Boo for me!

Tonight was Tuesday night weigh in at Weight Watchers. I am sorry to say this, but, I gained 1.6 pounds! Yikes! Of course, I have my excuses for that weight gain!

Yeah for Arthur!!! - because she lost another .6 lbs! She has lost over 22 lbs. I was glad to hear she lost some, because she thought she hadn't lost any.

My excuses?
1) I have been sneaking in bites of this and that without writing them down in my food journal
2) I went to a fall festival Saturday and ate a real hamburger and 1/2 a brownie!
3) It was supposed to be 'that time of month' today, and it didn't happen. (No worries, at 47 that happens every few months or so. But you still get the bloating).
4) I have used salt in cooking more this past week. Salt makes you retain water.
5) I wore blue jeans instead of shorts to weigh in. (Hey! These are excuses!)
6) I ate dinner before weigh in. That's a no no!

Things I intend to do this week to get off that 1.6 pounds, plus some:
1) I am already doing jogging/walking intervals for 1 hour, 4 miles, most days. So I guess I will try to stick to doing more weight lifting and crunches.
2) Use less salt this week.
3) Keep my hand out of the candy corn jar.
4) Stop sneaking bites unless I intend to write them down and keep track of those points.
5) Have a plan for eating if I go another fall festival this weekend, and I plan to.
6) Wear light weight clothes to the next weigh in and not eat dinner until after the WW meeting.

Losing weight or maintaining our current weight is going to get harder for me and Arthur, now that we are approaching the 'Eating Season'. It usually starts for us with Arthur's birthday, which is near the end of October. Then Halloween. I always make hot dogs, chili and some sort of treat for Halloween. (I've got to get fat free dogs and find a good lite chili recipe!) And of course we plunge into the left over trick or treat candy. There's all the fall festivals. Then Thanksgiving. Next comes all the Christmas office parties, girls' night out parties, parties at church, and then Christmas with several different branches of our family tree. I hope the 11 pounds I have lost this year don't find their way back HOME by the end of the year!

Another update on the home improvements...

Picture 1. The work goes on...The container guy came and hauled off the big container full of siding and other construction debris and brought a smaller container for any remaining trash.

Picture 2. Here is OBF on the cherry picker, prying off old boards.

Picture 3. This shot will give you a better idea of how high up he is!

Picture 4. Here is one of the other workers working on caulking the area under the porch roof.

We have 5 paint samples on the front porch wall now, and the Hubster and I have agreed on a color. Now we will have samples of shutters brought in so we can pick shutter shades.

The rear windows, which were special ordered, have not come in yet. That is holding up getting the siding in back completed. OBF said they can start painting other areas until those windows come in. Before that, they still have some trim and caulking and etc. to do.

Take a good look at that rail around the porch, because it is going bye-bye. We are having the front porch screened in, and BFO said the best way to do this is to remove the railing and build a 30" 'wall' all around the perimeter of the porch, complete with siding, then frame it up for screen the rest of the way up.

I am hoping and praying that it will look good. I want the screened in porch for several reasons.
a) to be able to sit out on the porch and enjoy being 'outdoors' without being attached by bees and mosquitoes (which are very, very prevalent around this house - maybe because of the small drainage creek-like thing that runs down the side of our property and across the road).
b) to have another area that can be used for entertaining as we have a small dining area and small living room, and no den.
c) my kitties, who are both strictly indoor cats, can go 'outside' and enjoy fresh air
d) it will be my 'retreat' for reading, sipping coffee, and bird and squirrel watching.

I waited all summer for deck furniture to go on clearance, and finally, in August, Walmart marked their deck furniture way, way, down. I got a love seat, two side chairs, a chaise lounge and glass top table all for about $350.00. The are brown 'wicker' with orange, yellow and brown paisley patterned cushions. I also a closely matching table at Big Lots that will tie in nicely. I have found a 4' x 6' area rug that is a natural straw color. I have picked up numerous accessories and decorations all summer at Big Lots, The Pottery, thrift stores and garage sales. Stuff like a big tin sun, some sea birds, a turtle, shells from my trip to Tybee, tin candle holders. I want some artificial ficus trees or some other type of plant to place tiny white lights on. I want to purchase some of the bamboo or straw shades that I can use for additional privacy when wanted.

The construction crew says they will wrap up in three weeks, IF there are no more snags. Hmmmm. Of course, I would love to be able to decorate for Halloween. I am very big on decorating for Halloween and Christmas.

I am also hoping it is ready by Arthur's birthday (10/26), so that we can sit on the porch and enjoy cake and ice cream.

Wow. I have a lot of hopes and dreams.

Blacky's Story

When Courage was about to turn seven, I convinced her dad she was old enough to have a pet other than a fish or a hamster or mice. So for her birthday, I took her to 'adopt' a kitty. We went to Pet Smart in Duluth to see their selection of kitties. They had a huge, furry, champagne colored Persian with a smooshed in face. We held her and the volunteer told us her previous owner didn't take good care of her fur and the first thing we would have to do is have her shaved to remove all the knots in her fur. She and Courage did not hit it off. They didn't have any kittens, only cats about 6 months and older.

We looked at all the other cats, and finally came to the last cage. The volunteer lifted Courage up and sat her almost inside the cage. Instantly, a small black cat with a patch of white on her chest climbed into Courage's lap. She purred and layed her head back on Courage's shoulder. The volunteer said this is 'Mama'. I asked how old she was and she said she had been fostering her for about 6 months, and she guessed she was 6 months old when she was brought to the shelter.

I said, I guess she is called 'Mama' because she had babies. The volunteer said no, actually, as far as she knew she had never had babies. She said what happened is that she was such a sweet and loving cat that they put her in with young kittens who didn't have a mother, and she would lay and let them suckle, even though she had no milk. They said they fed the babies with bottles and then put them in with 'Mama' to sleep with her, that she comforted them.

I couldn't help but be amazed at how Courage and 'Mama' seem to take to each other. The cat was laying in Courages arms like a baby and purring and looking up at her like a long, lost, friend.
I asked Courage if this was the kitty she wanted to adopt and she said yes. But, she's not a kitten, she is one year old. Courage said she didn't care. Seeing them together really just tugged at my heart. It was like they knew each other already!

I told the volunteer we would like to take 'Mama' home with us and that is when I notice she was watching Courage and the black kitty, and she had tears in her eyes. I asked her what was wrong, and she said nothing. That she was going to miss 'Mama'. That she had fostered her for 6 months and she was so afraid that no one was ever going to adopt her. I told her if she was that attached to her, maybe we shouldn't take her. She said oh no, if she's not adopted soon, she would be put down.

I didn't really understand. I don't know what the rules are about fostering. Can they only foster one for so long. If she was so attached to this cat, couldn't she adopt her herself? Maybe she had already adopted several others and was at her limit of how many pets she felt like she could take. I don't know. I just know her heart was breaking.

The whole time I filled out paperwork, this woman wept. She had me crying! I kept asking her, are you sure? She turned and looked at Courage, still sitting up there in that cage on a shelf, with 'Mama' on her lap. She said, 'Look at them. It's like they are meant to be together. I have never seen her act this way with no one else before. Mama has found someone, and someone has found Mama. She is going home to people who will love her and take good care of her.' With that she turned to give me a meaningful look and I nodded that yes, she would be loved and taken care of.

With many tears, the woman held 'Mama' again and told her good-bye. I told her we would let her know how she was doing soon. She told me about Blacky's allergies and that she would have to have an allergy shot ever so often, and made me promise to do that. I did. And I promised to have her 'fixed' soon so she wouldn't have babies.

'Mama' went home with us that day and instantly became a member of our family. We had only had her two days when I took her to the vet to be 'fixed'. I cried when I left her that morning. I felt like she thought she had been abandoned again. When I picked her up that afternoon she looked up at me from the carrier with sleepy eyes and then slept all the way home. Courage couldn't hardly wait to get home from school and see her kitty again.

Courage renamed 'Mama' Midnight. She didn't seem like a 'Mama' to us; we'd never seen her with kittens. But not long after that, Courage called her Blacky, and it stuck. She has been Blacky ever since, except when she goes to the vet, then her 'official' name is Midnight.

The first few years Blacky lived with us, she had many flare ups with her allergies. Her little chin would get bald, she would sneeze and get watery eyes, and get a sore on the top of her spine just behind her head. We would take her for a shot and she would be fine for awhile. Our vet told us to buy an expensive food that she would take one sniff of and start scratching around her food bowl like it was poop or something! He told us to use a glass or metal bowl for food and water, that plastic would aggrivate her allergies!

One time her sore on her back got so bad, it got infected. It was a bloodly, oozy sore. She couldn't reach it with her mouth to bite and chew it, but she somehow got her back claws up there and scratched it good! So we went back to the vet and he gave her some shots and gave us pills to give her.

If you have never given a cat a pill, then you have no idea how nearly impossible that can be. WE wrapped Blacky in a towel and I held her like a foot ball and pried her mouth open with one hand and shoved the pill in with the other. She would spit it right back out. I tried hiding it in her food. She refused to eat. I had Courage hold her, wrapped in towel, on her back like a baby and attempted to drop the pill down her throat. Ha! She growled at me like a demon! That is the only time I ever got so mad at her that I threatened her with physical harm. I would never hurt her, but she made me so angry! Courage NEVER lets me forget it either!

Blacky sleeps on Courage's bed, on her own pillow next to Courage's pillow. She loves only Courage. She lets Courage hold her like a baby. She lays up on Courage's shoulder and purrs like no body's business. If Courage pays attention to other cats we have (or have had), she pouts.

Blacky has been scared of the Hubster from day one. He has never yelled at her or swatted at her or chased her or anything that I know of, but she is scared to death of him. If she is down stairs when he comes home from work, she scoots upstairs the second she hears his van coming down our street.

She will tolerate other people besides Courage picking her up, to an extent. Mostly, she stiffens up and emits short, stressful, meowks, until you feel sorry for and put her down.

When Courage is gone overnight, Blacky will come to me to get some petting and loving. She only wants it for a few minutes and then she goes on about her business. When Courage and I both are gone for a few days, she will come downstairs when Hubster feeds her and Lex. I guess she realizes he is her lifeline during those times.

Blacky loves to sit and watch for squirrels, chipmonks, and birds out the back window. She does a funny thing with her mouth when she sees them. Her teeth chatters and she does the short, stuttering, meowks.

Sometimes Blacky finds a hair scrunchy and sits over it and meows. She'll tote it around the house, drop it and meow.

A few years after we got Blacky, we adopted a teeny, tiny, kitten that we named Bitty (his story to come in the future). If Blacky, or 'Mama', as she was originally called, had motherly instincts before, they completely went out the window upon Bitty's arrival. She hissed at him, slapped at him, and was generally miserable with him around for the first month at least! Years later though, she, Bitty and Siamese could all be found curled around each other while laying in a spot of sunshine streaming through a window.

She rarely has allergy flare ups anymore. I think she has mostly outgrown them. Occassionaly her 'eyebrow' area and chin will look bare. But no sores. She does get a cough now and then, but I think that may be a hairball trying to dislodge.

She does throw up her food now and again. It's amazing how the throw-up is invisible to everyone in this house but me. Other people in the house step over it all day long like it's not even there. Occassionally the Hubster has found it - with his foot.

She has a fuzzy rat thing that she carries from room to room and meows over too.

Her bestest trick is 'dead kitty'. When we are eating dinner she starts by sitting and staring at us, hoping we'll toss her a tidbit. When that doesn't work, she lays herself down on the floor and plays dead. If we ignore her, she rolls over on her back and 'strikes a pose'. The pose usually finds her completely on her back. Head and front legs pointed in one direction, belly and rear legs twisted and pointed in the opposite direction. She looks like the poor cats you see on the road that tried to outrun a car and didn't make it. She looks like road kill, without the blood and guts! When that happens we start saying, Oh! Poor Blacky! She got hit by a car! and Poor Baaa-Baaaack, she's a dead kitty! At these comments she will open one eye to see if we are pinching off a bit of food to throw her. Of course when you toss her a little bite of something she 'magically' comes to life again!

When we got Blacky, we already had Siamese (her story is coming soon!). I can't really remember, but I think they hissed at each other a few days, avoided each other for awhile, and eventually became somewhat friends. She was very curious about Hammy, the hamster, and would sniff him and lay down and let him crawl on and around her. But we never left her alone with him, just in case! She was curious about the gold fish, but not nearly as curious as Siamese (like I said, her story coming soon and it involves the gold fish!).

Blacky is strictly an indoor only cat. But one time she slipped outside unnoticed. When I finally did notice her missing, I went outside to search for her after checking all the indoor hiding places. There she sat, in the back yard, on the retaining wall. Sitting as pretty as you please like she was used to going out and basking in the sunlight and air all the days of her life. I called her and she just looked at me and blinked that slow, lazy eye blink of hers. When I went towards her she ran from me! I had to go inside and get Courage to come and get her. Of course, Courage walked right up to her and picked her up.

Blacky was approximately one year old when we adopted her on Courage's 7th birthday. We have had her for 11-1/2 years, so that would make her about 12 - 1/2 years old. She has shrunken somehow. She's never been a BIG cat. She's always had short legs and a short tail and a small round head. But she used to have 'heft' to her. Now, like my Granny did when she got old, she has managed to 'shrink' to a little bitty kitty. Courage doesn't like it when me and Arthur say 'Poor Baaa-Baaaack! She's so old!' We don't mean it in a mean way. Courage doesn't like it when we say 'Poor Bracky, she's just a itty bitty Bracky now'. We don't mean to be mean, it's just a way of expressing we've noticed the changes that age has brought to her. It's sort of a way to gently say, one day, she won't be here.

When that day comes, it will be a very sad day indeed. For she came to my youngest daughter, Courage, at a time when Courage desperately wanted her own cat, like her big sister. She wanted a pet, and gained a friend. Courage was so incredibly sensitive and quiet, and into her life came this little furry package, so full of BIG love and Courage did not hestitate for a minute to show love to this little being! The instant they met, they bonded. The day we brought that cat home, Blacky found a home, a friend, a mother, in Courage. Courage is as protective over Blacky as a mother is a child.

I hope they have many more years together.

Movie and a frappacino

Me, Arthur, Arthur's BF, Courage and Krumm went to the movies to see Eagle Eye starring Shia LaBeouf. Good movie. Arthur wasn't overly thrilled with it because she says it has strong liberal views. I don't really pay that much attention to that kind of thing. I liked the car chase scenes. That is all I will tell you because I think saying anything else may give away the movie. No popcorn this time. I did have a Curves bar because it is just not natural to see a movie and not eat something! I must admit, I was coveting my fellow movie viewers' bags of popcorn.

After the movie we ate at Firehouse Subs. Yummmmmmm! Arthur and I shared a 'Hook and Ladder'. Ham and Turkey with cheese on a sub. It was delicioso.

We planned on seeing the Stone Mountain laser show after that, but that was a bust. The lady at the gate informed us there is no laser show tonight. So, we ended up at Starbucks at Lake Lucerne. This is one of the better Starbucks as far as location and scenery. You can sit at a table and overlook Lake Lucerne. That is where we had a photo shoot. I think we blinded BF.

After Starbucks we came home to watch some of the Presidential debate. Arthur and BF really get into it. Me, not as much. I should listen more closely...

Accomplishments, Pleasures & Disappointments

I feel like I got a few things accomplished today!
* I got 4 paint samples from Home Depot (exterior )
* I went into Walmart to buy my Meds and spent less than $50.00 - that's including my meds!
* I got several pages of my 2005 Family Scrapbook complete today! I am about 1/4 of the way
finished with 2005!
* I walked for 1 hour at the park
* I vacuumed up a lot of construction debris from Courage's room and the bonus room (my craft,
sewing, ironing and 'junque' room.

I enjoyed several guilty pleasures today:
* I made lunch for my Aunt J and she came over and lunched with me!
* I made some 1.5 point Hungry Girl cookies...they are more like cake, but delish!
* I enjoyed my walk...it is getting cooler and I was able to go walk and get back by 7:30pm!
* I watched the Ugly Betty and Grey's Anatomy season premiers! Happy! Happy!
* I logged on to MySpace and got caught up on some friends and family.
* I read from my woman's Bible Magazine, 'Becoming', from the book of Matthew.

I did have a few disappointments:
* I asked the clerk at Home Depot to give me my paint samples in the cheapest paint possible.
But when I rang out, they were $3.00 a can more than the sample I got the other day.
* I didn't stand up for myself at Home Depot and argue the paint issue.
* I ate way too many WW points today, and I couldn't walk enough of those extra points off!
* I didn't call and make some appointments that I really need to make.

Okay, I ate too much today, but I walked some and I lifted weights, and I will walk tomorrow and I will eat better tomorrow. I didn't make appointments, but I can do that tomorrow. I will be more self-supporting tomorrow in the event someone else wrongs me. ( :

Now I am going to watch the rest of Grey's Anatomy, then watch my Soap that I recorded (All My Children), and work crossword puzzles (another guilty pleasure!).

The Bad News, The Good News

The bad news first...I didn't get the job at Gwinnett County. I have a cousin who works in this particular department and she is the one who told me about the job opening. She had told me not to get my hopes up because, a) the job openings were not posted, b) her boss always hires his friends, relatives, or the mom, sister, wife or girlfriend of his friends or relatives, and c) if no friends or relatives available, he would sometimes hire young, pretty, college girls. I thought maybe she was exaggerating. So I submitted my resume, got a call for a job interview, and felt like the interview was a huge success. My daughter Courage did the same routine for a part time job in the same department. After all, she is a young, pretty, college student. (He has hired two mother-daughter teams in the past-that gave me hope for both of us!) I even got word from my cousin later that day that he said I sure 'interviewed well'.

I have learned from past experiences that managers who do not post job openings already have in mind who they are going to hire. But, they interview a few people to say they followed the rules. I also know from my years of experience, that once a manager gets away with the practice of hiring friends and relatives, they will continue to do so. But, I decided to give the guy the benefit of a doubt.

I got the news today from my cousin, not the man I interviewed with (or the other three who sat in on the interview). She was told today that his friend's mother got the full time job, and the sister of a friend of the 2nd in charge got the part time job. So I guess she is right, he does not hire by qualification, but by whom they are related to. According to my cousin, they have two people in her department right now who do not have any prior computer experience, and cannot type, but landed data entry positions. One is the mother of (another) friend of his, the other is a friend of a friend of his who works in magistrate court one floor up. My cousin stays stressed constantly because she ends up doing the work for these two ladies. She was reprimanded this week for making one of these women cry after she told her she was tired of doing her work.

There is a reason I (nor Courage) was hired for these positions. I think it is this; We are above this!

And the man didn't have the guts (not the words I really want to use) to call either of us to tell us his decision. Not really the kind of man I want to work for anyways.

The Good News! I don't have to deal with those idiots five days a week!

High Five to Arthur!

A big high five to Arthur today! She has lost a total of 22.4 pounds! She announced in WW today that her clothes are getting loose enough to get comments (such as baggy-britches) and loose enough to start feeling sloppy. She has some clothes stored in a spare bedroom at her house and vows to break them out soon to see what she can wear. I think she will be pleasantly surprised. Soon after that, we may be clothes shopping for even smaller stuff! She just keeps looking better and better every week! I am so proud of her. Even if I wasn't her Mama, I'd still be so proud of her!

I lost .2 lbs this week. After all the walking I've done! But, it is nearing that 'special time' a woman has; that always makes me hold on to a pound or two. Plus, I think I may have eaten too many candy corns. Also, I barely drank water this past week. I am going to start getting my 6 to 8 glasses again starting tomorrow. I know it will be better next week!

Movie Reviews

I saw two new movies this weekend. Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys and The Women.

Friday night I met Arthur for dinner and a movie. We had dinner at Applebees. Applebees has Weight Watcher's meals on the menu. I ordered steak and veggies, she ordered a spinach salad with grilled chicken. When our plates arrived, we immediately divided our respective plates in half and gave each other half our the meal. That way, we had a good variety of food and it is so much for satisfying when you don't have to sit and think, gee, wish I'd ordered that! Such FUN!

After dinner, Courage joined up with us at the theater. We all settled in for the movie with our Kid's Packs. I have to say, Tyler Perry knows how to write and produce movies for women. He just has a way of knowing what makes women tick, what makes us mad, sad, glad. The Family that Preys will appeal to women who hate other women who go after other women's men. If you like man/woman drama, this is your movie. There is also some sister stuff, and some mom and daughter stuff, and girlfriend stuff. All this and plus a lesson or two. Good movie. I give it a thumbs up.

Saturday evening I got a last minute invite to join my Aunt J. and Cousin SRM to see a movie. The Women was okay. The entire cast of this movie is female. Even on busy sidewalks, you don't see a man. Again, we visit a group of women and the hardships they endure, and how it affects everybody. Meg Ryan is still not the same since she got the lip thing done, but this is a tiny bit closer to the 'old' Meg. The 'old' Meg was You've Got Mail. Anyways, you will recognize a lot of familiar faces in this 1930's remake and yeah, it has a message too. But it's not quite as 'comfortable' feeling as the Tyler Perry movie. I would give it a thumb-in-between.

Either one is good for Ladies Night Out. The guys...not so much!

Home Improvements...Stage 2

Home Improvements Stage 2 is well underway. The guys had to get a cherry picker to reach the high parts of the house such as the chimney and the back where it is so steep. Here is OBF in the cherry picker and Worker Ed on the ladder.
Here is a shot of Worker Fred cutting siding to fit the chimney.
This is the back of the house minus some siding.
Remember when chimneys were rock, stone or brick? Now it is a pipe with a frame built around it and some siding. Sad.
This is the view from my open garage.

A Most Excellent Interview

I had that; a most excellent job interview today. I felt confident, poised, attractive and smart. I was greeted with warm smiles and hearty hand-shakes. There were four people in the interview room, besides myself. Mr. W, the head-honcho of the department, Ms. S, a quiet team-leader, Mr. R, the IT guy who will be my direct supervisor if I get the position, and an intern. They were all extremely nice and didn't ask questions that I hate. (Tell me your worst habit and how you were nearly fired for exhibiting this habit at your last workplace). I was introduced to a bunch of really sweet ladies that I will work with...if I get the position. I am quite excited because I had a good feel. I felt liked, admired, and 'wanted'. None of which I felt at my last two interviews earlier this summer. Wish me well! They are supposed to make a decision early next week.

Also, Courage has a job interview tomorrow morning (Thursday). Keep your fingers crossed for her. She is very nervous. This is her first job interview!

Give Arthur a BIG HAND!

*** I am so proud of Arthur!!!! She has met her first goal of losing 10% of her total body weight!!!! She now has lost 19.6 lbs all together! She is looking awesome - look at the Fair Animals slide show...you will see her improvements! Tonight in WW, she got a gold tone key chain for her achievement, and she will get charms to put on it when she meets other goals.

*** A few claps for me too, for I have lost a total of 11 lbs. That means I got another gold star. But the best reward is that I wore a pair of capri pants today, that at the first of the summer my muffin top lopped over the top of those things and they were SO uncomfortable, and today I wore them to an appointment and shopping and had to hitch them up all day long! I finally put a belt on with them to wear out to WW.

***Arthur and I went to the Gwinnett County Fair last night. Let me assure all of you who are watching your waistlines...you can make BETTER choices at the fair then you may think. First, Arthur glided past the deep fried okra booth and got a grilled corn on the cob and requested it NOT be dunked in butter. I took one bite and YUMMO-LICIOUS! The corn was so sweet you definitely don't miss the butter. Then we walked right by the deep fried chicken on a stick and got the FIRE GRILLED chicken on a stick - an order of 3 so we could try all 3 flavors...honey bbq, bourbon whiskey and cajun. The Honey BBQ was awesome! We walked around and looked at all the rides and games and admired the GIGANTIC CORNDOGS and ENORMOUS STEAKBURGERS, then had one peice of cheese pizza...cut right down the middle! We then visited the show animals and the petting zoo. After that, we went to the booth next to the deep fried SNICKERS, and we each got a frozen bananna dipped in chocolate and rolled in peanut topping. We were GORGED OUT by then and not feeling guilty at all!

Fancy meeting you here!

Arthur bumped into an old friend at Discover Mills. Look at them - just old buddies and all, posing for a pic! (Oh! Did someone call batman???)

Yes, this is my third post today. But note, they are all short and have pics.

Don't you just love short posts with accompanying pics!!!!?????

Young Love

Courage and BF - Camp LeJeune, North Carolina, September 2008. Courage and I made the 8 hour trek there to see BF before he leaves for special training in October. He and Courage won't see each other again until he comes home on Thanksgiving Break.

I had all my hair cut off!

I had all my hair cut off! I love it! It is super short and I know it will be super easy to deal with in the mornings. I have mostly worn my hair very short all my adult life, but recently grew it shoulder length. But I found that I was wearing it up every day...either in a single ponytail, pigtails, or a quasi-bun-like-thing, always wet -because it takes too long to blow dry. So I figured if I am going to wear it up everyday why not just get it all cut off. Now that I have, I realize I have a chin about as long as Reese Witherspoons'. Though, I've always known I have a Richard Nixon length nose.

Home Improvements...Stage 1

My house is a shambles. We are having new windows put in and new siding put on and new paint on the new siding. My husband's old best friend is doing the work. Back in the day, Hubster and Old Best Friend went to Dekalb Tech together and learned all about computers, hardware and software. Over the years they both got technology burnout. Hubster went into business for himself as a locksmith and Old Best Friend went into the home repair business.

The first thing O.B.F. told me on the first day of 'Home Improvement' was 'when I start a project it starts out being a job, then I come across a problem, and it turns into a bigger job, and that in turn unearths another problem and that becomes an even bigger job, etc., etc., etc.,'. Well on day #2 he found problem #1. The old windows in our house are not standard size. The choices were a) delay Home Improvement by a month or more waiting for special order of customized windows to arrive, or b) cut existing window holes larger to accomodate standard sized windows. We went with choice b. That means now I have ragged window holes with no trim around them, no window treatments, drywall dust on everything, and sweaty men going in and out of the house at different times of the day. (Luckily though, I have known O.B.F. for almost as long as I have known Hubster, and O.B.F. 's two workers are guys he has known since high school - they really are VERY nice guys!)

On the 3rd day of Home Improvements, O.B.F. told me to make sure when me and Courage go to the bathroom or shower that we make sure the blinds are drawn because he and his helpers will be on ladders at any given time and they do not know our bathroom schedules. That made me wonder if someone had already been viewed sitting on the throne on days 1 and 2.

On day 2 when the window holes were being sawed out, I cautioned O.B.F. and his helpers that my cats are strictly indoor cats and that rooms with gaping holes should have the doors leading into those rooms shut at all times and doors leading outside should be shut at all times. On day 3, I noticed the front door standing open. A search of the house found one, Blacky, huddling under the bed in the spare room (as to be expected of her, she is a true Scaredy Cat!) and no sign of Lex. After scolding the workers I searched the yard and finally gave up. One sweaty worker suggested he was hiding inside - - - afraid of all the hammering. I assured him that hammering would not scare a big, bad, bold, mountain lion-like cat, like Lex. I figured he was gone for good.

After quite a bit of time had passed I walked by the sofa into the dining area and glanced behind the sofa. Two big glowing eyes looked up at me from behind the dark recess of the couch. Lex! It took me another 15 minutes to pull the couch away from the wall and drag him out by the scruff. He was scared stiff! His heart was racing and he was really stiff! I took him upstairs and gathered Blacky and locked them in the bathroom up there (which they absolutely hate and pee on the rug and stuff in retaliation!). Now any time the workers are going in and out of the house I lock them up. I forget sometimes that people who don't have indoor-only cats don't realize the importance of keeping doors shut.

This was actually week #2 of Home Improvement. A large portion of siding has been removed and replaced. All of my front porch adornments have been tossed onto the hedges like some useless junk! How dare they! I refuse to dust anymore until this project is finished. I am tired of having to park my car in Bum-doozle Egypt in order avoid being trapped in the yard by the work trucks. (Isn't funny how when you are trapped you can think of a million places you need to go or want to go!) There is a huge blue dumpster sitting in my front yard. I am tired of hammering and drilling and sawing and big piles of messes in the yard, but I know it will be worth it when it is all over with.

One worker pulled away a board near the eves of the roof and the biggest wasp nest you ever did see was under there. It was an overcast day and the wasps didn't swarm out all angry, but instead just flew around rather drunkenly. I did thank God that he wasn't stung! If he had fell off the ladder he would have either landed on the concrete driveway (about a 10-12 feet fall) or onto the basketball goal post. Ouch! We have an umbrella policy on the house, but I don't want to test the reliablity and payoff of our home insurance!

Weight Update!

Last night was WW...and even though Arthur and I have slowed down a little, we are still pluggin' along.

Arthur lost another .8 lb. for a total of 18.2 lbs!!!!!!! She is very, very, near her 10% of body weight lost goal. Me, I lost another .6 lbs for a total of 7.8 lbs lost. We have both vowed to include more exercise in our weeks, and started out with an hour long walk tonight.

Anyone who has ever been on a weight loss plan, or has tried to kick a habit of any kind, understands how hard it is to give up food, cigarettes, alcohol, blogging....(wink)....whatever the addiction. No, I don't need to lose a big bunch of weight, but I do have a muffin top that spills over the top of my pants (though not as bad as it has been!) and I suffer from SEVERE esophageal reflux disease. WW has improved my quality of life so much, because I now do not have nighttime episodes with my disease! This improvement came within the first week of doing WW. So even when I meet my weight loss goal, I intend to maintain with WW because the improvements in my health outweigh the temporary satisfaction I get from gorging on food. I thank God that I have in me a determination to HELP MYSELF and I thank God for support groups such as WW that encourage me and teach me to eat right.

Let me also tell you...seeing Arthur lose weight too, is so uplifting and hope-giving to me. She needed to lose weight to improve her health, and for whatever her motivations are, I thank God for them, because not only does she LOOK BETTER, she is doing something that will help her not develop diabetes, heart disease, breast cancer, etc., etc., etc.! And as she sheds the pounds, she sheds some insecurities and stigmas. She gains self appreciation and the encouragement of others. She has a good person in her life who compliments her for losing weight and getting healthier and I appreciate God for him.

Courage is younger and thinner and taller. She does not need to lose weight. However; she is eating very closely a WW diet (WW doesn't call it a 'diet', they call it a 'way of life') because she is very health conscious, too. She is not trying to lose weight, she is trying to keep from gaining the 'Freshman Fifteen'! And WW is helping her to keep those extra pounds off! Also, her BF is a Marine and she is determined to not let him have the better body! Ha! (At least not too much better!)

May God bless you if you are trying to beat a bad habit this day! Thank God if you have the ability to exercise. And then do it.

I got the blues...

I got the blues, because I don't have time to read blogs or write new posts for my own blog. I am bogged down in school work, planning the Itty Bitty Church's very first community function- Trunk or Treat, and a score of other things that are all fighting for quality time in my mind. I keep telling myself that TOMORROW I will have more time to....AAAAGGGGHHHH! The list is long:

1. School Work
2. Plan Itty Bitty Church's Trunk or Treat
3. Plan next ladies church meeting at Itty Bitty Church
4. Pray for people on several different prayer lists
5. Keep a check on my mama who's been having some health issues
6. Keep a check on the Hubster's daddy who is having some health issues
7. Keep a check on various other relatives and friends who have issues in general
8. Excercise a wee bit each day to keep sanity
9. Cook and Clean
10. Plan fall Girl Cousins trip to mountains
11. Plan Arthur's birthday outting
12. Read the Bible or other literature that keeps me walking near God

I know something is left off the list. One of those somethings will pop up while I am working on any item, #1 through #12, get me sidetracked and drive me closer to the brink of a breakdown! Ha! But it's all good. Tomorrow I will have more time.

Tuesday Night Weigh In

Yeah!!!! for Arthur! She has lost just over 17.4 lbs now! That is 17.4 lbs in 9 weeks! I think that is awesome. She has a waist now and she is looking doggone good! She has just 1.6 lbs to lose to reach her first goal of 10% of body weight lost. Me, well, I just got back from a 4 day trip to Jacksonville, N.C., (yes, to Camp Lejeune again - for Courage to meet up with the BF!) . I was bad on this trip. I ate stuff I shouldn't have (pizza - huge NY style slice with MEAT on it!) and raisinettes at night in front of the t.v. I didn't lose an ounce. But on the up side, I didn't gain an ounce either.

We had our first session with our new, MALE, WW instructor tonight. His name is Marc, he is a little older than myself, and he is very enthusiastic! Arthur and I liked him a lot! We talked a lot about the reasons people join WW, other than the obvious reason (to lose weight). Some reasons given were, to help with acid reflux (that was my contribution), to learn better eating habits and nutrition, and to feel better about self. All very good reasons!

We also talked about WW 's current project...for every pound a WW member loses between Sept. 7 and Oct. 18, WW will match it with a 1lb of food (translation: $1 for each 1 lb. lost) which will be donated to two organizations (Share Our Strength & Action Against Hunger) which provide food to those in need - up to 1 million dollars! Arthur and I are excited to lose pounds to help those who need food!

I highly recommend WW to anyone who needs to a) lose weight, b) battles GERD and/or Barrett's Disease, c) needs to learn how to eat nutritiously, and d) wants to feel better about themselves. WW works!

Labor Day Stories

I have three labor day stories to share. Two are labor as in child birth stories and one is job related.

Story #1. I was 38 weeks pregnant with Arthur and it was days away from Halloween. On this particular October evening , I started having what I thought were pains from needing to 'go', but I couldn't 'go'. I alternated sitting on the toilet seat for an hour at a time (straining with all my might, I might add) with walks in the neighborhood, taking baths, eating leafy green vegetables, and just pacing. I was only 20 years old and still a 'baby' myself. Finally, at 5:00 am in the morning, I saw blood. I called my obstetrician who said I should probably get myself to the hospital. My young husband (19 years old) drove like a bat out of you-know-where in our little brown Chevy LUV truck (LUV truck - LOL!) and I am sure all the bouncing around on that seat help speed along my labor. As soon as they wheeled me into the delivery room I asked for my epidural. As scared of needles as I am, I was begging for that one! After that, I never felt a thing. I had already dilated to 10cm and ten hours later, Arthur was born. She started crying as soon as her head popped out and before they could finish pulling her whole body out, and didn't stop for nearly ten months. (She had colic.) She was bald as an onion and as she lay on my chest her big blue eyes searched my face. She had pale skin and a round pumpkin head. I fell in love with her instantly. That night I dreamed (not sure it was a dream, to be truthful) I died. I went towards the light and almost into the arms of a figure with outstretched arms, flowing white robe, and in a light so bright I do not have words to describe it. I realized that I was about to leave my newborn baby and expressed that I'd really like to get to know her first. Then I was sucked backwards through the 'tunnel' so quickly all I saw where blurs of light all around me. When I 'came to' I rang for the nurse who came in and held my hand and helped bring my 103 degree F fever down to normal. It was probably just a dream. But sometimes I can't help but wonder if I almost died on the day Arthur was born.

Story #2. Almost 9 years ,a divorce and re-marriage later, a bit more mature version of myself prepared for the arrival of Courage. I had went to the doctor on two occasions and announced 'I am pregnant', but their tests said otherwise. But I knew I was. I waited another week and took a home test and it was positive. Arthur and I danced a celebration jig in the kitchen before we called Hubster! At 40 weeks I went for a regular visit and my obstetrician said I was dilated 3 cm. He told me to meet him at the hospital the next morning and we'd have ourselves a baby. The next day he scratched out the 'plug' with his fingernail and told me I'd go into labor soon. He insisted on an enema and after an hour and half of sitting on the toilet I understood why. After a couple of hours of painless labor I thought 'This is a piece of cake'. The third hour I changed my tune, asking for the epidural, which the doctor promptly informed me I was too far along in labor and couldn't have it now. After one particularly painful contraction and a long howl that emitted from me, my doctor growled, 'If you'd stop whining and push, we'd have this baby'. I drew my foot back, heel tensied and poised. The Hubster gave me that look...you know, the 'we can't afford a lawsuit' look, and I placed my foot back into the stirrup. Courage was finally sucked out by some type of vacuum device. She didn't cry right away and that scared me. They let us see her for a second and then they took her to the other side of the room to perform the AP GAR test. She tested fine and they brought her back to us. I fell in love with her instantly. She had jaundice, so she looked 'sun-tanned', and her eyes were big and round and her neck long and thin. We called her our little ET. Having Courage was my proof that I really can do anything I put my mind to. (i.e., natural child birth)

Story #3. Early in my first marriage, I worked as a cashier for a grocery store in Lawrenceville, GA. In the early 1980's, Lawrenceville was not quite the culturally diverse melting pot that it is today. In fact, I would say that most of the employees and patrons of this good sized, modern, grocery store were good old boys and gals. You know, red-necks. Our uniform had recently graduated from a gold, button up front, maternity blouse-looking smock with big pockets to a navy blue, polyester pants and button up blouse type thing. It was definitely more professional looking and we all looked snappy in our matching 'suits'. But, we still wore our cowboy boots with the 'suit'! (You can put the redneck in an uptown uniform, but you can't....you know the saying).

Not long after the uniform change, I got transferred to another store location. My new location was on Hwy 29, Lilburn, GA. Now, you must understand, that even though there is less than 30 miles between these two store locations, the atmosphere, personality and cultural differences were like night and day. The first day I reported to my new location I was met with stares. All eyes traveled down my legs to the cowboy boots sticking out from my pants legs. I in turn looked at their choice of shoes. They were wearing nurse-like tennis shoes and other 'sensible' shoes. I felt like my boots were sticking out like red, throbbing, sore thumbs. I had the 'big hair'; they had tamer hair-do's. Dolly Parton, meet Olivia Newton-John.

On my break I strode over to the magazine rack to 'relax'. At my 'old' store, I played Miss Pacman for 15 minutes, chatted with my cohorts or read a magazine (which you didn't pay for - - - you read it and then put it back on the rack). I was too embarrassed to play video games, and didn't know a soul, so I thought I'd go for the magazine.

Just as I reached the magazine rack, the left heel of my cowboy boot hit a slick spot on the floor. Without further ado, I did a split right then and there! I mean, the heel of that boot went straight forward and the heel of the other boot went in the opposite direction. I did a 'now you see me, now you don't' trick. Mind you , I have NEVER in my life ever before been able to do a split, no matter how much I practiced and tried! After I came to my senses I pulled my legs together and slowly, and I do mean slowly because my inner thighs felt ripped to shreds, stood up. As my head reappeared over the magazine rack, my new co-workers started to clap. My face turned every shade of red as I hobbled to the rest room to see if I had wet my pants. Glad I could make everyone feel at ease on MY first day of work there!

Quick Prayer: Thank you Lord, for my two beautiful daughters, who are unique and wonderful and bring me and their dad much joy. Thank you for all the jobs I have had in my work career...the good and the bad. Bless everyone today , Lord; Those who have jobs and those who do not. May all mankind labor for Your good. Amen.