Writer's Workshop

Thursday means it's time for Mama Kat's writing assignment. I've got several blog posts circulating in my head (it's been a good blog material week), but I'm going to follow the rules and play with her.

1.) Who really helped you get over something? Write about that person.(writingfix.com)

I've had several big things happen over the past 3-4 years. Two major-ly broken hearts, and more recently, it got bruised. And, I feel foolish because it only got bruised because I was stupid and decided to just say the heck with it and dropped all walls. Dur. Stupid move, and I know better - I won't do it again. Well, this week, anyway. I've also had some stressful vehicle issues, as well as personal stuff. So, who helps me get over it? Let's go with the broken heart deal, since that's the one that seems to have taken the longest.

It's actually not one person, it's several. Michelle, Annette, Karey, Laurie, all the girls at work who laugh at my pathetic stories without making me feel like a complete loser. Michelle, for encouraging me to write about the humorous events that have led me to be as screwed up as I am. I'm going to take her advice and at least get them out in some format. Annette, for listening and being quick to judge that said boy is just a big, fat stupid head. Karey, for always listening to my stories and letting me come and escape into her world. Laurie, who is always there for a quick gab/text session. And my awesome, fantastic co-workers, without whom life would be very boring. Anytime I have any problems, they are so quick to either help me solve them, dissect them, or laugh at them.

What about you? Is there someone amazing in your life that helps you out?

Wordful Wednesday's

Good morning! It's been springtime here in VA - hot during the day, cool at night, and I love it. Sleeping with the windows open, yet still keeping the electric blanket on, mmm, wonderful.

Anyway, on to Wordful Wednesday's. Been a couple of weeks since I played, and Britney presented some photo ops yesterday. I was gone longer than I normally am, and she is very good at letting me know when she is unhappy with me.

Ahem. Do you have any idea what time it is? That's ok, I'm just going this way . . .

Screech. Wait. You said you went where?

Let's talk . . .

I ever tell you how much I *adore* you??

She might be a little bit rotten . . . come play with us!

Monday . . . .

Again. Monday's seem to be like bills. Even though you just paid them, here they are again. But, that's ok. I just had a comment on Crack/Facebook about that. You mean we get to try it again?? Huh. Well. I guess I just hadn't thought about Monday mornings like that.

This weekend was a good, if normal, one. Racing and more racing. My wonderful friend, SS#1, came up to the Drag Strip with me on Friday night. Getting to have someone I could talk to while I was there made the night a whole lot quicker. I've talked about SS before, but the more I see of him, the more impressed I am. Some day, he is going to make a girl very, very happy, and daggnabit, she better appreciate him. So courteous, so thoughtful of others. It leaves me scratching my head! He wouldn't have a clue how to go about playing mind games, and it's refreshing to see.

I did work on a bit of a sunburn in some effort to get any color, but it's already gone this morning. We had a heat wave here in the south, and I even slept with my windows open. Does everyone sleep better like that? Even Britney seemed to.

EMT Competition was this weekend, and I'll try to get some photos uploaded. Everyone seemed to have a good time.

I've decided one thing I hate about technology. You can't pick up on the nuances of statements. If you're talking face to face, or even on the phone with someone, you can usually tell how to take something, even if it's being said sarcastically. But, with IM's/Texting, it leaves a LOT of things open to interpretation. Frustrating.

And now, a question for those of you who find your way here. If you found out that someone was talking about you, and not in a flattering way, would you confront them? Especially if this person is someone you have never spoken to or had any interaction with? Is it a "knowledge is power" thing? Not quite sure if/what I'm going to do about it . . . advice?

Another day, another year older. . .

Yup, it happens to everyone at some point or another. I have the privilege of sharing my day with Earth Day. Yay. However, as far as days go, it was pretty good - very low key. I do LOVE the flowers my co-workers got me . . . a hanging basket with all sorts of colors, so it should last all summer. Well, unless my black thumb gets the better of me.

I've spent the past couple of evenings down at the squad building. Had fun learning how to caulk a floor, and last night, we went inch by inch over the newly tiled floors, scraping up stray glue. It was great (not so much) for my manicure. This weekend we are hosting the District 1 EMT competition. Should be a good time. One "new" thing we have is the PA system, that runs through the building. So, now, supposedly I can plug in my ipod and listen to music anywhere. Except, it's not working exactly right. Part of the fun of a re-model, right? They did laugh at me last night in playing with our new ambulance. I was enthralled with the "open the doors, unit drops down. Close the door, unit goes up." feature. Oh, and the "push the button, and the pedals come to YOU" up front for more vertically challenged people. It's just cool!

I also whacked off my hair this week, about 6-7 inches. I love it. It feels so much better, and is great for summer. Sometimes a girl just needs a change. I got to talk to a good friend of mine last night. She and I were teenagers together, and it's been interesting to see where each of us have ended up. Not at all where either thought it would be, but it's a good place. She's an awesome mother, doing her best to do it on her own while still holding out for Mr. Right. We got to talking about guys (hey, we haven't changed THAT much.) Why is it that so many of them start with one behavior style/habit, then suddenly change and leave us scratching our heads? I dated a guy, who out of the blue, would call my voice mail every single morning telling me he was thinking about me, and he hoped that I would have a good day. Sweet, right? It was a little thing that told me he was interested/thinking, etc. Suddenly, one day, it stopped. I wondered about it, but didn't say anything. I wonder, if I had, would that have changed the outcome? I've dated - a lot, and some really interesting characters, but I just haven't figured out this particular "quirk". Guys, if you catch a girl with some little trick like this, keep doing it!

What about you? Does your significant other have a thing he does? Did he, and now he stopped? Maybe the role is reversed and that's you? What do you think?

Pity Party?

Nope . . . not gonna happen. I came close on Saturday, and I was a bit down this morning, but you know what? Nothing lasts forever. As soon as I can remember that, remember to seize the moment, laugh along the journey, and enjoy the ride, I'm better. It took me a while to get there today, but I did it. Yeah, my car might be barely holding it together, but I have awesome friends, and two legs that work. The best part about walking somewhere? I have the best company in the world - solid black and 4 legged!

Today I went by and took pics of our new truck. I've got a love/hate thing going on with the back of it, but I'll save that for my Wordful Wednesdays.

This weekend I had one of those "Life Before Your Eyes" moments. I was taking money on the back gate at the track, and heard something. I turned around just in time to see a race car barrel rolling towards me. I had just enough time to process "Holy . . ." as it came to a stop. Fortunately, no one was even bruised, but it was enough to kick my adrenaline into high dose. Took me just a tiny bit to get my hands to stop shaking. I don't have a "Before", but here's the after:

Yeah, not good! It's another "check" in the belief system that when it's your time, it's your time. There's no arguing with it. Just like where this guy walked away, I've seen fender benders where someone got killed. What do you think? I believe you can certainly speed up that time line, but there's no way to drag it out.

This week I'll be a whopping 33. I've been thinking about where I've been, where I am now, and where I'm going. I'm still working on it. Does anybody ever actually end up where they thought that they would?

Friday Fragments

It's been a while since I played along with Friday Fragments. I guess it's right up there with why my Wii Fit is going to yell at me - I haven't had time for anything except work, meetings, shower, sleep, do it all again. It gets old, fast. But, I am going to do better, so here goes.

I see that Mrs. 4444 has already linked to my favorite news story this week. Susan Boyd vs. Simon Cowell. If you haven't heard of her, and you're on the 'net reading blogs, well, get your head out from under the rock. The woman is amazing. And, a good reminder that you don't always get what you see.

I want to know why it is people think they can bully their way into getting what they want. Telling me you are going to go over my head, or to scream at me, or worse, to cry and tell me that "You just don't understand" Believe me, I do understand. And, I have been in your shoes more times that you can guess. Still, do not tell me that I "have" to do what you want. I can be pretty stubborn, and the quickest way to get me to NOT do something is to tell me I HAVE to do it. Didn't your Mama ever tell you that you catch more flies with honey than vinegar? Sheesh.

My puppy is happy again. I had run out of rawhide bones, and I wasn't about to pay $10 for 4, when I get 15 for $9 in Roanoke. Fortunately, though, a Sam's trip was in the making, and now, my puppy won't chew my leg off in the middle of the night. The plus side of a Sam's trip is always dining out. Of course, we ended up at Olive Garden, just like every time, but I remember why about two bites into their salad. Yummy.

My parents will be here in just over a month. They've never even seen this house! I'm so excited to have them here. And, the visit will be a quick, in and out, which just makes me happy that they were here and looking forward to having them back. They've been missionaries for the past decade or so - 2 years in Argentina, 2 in Africa, and most recently, 2 in Texas. I wonder what they will do now???

My wonderful friend, SN, has had some great . . . moments this week. A couple of my favorites? "S, how many letters are in the alphabet? 27! No, . . . wait, 25. Hold on . . . let me count. 26!" The next day: "What language do they speak in London?" But, my favorite this week came from LS, as we were diagnosing why she was feeling so ill. I suggested Lactose Intolerance. She promptly moaned, "But I like milk even more than I like beeeeeerrrr!" Awesome. Just Awesome!

Just noticed the time, so that means it's gotta rush time. Happy weekend, everyone!

Decisions

Last night I had a decision to make. It was something that initially I thought I really wanted. I had an immediate emotional response when it was first presented, and I quickly did a pros/cons list.

I got the call last night - was I still interested? Fortunately, it hit voice mail so I could think about it, and perhaps go with an intellectual decision, rather than emotional. And, I made the hard choice, and said no to the emotional response.

I'm not getting a new puppy now. In Stacey words - Bummer, dude. Not the right time for me to be trying to add an "extra" to my life. And now, I'm off to work.

Weekend Update

Ahh, what a weekend. The kind that comes about very rarely, and I love - the three day kind! I took Friday off to go to an Equine Assisted Psychotherapy training. Yes, I know I'm crazy, but I went to see what it was all about, since that's what one of my best friends does for a living. And you know the most frustrating part? Every so often, when I would have one of those "a-ha" moments, there's Msh, with her mouth smirking and her eyebrows raised. Yes, Michelle, you were right. Those are the worst words I ever have to say to her! Some of the things I learned. "Men and Dogs respond to the same things: Praise, Recognition, and Pork Chops." Seriously, I actually learned some other things. Like, I'm a goal/deadline oriented person. Give me a job, leave me alone, let me do it. I don't like to pussy-foot around, I want to jump in, and I get aggravated/frustrated when there's a lot of "chatter". I also tend to say the same thing over and over, even if it's not getting the task accomplished, so I need to figure out a different way to communicate when the first try doesn't work. Also, be ok with other solutions. Yeah, it might not have been how I would have liked to see something done, but did it work? It was a great day, and I'd highly recommend it for anyone looking for additional insight, and/or teambuilding.

The rest of the weekend went well, also. Racing, racing, and more racing! The first race of the season for the dirt track, and it went amazingly smooth. Race-ceivers are the way! Sunday I re-discovered that bribery works all kinds of wonders with kids, and then came home and baked cakes. Walked with my puppy, then visited the Ramsey house for the most yummy eating. A quick trip to Bedford to return one car and pick up my poor Honda completed my weekend. The Honda is dying - so I'm hoping it holds together until I can get my other car back from M&D. At least I got to see Annette some!

And, let's just finish on another quote that's been tumbling around in my head:

"Slow to trust, but quick to love - I push to hard and I give too much"
"I ain't sayin' I'm perfect, but I promise I'm worth it"

Can you name that song?

Me and Msh - Pictures of the two of us are getting harder and harder to come by!

Writer's Workshop

Wow . . . I'm on a roll this week! Writing for Mama Kat's workshop this week. I chose the prompt, "What is your role in the household?"

My friends tell me I try to do too much. It's an ongoing joke that I have something to do, 6 nights a week. The one night I don't have meetings, is the night I reserve for MY errands. So, where does this leave me in my household?

I'm the housekeeper, the cook, the shopper, the dog feeder, the dog walker, the bill payer, the trash puter-outer, and the basic repair-er. There are many times that I think, "If I could just come home and the dishes were done." I joked before that the most romantic thing a boy could do for me is mow my yard! Fortunately, I have good friends who do that for me, but if I owned a mower, I'd do that, as well. Living by myself certainly has it's disadvantages. However, I chose to look at it this way.

If the house is clean when I leave, it'll be clean when I come back. If I want to have all pink flowers in the flower beds, so be it. I don't have to justify to anyone eating nachos in bed, while watching TV at 3 am. Britney really does not care, as long as I share with her. I can use up every drop of hot water and not miss a wink of sleep over it. I can drink out of the container, I can eat the last of the brownies, and it's ok. My house is as loud or as quiet as I chose. There's no fighting over covers, no arguing over a thermostat.

If I were to let myself think about what I'm missing out on, by being single, yup, it would get me down. Instead, I chose to focus on the good - and there is LOTS of good. When I want the chaos and laughter that comes with a houseful of people, I have the most awesome friends that I can go visit. I've said it before, and I'll say it again.

Life is good.

Wordful Wednesdays

It's been a while since I played along with Wordful Wednesday's. That might have to do with the fact that my camera inexplicably disappeared, but did you know when you clean house, things magically appear? I'm so sick and tired of being sick and tired!

Anyway, I finally picked myself up and decided I was done with the whole sick and tired thing, which makes my puppy very happy. Normally, she's a pretty well-behaved spoiled animal, but last night, she decided that she needed some natural scent, and rolled in something slightly worse than month old dead something or other. Of course, she did this just before I had to be at a meeting I was already 45 minutes late for, so she got locked in the bathroom until I could get home. I walked in, and told her, "get in". She knew I wasn't kidding, and now, you get to see what pitiful looks like.

She loves water. Normally. But, when you start to mix soap in, not so much. But, do I REALLY have to stay in here?

I'm sorry . . . really I am . . .


At least when she's clean and smells pretty, there are perks . . .


Can't you just let me sleep? Seriously . . . it's cold out there!

Fine - I'll just ignore you.

But, after I had left at 330, and got home at 0600 from that wreck call, this is what I found. I can almost hear her saying, "Ex-CUSE me. Do you KNOW what time it is?!?!?"

At least things aren't ever dull around here . . . and she's ALWAYS happy to see me come home!

Come play with us . . .

Wake Up Calls

It's 5:48 right now. I got one of those happy wake up calls. You know, "Rescue 3, respond . . . " Intially, I was aggravated, wondering where night call is. But, eventually, there's more radio traffic, and more equipment requested, and . . . off I go.

So, here's the question. I have to be at work at 9. Do I stay up? Do I try to fall back asleep? Britney woke up enough to greet me, but she's snoozing again. Sleep is so overrated . . .

Video

Now, I don't usually get "political" on my blog, but when I saw this last night while flipping channels, I couldn't help but share.

See, one of my best friend's is currently sharing her son with the Army. He's serving in Iraq, right now. Yesterday, while we were eating lunch together, he called. Now, he calls very frequently, so that's not a huge deal. However, during the call, he interrupted her. "Mom, I've got to go, right now." And then he hung up. She laughed it off, and said, "Yeah, he does that, but he'll call back." I can't imagine being her.

So, for all of his buddies, all the mother's sons and daughters, would you watch this, and pray that they all, and especially Sidney, is watched over?

Sunday Night

Ah, Michelle. She's so good for me. I read a recent blog post to her and she was so encouraging. I've had a couple of pretty hurtful things said to me recently by people who are supposed to be my friends, and she has helped me see the truth behind the statements. She's also encouraged me to write more, to share thoughts and ideas, even if no one is reading this except me.

Today, I took Britney for 3 walks. THREE. In the puppy world, this is as close to heaven as you can get. I've been actually walking from my house, rather than driving down to the river road. While she protests being reigned in with a leash, it's much better exercise for both of us.

On the third walk, she was starting to wear out. The best part of this, is she actually acts like she knows how to walk on a leash. You know, not trying to pull my back out? But, I was struck by how, on the surface at least, this town is so idyllic. Let's see if I can share a bit.

The sky, of course, was crystal blue. It was in the high 70's, with a steady breeze blowing. While the mountains are still a bit sparse looking, there are signs of green everywhere. The field, has started to sprout, and the flowers gave the whole thing a purple haze. As Britney played loose, the few cars that came by stopped, laughed, and went on. Coming back on Blue Ridge Road, there was a pick up game going on at the ball field. A handful of random kids, and what appeared to be a grandfather and father encouraging them. A picnic was going on at the shelter, and kids were crawling all over the playground. Again, everyone waves. The cars passing me on the shoulder, drivers throw a hand up in acknowledgement. Small town, all around. The train passed, as it does every afternoon, with the engineer waving as he passed to the kids in the first car. I was tossed back to sitting in the car with my parents, counting cars at the crossing in Roy, UT. I'm privileged to live in a small community like this. My wings are getting a bit cramped, and it occurs to me more and more often, that maybe there are better opportunities elsewhere. But for now, every day, I'm going to enjoy the walk, and the waves.

Now, it's going to be a good week . . . and Carrie, a busier, happier week, ok?

Photo was taken 04/03/2009, looking up the road Britney and I walk down. And, while today was gorgeous, Friday, not so much!

Grrr.

It's 115, as in am, as I write this. I've mentioned that I'm glad to be getting back into running calls - even those that come in just after I've drifted off to sleep. I've even gotten used to the fact that I get the, "I stubbed my toe, take me to the ER" calls. But daggone it, I'm frustrated! Tonight, we actually had something that had us scratching our heads, and it's, "Oh, I'll go. You can take the (rescue) truck back to the building." Ok, yay, that I get to come back and get back into bed, but grrr, something interesting, and I'm not along for the ride. Sigh.

Just fits the rest of the day, and my mood.

On the positive side? Karey loves me. Do you know how I know this? She brought spinach dip to the track. Mmm, yummy. That's a happy note to crawl back into bed on. Night!