Today at work

Today was an interesting day at work.  Production worked mostly a skeleton crew, to keep things moving that just HAD to move.  Because of the reduced production staff, and the fact that many studios were closed today, we decided to have all of the hourly customer service reps take the day off.  That includes both receptionists.

Because I used to be a receptionist for this company, guess who had the job for the day?  Yup, I was the only one answering the phones, and had only 4 people to pass the calls to, instead of our usual 12.  Interesting.

Most of the day was pretty slow, and we got a lot of extra tasks accomplished.  When a rush of calls would come in, though, it was funny to watch us scurrying around, trying to get everyone through to a live voice.  I have to answer without saying my name, or most customers would know that I'm a CSR, and would start asking me for help, blocking other incoming calls, so it's all a juggling act.  It made the day fun, though, because it was so different.

At 3:00, the calls had all but died, so they turned them off.  I, however, was stuck until 4.  A couple of people made some uninformed decisions, which caused a mini-catastrophe, and guess who got to clean it up.  Thankfully, my BWF Michelle was nice enough to stay and help me.  I hate cleaning up messes that I didn't cause.  Especially mind-numbing tasks such as reversing 98 transactions.  One.At.A.Time.

OK, back to the party.  I've taken some pictures, so I'll have an entry for tomorrow.  It could be a LOUD entry, if the video uploads correctly.

No More OK's

I have vowed to never start another entry with "OK."  OK?  LOL

Anywho, I am just checking in to check in.  Tomorrow night, we'll host a girlie NYE party with 6 girls between 11 and 13.  *sigh*  Lots of food, soda, and fun.  Fun, right?  Yeah, fun.  Just kidding.  It will be fun.  They are so excited about this sleepover.

A week from Saturday, I'll be leaving for Phoenix.  I'm excited, even though it's "nationals" and will be super busy.  It's still fun to see a different part of the country.  I will have my camera, so beware of braille room number images.  LOL

Oh, and tomorrow will be exciting.  I'll explain why tomorrow, but my job will have a new twist for a day.  Just one day, but different and weird.

A Year End Meme

I got this from Mom, although I've done it in the past.  Here's Mom's version.  You post the first line (unedited) from each month's first post.  I have added comments in parenthesis.  I can't just do a copy/paste post without commenting, ok?

Now, for my blogging year in review:

January: I need to lose weight. (Big surprise, huh?)

February: The dryer is still broken. (problem was solved rather quickly.)

March: What a waste of a beautiful day. (I was sick.)

April: I deleted yesterday's entry. (Probably a good choice.)

May: Well, it happened. (Natalie got sick.)

June: OK, tonight, it loaded pictures fine. (Obviously having problems with AOL.)

July: OK, I got up in time to post yesterday's pictures.  (Gone on another business trip.)

August: OK, here's the deal. (This is when I FLEW THE PLANE!)

September: So, I have had time to enjoy 4 days off, and I have one day to go. (Hmm, sounds like last weekend.)

October:   I hope this link works. (or)  OK, time to take this blog seriously.   (This is where we switched from AOL to Blogger, so I posted the first October post from both.

November: Here is Monica, the undead homecoming queen. (Halloween happenings.)

December: It's so crazy at work, I can't stop to think.  (Oh yeah, busy season had hit by then.)

What have I learned?  I start too many posts with "OK" and "So."  I tend to gripe too much at the beginning of each month.  Or in general.  Anyway, too many downers.  I'll try to do better in '09.  

My first business trip is a week from Saturday, so maybe that will offer some excitement.  Or not.  It's Phoenix, and I've never been to Arizona, so new sights for me!

Have a great night.

Weird.

I've always been weird, but I'm getting more so by the day.  Here are a few things that make people look at me like I've lost my mind.

1. The window shades need to be the same height.  Halfway open, even with the top of the bottom sash, or all the way closed.  Don't leave one open and the others closed, don't leave one 3" from the bottom.  It looks stupid to me.

2. If a piece of food falls off my plate, it's trash.  I cannot eat something that has touched the table, at home or out.  No telling what may contaminate it.

3. I don't hi-five.  It annoys me.  My kids want to hi-five ALL the time, and I can't.  Thanks to the sitcom "Scrubs", though, we have "sterile hi-five" and "mental hi-five", both of which are acceptable.

4. I will spend a lot of time fixing my hair, and that's fine.  If ONE hair comes loose, however, it's as foul as described by Jerry Seinfeld.  Gross and evil.  Mine, yours, my kid's, it's all foul.  Even minutes after washing.

5. Other than going to the bathroom, brushing my teeth is the first thing that I do in the morning.  Not after breakfast, not after my shower, not after getting dressed.  I can't stand morning mouth.

OK, that's enough.  You all might start thinking that I'm weird.  We can't have that, now can we?

Twas the night after Christmas

Twas the night after Christmas and all through the place

The girls money had vanished, without a trace.

They both had new goodies, some makeup and such

music and movies, it's all just too much.

The Xbox is humming, the laughter is grand

and each kid is happy in post-Christmas land.

Brett came to visit, we ate dinner out

This is the best evening, without a doubt.

No work today or for 2 more long days

Naps will be taken, time spent in a haze.

We're short on money, all the year long

but Christmas-time bonus fills our hearts with song.

Our position is still no better or worse

But we have a week before January's curse.

 

Yes things will be rough for one month or two

But March will feel better, as it tends to do.

We're thankful for family, neighbors and friends

and you can be thankful this poems at it's end.

Merry Christmas

What an awesome day!  The girls and I played with the Xbox a lot this morning, while the roast cooked slowly in the crock pot.  Around 10:30, we loaded up and headed to Mom's.  The roast was all I did, but she put together an awesome dinner of mashed potatoes, noodles, rolls, glazed carrots and sweet potato pie.  It was a great meal.

After visiting for a bit, we headed back home.  The girls got right back on the Xbox, and I took a nap that lasted close to 3 hours!  Wow.  Naps are SO underrated!  When I woke up, I went right back to playing games with the girls.  I've since watched lots of TV, harassed some friends on facebook, and called some long-lost buddies to say "Merry Christmas."

I hope you all had a great day.  I couldn't have asked for a better one.  My family all seems pleased with the gifts, and the pressure is off.  Now, we look forward to a teen party on NYE, and hope for the best in 2009.

Good night, friends.  Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night.

Merry Christmas Eve!

I found my holiday spirit.  Yeah, I was worried that it wasn't going to show up, but I found it today.  Everyone was in a light-hearted mood at work, goodies were passed around, everyone smiled and chatted about holiday plans, and we got to turn off the phones and head home at 12:30!

We were going to go shopping for a family Christmas gift on Friday, when my check hit the bank.  We were thinking "Wii" but knew it would be impossible to find.  This morning, I found out that our checks were deposited today!  WoooHooo!  Not only that, but I got my bonus gift card that we get each year.

I started hitting stores, knowing that I was crazy for doing it, on the way home.  We were right about not finding a Wii.  There were none to be found.  For the same money, though, I could get an Xbox 360, three additional controllers, and a 3-pack of games!  Heck Yeah!  Kevin and I talked about it, and decided to give it to the girls tonight.

We're all home for a long weekend, and I wanted them to have a chance to play it tonight.  They are thrilled.  I even played a bit!  We had a take-and-bake pizza, and some chips and dip, and just enjoyed the down time.  

I'm so glad I found my holiday spirit.

Tomorrow, we're going to Mom's for an odd sort of Christmas dinner.  We're pooling our resources to create a dinner including requests and favorites of different family members.  Noodles?  Check.  Sweet Potato Pie?  Check.  Roast?  Umm, ok.  LOL  It'll be great.

I'm thinking about sneaking a dip in the hot tub into my day.  What would Christmas be without a dip in the hot tub?  Or a roast?  Or glazed carrots?  Did I mention the glazed carrots?  Yummy.

Merry Christmas Eve!

Answers

Only two folks asked, so you made it easy on me.  Neither question bothers me in the least.

My last meal would NOT be potato soup, although that may surprise Mom.  I love that stuff, but if I had it every day, I'd probably get burned out.  Maybe.  Probably not.  Anyway, the one thing that I would want for a last meal is Papa John's Pizza, with extra garlic butter dippin' sauce.  Yum.  I could take a bath in the garlic butter dippin' sauce.  Papa John is my hero.

As for how old I was when I had my boys, you must know that I didn't give birth to Jonathan.  If I had, I would have been barely 16 when he was born.  I started early, but not THAT early.  Jonathan is my step-son, technically, but my son in my heart. 

I married my first husband when I was 18, and had Brett a bit over a year later, when I was 19.  I appreciate it when folks tell me there is NO way I could have a 20 year old, but I do.  I will be 40 in March.  

To break it down, Kevin and I each had a son when we got married, and then had the girls together.  Yours, Mine, and Ours to be sure.  The girls are all that we have at home now, so we almost have a normal sized family.  When Jonathan lived with us for a short time, we had 6 in the house.

In fact, that's where my screen name came from.  Someone (I think it was Mom, but she can correct me if I'm wrong) saw the 6 of us climbing from the little blue car and said, "There's the Fierro 6!"  Now, if you want to find me on AIM, Yahoo, or any other application, search for fierro6.

I'm just sayin'.  

::added later for Celeste's question::

Kevin's shoulder will never be the same.  He still works really hard, but he hurts all of the time, and he likely won't get much better.  The workman's comp. case is still with the attorney, who said it would be over "soon" in August.  *sigh*  He needs a less physical job, but can't make what he's making anywhere else.  The surgeon said that he'd just keep ripping the shoulder apart, unless he finds a new vocation.  He has more knowledge and experience at this job than most folks can claim at their job. Catch 22.

Ask Rachel

OK, I have nothing to post tonight.  Because of this, I am opening up again for anything you want to ask.  I'm pretty much an open book, so whatever it is, no problem.  If I decide that you've crossed the line of what I want to answer here, I'll message or email you.  If the answer to your question requires a picture, no problem.  I'll do it.

What do you want to know?  What do you want to see?  What do you want to hear?

A good, although cold, weekend.

I didn't sleep for 80 hours, but I made it for 11, before deciding to get up on Saturday morning.  It was wonderful.  After getting showered and ready, I went to Mom's.  Kevin and the girls joined me later, followed by K's mom and nephew.

We all had a great cold-weather treat, and my favorite meal, potato soup and cornbread.  It was fabulous.  Back at home, we relaxed with Grammy and Steven.  She brought some Christmas presents with her, too!  Kevin got an awesome chair massager, which we've all taken turns at, and I got some beautiful wind chimes and a picture that matches a set in my dining room.

Today, we played some cards (I lost, big surprise) and ate Grammy's homemade stew while the wind howled outside.  It's hovering around 0 out there, and the wind is vicious.  Still, after Grammy and Steven left, K and I headed out to do a bit of shopping.

We weren't looking for actual gifts.  That will happen on the 26th, but we were getting stocking stuffers for the girls, and some treats for me to take to work on Wednesday.  It was miserable out there, with a wind chill of -14, but the truck was warm.

Now I get two 3-day weeks in a row.  WoooHooo!  Life is good, my friends.

It's over

After a lot of long days, and a lot of stressing out, it's over.  All out-of-town orders, due for Christmas, had to ship today.  They did.  It was crazy, and I was lacking sleep, and people were cranky with me (I got yelled at 3 times, but didn't take it personally,) but we did it.

Tonight, I plan to sleep for about 80 hours.  That'll be tough, since Mom offered my favorite meal EVER.  Maybe I'll sleep for 10 hours, eat some potato soup, then sleep for another 70 hours.  I'll figure it out.  LOL

Christmas is going to be weird this year, due to financial issues, but we've worked out a plan with the girls, and a week from tonight, everyone will be quite happy.  Yeah, we're being VERY non-traditional this year.  Gotta keep the utilities on, right?  LOL

I'm gonna play some mindless games on Facebook and watch TV now.  Good night.

*sigh*

One more day...

One more day of insanity.  I worked 11 hours today, but tomorrow promises 12, at least.  Then, it's done.  Everything hinges on tomorrow.  Customers are calling, freaking out, wondering if they'll get their order by Christmas.  I am so exhausted, I am spacey.  It's crazy, but it makes me feel good that I am secure in my job.

When I tell a customer something will happen, it happens.  When I tell them I'll try, I really try.

I've gotten several packages of goodies from thankful customers this week.  That's what I need:  sweets.  LOL  It's nice to share with coworkers, and then come home and share with my husband and kids.

OK, I have nothing of importance to say.  I'm just checking to to announce that I'm alive.  Back to mindless drivel real soon.  Sorry 'bout that in advance.

Christmas cards. Bah Humbug!

I've been planning to create my Christmas cards for the past 3 weeks.  It's busy season at work and I'm putting in crazy hours and I went to a concert and I napped on the weekends.  All of these are true, although only a couple are good excuses.

I've decided not to do Christmas cards this year.  It's just too much pressure to get them out in a timely manner.

We're going to do New Year's cards!  They arrive a week later, but they're not late.  Win Win!

If I don't have your address, and you'd like a one-of-a-kind, Fierro New Year's card, email your mailing address to me.  It'll be fun to design this weekend, without the pressures of busy season.  I can already picture what I'm going to do.

Oh yeah, and the conventions

I got the schedule for the 2009 conventions that I'll be attending in 2009.  If any of my buddies are close, let me know.  I won't show dates, because I don't know fly in-fly out details, or convention hours.  Anyway, here's where I'll be:

Phoenix, somewhere in the early teens of January.

Kentucky, somewhere in the middle 20s of January.

Myrtle Beach, somewhere in the first week or so of February.

Pasadena, in the early 20s of March.

If you are near any of these areas, and want specifics, let me know.  I'd love to meet for dinner or drinks.

Catching up, and random stuff

So, I went to bed on Sunday night, and all was good.  I woke up on Monday morning, and had a horrible head cold.  I didn't really feel "sick" but I was sneezing, had a runny nose, and was congested.  I talked funny, too.  Well, funnier than usual.

I worked all day, the beginning of hell week, and got worse as the day progressed.  I knew that the girls had their Christmas Extravaganza that night.  OK, that's not what they call it, but it was "go listen to other people's kids sing off key" night.  I didn't feel well, but I planned to go, with Kevin.  The girls went to Grandma's after school, due to weather, and then Kevin called me to tell me that he had to work late.  

There was NO way that I could leave at 5, drive an hour, pick up the girls, take them home to eat and change clothes, and get them to the school by 6:05.  *sigh*  When I found out that Kevin had NO way out of it, I asked to leave early.  That is unheard of, this time of year, but knowing that I came in 2 hours early, they agreed.  PHEW!

I picked up the girls, they cleaned themselves up, and we went to the cafegymatorium at the school.  I was getting sicker by the minute, but settled in to watch other people's untalented kids.  3rd and 4th grade went first, and sang for 30 minutes.  5th and 6th (Natalie's group) went next.  Two.Songs.  Yup, only two songs, and they were done.

Fine, deal with it, right?  I'm still getting sicker, and I can tell that a fever was settling in.  Frankly, I am NOT a good mom at these things.  Let my kids perform, then let me go home.  I don't care about other people's kids.  Honestly.  Mother-of-the-year I am not.  Anyway, Jr. High band gets going (Monica's group) and played two songs.  Yup, just two.

OK, home free, right?  Nope.  Now, it's time for Jr and Sr high school bands to play together.  This was a big deal for Monica, so I was OK with it.  She's far better than most 7th grade band members, and she's the only Jr. High trumpet player.  She was stoked to play with the High School band, and she kept up with them, note for note.

Cool, now we can go home, right?  NOPE!  The band instructor guides them to go sit on the side, on the bleachers, while the high school plays.  They played for about 7 hours (or 4 songs.)  Then, he announces that it was time for jazz band to get ready.  I made eye contact with Monica in the stands and pointed at the door.  She got the message.

We got home at 8:30, and their bedtime is at 9.  I had left home at 5:00 in the morning, and just got home for the night at 8:30.  Yes, I was sick as a dog.  I got the necessary evening chores done, with Kevin's help, and went to bed, freezing.  I was wearing sweats to bed, and was freezing cold.

I woke up, sweaty as all get-out, thinking "The fever broke!"  I was right.  I am still snotty, but I feel so much better than I did yesterday.  My crops rotted in the field on myFarm, my YoVille character didn't get to work for 3 shifts, and my email went unanswered.  However, I'm back now.  Look out, Facebook!

Stupidly Cold

OK, so we lost 50 degrees today.  OK, so it's sleeting.  OK, so we live in Missouri.  Get over it.   That's my mantra.  Get.Over.It.  However...

I remembered tonight that I didn't have my good ice scraper on Tuesday, when it snowed.  Thankfully, it was a cold and dry snow, so I swiped the windows with my sleeve, and all was good.  Tonight, however, it started with sleet.  That means there will be ice on the windshield in the morning.

Since I have to be in early (due to the busy season) and I have to take the pajama-clad girls to Mom's in the morning, I knew that I needed my ice scraper.  It was in the shed, last I knew, near the front, on the left.  No problem.  I'll go get it, and bring it inside.

On a commercial break from Survivor, I slipped into Kevin's boots (clomp clomp clomp) and put on my coat.  No working flashlight to be found (what happens if we lose power?) so I grabbed a lighter.  That's enough light to find an ice scraper, right?

I went outside and realized that I couldn't see the combination lock well enough to dial in the code.  I tried and tried for about 5 minutes, before I realized that it was already unlocked.  DUH!  Fine, I'm in.  I'm in, out of the wind.  I struck the lighter to life and turned to the left, and bent down.  I was hovering over 4 gas cans.

Great move, Einstein.   

Realizing that this was NOT the best plan, I headed back into the house.  Ahhh, warmth.  I watched another segment of Survivor, then headed out with a candle.  This would let me have the flame pointing up, but light shining all around.  Yeah, still stupid, but not open flame over gas cans.

I finally found the elusive ice scraper (it's a good one, too) and brought it inside.  As a final step, I had to take the lock back out, and lock the shed.  The wind is so evil, it was taunting me.  Once, I heard it say, "Rachel?  Go ahead and light off the gas cans.  Maybe you'll get warm!"  I ran inside like a coward.  That wind is so mean tonight.

The girls showered tonight, packed clothes for tomorrow, as well as toothbrushes and hairbrushes, and are ready to climb into the car at 5 something tomorrow.  I hate it when they have to get up that early.  They can go back to sleep at Mom's, though.  Their lunches are packed, and I'll send something for breakfast, too.

How long until summer gets here?  There are already school closings on the bottom of the TV screen, and there is a layer of ice under the snow that's now falling.  Maybe I should move to California and hang with Pam or Lisa.  Maybe I should move to Texas and hang with Amy.  Maybe I should move to Georgia and hang with Jim or Celeste.

Nah.  I'd miss my folks too much.  Dad helped Kevin so much with my car today, and I feel a certain comfort, knowing how close they are.  I'll slip and slide to work tomorrow, knowing that spring will be SO pretty.

Right?  It'll be pretty, right?  TELL ME THAT IT'LL BE PRETTY!

Baby it's cold outside.

Sure, it's only a bit under 30 degrees, but the wind is unbelievable.  It's straight out of the North at 15-25 mph, and it sounds so cold and lonely.  Wind always sounds lonely to me.  Anyway, it's 30 degrees colder than it was when we woke up this morning.  I moved the patio furniture off the deck for winter, and I did so in a T-shirt.  Now, even a coat isn't enough.

We went to Mom's so that Kevin could fix my car, yet again.  The floor board rusted out enough that the bolts that hold my seat down in the front broke loose.  I had a rocking chair for a seat for 3 days.  Today, with Dad's help and a little angle iron, my seat is secure again.  Thanks, Dad and Kevin.

Monica spent the night with a friend, and another friend showed up later.  Somehow, Monica got locked out when she stepped outside to cool off.  Somehow, they didn't hear her knocking.  She walked home at 3:30 this morning.  She was so upset at them.  Their side of the story is a bit different, and there's no telling exactly what happened.

All I know is that she woke me up, knocking on the door, after walking 4 blocks home at 3:30 in the morning.  She'll not be going back to that particular friend's house for a LONG time, if ever.  I tell my girls to surround themselves only with people who make them feel good about who they are.  You can't feel good about yourself when you're the odd-man-out.

I'll spend the rest of the afternoon and evening catching up on laundry, and then catch the finale of Survivor.  Thank goodness my other shows are reruns tonight.  Maybe we'll make some taco fixin's for dinner.  That'll warm a person up, right?

Tomorrow morning, the girls want to go to Mom's and catch the bus.  With a wind chill of -9 predicted by daybreak, I think that's a good idea.  The problem is that this is the final push at work.  This is the week that determines it all.  I would need to drop them off by 5:30 or 5:45.  That's pretty dang early.  I guess, if they shower tonight, I could have them pack clothes and stuff for school this evening, climb into a warmed-up car in the morning, and go back to bed when they get there.

Yeah, that may work.  *sigh*  I hate waking them up every day, but 1 1/2 hours early really sucks.  Head's up, Mom.

Whiskey Wango Tango Jingle Bell Birthday Bash

After work yesterday, I met Kevin over in Blue Springs, where we stashed my car.  He had taken the girls to Mom's for the night, so we were all set for a night out.  I had won several pairs of tickets to this concert, and I was excited.

Let's be honest:  Although Joey and Rory, Carters Chord and Chuck Wicks promised to be good, we were here to see Pat Green.  The doors were to open at 5:45, and I think they finally opened at 6:50.  It was cold to be standing outside for an hour, but it could have been so much worse.  So many people were pissing and moaning that it was aggravating.   You didn't pay for the tickets (you have to win them for this concert) and you are welcome to leave.  Sheesh.

We met a real nice couple from Lees Summit, while standing in line:

Janet and Keith provided some nice conversation, and diversion from numb toes and a sloppy, muddy parking lot.  When we got inside, there was no place left to sit (I had expected as much) so we were wandering around, looking for a place to land.  Janet comes over and said that they found a table, and did we want to join them.  That was so sweet.

She even took this picture of me and Kevin for my journal.  Don't you like how fancy I dress for a night on the town?  HA!  A hoodie.  I was warm, though.  Because we were sitting in the back of a HUGE bar, I often had some interesting views.  It seems that the country is getting fatter and fatter (myself included) and many still haven't figured it out:  Just because they make your size...

Doesn't mean you have to wear it.  Seriously, I saw scenes like this all night.  The bar is so huge that they have a TON of security everywhere.  There was one guy sneaking a bottle out of his jacket to pour into his drink.  When security approached, he reached into his jacket and pulled out brass knuckles.  Classy.  He was out the back door before anyone could tell what was going on.  Heck, they even had security on top of one of the bars:

Except for that one incident, it was a laid-back crowd.  We listened to the local band, and the three listed above, and they were all pretty good.  Right before Pat was set to go on, I grabbed Kevin and asked if he wanted to get up close.  I learned from my BWF Michelle how to get up close, even when the floor is packed with people.

We wove our way through the edge of the crowd on the dance floor, moving up and over with every opportunity.  We were finally only about 4 people away from the stage, and right in front of the speakers.  Sure, I couldn't hear anything on the way home, but it was SO worth it.

Kevin and I have both always liked Pat Green.  He's so cool, and his songs are awesome.  It was such a great night.

We finally left around midnight, knowing that I had to work in the morning.  Kevin had free Diet Coke all night, for being a designated driver.  They put a non-drinker wrist band on him, and saved us a fortune on over-priced soda.  Since I had him to drive me home, I had some beers.

On the way home, we stopped at QuikTrip.  There is NO way to drive home in the wee hours of the morning, without stopping at QT.  Kevin needed a cappuccino, and I hadn't eaten since lunch, so I wanted a couple of egg rolls.  I heart QT egg rolls. At 12:30 in the morning.

It was a fabulous night, and when we got home, I knew that I would awaken this morning in rough shape.  I am NOT young enough to attend concerts and drink beer and stay up late.  Kevin woke me up and told me I needed to go to work, and I wanted to shoot him.  My eyes were all red and swollen, and a lot of coworkers got a laugh out of my misfortune.

Heck, I can't complain.  It was self-induced.  I'm just glad that I didn't get knee-walking drunk.  I can't imagine going to work with a full blown hangover.  Yuck.  And poor Kevin had to take me to Blue Springs to get my car, so even HE couldn't sleep in.

After work, I took a nap (3 hours) and now I'm feeling much better.  We grabbed a couple of redbox DVDs earlier, so later tonight, Kevin and I will laugh at some Jr. High humor while watching Step Brothers.  Natalie has already watched Kung Fu Panda 2 times, while I napped.

Sorry for the long post, but it was just so fun to finally get out on the town with Kevin.

The elusive moon

The moon was full and beautiful tonight.  A crappy day ended by driving toward a big, beautiful moon.  I was soothed by the sight.

I know that you can't get a good picture of the moon, but it was so PRETTY!  There were some light clouds dancing around it, and I couldn't wait to get the shot.  I was more than 2/3 of the way home before it was safe to pull over.  I did, and it was too late.

The clouds were taking over.  I wish you could have seen it.  I took the shot anyway, but it's so disappointing.

I'll try again another night.  Or another morning.  I drive to work in the dark, and I drive home in the dark.  It's not tough to see the moon.

One. More. Week.

God help me.

Ready for bed

OK, I'm ready for bed.  I left early, sure that school would be cancelled.  At 5:15, it wasn't, so I put the phone beside Monica's bed and told her that, if school was in session, I'd call to wake them.  The streets in town were a sheet of ice, so I was SURE that there would be no school.

I slid down the road to the highway, and went to work.  The interstate was clear, so I was at work by 6:30.  School still hadn't been cancelled, so I kept working, and watching online for this little town to do the right thing.  They never did.

At 6:40, I called to wake the girls, and told them that school was in session.  They were less than pleased, but they got up and got ready.  They had to walk in COLD temps, on ICY roads, to go to school.  It wasn't uphill both ways, but almost! LOL

I'm not a fan of useless school closings, but EVERY bus route in this town is rural, and nothing was cleared.  I guess, from what the girls said, a lot of  bus riders were late today, and some had stories of scary stuff.

I logged 10 hours at work, and had about 2 hours of work left to do when I headed out at 5.  My BWF Michelle sent some hand warmer things home with me, for the girls' walk to school.  She's awesome.  I'll go in a couple of hours early again tomorrow, and try to keep up with my work.

I am NOT complaining about being busy.  I was worried that the busy season wouldn't happen, and my job would be in jeopardy, but all is good.   I am as busy as a one-armed paper hanger!  My job shall remain viable for a while.

OK, goodnight.

Blog ya later!

Slip Slidin' away....

Jeez, Louise!  You get an inch or two of snow, and everyone turns into a moron.  Leaving work, I have to climb a pretty steep hill.  For those of you in the KC area (or Traci) it is just south of the stadium complex on Blue Ridge Cutoff.  My car can do this.  No. Problem.  However, many people have NO idea what their car can do.

They just head right on up a hill that their POS cannot deal with.  Therefore, I was stuck for 15 minutes behind cars spinning, sliding, and turning.  At one point, a car going the other direction, slid past me sideways, his front bumper coming within inches of the driver's side of my car.  I just flinched to the side, closed my eyes, and prayed, "Dear Lord, if he hits me, make it a good one.  I'm buckled, not moving, and I need a new car."

He missed me.  Barely.  *sigh*  And then we move on.  Finally, I had the opportunity to weave into the oncoming lanes to go around Dr. Spins-a-lot, and rocked and rolled right on to the interstate.

I-70 wasn't much better.  It wasn't slick, but it wasn't moving.  I got really excited when I saw this?

That was the fastest I'd gone in over 30 minutes.  *sigh*  So THIS is how it's gonna be, huh?  At about 6:00, when I should have been home, I was halfway there.  I had to pee so badly that I was pretty sure I'd die.  I exited the interstate and hit a QT.  I love QT.  I totally HEART QT.  Then, back on the road.

I got home, safe and sound, but a bit late.  Here is my radio when I got to my driveway:

Yup, a full hour later than usual.  Oh well.  I never slid, slipped, or had any issues, all the way home.  My little car, no matter what gripes I have about it, did an awesome job as usual.  Now, I'm gonna sit in my warm home and relax.  I have to leave early to make it in on time.  

If school is in session, I need to get the girls to Mom's by 6:00.  (a little warning, Mom.  Sorry.)  If there is no school, I'm leaving at 5.  This is busy season, and I have FAR too much work to do.  I can't just arrive at the normal time, and now we have ice issues.  

*sigh*

I still love Missouri, and I stand by my winter mantra:  "If it's going to be cold, it may as well be pretty!"

Several co-workers wanted to punch me for that one today. 

"Sleigh bells ring, are ya listenin'?  In the lane, snow is glistenin'!  A beautiful sight, we're happy tonight, walking in a freaking absurdly freezing land!"

Hawkeye is a wussy

Nala is the most timid animal in the house.  She would rather live alone, if someone would provide food, water, and a clean litter box.  However, she's stuck with 4 loud humans, an aquarium full of sharks, a big hairy dog, and her brother.  She used to avoid all of us like the plague, especially Hawkeye.  After all, he's a DOG.

Being to lazy to go downstairs for a drink, though, she's taken to drinking out of the dog dish.  Oh sure, it's usually when he's outside, or sleeping in another room.  Tonight, she got brave.  She walked slowly toward his dishes, where he was having his dinner.  She stared at him.

She apparently decided that she was too thirsty to care, or that he was too busy eating to give a darn about her.  She actually drank his water within inches of his huge, canine teeth.  What was she thinking?

She's realizing that he's a wimp.  The most he EVER does is growl in a low tone if the other cat actually touches him.  Surely he won't do anything about a bit of water.

Poor dog has lost his edge.

The spoils of a day among the Christmas shoppers.

I did it.  I shopped.  I didn't die, but I wanted to kill a few strangers before we were done.  Overall, though, it was fun.  We even ate lunch out!  Natalie and Monica-blue-tongue show off their new coats:

Monica's new boots (Natalie is still gonna look for some.  She didn't find any that fit AND suited her needs):

Here are my new kicks:

Monica's Chuck Taylor (in black) shoes that she's wanted for so long:

Natalie's skate shoes:

I am so thankful that we were able to do this.  I spent a ridiculous amount of money today, but $200 was an unexpected surprise, and we all needed the items that we got.  Well, except for that lunch at 54th Street.  *burp*

I'm poor, OK?

OK, so we're poor.  I've come to grips with it, and so has my family.  I'm talking about money, here.  I'm quite rich in many things, but when it comes to money, we're one paycheck away from losing everything, all the time.  There, I said it.

This type of living causes certain things that folks with money wouldn't understand.  An income tax refund is something that we work toward.  Folks with money try to make it work out to where nothing is owed to the government and nothing is due back.  Not us!  That refund is "white trash Christmas" to us.

Another example of this is "sick check" week.  We get 5 days of sick time at work.  Whatever isn't used is paid to you at year's end.  If you have perfect attendance, there's a little something extra in it for you.  This is my second year of perfect attendance, and today was "sick check" day.

I knew it was coming, and most of it is spent for bills, etc.  HOWEVER, it is white-trash Christmas, isn't it?  Because of this, I stopped on the way home for a few things that we usually don't indulge in.  We had Taco Bell for dinner, I got GOOD beer, and I bought a couple of scratch-off lottery tickets for me and Kevin.

I told the girls that we'd go shopping when I got my sick check.  We are all three wearing horribly crappy tennis shoes.  I mean ugly and old.  Bad. Shoes.  We need shoes, and I told them that we'd get name brand tennis shoes (we usually buy WalMart shoes) when I got my sick check.  Kevin and I discussed it, and decided we wanted to do a bit more.

Last night, I told the girls that we would get tennis shoes, and they could choose between a second pair of shoes (Natalie wants some boots or something) or a new winter coat.  They have coats around here, but they're kind of sad looking.  They've been thinking about their decision, and I've been thinking about the best places to shop for good  bargains.

OK, back to tonight.  Kevin and I scratched our lottery tickets, and.  Ummm.  I saw something weird on mine.  I won $200!!!!!  That means, I can pay those bills that had to be paid, but I can also get the girls 2 pairs of shoes AND new coats!  WoooHooo!  The girls almost cried when I told them!

They don't expect a lot of "stuff" and they always have what's needed to get by.  It's just a wonderful feeling to know that they get to have something that isn't exactly needed.   Natalie can have her cowboy boots with pink stitching if she wants to.  Monica can have her pink Chuck Taylors.

  

Life is good, my friends.  Life is great during White Trash Christmas.  I'll get back to you during tax season, while my rich friends are worrying about owing the government.

BWAAHAAAHAAAHAAA!

Nonsense

I am so crazy busy at work that I can't stop to think.  Instead of thinking, I thought I'd share a video from a few nights ago.  Hell, Remo started it!

I didn't realize how loud the motor would sound when I zoomed, or that the lighting would suck when I zoomed, so I'm sorry.  To sum up what you missed during those times:   The biggest shark is insane, and Kevin's socks are on the floor.  Also, I should clean the house.  Also, the house is messy.  Natalie doesn't like her baby pictures, and I need a cleaning lady.  The end.

Goodbye.