A compliment

So I received a compliment from my Sister.

She looked at me and smiled as I was carrying a TV set back to the "fort" in her room to set up the GameCube for the squirrel. I asked what she was smiling about and she said she was thinking of something.

And then she said IT.

She said, "You know you turned into the cool Aunt."

I had to think about it. I always said I wanted to be the cool Aunt when she had kids (well and when that other guy we have to call a brother had children).

I have taken him after school to places to buy used games for the new system with his Birthday Money. Let him set it up in my room and actually played a game to show him how to launch the BeyBlades (don't ask). Today I took him to buy the memory card for the system so he can save games and we picked up another used game for only $4.99.

See Aunt One4JC knows where to get deals on used games because Uncle Big Red had almost every gaming system created at the time and at least 30 games for each one. Hrmph...issues beyond adultery...no...never!

I also helped him set up the "Fort"area with the pull out bed thingy, the TV and GameCube so he can hide out and play without disturbing anyone else and he can have his "own space". While I can't take credit for the concept of the "fort" (that would be his Mom's idea) somehow I am the one who made it real to him and now he feels safe enough to go in the "fort".

Of course he just ran from the room because there was a "centipede looking thing type bug in there!!!!!!"

Even "big boys" have there moments...

The hunt is STILL on

The job hunt is an ongoing process....

Sigh......

I had 1 interview today and another on Thursday with a different company.

Right now my job is...finding a job...at least that's what Dr. Phil would say.

The thing I like right now is that I can sleep in until 7:00am, take the Squirrel to school and grab a cup of coffee before I start the search. I sure don't miss the phone calls at 5:00am when someone called in sick and the mad rush to get there before the first child arrived.

I do however need a job so I can move out and give my nephew his own room. Not to mention that the money would come in very handy with Christmas approaching.

Oh Wait! We just had our Christmas and Thanksgiving combined up at the lake in a restaurant because Mom and Beau are leaving for the south of the country this Thursday. This Thursday. I am not sure when they return but I am thinking someone might have mentioned April?

I still want a job so I can move out and feel like a grown up!

Some interesting facts I have learned on the World Wide Web:

Earthworms have five hearts

SCUBA divers cannot pass gas at depths of 33 feet or below

More than 90% of plane crashes have survivors.

Watching television can act as a natural painkiller for children

Iceland has the highest concentration of broadband users in the world.

The two most famous actors who portrayed the “Marlboro Man” in the cigarette ads died of lung cancer.

Men with a certain rare medical condition can breastfeed babies

The largest pumpkin weighed 377 pounds.

On an average work day, a typist's fingers travel 12.6 miles.

On average, a 4-year-old child asks 437 questions a day.

Nondairy creamer is flammable.

More American workers (18%) call sick on Friday than any other day of the week. Tuesday has the lowest percent of absenteeism (11%).

Average number of days a German goes without washing his underwear: 7.

The Eisenhower interstate system requires that one mile in every five must be straight. These straight sections are useable as airstrips in times of war or other emergencies.

The average person will spend two weeks over their lifetime waiting for the traffic light to change

Donald Duck comics were banned in Finland because he didn't wear pants.

Tokyo has had 24 recorded instances of people either killed or receiving serious skull fractures while bowing to each other with the traditional Japanese greeting.

Ode to the Bird...

From the area of Indiana this article caught my attention on the Associated Press:

Parrot mimics alarm, saves family

Associated Press

MUNCIE – A noisy parrot that likes to imitate sounds helped save a man and his son from a house fire by mocking a smoke alarm, the bird’s owner says.

Shannon Conwell, 33, said he and his 9-year-old son fell asleep on the couch while watching a movie. They awoke about 3 a.m. Friday to find their home on fire after hearing the family’s Amazon parrot, Peanut, imitating a fire alarm.

“He was really screaming his head off,” Conwell said.

The smoke alarm had activated, but it was the bird’s call that caught Conwell’s attention. “I grabbed my son and my bird, and got out of the house,” he said.

The fire destroyed the home’s dining room, kitchen and bedroom, Muncie fire officials said. It remains under investigation.

Aside from Peanut, Conwell said the fact that he and his son fell asleep on the couch helped save them. They may not have heard the alarm or the bird had they been asleep in their bedrooms.

Conwell said he runs an air conditioner and a breathing machine in his bedroom that drown out a lot of noise around the house.

Can you imagine? I am not a big fan of Big Birds being in houses and my sister would have a coronary if I even suggested it... It's not that I don't like birds I just get a little nervous in enclosed places with them...not the same as my fear of bats...those are just N-A-S-T-Y.

With that being said...With the insurance money from the fire I am POSITIVE that bird would have the nicest cage and treats I could find!

On another note...

I found this trailer on YouTube for the famous Alfred Hitchcock movie The Birds.

I will warn you that it is mostly him talking but around the 4 minute mark a live bird makes an appearance and by around 4 1/2 minutes I was shuttering and my cat was batting at the computer screen...so if you do not like birds...DO NOT watch this video clip.

What happens when she gets bored?

While that is not my hair that is a good representation of the amount I took off yesterday.

Yes it is true the hair has come off.

I was bored and ready for a change so it resulted in me losing 7-8 inches of hair. When I went into my stylist she reminded me that I had not been there since October 7th...LAST YEAR! Yes it is true I had been cutting my own bangs and just letting the hair go wild for the last year. Part was because I haven't had time recently and part is because I haven't had a style I liked enough to keep up with it.

I literally lost that much hair but also I look like I lost 20 lbs and 5 years off my age! It is ironic because I took in a picture of Lisa Rinna thinking that my face was too round for it but I like the messy look. My Stylist almost fell over and the stylist next to me said, "Rock on! Own the cut!"

I told her I would like it a little longer but gave her free reign but reminding her that I have an interview next week...Oh yes did I mention that yet?

Several years ago I noticed my hair had gotten a little natural wave to it. Odd as it has been stick straight my entire life. Well with this cut it has curled up and looks awesome!

Someone even commented that I had gotten highlights as well...no but the gray is positioned in such a way that they look like blond streaks. Once I get a J-O-B I will go ahead and splurge to get a few highlights as well.

Well I need to help finish the final prep work for the Birthday Party that is happening here tonight. Nope not me but the Squirrel! He had me awake by 5:15 AM singing "Happy Birthday to me" to the tune of "We Wish you a Merry Christmas"?? He was a little excited to say the least!

Michael Jackson has Lupus?

Oh good grief! Say it isn't so!

According to published reports, some of which actually cite the Lupus foundation, good old Wacko Jacko has Lupus.

What is Lupus? Click here. Or here.

The disease I have is called Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome.
The thing in my blood is called Lupus Anticoagulant.
They are closely related, but not exactly the same. A lot of the research overlaps.



I do NOT want this person to become the spokesman for MY disease!

People already have a hard time believing that Lupus is a real disease and now we have one of the most famous lunatics in modern history representing us.

Great.

I am hard pressed to think of a worse spokesman...

Almost a year ago....

I can't believe it has been almost a year since I got back from Jamaica!
It was one of the most difficult weeks in my life yet at the same time the most rewarding, meaningful, fulfilling and special weeks of my life as well.

I know off and on I have talked about how much I miss being there. I have come to the conclusion that I miss the closeness I felt to God and to my friends more than anything else. Yes I really enjoyed building the entertainment center , the experiences and the views at the waterfalls.


I also miss seeing the smiling little faces of the children at the home. I think because we went as a group of only women the children bonded to us more than other groups. It took a while to warm up to us but once they chose you it was over they had your heart.

One little boy kept coming over and touching my arm, looking at it and saying, "Whoa!" After several days of doing this I asked. Apparently the children had never seen someone as white as me before. Yes Caucasian people had been there MANY times but I am the palest of pale white colors. In the winter you can hold up a piece of paper to my legs and compare the color with a degree of certainty.

I miss being able to make time with God and 9 other women every morning to just set in His presence and pray. That week marked the changing point in my life. God watched out for me (and others in the group) in more ways than you can imagine. The first night there "someone" tried to break into our house in the middle of the night...I slept through it but not everyone did. That in itself is a miracle...I have to feel safe to sleep and the fact that I was not awakened helped me feel safe enough to sleep the rest of the week. I did have a small TIA down there that passed very quickly...of course on the morning I was speaking at the Bible college.

Tomorrow I am meeting one of the ladies from the trip for coffee. There are also several others from the trip that I would not hesitate to call. The friendships formed on this trip will last a lifetime.

Kind of ironic considering how I argued with God all the way through the process, right up to the point on the airport runway when I looked at the friend next to me and said, "Oh crap. I'm going to Jamaica!"

Amazing Freedom

I stumbled on this video today and all of my memories of the conference came flooding back to me... I need to remember in the midst of the storm that I am still free in Christ.

My agenda

My agenda for the next week or two (hopefully not that long) is to find a job.

I am not really picky at this point because I just need to find a job and move out so I can be a grown-up again. Ideally I would rather use my office skills rather than my kid type skills.

I have a few leads but nothing promising enough to get my hopes up.

I do have more to say but I need to get back on the hunt for the elusive Greenback Bill...He is an endangered species around here right now.

From generation to generation...

So my lovely sister and I introduced the Squirrel (aka my nephew) to the movie "Goonies". At first it was like pulling teeth to get him to sit down for this movie...he whined...he complained...he almost threw a full fledged fit but stopped just as the map was pulled out in the movie. Soon he was fully enthralled in the movie...and loved it!

I remember seeing this movie in the theater as somehow my sister convinced my Mom to let me go see it with her. This became one of my favorite movies. I had the poster, the folders for school and envied the kids lucky enough to get the lunch box.

This was the movie everyone in my generation loved. Some were too old for E.T. and some of us were too young to see the Star Wars movies but we all loved The Goonies. I think the Goonies was so popular because it was ever person's dream regardless of age. To stumble upon a get rich quick plan that actually works and saves the day while becoming a hero to all (including parents), catching the bad guys and finding a girlfriend/boyfriend was the ultimate dream.

This movie is one of the greatest ever and I am really glad that after all the teeth pulling to get the Squirrel to actually watch it that he ended up really loving it.

The cleaning frenzy

Due to me losing my job...why do they call it that? I didn't lose it...I know right where it is, they are the ones that lost it went... crazy and decided that 1 mistake was not acceptable...

Anyway...what was I saying?

Due to some unforeseen circumstances Mom, Beau, myself and an Aunt have been cleaning, sorting and hauling all of my Mom's JUNK out of this house. This has been interesting to say the least. At last count they have taken 4 trailers of stuff out of here of my Mother's things...Trailer like the size of a U-haul truck type trailer.

And did I mention that it did NOT include any furniture...just paperwork and all of the stuff she has hoarded all of these years.

The ironic quotes of the week so far have come from the Aunt:

"I have known your Mom for over 60 years and I have just now realized just how much stuff she hoards!"

She went on to tell me how apparently my Mom has also been complaining to her about the house being a mess and how it is all MY fault for the way it looks.

"One4JC you do not even have a fourth of the items in this house! It took you ten minutes to clean your stuff out of the living room and days for her to get her stuff out!"

However I am excited because I now have a dresser in my room and we cleaned all of her things out of my closet so I have places to put things.

It is no joke when I say we have been working nonstop since Saturday getting this place cleared of her stuff and getting things more settled around here.

And the real kicker is this:
Beau walks in yesterday morning and has the nerve to say,"So have you gotten a job yet?"

Silence.

I stumble out a "No not yet I have been a little busy around here helping you guys."

He then goes on to tell me he thought maybe something would have fallen into my lap by now etc.

Crickets chirping.....................................................................

So off the computer I must go so that I can look for a job and be a productive member of society again...LOL

Not so Priceless...

Working 60 + hours a week

Working the last 4 Saturdays and part of a Sunday as well

Being paid a salary for 40 hours

Not being paid well for those hours

Working in a classroom 7 hours a day with children because my board won't let me hire a replacement for the teacher they had me fire

AND trying to be the boss at the same time

Making 1 mistake...

That was corrected before any ill effects had taken place

Not so Priceless...

NOW...

Not being able to move into the long awaited apartment

going back on the hunt for a job

Uncertainty

Changes

Patience

Waiting on God

BUSY...BUSY....BUSY

I'll be back soon....moving, packing and working are keeping me very very busy!!!

The Happy Dance

The Happy Dance...

Things are looking up right now...

I passed my test this morning! I am now certified to not only serve food in any restaurant in this fair land of ours but also be the manager of any restaurant I want...well provided they would hire me LOL!

Kind of ironic that I went to college so that I could have the possibility of a career in a field that did not involve flipping burgers and now this new law tells me I have to know the information anyway.

It is official... I have signed the lease on the new apartment today! The "BIG MOVE" is scheduled for next Saturday. The good news is because of the last move and how it happened most of my things are already packed and still in the garage at this point. If you feel the need to help me out drop me an email and we can set things up :o)

Once I get the replacement hired for the teacher that I "let go" things should be smoother again at work. It amazes me that things are either really smooth or extremely rocky at work there is no middle ground.

While things are looking up for me, a friend of mine has just discovered her husband's adultery. If you think of it say a little prayer for her.

Whew!

These last 2 1/2 weeks have been enough to make me want to start smoking again!

Here are the highlights (or lowlights depending on your perspective):

I have written up an employee...suspended her...and now at the request of my supervisors fired her because of her actions. Talk about a nice start to the day at 6:30 am!

I have come precariously close to losing a major funding source. I think I managed to pull that one out of the crapper in the nick of time.

I am in the midst of completing a 9 hour online training so that I can test out of it on Friday.

I informed my Mom today that an apartment has been chosen and the move in date is a week from Saturday! I am trying to talk her into selling me the washer and dryer from the current house to take with me but....

I have worked several 12 hour days (oh the joys of being on salary!), worked the last 3 Saturdays and one Sunday (for a few hours) and been told that I needed to put in more overtime to get things done.

Hmmmmmmm....

The thing that bugs me about this is I could go to a Department store and make what I do now (if not more) and only work 40 hours a week. BUT this happens to be my passion and where God wants me right now.

Ugh!

This pretty well sums up my day.


Picture Day at work...


Trying to get that many children to smile...


Bullheaded, obstinate employee...


Board meetings...


Tuesday HAS TO BE better....

Floor Plans???

I have looked at so many floor plans that they are all starting to look alike. I actually filled out an application today. Of course after we went through all the items I required in an apartment and the price range I was looking to be inside of she informed me that they only had the more expensive model on the first floor. This would be one of my requirements...first floor. I hate moving chairs, beds and desks upstairs. Not to mention I will grasping for help because of the short notice I fear I will have to get out.

I have noticed that many floor plans for a one bedroom apartment are very very similar. There is not a great deal of different opportunities in how to arrange a layout but they are almost all carbon copies with different prices and locations. I will be making a decision soon...hopefully this week.

A few guilty pleasures

I have a few shows that I hate to miss the new episodes. I am a die hard Law and Order fan and Law and Order SVU as well. However I never really liked Criminal Intent or Trial by Jury for some reason. Maybe it was just me being too set in my ways and too fond of the styles of the originals.

I also am one of the last remaining "first season through the present" ER fans. I know none of the original cast members are left but I mean come on the show has been on for 12-13 seasons? Look at how many of these people have gone on to film careers, other shows or are just too stinking rich to have to work again. I think one of the reason I have held on so long is because of the cliffhangers from season to season.

I used to be absolutely addicted to the show Friends. Of course when I became a Christian I started to have serious issues with some of the shows but.... I held on until the last episode out of almost some sick obligation. One year I did have to tape the season finale and watch it several weeks later. It was the season that ended with the birth of Ross and Rachel's Baby. I had lost the second twin that week and had to have the D and C. I was not in the mood to see that show at that time.

I do happen to be a huge fan of the Biggest Loser. For some reason it inspires me to eat healthier and walk the stairs instead of riding the escalator.

I used to watch the Real World all the time on MTV. I even tried out once and got down to the last 100 people they were considering for the season. Nope never made it. The older I got the less interested I was in watching it.

Some of the older shows that used to hold my attention were Murphy Brown, Gilligan's Island and of course the Little Rascals. As a kid I remember acting out trying to get off the island with other children in the neighborhood. Of course this was in between Thundercats, Smurfs and Emergency show reenactments.

So what show did you watch?

Thoughts for today

Energizer Bunny arrested, charged with battery.

The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do.

The only reason people get lost in thought is because it's unfamiliar territory.

The road to success is always under construction.

Gene Police: You!! Out Of The Pool!

The fun this week

Work was NOT fun this week! I had issues with employees. I had issues with funding sources. I had issues with my office.

I also am trying desperately to locate and lease an apartment within my price range. Mom and Beau have been here almost every day. I have managed to avoid them purely by coincidence. I have put in so many hours at work that by the time I get home at 7:00pm or later they are gone for the day.

In fact I will spend most of the day tomorrow at work as well trying to play catch up from being in a classroom. I had teachers suspended, sick AND in the hospital this week. I do have an appointment to look at an apartment at 4:00pm and then probably to the laundromat to do the daycare laundry for the week.

The sooner I can get out of this house and into my own apartment a lot of my stress will be gone. I need to feel independent again...that is something that Big Red took from me in the divorce.

Once I get past this month at work and get my staffing settled a bit it will be less stressful there as well. What with Picture Day coming up, a retirement of an employee and appointing a new Assistant Director all this month it is no wonder things are a little tense in the building...

I never did manage to get a motorcycle this summer. I seem to have run out of time as far as the weather is concerned.

As you see I played with the layout a bit. I am not done but I am growing tired so alas maybe I can get back to it this weekend.

Actions have consequences...

Actions have consequences even if you apologize. An employee this week learned this the hard way where I work. Yes One4Jc is fairly laid back and easy going BUT I do have my limits. She is the first person to push me far enough for serious consequences. Being "written up" is not good but an actual unpaid suspension is a sure sign that you have pushed too far.

She is appealing the suspension but it doesn't look good for her. Several of my supervisors thought she should have been fired over the incident not just suspended.

My actions have consequences as well. I missed a deadline and I am paying the penalty for it. It is repairable but time consuming. I got too caught up in enrolling new students, staffing issues and other paper work and the deadline whooshed up on me today and the items are not ready. The kicker is that I got a letter of "recognition" of my mistake today...before the actual deadline had passed...so did my boss. Whoops.

The last actual day off I had was Labor Day...I have been working through the weekend to play catch up on all the things I have missed by being bogged down with other stuff like ...oh say....staffing classrooms. Looks like I will work through this weekend as well.

And my Mom wants me to get this apartment when???????