My Weblog

Recovery.........

Well, I got up, did my CT update, and went back to bed for about an hour and a half. If it's true that sleep is the time our bodies rebuild themselves, then I should feel better. I do! Earlier, just sitting, my feet were still hurting. At least now I can sit and they don't hurt. I wonder--if I went back to bed for a few more hours, would they stop hurting altogether? I don't think we'll ever know because I have work to do and can't afford to try it.

So, officially, today is wall washing day and laundry day. I can pretty much guarantee no walls will be washed today. However, I will be doing laundry and trying to do some catch up on the chores I could not do earlier in the week. Let's see:

1) I didn't get far with the dusting.........

2) I've vacuumed a bunch this week, but Parker and his webbed feet are still bringing in mud. Yes, I'll be vacuuming today.

3) I got most of the bathroom cleaned. However, not the tub. So, yeah........ I guess that should go on the list of to dos.

4) I did not get the hard floors mopped yesterday. 3 of the 4 have been vacuumed and could reasonably be washed today without vacuuming.

5) I am still working away on the "water" kit. A good bit more still to go on that.

6) There are the daily tasks--deleting e-mail, unzipping and organizing files, shredding, working on the desk, treadmill.

7) The kitchen is not in bad shape though the stove could use some attention. Also only got one shelf weeded out in the fridge so there are 2 to go as well as the drawers.

I think I will knock out the daily tasks first. Then I can make a multiple choice list of the rest to work on today, tomorrow, and Sunday. Sounds like a plan.

So, this was short, wasn't it? Well, I'm hungry and I'd rather eat than talk right now. Didn't get much for lunch yesterday. Had about 1/3 of an order of gloppy nachos for dinner last night then threw the rest away. Yeah, I could use some food. YOU be BLESSED today.

 

Thank God that's over..........

for a week. Once again I was paired with Mr. Know It All. I just cannot begin to tell you how many of my crazy buttons that man pushes from one minute to the next.

Here's an example of the inanity I dealt with for 8 hours. We were leaving. The lady who works graveyard commented that she had wondered about why he had a heavy jacket there. He tells her it's for when he works in the cooler. Now that answers the question and would have been fine. BUT, no............. He goes on to name some material that we desert dwellers don't recognize (and have absolutely no need or desire to know) and from which the jacket is made. He goes on to explain it's from Korea and it's made to keep you warm when the cold winds blow in from Siberia. Now surely that's enough, right? No............. He goes on to say "Siberia, that's in Russia." It was all I could do to keep from saying "Duh!" out loud. I swear, if my feet would have cooperated, I'd have run to the van about then, if only to get away from him. He behaves like he is talking to idiots. Oh, my Lord, he is SO condescending.........

When I went in today, he made a big deal of telling me Mr. Owner was expecting a package from UPS and when it came in we were supposed to call the owner at home. Well, it came in. Actually there were two packages delivered. I signed for them because, as usual, Mr. KIA/MIA was off doing only God knows what. I walked into the backroom to call Mr. Owner and Mr. Know It All materializes from wherever he'd been and announces HE will call Mr. Owner. I finally made the considered decision that he needed to be put in his place. When the store was empty, briefly, I told him "I have been using the telephone now for over 50 years. I am capable of calling Mr. Owner without you butting in. I just wanted to be sure you knew that." Probably I should have just prayed for the Lord to take care of it, but............at least I managed to say it in a nice tone of voice. Does that count for anything?

We were busy this evening. Steady all night til about 10:15 when it finally slowed down. I am pretty sure, if you viewed the security camera tapes and added up all the minutes he spent up front helping customers, you couldn't get to 60 minutes. I was on the register alone almost the whole night. So, at one point, he appears from whatever hidey hole he was hiding in. I had been using register #1. Most of us prefer it, I think. To me it seems it is set up more in a way that suits someone who has a dominant right hand which is probably why we're more comfortable there. He deals with a customer or two on register 2. Then, next thing I know, I step back 3 steps to grab a bag for a customer's purchases and he is digging in my drawer. Now, let me just stop and tell you, when you are on the register alone, you don't necessarily want to stop helping customers so you can drop $20 bills. So they mount up in your drawer til you get a moment and then you dump what you can. Most of us will try to keep about $80 in the drawer (4 20s) just so we can efficiently make change for $100 bills. I had just dropped a bunch of $20 bills. And there he is, digging in my drawer. It's not that he needs 20's. We grab from the other drawer if we need to. He is "supervising" my cash management. Now, he has been hiding wherever but, in front of customers (tomorrow's potential robbers????), he announces "you have way too many 20's in your drawer". I had 6--The 4 I try to maintain in there and 2 that I had JUST taken from customers. It was all I could to to keep from slamming his hand in the drawer. At that point, I asked him which register he preferred. He said he prefers #1. I gathered up my water and moved over to #2. Then I said: "I will be responsible for the cash in this register. I will do my best not to touch that one. You be responsible for the cash in that one. And leave this one alone." And the interesting thing is, I did ALL of the vault drops for the night and dumped countless $20 bills and hundreds while I saw him do it maybe 3 times all evening. The difference is partly due to the fact that he wasn't at his favorite register; the rest of the difference, I think, can be explained by "cash management" and you get to guess who was doing it well and who wasn't.

One thing that is just nutso is that customers pick up on his personality. I cannot tell you how many times I've watched customers walk out of there just rolling their eyes at his nonsense. At one point this evening he was going on and on with a customer about how he only recommends products he's had good feedback on. Well, gee, I would hope so. You should have seen the look on the customer's face. And in the meantime, while he's spouting nonsense, people are lined up, shifting their weight from side to side, waiting to check out and looking REALLY disgusted. Sometimes, I wouldn't blame them if they just walked out with stuff because he is so intolerable.

Of course, I worked through the dinner hour. I decided to try our "nachos" and "cheese". Let me preface this by saying I sincerely doubt this is "cheese". I think it is much more likely it is some sort of gloppy "cheese food product". I wouldn't ordinarily go near it. But I wanted to try it to see if I could recommend it to anyone. (Really, I can't.......). It comes with the corn chips in a bag. The bag is inside a lidded plastic container. One is supposed to pay for the corn chips/container, tear open the bag of chips and dump them into the plastic container, and then there is chili and the gloppy "cheese food product" which can be dispensed from a machine onto the nachos. So, Mr. Know it All was in hiding again. I bought the corn chips, opened the container, opened the bag, and put gloppy "cheese food product" on the chips. Suddenly Mr. Know It All appears and tries to take it all from me. He has decided it needs to "go back". Go back where? You can't put opened food back for sale. And, besides, if we have stuff a customer can't pay for, we have a place where we put that. My dinner was definitely NOT in that place. I swear the man's nose is into everything, even my "dinner".

Earlier, while he was MIA (are you noticing this MIA thing as a theme yet????), I ran out of pennies in my drawer. So, I went and pulled a roll of pennies from the area where they are stored and brought them back to the register. Suddenly, there he and his nose are again and he's trying to take the roll of pennies from me. Why? I don't have a clue...... Geez........

This is all little stuff. But it does mount up over 8 hours. I have honestly been spending time just praying God would shut him up. I kept thinking of John the Baptist's father who expressed words of doubt and disbelief during the early part of his wife's pregnancy. And then God stopped him from speaking for the duration. No more words of doubt and disbelief from him! While Mr. KIA is jabbering away, I have secret visions of stripping off one of my expensive "no seam" socks, stuffing it in his mouth, and taping his mouth shut with packing tape. What a relief it would be..........

Layer all this "little stuff", one episode on another, and then on top of a layer of pain, and then on top of a layer of anger at being left to deal with pretty much ALL the customers while he is missing, and it becomes SO difficult to cope with. Yes, I am hurting big time again. Tonight, I have some back pain. In addition, my hips are hurting and the pain extends up into my buttocks and from my outer thighs to my inner thighs. I don't mind the hip/thigh pain as much as I can tell myself muscles are being tightened and toned. But, the foot pain is SO bad. I have prayed about this a lot. I noticed today two "heel cup" type things on my dresser. I am going to try those in my shoes. The theory being that if my heels are elevated, it might relieve some of the pressure on my arches. Hey, I'll gladly try it because the next step in this mess is much more expensive--either different shoes or a visit to a podiatrist or orthotics or some combination of the three. Anyway, I've been home for about an hour and a half and I'm sitting down and my feet STILL hurt.

I am so glad I gave up on the dream of attending that big religious meeting this weekend. Actually I more or less gave up last week when I saw the schedule. I figured then that either God was going to perform a miracle or I wasn't going to be able to go. So, at least, I am not disappointed now because I can't go. But, I promise you, someone would have to pay me A LOT to do that amount of walking.

Well, I am going to go to bed. I am in pain and out of patience for now. I don't think I'll feel much better tomorrow, but maybe the Lord will intervene on my behalf.

 

Th-Th-Th-Thursday...........

That which I feared has come to pass! Yes, indeed. Thursday has arrived. It is beginning to look as though Thursday is going to be a rough day for a while to come. I worked an 8-hour shift last week on Thursday. I work an 8-hour shift today and I work an 8-hour shift next Thursday......... Quaking in my boots here. Not really. Just a little literary license, exaggeration to make a point. I have mixed feelings about Thursdays!

On Thursday, I get to collect money for last week's work. Yay! So far, on Thursday, I have felt like h-e-double hockey sticks by the end of the day which wreaks havoc with my weekend. I swear I spent a major % of last weekend in bed, just trying to recover! But, I live in faith that this too shall pass.

I am toying with the theory that the reason this is just so, so, so hard may be connected to thyroid problems. Let's look at the facts: I am only working 16-20 hours a week. This should NOT be so hard. Let's look at the symptoms: exhaustion, lots of it. Muscle problems. Lack of motivation. Excessively dry skin. And, some scratches and bruises that are now taking up to 3 weeks to heal and aren't healed yet. And so on. Now I don't think it's reasonable to say that thyroid crap is responsible for all of it. Some of it is probably the result of the fact that I am just not used to doing it. I'm using new and different muscle groups in new and different ways and that always results in some soreness. But this is beyond sore. This is darned near immobile. But I do think maybe the thyroid thing has something to do with the degree of it. In other words, if my thyroid were where it should be, I think this would be easier. I have also noticed night sweats--a sure sign, and difficulty sleeping--another strong sign.

So, we shall see what we can do about THAT! Yeah. I do know I have prayed for "wisdom" about this whole thing and this is the only answer I've been able to come up with. So......... I'm going to run with it til I see that it is NOT the answer or til a better idea comes my way.

Here's a sample of my lack of motivation and my level of soreness. There is a big special meeting this weekend here in Vegas. I've actually prayed for this to occur here so I could go. And I am pretty sure I am not going. Here's why: 1) starts fairly early in the morning and would require that I get up and on my way in the early morning hours. 2) occurs in a big hotel/casino, meaning mucho walking--from the parking area to the entrance and wandering through the building trying to find the exact location. Under ordinary circumstances, you couldn't keep me away. My only comfort is that it will be available online........

So, I have about 6 hours til I have to run out the front door. What shall I do with those 6 hours? Well, design, of course. I was pretty out of it yesterday after 4 hours at work so I did not get much done inspite of the fact that I had time. I need to get a move on with the "water" kit.

I will most likely vacuum AGAIN. I vacuumed the front part of the living room, the entryway, and the hall last evening, and they need it again. The back part of the living room and the office are also a mess this morning. I want to go outside, talk to the grass, and tell it to GROW FAST!

In theory, today is mop floors day. Yeah, well, I don't know how much of that I can get done. But the priority, I think, is the kitchen floor. So I'll start there and see what else I can manage. I do have some catch up time scheduled on the weekends so maybe I can use some of that for hard floors. In theory, I should also do some laundry today, but I think I will wait on that. I think it makes more sense to do that tomorrow when I can wash up all the stuff I've worn for work and get ready for next week.

I need to get back after daily stuff like deleting e-mail, unzipping and organizing files, and this desk. I did work through some stuff on the desk last evening but there's always more.

So, that's the plan for the day. I am taking steps to beef things up on the thyroid front, but it will be 3 weeks til I can really judge how effective that is. So, please pray for me to make it through this day with a smile. And without pain. YOU be BLESSED today.

 

End of the day...........

Well, the day has not gone as well as I might have hoped, but it's better than yesterday. I actually have accomplished something in the house, glory hallelujah. I could certainly have accomplished much more, but I'm grateful I got through what I did.

I was just wiped out for part of the day. I knew I SHOULD do some work around here. I almost can honestly say I wanted to do some work around here. But, for quite a while, I couldn't make it happen. However, finally this evening a bit of ambition kicked in. The master bath has been attacked with purple rag, paper towels, and a spray solution of vinegar. I've waded through the day's mail and a bit of the accumulation from previous days. The kitchen is straight and reasonably clean and my morning frappuccino is set up. Just add milk and ice and I'm ready to go. And, I managed to get my day book updated for the month to come so I have a place to record to do lists, etc.

I thought I had an inspiration with regard to the missing label maker. I remembered that I had used it to label some storage bins in the sewing room. I went in there, full of great expectations, but I looked at every surface and the label maker is not there. Well, I finally gave in and ordered one online. I really want to get on with pulling this room together and I NEED that thing. At least, the one I ordered is reputed to be much less costly to operate and more efficient. Let's hope so.

I am now headed to bed. I am not quite as tired as I was earlier but I'm pretty sure sleep will come in a reasonable period of time. Tomorrow is the dreaded 8-hour shift. I know that sometimes faith has to be walked out. So, I will show up and I will do my best and I will mutter and mumble prayers for healing from minute to minute if I have to. I just keep repeating to myself that I prayed for this job and God answered my prayers with a "yes". I know He wants what's good for me, so I'm going to keep at this til I beat it or til something better comes along or til I graduate to Heaven. I am convinced He didn't send me there to fail. In the meantime, pain and all, I am just grateful for God's faithfulness in getting me this job so that I can get some things taken care of around here that really need to be done. It's a blessing, even if it hurts! So there!

One step at a time.......

Well, another 4 hour shift worked, another day of sore feet. This foot thing is getting old. It is time for God's healing to take effect.

There were 4 of us in the store this AM, Mrs. Owner, Mr. Nice Guy, Mr. KnowItAll, and me. And everyone but me was supposed to be stocking shelves and the cooler. Mr. Nice Guy pulled the heaviest load. Mrs. Owner worked right along with him for several hours and then had to get into the office and do some stuff there. Mr. Know It All did his usual, wandering through the store, leaving Mr. Nice Guy and me wondering what, if anything, he was doing. Mrs. Owner told Mr. Nice Guy to tell Mr. KnowitAll to stock cups. Cups for the Slurpees, Cups for the sodas, cups for coffee. He delivered the message; Mr. KnowItAll ignored him. Mr. Nice Guy went back to Mrs. Owner and told her Mr. Know It All was ignoring him. Mrs. Owner told Mr. Nice Guy to "yell at him". He tried that. I heard him tell Mr. Know It All at least 3 times. At one point, he asked me to tell Mr. Know It All to stock the cups. I did, to no effect. Later, I heard Mrs. Owner tell Mr. Know It All to mop the floor. Next time I looked up, Mrs. Owner was doing it...... And a great morning was had by all, LOL.

At one point, I wanted a break. I asked Mr. Know It All to cover the register, turned my back, walked around the counter and headed toward the front door. Mr. Nice Guy prompted me with eye motions to look back where I came from and there stood a customer with Mr. Know It All nowhere in sight. Later I needed to use the restroom. I had to get Mrs. Owner to cover the register because no one knew where Mr. Know It All was..........

So, anyway, I am so glad that is over. My big fear is that tomorrow I have to work with Mr. Know It All. Lord, I hope not. I am struggling to love him as Christ commanded. It is a struggle. I want so much to give him a piece of my mind, but I'm not at all sure it would make any impression and I doubt I could spare it. I know if I were the boss, he'd be gone. However, I'm not. I'm low person on the totem pole. I'm doing my best to just keep my trap shut and act like I love him. I'm trying the "fake it til you make it" approach. Unlike some of my compatriots, I understand that much of what drives us wild is symptomatic of his condition. But, though, I've prayed to love him, it isn't happening yet. I am going to change that prayer to ask God to give me His love cause I'm coming up empty.........

I am quite certain a lot of his "self importance" stems from the Aspbergers. It is my understanding that his father had to plead on his behalf to get him the job. I think, the fact that he actually HAS a job is a milestone for him. But he seems to have no ruler with which to measure appropriate behavior. He would be so much better off if he'd just be quiet and do the job. He doesn't. He started talking to a young lady and her mother this morning. Sad but true: they were laughing at him on the way out. To most of the world, a job in this type of establishment is nothing to brag about. But, to him, it is. And that's at least part of the problem.........

So, let's change the subject. I just wanted to let you know that if you're walking down the street and you're suddenly distracted by something shiny, it just might be me. My engagement ring, with its newly repaired prongs (and the cleaning they gave it) is so shiny. I'm wearing my shiny little huggy earrings--the ones where one earring had a bent post and I had to have that repaired. And I am now wearing two, count 'em, two shiny gold bracelets. I picked one up today and dropped another off.

I am beginning to feel like me. I think the sparkly jewelry is a symptom of all that. And, I'm glad to welcome me back. I like me a lot better than the emotionally dead person who has lived in my body for so long. Anyway, yes, I know this type of job is nothing to write home about. But I am proud of myself that I am able to interact with the customers. For years, I hid in my house and just didn't answer the door unless I had to. Anything to avoid people. So, this is an achievement for me, a step in the right direction.

I did get a little out of line this morning. Two guys were in the store. They were either in high spirits or had been drinking too many spirits or were flirting with me. I'm guessing #2, drinking too many spirits. Anyway, I was just trying to ring up their merchandise and get them gone. And they kept pushing at me verbally. Finally, I was done with it all. They came out with "Where is the love? Don't you just love us?" My response was a bit extreme, but I made them laugh again before they left the store. What did I say? I said "The love died at Spring Valley Hospital 3 years ago". Then one of them had the audacity to ask "Does that mean you're available?". Geez...... About that time I was done with their stuff, I cracked a joke and they left. I don't mind at all if they don't hurry back.

Well, me and my poor sore feet and a couple of ibuprofen are gonna go lie down. I am REALLY gonna need prayers to get through 8 hours tomorrow.............

 

Cooling down........

It's really nothing to brag about. Our high today will "only" be 101. Yesterday, we were slated for 104 but I think the weather service recorded 106. Phew! Hot! And, yesterday, the AC at the store was not working properly.

It seems there are two units. The front unit was putting out air that was 56 degrees. However that is the front unit, up by the doors. The doors opening and closing let in a lot of hot air. In the back of the store, the AC units were putting out air that was 86 degrees. That's pretty much useless as far as comfort is concerned. Of course, it beats 106, but you're still uncomfortably warm......... Thankfully, the AC repair dude was called ASAP, came quickly, and made repairs. I don't think it was much cooler throughout the day though. It takes a while to move the temperature down when working against refrigerated equipment emitting heat and the constant opening of the doors. And there I stood with a stupid polyester "smock" on. THIS is NOT the season for "layering"!

Of course, I had bumped the thermostat up when I left here. So, it was none too comfortable here either. I didn't even put my stuff down before I lowered that thermostat, but it still took a while for the cool off to occur. I ended up refugeeing to the east end of the house and taking a nap as soon as I had enough energy to go there.

I'm not sure what the deal was there, but I was wiped out, even when I got up from the nap. And, my feet are still SO SORE. I prayed I would feel better after lying down for a while. I don't really thing that happened. Then I mostly just sat around the rest of the evening. I tried real hard to stir up some motivation, but the idea of moving around on these feet really did not appeal to me. So, I start today with feet that are sore.......... I need some supernatural pain relief, I do believe! Also some discipline to do what needs done, trusting the Lord to take care of the pain as I go.....

So, I didn't get much done around here yesterday. I did, however, get some additional elements created for the current "water" kit. I think I'm up to somewhere around 40 elements now.

So, that's it for this morning. It's 5:45AM and I'm due at the store in 1 hour. Still trying to drink coffee, take morning meds, etc. Momentarily I'm off to get dressed. I did have the forethought to lay out my clothes for today on my way to bed last night. That'll be a help.

So, please help me out and pray for some of that (a lot of that?) supernatural pain relief. 4 hours on my feet starting in 1 hour. And it promises to be a busy morning with folks trooping in for coffee and more coffee in these early hours of the morning. Most likely, I'll be alone up front as two large orders came in yesterday and will need to be stocked.

Oh, I am temporarily giving up on making my own flavored coffee creamers. At least the way I've been making them. The almond/orange "cappuccino" flavor worked well. But I do need a little variety. I tried making chocolate/peppermint and it just spoils too fast. Turns into this wretched gloppey mess you could use to spackle cracks in the driveway. So, for my next trick, I'm going to try ordering some Monin syrups. They are the flavored syrups used by bartenders and such. Anyway, I currently own some in the Pumpkin Spice flavor and it is tolerable if one uses it at about half the recommended strength. So, just a bit of that in the the coffee cup and then some half and half and a drinkable cup of flavored coffee emerges. So, I am searching for the best prices on Monin syrups. So far, it's not nearly as expensive as I'd remembered it.......... Just trying to decide for now on which flavor to start off with.

I'm outta here. I must get ready to face the day. If I can summon the energy, I'll be back later. YOU be BLESSED today. I'm not having a lot of fun with the foot thing, but I'm blessed to have the bit of extra money coming in.

Survived!

Yes, we had a triple digit day yesterday. Yes, we are going to have another today. I used a tried and true "recipe" for surviving the heat--I went to the east end of the house and took a nap. Worked out great except for having a bad dream.

So, on the housekeeping side of life, yesterday was a disappointment. I only got a little bit of the dusting done (and that was even including the fact that I found out just how bad everything was). I did, however, manage to get the mud crumblets taken care of inspite of the fact that, on further exploration, I found they ran all the way into the bedroom and he even went exploring in the kitchen. It's not too bad so far today. Maybe the much higher temperatures are drying out the ground more quickly.

I did a big boo boo the other day. I have a couple of hedge-type plants that have no sprinkler heads. So, it's up to me to water them by hand. I blew this last year so they are really pretty scraggly, but I keep hoping they'll come back. Anyway, I have a hose right there which I turn on really low and slow and let run until the area is well-watered. Well, I really screwed up Sunday and left it going and forgot about it. I heard water running Monday morning and went out to find I'd forgotten to turn it off. The odd thing was that, running for so many hours, the water never managed to overflow the bounds of the area. I can only figure that the ground was SO dry it just soaked up the water like a sponge.

I did score big time on the design side. I started a new kit. It is the obligatory "water" kit. It seems every designer has to do a "water" kit every summer. You know the one--the kit for scrapping fun at the pool or fun at the beach or fun playing in the sprinklers....... Well, I started yesterday morning. It has all the patterned papers done and somewhere around 20 elements completed. I'm pretty impressed with me, having achieved all that in one day.

So, today is a "job" day. Thankfully just 4 hours, though. And, it is the 4 hour shift I like best. So, I should be able to enjoy it. I've realized though that this, my favorite schedule, dumps me back home, using my own AC (and power bill) during the heat of the day. Being at the store, using their AC, would save me some $$$, and thus make my paycheck stretch further. But, it's not to be. Perhaps this will work out well. Usually by the time I make it home, I'm tired and sore. Assuming I still have not conditioned my body to withstand the time on my feet any better, this would mean I could go lie down (on the east end of the house) and get myself rested up and with less pain AND be in the cooler part of the house at the same time. It's not all bad........

I won't get a lot done today. Thankfully it's vacuum the house day. Well, I've been doing that every day and so far, my big web-footed friend has not brought in much mud. I'm happy. And, Sunday I did all the edges except for this room. So, I can knock that out in short order and maybe make progress on the dusting I didn't do yesterday.

Part of the limited dusting was how much dust I encountered. Most of the time, I use the feather duster on a regular basis and it keeps the dust more or less under control. Of course, I neglected to do that during tax season (especially the last part of it) and haven't been able to get back on track since. So, yesterday, I started in the Master Bedroom and it was REALLY dusty. I had to resort to working with a wet rag and a bucket of water. That is MUCH slower than using the feather duster. But, when there is a build up of dust, it's also more effective. So, that's my story and I'm sticking to it. I'll go back after it this afternoon/evening. Once I get things cleaned up, it will be faster and easier to keep them that way using just the feather duster. So, there are long term benefits in whatever I get cleaned today.......

My feet. I am wondering if perhaps I am actually damaging them. I took my lovely running shoes off Thursday night when I got home from work. I wore them for a brief period on Saturday and otherwise, I have been in some comfy Aerosoles all weekend. However, I noticed when I got up this morning that my feet are still sore from Thursday. That is NOT good news. They're not awful, but, yeah, there is some pain there.......... This seems wrong to me. After all, I've had four days away from those shoes and away from being on my feet for hours. Seems to me things should be healed up by now.........

Well, let's do some eye candy. I need to get moving as my day is 4 hours shorter today than "usual".

Yesterday I showed you a layout by Sherry with the bright orange of this kit as it's main color. While the photo and the word art still communicate much the same sentiment--sort of a "I'm having a bad day" kind of layout--this color combination is much softer and easier on the eye. I am so happy to see the versatility of this kit, and it's particularly fun to see two such different layouts from the same creator with the same kit!

I wanted to show you the totally different look of a layout created with a lot of orange. This layout uses the orange to show exuberance and high energy, while the layout above creates more of a "I'm tired" kind of feel. Karla did this layout. Love her mix of patterns and papers on here. That little banner kinda trips me out too! Notice how perfect this kit is for a boy layout!

Alrighty, I feel each minute slipping away as the time for me to head to work draws closer. I have a few things on my wish list to get done between now and then so I'm going to excuse myself for now. YOU be BLESSED today!

 

Three digits...........

It's only May, but we've made it into the three digit high temps already. For the next three days, we're looking at highs from 102-104! Whew! These are the kind of days when one wants to just spend a few minutes on the roof or in the backyard, thanking the Lord for air conditioning and admiring that big box He helped someone figure out how to build!

So, I still have the day off today then tomorrow-Thursday I work. Of course, I've been doing my own version of "work" while I've been home. And today I have another opportunity to do more of the same. I think I am back to being able to say the place is improving. Certainly not good yet, but improving.

Well, if you remember, I vacuumed through the whole house yesterday, chasing mud crumblets. And I had some crazy idea they were slowing down. This morning that crazy idea is out the window. There is a path of them from the pet door at least through to the entryway floor. Ugh! I had hoped not to need to touch the vacuum cleaner today and to finish up the edge cleaning tomorrow on vacuuming day. I don't think I can walk past all these mud bits til tomorrow though.

Officially, it is dusting day and I intend to tackle it. How far I get with it is an unknown, but whatever I get done, it will be better than not doing it at all. I never quite know where to start. Should I dust the front of the house first, just in case someone with a white glove comes to visit? Or should I bow to my allergies and dust the bedroom first? I am always aware that I might not make it through the whole house so it's important where I start.........

It's also mirrors and glass doors day. Now I don't have sliding doors so none of those to worry about but I do have paned windows in the doors out here. It's tricky though because they have to be done at the right time of day. This room catches both morning and afternoon sun through those doors. And, as hot as it is, you just don't dare think about washing windows when the sun is out. So, I'll be working on the windows on those doors tonight, at least after 7PM.

My focus areas will once again (always????) be the Master Bedroom, the kitchen and the desk. Yesterday I used my desk time to pay bills. I am so frustrated. I figured out that I really need to make up some folders for this year's general filing and last year's tax filing. I can't find my label maker. Dang! I have searched everywhere or so it seems. I know I own one but what good is that if I can't find it to use it. I even prayed and asked the Lord to help me find it (He helps out with stuff like that a lot) but it's still MIA. I am fighting the urge to just get another one. I'd like to get on with this filing NOW. I'm going to try to resist the urge, but I admit I've been on amazon.com prowling around, looking for one. And, truthfully, the thing that is probably responsible for slowing down my trigger finger is the wide variety of models offered. It's confusing.

I will continue working on deleting e-mails and unzipping and organizing files. I did spend time on that yesterday, but it was the proverbial "drop in a bucket". Over the last few months several people who design products for commercial use in digital design have either gone out of business or hit a place where they were desperate for $$$$. This has resulted in me taking advantage of several "buy my store" offers. For those who don't do digital scrapbooking, that means a designer puts hundreds of dollars worth of stuff on sale for, say, $30. You pays your money and you downloads your stuff. As much stuff as you can grab in the specified amount of time. Well, I've taken advantage of some of those deals and that's part of the source of my unzipping and organizing woes. Also, I made some purchases on iNSD (international National Scrapbooking Day) at the beginning of the month. I'm "blessed beyond measure" with computer files that need unzipped and organized.

That's about it. There are some other tasks I'll work on. Shredding is still on the books. I did get the top shelf of the fridge cleaned out yesterday, but I need to work some more on that project. So, I'll be busy.

I think we should have some eyecandy. I posted the previews of the new kit on Saturday. It's called Wired and the theme is those days when someone is plunking on your last nerve like a guitar string. Here are two of the layouts my ladies did with this kit.

This layout is by Sarah Whithers. I love how the dark brown and orange really contrast with the background paper she chose and really draw the eye in to the photo. She is known for her use of elements reduced to a smaller size. And, yes, she's done it again. Love that little cluster under the title!

Sherry, aka ElkFan, did this layout and I think it is so darned cute. The layers and layers of goodies behind the photo are fun and quite the mix! I was sitting here looking at that plaid on the right. That is one good looking plaid paper. And for a little something off the beaten path, how about that engineered linear plaid on the left! As always, Sherry has created a beautiful cluster to embellish her page. I also like the inking on the edges of the paper.

Don't forget, you can find this beautiful kit here: http://www.acherryontop.com/shop/digital/company/hotflashdesigns/sort/release-date

Alrighty, I'm outta here. Gonna give the dust in this house a run for its money today. YOU be BLESSED!

Rollin', rollin', rollin'........

Keep those dogeys rollin! Yeah, We're coming along here. It's not over the top, but some things are getting scratched off the to do list.

Two loads of laundry have been washed. One has been dried and folded/hung. The other is in the dryer now.

I've vacuumed mud crumblets throughout the entire house except the kitchen. I've done the edge thing with the vacuum in the Master Bedroom and am attempting to work my way back to this end of the house.

I've paid some bills and sorted some paper. Not a lot of paper. Not enough paper, but it's something. I need to set up some new files. I can see that will be a help. I also need to clean out existing files of last year's bills.

Got the preview stuff for my design assistant uploaded.

Have backed up a bunch of small but important files and am working on the 3rd BIG file for the day.

I've read and deleted a bunch of e-mails. Still SO MANY to go.

I've unzipped and sorted a bunch of downloaded files. Still SO MANY to go.

Yeah, SO MANY to go seems to be the story of my life.

Made an initial run on straightening up the counter in the Master Bathroom. I have to tell you that my hair is longer now than it's ever been in my life. And I spend most of the time with it up in a ponytail. When DD was younger it was she who had the long hair and I had short/shorter hair. It used to really gripe me that I found her "hair stuff" everywhere. Yeah, well, I just picked up six of those wrapped rubber bands off of the bathroom counter, and two big ole hair clips. Lord, I repent now for being so exasperated with her "hair stuff", LOL. Hey, at least mine aren't in the kitchen and in the living room and in the dining room. My "mess" is centralized, LOL.

So, anyway, if I can keep at it, I think I have a decent chance of getting through most of my to do list. I am not sure about the edge vacuuming--that's a lot of bending for me. But, so far, my younger/stronger back is holding up to it so I'll keep it going as long as I can. This has been neglected for more than a month and it bothers me. I want it done!

I want you to know that I am not losing weight in order to look good. I don't really care how I look to anyone but me. But, it is nice when I look better to me. Here I am, getting chronologically older (even though I'm getting younger/stronger physically), and I look better to me than I have in quite a few years. I have NOT been eating as I should. This job is eating my lunch (so to speak) in many areas of my life including sensible eating (and housekeeping). I don't get to eat anything sane when I work through a mealtime. I eat whatever I can grab in the store. And that consists of about anything that is either free or something I can break into small bites and chew between customers. And, sometimes, I am just too darned tired to eat at all when I get home. So, the amount of food I am consuming is coming down. It's not the kind of food I want to be eating, but, I am still losing weight. The last place I lose is the midriff area. And I can see that's improving. I also noticed there is very little pouched up around my bra. My arms are thin enough now that you can see the veins, partly because they aren't surrounded by fat and partly because they are underlaid with muscle. Eventually, I will have to come to a better solution to the food problem. I will need to figure out a way to eat things my body needs instead of whatever is lying around. But, for now, I'm just going to roll with it.

Oh, I located some more of the jewelry that needs to be repaired. I am wearing one that has been fixed. I pick up another one on Wednesday. I now have gathered up 4 more bracelets that need work and one anklet! This guy who is doing the work is gonna be glad I'm in the neighborhood!

Well, that's my update for now. I'm off to work on the edge thing in the hallway in my effort to work my way back out to this end of the house. I might be back later. We shall see..........

Still kicking it!

Good morning one and all......... I'm still here, still kicking. I am in need of a plan for the day so I guess I'd better make one, LOL. It's not like anyone else is going to come to my rescue and tell me what is important to accomplish today!

Well, first, and most important, there's church. I gotta have me some church.

It is imperative that I do some vacuuming. The grass (which is really a combination of grass and weeds) is filling in and I'm seeing fewer bits of mud coming in, but I need to deal with what DOES come in. Also, it's been a while since I've done the vacuum around the edges thing and that needs done.

I'm still frustrated when it comes to this desk. I've been doing a decent job of keeping up with all the mail that comes in--in terms of going through stuff and making sure what is trash hits the trash can. However, I have bits and pieces leftover that need to be looked at again and dealt with. Bills to be paid, that sort of thing.

There is laundry to be done. If I don't get called in to work any extra hours, I'm working 3 days this week. At the moment, I have only one clean pair of pants. You can see, THAT won't work......... Of course, there is more that needs laundered than just my pants for work, but that is a priority.

Before tax season and "the job" hit, I had a workable housekeeping plan. It was not only workable but I was able to keep it going. Then tax season hit and before tax season ended, "the job" hit. And I have not been able to keep the housekeeping plan going. Well, I'm going to start again. That means tomorrow is dusting day. And I am presented with surfaces that need to be cleared so I can dust efficiently. This is particularly a problem with my desk and in the master bedroom. So, I'll work on that.

And, of course, there are other smaller projects that need to be accomplished today. I've been working away on the shredding pile and it is getting smaller. When I finally get that pile eradicated, it will be time to go through the filing cabinets and build a new shredding pile....... So, I want to stay on that. I also want to spend some time doing a fridge clean out. I know there is at least some stuff in there I wouldn't consider eating at this point in time. I want that gone and I want to reclaim the space it's taking up.

So, I guess that's the basic plan, along with just working at neatening up the place. I hope I can see a difference tonight, versus where we are right now, when I look around. That will give me a sense of satisfaction...........

There is also the list of stuff I try to get to daily--deleting e-mail, unzipping downloaded files and getting them into my organizing system, backups. I am almost certain I can't possibly complete all the backups I should do this month, but I need to be doing whatever I can.

On the design side, I have the previews for the 4th of July kit ready to go. Those need to be uploaded so my design assistant can grab them. And then there's that kit that I dearly love that just needs some word art and it can be moved to the "finished" pile. Love when that happens!

So, I need to knock off with this activity and move on. You can see, I won't be sitting around twiddling my thumbs today, LOL. YOU be BLESSED today. I know I will be!