up shots."
The pilot was strangely silent for a moment, finally he stammered,
"So,you're telling me you're NOT the flight instructor??!!"
###
No hope here!!
A husband and wife go to a counselor after 15 years of marriage. The counselor asks them what the problem is and the wife goes into a tirade listing every single problem they have ever had in the 15 years they've been married. She goes on and on and on and on.
Finally, the counselor gets up, walks around the desk, embraces the wife and kisses her passionately. The woman shuts up and sits quietly in a daze.
The counselor turns to the husband and says, "If you want to save your marriage, this is what your wife needs at least three times a week. Can you do this?
The husband thinks for a moment and replies, "Well, I can drop her off here on Mondays and Wednesdays, but on Fridays, I golf.
###
Well, it's not a midlife crisis, but here's how things worked out for me.
Married 25 years, I took a look at my wife one day and said, "Honey, 25 years ago, we had a cheap apartment, a cheap car, slept on a sofa bed and watched a 10 inch black and white TV, but I got to sleep every night with a hot 25
year old blond. Now, we have a nice house, nice car, big bed and plasma screen TV, but I'm sleeping with a 50 year old woman. It seems to me that you are not holding up your side of things."
My wife is a very reasonable woman. She told me to go out and find a hot 25 year old blond, and she would make sure that I would once again be living in a cheap apartment, driving a cheap car, sleeping on a sofa bed...............
###
Have a great weekend and remember....
3:29 pm - 18 eProps - 9 comments - email it
Monday, June 19, 2006
HI, I WAS TAGGED BY FOURTHCHANCE.
FIVE Items in refrigerator
1. 2% milk (2 gallons for husband)
2. apples and bananas for moi
3. mushrooms (fresh about 3 weeks ago but not rubbery or slimey enough to throw away.
4. sliced roast beef that I forgot to put in my salads for work and now is way past the expiration date and smells "funny".
5. cranraisins which I love to put on my cereal and in my salads.
FIVE Items in my closet(s)
1. too many clothes that don't "quite" fit right but too nice to give away...AND I am still hoping to wake up thinner.
2. a pink fluffy winter robe that is 3 sizes too big but I just love to look at it.
3. several pairs of shoes...none of which are comfortable but I have to wear something to work.
4. several pair of cheap knee-high nylons because I don't go barefoot in my shoes.
5. about $800 I "hid" in the closet for "just in case I need cash fast" situations.
FIVE Items in my car.
1. umbrella
2. about 5 different flowers arrangements for the vase in my VW Beetle. Currently using pink, blue, yellow arrangement
3. winter gloves and scarf (because you never know with Indiana weather!)
4. misc. change that has fallen in-between the seats.
5. kleenex in a box
Five Items in my purse.
1. money
2. library card
3. prayer I like to keep with me
4. credit cards
5. makeup case
FIVE PEOPLE TO TAG
1. tyneegrannyb
2. LostinIowa
3.bubblysox
4. valreads
5. mary58
I hope you didn't mind being tagged.
6:38 pm - 16 eProps - 8 comments - email it
<< previous 5 posts | next 5 posts >>
