The Card Family

I don't want to be a card family.  You know, the kind of family that only communicates through holiday cards.  I understand that this is a big world and even a big country so it can be difficult to stay in touch with family.  But, that doesn't mean I have to like it!

I just found out that my Great Aunt Nancy passed away last month.  LAST MONTH!  How did I find out?  My mom sent a Thanksgiving card to her (her Aunt) and one of Aunt Nancy's kids (my mom's cousin) wrote her back informing her that Aunt Nancy had passed away in October due to illness.  I know that I don't have super close relationships with all of my neices & nephews, but I hope that we don't just become card relatives some day.

The dad that I grew up with became a card relative.  He was the only dad I knew from the time I was 2 or 3.  First, he and my mom divorced when I was 13 and he made a new family.  Then, when I moved away, we only spoke on the phone when I called and would exchange Christmas cards.  Then, one year, I sent a card, but didn't get one from them.  So, the next year, I just didn't bother sending one and of course, since I stopped calling, there are no phone calls either.  I used to call his daughter, my sister, every year on her birthday.  Sometimes, I would have to leave a message, but get no return call.  So, I stopped calling her too.  A card family is just the next step in having no family.

Friends are supposed to come and go and family is supposed to be forever.  So, I think after this incident, I will make a better effort to keep my family from becoming a card family.  As it is now, we mostly only see local family at special events and holidays.  I don't like this at all.  I have expressed these feelings and we always say we will fix it.  But, somehow, it doesn't get fixed.  I guess as long as we keep wanting to try, that is better than giving up completely.

Black Friday has Come & Gone

Black Friday has come & gone.  I am kinda sad to see it go.  I know that Black Friday has gotten a bad rap over the years because of the way some people behave in order to get a set of tupperware for $6.  But, for me Black Friday is an experience I get to share with my sisters & mom every year.  It is something we actually look forward to.  Plus, when I add up my savings, I usually end up saving hundreds of dollars.

Everyone knows that I must have my list of what they want/need for Christmas BEFORE Thanksgiving.  I don't like not being prepared for anything. lol  When I get to come into town the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, that's when the real planning & strategy start.  We go through the ads, we clip out the things we want and staple them together by store.  Of course we write the name of the store and the time it opens on the 1st ad so we have that info handy.

Then, we enjoy the rest of the evening with the family and prepare for Thanksgiving Day.  Thanksgiving comes and we enjoy a nice early dinner and get ourselves all stuffed with carbs to be able to handle the event ahead of us.

Unfortunately, the stores are opening earlier and earlier so, instead of getting up super early on Friday morning, we now head out around 2 or 3 on Thanksgiving Day.  But, that is a blog for another day.  So, we figure out which store we will start at and where everyone will take their positions in line.  Usually this is Wal-mart or Toys R Us.  So, we split up and stand around the store in the different lines to get the things we want the most.  We'll catch up on our cell phones and leave our lines to go stand with each other for a little bit waiting for the madness to ensue.

But, since we have a plan it usually isn't madness for us.  The workers open the pallets, we get what we want in the quantity we need for everyone and head back to each other to find out if everyone got what they needed.  Then, we checkout and figure out where we are headed next.  The afternoon turns into night going from store to store.  Stopping only around 10am or so on Friday morning to get some breakfast.  Then, we are back out again.  We usually make it home by early afternoon.  Then, it's time for everyone to take a nap.  Later that night we go through the receipts and figure out who owes who for the things we picked up for each other. Then, it's more family time.

Black Friday is like anything else.  It is what you make of it.  We turn it into a good experience and an event we look forward to.  In addition to our shopping adventure, we get a bonus of having most of our Christmas shopping done in one day.  So, we can relax and truly enjoy the days leading up to Christmas.

My Grandpa

September 19, 2012...This is the day I lost my grandpa and last grand parent.
Clarence Leroy Richards
March 20, 1924 - September 19, 2012

My Grandpa may have passed away and gone on to Heaven where I won't be able to see him with my eyes for a while.  But, I will keep him in my heart and meet up again with him one day.

I loved my Grandpa dearly.  But, I was also very proud of the man he was.  I was always proud to tell people when they asked about my Grandpa, he served his country in 2 wars.  He fought in the World War II and the Koran War.  Although he didn't talk much about them, I know he was proud to have served his country.  Even after he served his 20+ years in the US NAVY, he continued as a civil servant in the US Post Office until he finally retired from there after 20+ years of service.

I always remember my Grandpa being retired.  But, I guess he worked at the Post Office when I was little.  Maybe I never noticed back then because when we would go to visit, my Grandma would keep us busy during the day and my Grandpa always made time for us.

He loved to go fishing on his boat.  When we were little, he would let me and my sister play in his garage or his workshop while he worked on the boat.  I always remember him bringing home lots of fish.  But, I don't ever remember eating them.  Maybe it's because kids don't like fish.  So, we ate something else or my Grandma would cook it up in something so we had no idea that we were eating it.  But, I do remember my Grandpa at the grill making THE BEST Teriyaki Steak EVER!

He had the neatest tools in his garage.  Of course, we weren't technically allowed to touch any of them at 7 & 8 years old.  But, of course that didn't stop us. :)  Then, there was the basement.  As my sister has pointed out, most kids are afraid of the basement.  Not us!  The basement was a huge playground for us.  My Grandpa had his model planes, a huge menagerie of wooden animals and the best Race Track we had ever played with.  My sister and I would spend hours playing in the basement until we were made to go outside.  Then, we would play with my Grandma's Geese, pick Strawberries, Grapes and Cherries from the Garden, catch fireflies at dusk and play king of the mountain on the huge rock in their front yard.  Their house was right across from the baseball field at Indianapolis University.  I can remember sitting in lawn chairs with Grandpa watching the game from the front yard.  Sometimes the home runs would land in the yard.  My Grandpa always gave the balls to us.  I loved going to visit with my Grandpa & Grandma.

One of the things I remember most is how much he LOVED my Grandma.  He would do ANYTHING for her.  She always used to tell us what a "good man" he is and how he never raised his voice to her.  She always said he was a good husband and we should make sure we had a good husband like him.

My Grandpa was also a big jokester.  Even up until his last days, he would pretend not to hear my Mom when she would talk to him and then giggle about it.  I'm not sure if it was true, but he also said that he could never trust anyone up for election, so he always voted for himself.  I would have voted for him.  If there was ever anyone that we could trust, it would be him.

I'm going to miss you Grandpa!  But, I know that you are happy in Heaven, finally reunited with Grandma and you'll keep a good watch over us.  I love you!

DRAGON*CON

So, if you've never been to or heard of Dragon*Con, it's like Comicon. Never been to or heard of Comicon?  You don't know what you are missing!! These are conventions relating to pop culture. The ever popular Star Trek and Star Wars represent, but there is so much more! You'll find celebrities from, Lost, True Blood, Vampire Diaries & Superman, just to name a few.


Cara, ME, Oliver & Lacy

I used to think they were super geek conventions and I'd never be caught dead at one. But, I just came back a couple weeks ago from my 2nd convention with my wonderful friends!  We all had such a great time! We plan to go back again next year! 


Ian Somerhalder & ME!



I love star gazing. So, meeting the celebrities is a big deal to me. Getting to meet most of the Vampire Diaries Cast was truly amazing!  Me & my 2 girlfriends, Cara & Lacy were planning the trip for months to go see Ian Somerhalder!  Before the trip, I must admit I was worried.  I've heard of people finally getting to meet a celebrity that they love only to find out they are a complete jerk!  I am so glad that didn't happen to us!  Ian was a complete gentleman and an all around great guy!  In fact, all the celebrities we met and saw during the panels were really nice!!

Kenton Duty & ME

Vampire Diaries Cast & ME!

Cara, Michael Trucco & ME

Lacy, Cara, Anthony Michael Hall & ME

I had so much fun seeing everyone dressed up in costumes. I can't wait to dress up next year!  The husbands are thinking of going next year too.  So, we're planning on coordinating costumes!  It's going to be so much fun!! Too bad it's another whole year away!!  The pics below are just a few of the hundreds of pics we took with different characters & celebrities. If you have never been to Dragon*Con, I recommend you add it to your bucket list!!

Superman, Me & Wonder Woman

Lacy, Cara, Batman & ME

The Joker, ME & Bane









Legitimate Rape? Seriously, Todd Akin?

I had to read the tweets several times to make my brain comprehend what was actually being said by MO Senate nominee, Todd Akin.  Then, I had to verify it on a legitimate source.  When asked about his views on abortion, Todd Akin replied, “It seems to me, from what I understand from doctors, that’s really rare,” Mr. Akin said of pregnancies from rape. “If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down...."

Wow!  The female body really is an amazing thing!  It can think for itself.  "Hey, wait!  This is rape!  I better stop ovulating!"  Seriously!?!  It boggles my mind how something so stupid can come out of the mouth of a supposedly educated person.

My views on abortion are that I disagree with it.  However, when it is not my body I don't feel I have the right to project and force my views onto anyone else.  Also, in the instance of rape, I especially think that it is up to the woman and the strength of her mind should be considered.  If we are talking about a woman that has a fragile mind, can you imagine the mental damage that will be done to that woman if she is forced to carry the child of her rapist for 9 months?

The main thing here is, please pass the word around about this idiot!  We do not want someone like this in our Senate.  I just hope the people of Missouri realize this and boot his ass out of office!  You can read the whole story here.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/20/us/politics/todd-akin-provokes-ire-with-legitimate-rape-comment.html

Why Boycott??

On Facebook, I have been seeing all these posts about Chick-Fil-A being opposed to Gay Marriage and now people are boycotting the restaurant chain because of this company choice.  I think this is ridiculous!

Chick-Fil-A has always been a Christian based company.  They are even one of the few companies that remain closed on Sundays because of their religious views.  So, why are people now so shocked and appalled that this Christian based business is against Gay Marriage?

I am not sure how I personally feel about Gay Marriage.  I mean, I honestly think that as long as you are not hurting anyone else, you should be able to do what makes you happy.  But, I don't want to walk down the street and see two men or two women kissing and have to explain this to my child. Of course, that has nothing to do with Gay Marriage....that's just about Gay in general....

My point is, it is very wrong to boycott something because you disagree with the company's view point on something like this.  By boycotting Chick-Fil-A, you are punishing them for having a religious view point and in a sense, taking away their right to express their relious views.  In my opinion, those that choose to boycott Chick-Fil-A are the ones in the wrong!

Bring Back the Male Revue

Some people won't admit it. But, women can be just as bad or worse than men when it comes to sex! Proof of this can be found in the opening numbers of Magic Mike this past weekend. Bringing in around 39.2 million, it was only 2nd to Ted.

My friends and I contributed to these numbers with our Girls Night Out on Friday. It was a lot of fun to get a bunch of us together for drinking and male ogling!

So, this got me thinking. I wonder if all the Girl's Night Outs that this movie inspired & the record numbers it pulled in at the box office will revive the Male Revue...

I think the strip clubs geared toward men will really be missing out if they don't at least offer a male revue to piggy back on this movie's success! I've never been to one, but the movie sure peaked my interest! I'm not saying they should do it every weekend. But, maybe one a month or something. Hmmmm!

ISF Animal Sanctuary

As many of you know, I am a big Ian Somerhalder fan and am going to actually get to meet him at Dragoncon at the end of August.  Obviously, I am very excited about this.  So, since I am a dork at heart, I have been doing more research on Ian.  I follow him on twitter, he is a great tweeter, by the way.  He makes you feel like he is talking directly to you, or maybe that's just my imagination. LOL

Anyway, in reading more about him and his interests, I found out about this great foundation that he has created and seems to be very involved in, The IS Foundation.  He has been tweeting recently about this Animal Sanctuary that they want to open.  You can read more about it here
http://www.isfoundation.com/campaign/isf-animal-sanctuary

The basic idea seems to be to give abused and neglected animals a safe haven.  But, what makes this Animal Sanctuary different from others out there is that they plan to help children at the same time they are helping the animals.  They plan to have bullies come to the sanctuary and the goal is to help the bullies learn compassion through helping the animals.  I think this is a great idea.  But, as most of you know, I have to have a "but".

But, I just hope while they are planning this Animal Sanctuary/Bully Reformation, they do not make it a "reward" for bullies.  What I mean by this is that a kid who is a bully gets to take a vacation to this sanctuary and play with animals.  I hope this is considered and they come up with a way to make it work without it being a "reward".  I don't have an answer as to how they could do it.  I just hope it is considered.  Maybe that's something I can ask him when I see him...

Abusive Relationships

The first thing I want to say is that if you have never been in an abusive relationship, DO NOT think that you can judge a person that is in one.

This morning, at the gym, these two women were talking about one of the women's granddaughter's and how her husband had beat her up again and she was staying at her daughter's house.  They were saying how they just didn't understand how she could let something like that happen to her.  And it wasn't the 1st time.  Of course not, no one ever knows about the 1st time!  If it were them, they wouldn't put up with that crap and they'd call the cops and have his butt in jail!  Yeah, right!  Again, you don't know shit!  I told them so, too!  I told the one lady whose granddaughter they were discussing that she should be ashamed of herself for talking about her granddaughter like that!  That she doesn't know all the details and probably never will.  I told her that what she needs to do is let her know that she is there for her granddaughter when she needs her and she WILL need her again!  I told her that no matter how many times she leaves him and goes back to make sure that she always knows she has a place to go because eventually, hopefully, she will get the courage to leave him for good!  Then, I left!

It felt good for me to tell her off!  I hope some of what I said sank in.  But, as I sat in the van in the parking lot, tears streaming down my face, I could only think of that girl.  My heart breaks for her.  I know what she is going through.  I know she is probably sitting at her mother's dining room table crying her eyes out in confusion as to what to do.  I hope she can gather the courage to make this the last time.  But, it probably won't be.  He'll come crying to her.  Begging her to come back.  He'll take anger management classes, he'll never do it again, he loves her!

Here's my story.  Mine ended in 1996, but I can still see and recall things that were done and said as if they happened yesterday.  It's true what they say.  Bruises fade, but words last a lifetime.  Maybe as you read it, you'll get a better understanding that the women in abusive relationships are not stupid.  They didn't get that way overnight and it's not so easy to get help...

Mine started in high school.  Although, it wasn't "abusive" then.  But, that's when it started because it was my senior year of high school that I met him.  I was taking AP classes, getting good grades and working towards going to college to be a doctor.  If you know me now, you know that I am not a doctor.  Teenage stupidity got in the way and I ran away with him.  In school, he slowly began to separate me from my friends.  "She's a whore, you shouldn't be seen with her."  A lot of my friends were guys, so I couldn't hang out with them.  He was too jealous.  So, eventually, all I had was him.  3 weeks before graduation...."Let's run away together.  We can get married.  I'll take care of you.  It'll be wonderful!"

So, there you have it.  His 1st step complete.  I had no friends, no family and no job.  Shortly after we were married, I got pregnant.  He began step 2, breaking my self esteem down even further.  I had always been skinny maybe 110 lbs.  When I got pregnant, I gained a lot of weight.  So, now, he was able to call me fat and ugly.  I better be glad I had him because sure as hell no one else would want me.  After I had the baby, I was 18, so I lost all the weight immediately.  So, he could just call me ugly & a slut.  Although, I never cheated on him, I was a slut.  Go figure!

Once I was good and broken mentally, step 3, the physical step began.  Don't think my being pregnant made him stop either.  He was not above throwing me across a room or threatening me with a wire coat hanger to give me a quick abortion.  Of course, it was all my fault too.  If I hadn't looked at that guy walking in front of our car at the gas station, if I hadn't mentioned that Jason Preistley looked hot in the latest episode of 90210 to the girl that told him I said so, if my sister's husband hadn't shown up at her baby shower that I told him would have no men...it was all my fault...

I think I must have left him at least 4 or 5 times.  Each time, he would convince me to come back and things would be great for a week maybe a month, if I was lucky.  One time, when he was trying to make it work, we went out to a club with some of his friends.  On the way back from the bathroom, a guy stopped to try to say hi to me.  When I got back to the table, I could tell by the look on his face that he had seen.  I immediately got scared.  Then, out of no where, he throws a basket of wings across the table at me.  Some of them hit the guy behind me and the bartender comes over and tells everyone to calm down and asks me if I'm ok.  I tell him that I'm fine.  But, I know that I'm not fine.  He just made it worse by asking.  I just sit there embarrassed as everyone is looking at me including his friends and their girlfriends that are with us.  Finally, we leave and everyone goes over to one couple's house.  The fighting begins in the car on the way to their house.  I just want to go home and get it over with.  But, he's a skilled driver.  He manages to drive and beat the shit out of me at the same time.  Finally, we reach the couple's house, everyone else is already inside.  I run out of the car to get away from him.  But, he jumps out and grabs me.  He flings me so hard into the side of the car.  I feel my collarbone break instantly.  So, I just sink to the ground.  Maybe if I don't move he'll stop.  Telling me to compose myself, he pushes me inside the house.  I tell him that my collarbone is broken and I can feel it moving under my skin.  He doesn't care.  So, I sit on the couch and try not to move while him and his friends smoke their pot and drink their beer.  That night, I manage not to have to sleep in the bed with him.  Laying on the floor, I try to reset the bones back together.  They never did heal right.  But, in the morning, he assured me he was sorry and that he loved me and that it would never happen again.  I left that morning...but I came back a few days later.

Another instance that I mentioned above was from my sister's baby shower.  He asked me if there would be any men there, I assured him there wouldn't be because my sister told me there wouldn't.  That afternoon when I got home, he grilled me about the shower.  What did we talk about?  Who was there?  I told him all the girls that were there.  He must have seen that I wasn't telling him everything because he immediately grabbed me by the throat and began choking me up against the nearest wall.  I told him that my sister's husband and his friend showed up at the end of the shower.  He released me and said he knew I was lying.  Why did I have to lie to him?  Duh!  So, things like this didn't happen.  Then, he snapped and put me in a head lock.  I remember the feeling of going weak.  So weak from lack of oxygen to my brain and lungs.  I couldn't breathe.  This was it, I was finally going to die.  I wasn't afraid, I was actually relieved.  But, the next thing I knew, I woke up on the couch with him leaning over me crying.  I don't know if I died and came back, I don't know if I just passed out.  I'll never know.  It doesn't matter.  I left the next morning...but I came back a few days later.

I used to pray to God to give me a life threatening disease like Cancer so that I could just be done with it all.  Or I wished I had the strength to kill him.  Certainly, jail would be better than this.  I came close a couple of times too.  I had a gun pointed at him at least twice, but I never could pull the trigger.  Was I too weak?  Did God keep me from doing it because he knew eventually, I would make it out of this relationship alive?

The point is, if you know someone in an abusive relationship, don't let them feel alone.  Let them know that you are there for them if and when they need you, no matter how many times they need you.  I was able to get away because one of the times I left him, I got a job.  That gave me some independence and I was able to make friends at work.  I became very good friends with one of the girls at work and was able to confide in her.  After one of our fights, he agreed to leave.  We were split up and this friend asked me to go to Tampa with her to visit her boyfriend.  He had a roommate that she wanted me to meet.  So, we went for the weekend.  It was fun and he was a nice guy.  He was 12 years older than me.  But, a very nice guy that had 2 kids of his own.

When I got back to town, my husband found out I had left for the weekend.  He came over that night.  I tried not to let him in, but he broke through the door.  He was asking me where I was and what happened while I was gone.  I told him it was none of his business.  But, of course, that just made him madder.  When he finally left, I was able to call the cops.  Surely with us being split up they could do something and I still had his boot print on my face, so I had marks to show.  The cops showed up, took the report and told me that since we had a child and there was no documented history of abuse, it would probably be hard for me to get a restraining order.  They couldn't charge him with rape because we were married.  Since, the boot print was mostly dirt and wiped away and he was no longer there, they couldn't do anything that night.  It was so frustrating to know that there was nothing I could do.

But, this time, I was determined not to let it happen again.  I was going to get away from him.  I had a job and friends and I COULD do this.  The next day at work, I told my friend what happened the night before.  She had me and my son come over to her house and stay with her until I could figure out what to do.  So, I called the battered women's shelter.  They said that unless I had bruises to show, they could not let me stay there.  I had a few on my back from his raping me on the floor.  But, they said it wasn't enough.  I didn't know what to do.  My family wasn't speaking to me because I had gone back to him too many times for them.  But, I had to get away.

So, my friend and I called her boyfriend and the guy in Tampa agreed to let me and my son stay there.  Tampa!  Perfect!  It was far enough away that he wouldn't be able to find me and convince me to take him back.  So, I packed up what I could fit in the car and went to Tampa.  That's where I filed for divorce and finally became free of my nightmare!

That was MY way of getting away!  If you know someone in an abusive relationship they have a way to get away, a way that they will feel strong enough to be able to finally break free.  You just have to help them find THAT WAY!

Blogger App!

I'm super excited that I found out that Blogger has an app! Part of the reason I haven't been blogging as much is because I don't sit in front of the computer very often when I'm not at work. I really just use the home computer once a week to pay bills.

Now that I've found the app, I expect to be blogging more often! Of course, if I still don't, I'm sure my good friend, Oliver, will kick me in my butt every so often! :)

So, I'll "see" you all soon!

Men Should Read Romance Novels

I know! I know! Not gonna happen!! But, imagine if they did?! They would have a MUCH better understanding of women. Currently, I am reading Fifty Shades of Grey. Yeah yeah yeah....Mommy Porn...I know. But, hey, it's something without vampires, werewolves or witches, so it's something different for me. lol

Anyway, the writing is not very good in the literary sense. But, as I am reading it, I have realized that it's written in the way that someone who has never read a romance novel imagines they are written...if that made any sense at all.

However, if a man were to read it, it would simply and easily tell him what most women are thinking and feeling. Yes...we are that insecure! Yes...we are constantly warring within ourselves! Yes...we want the prince charming...but not ALL the time!

If a man is married, it's easy. He can just read one of his wife's books. This is the best way to get to know what she is thinking and feeling and what she might like from you. I know I choose books were I can identify with the female character and am enthralled by the male character(s). My favorites are those written in the 1st person...most good romance books are. It allows the book and the characters to become more personal. For a man reading the same book, it takes you into the mind of your woman. Now, isn't that what all men "say" they want?

Facebook Friends

I guess it was a week or so ago that I went through my Facebook Friends list and unfriended about 30 or so "friends".  I decided to get rid of anyone that I didn't interact with in one way or another, either in person or on Facebook.  After all, what is the point of being friends on Facebook if you aren't even going to interact?  Since, we didn't interact, I'm sure there were no hard feelings being unfriended.

When I set up my account a few years ago, I decided not to be the "friend collector".  This is the person on Facebook who has about 500+ "friends".  Really?  I just don't get this.  I mean do you really want all those people to see your kids pictures and know that you are planning a trip out of town?  I'd rather just keep my Facebook Friends to people I might actually consider friends and closer acquaintances.

So, to those of you still on my friends list, know that I consciously want you there and you're not just a number on a 500+ list. :)

Creative License-Vampires

So, I am at a point in my book where I have to decide what strengths/weaknesses my vampires will have.  I'm having a little bit of a problem here in deciding how much creative license I want to take with the traditional views.  I know a lot of people make fun of and even condemn Stephanie Meyer for making her vampires sparkle in the sun.  While I agree that it is a little out there (lol, like the whole idea of vampires, isn't), I applaud her for taking her creativity and running with it.

I am still not sure how traditional I will keep my vampires, but I think I have 1 or 2 ideas that may be considered creative license.  I think they are good and will definitely add a new level to my book.  I guess I'll find out when it gets published or I'm sure I'll hear about it sooner from my critique crew!

Tired of the Poor!

So, I was at the gym this morning and saw the news report on school vouchers.  This is a bill that Florida Governor Rick Scott has signed to expand.  Now, I know that vouchers have been around for a while, but this expansion just makes me angry about it all over again!  I am TIRED of taking care of the poor!  This bill allows low income families to send their children to private school at taxpayers expense!! Seriously?!  I have to provide food, shelter and now private education!!

I know!  Maybe I should quit my job and become one of the poor!  Yeah, that's a good idea!  Or better yet, find a way to get fired, then I can collect unemployment, too!  I can get food stamps, healthcare, have HUD subsidize the mortgage on my home and now I can send my son to private school!  And YOU can pay for it!  Yep!  A great plan!  Oh, but wait!  You thought of this plan too?  Now there's no one left to pay for the poor...

Why will people ever pick themselves up and try to make a better life on their own if we are always giving them ways to let other people take care of them?  For some reason, people don't have the mentality they used to several decades ago.  I don't get the feeling that most people have pride in themselves anymore and have the need to want to provide for themselves and their families like they used to.  So, give them an easy way out and they will take it as long as they can.

I wish I saw an end to all this.  But, I just don't see it.  There will continue to be the girl at the checkout counter with her freshly done hair, perfectly manicured nails and designer clothes using her EBT card to buy steaks and alcohol.  Now, it'll just be worse knowing that the 5 kids she has at home will be going to private school and I paid for all of it!

The Disney Magic!

Well, we caved!  We went to go to Disney yesterday for the last time of the year.  Our passes were set to expire on the 26th.  But, the last time we went, I had washed Jay's and Aaron's tickets in the washing machine, so we had to go to the ticket counter to get new tickets.  Plus, Aaron brought a friend, so we had to go pick up his ticket.  When we got to the counter, we started thinking of the money that we would save if we renewed our tickets now at the discounted renewal rate.  It was about $50 per ticket.  So, obviously, the smart thing to do was to renew them. :)

I felt a little guilty throughout the day.  But, Disney is so wonderful and we all enjoy everything about it that I still think it is money well spent.  We'll still try to pay off the credit cards, we'll just have a little more that we have to pay off now....

Born in the Wrong Decade

Although, I loved the music, movies, fashion and even hairstyles of the 80s, I think I was born in the wrong decade.  I absolutely love love love all of the above from the 50s/60s.  Not the hippy 60s!  I'm talking about the fun lovin' 50s/60s!

So, I was truly saddened when I heard that Davy Jones of the Monkees died yesterday of a heart attack at 66.  I remember watching reruns of the Monkees TV show when I was a kid.  What fun!  I know the band was actually a product of the show and not the other way around.  But, I think they became more popular than anyone ever could have imagined.  I think that was largely due to the heart throb/teen idol status of Davy Jones.  For those of you who are too young to remember the show, it is like Big Time Rush now.  But MUCH MUCH bigger!!

I am just glad I got to see him in concert at Epcot last year.  He was still energetic, full of life and entertaining.  So, RIP Davy Jones, you will be missed!

Punishment

I was so sad to read yesterday that a 9 year old girl ended up dead after a punishment doled out by her mother and grandmother.  Apparently they made her run for 3 hours without stopping because she lied to her grandmother about eating a candy bar. You can see the story here: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/02/22/stepmom-grandmother-charged-in-girls-running-death/

This makes me sad and scared at the same time.  Obviously this punishment was way out of control and over the top.  But, when you think about it, any punishment has the potential to get out of hand.  It's actually in the news a lot, punishments that get out of hand and the child ends up seriously hurt or dead.  When you are spanking your child, what if you put in one too many hits?  What if you make your child pull weeds, (I had to do this many times at my grandmother's) and they end up dehydrated?  What if the coach makes your child run at football practice and you didn't know they had a heart condition that couldn't handle it?  Everyday, we as parents have to come up with ways to punish are children in ways that are severe enough to fit the crime and yet easy enough because they are, after all, just children.  It can be a very fine line.

Either way, every time I read an article like this, it makes me want to hug my son even harder and thank God he is in my life and hope I never lose him especially because of something avoidable like this.

Aromatic Escape

Many of you have been asking about Aromatic Escape and why I closed the business.  I actually had many reasons.  During our various conversations, I may have shared one or two of them with you.  But, I'll go ahead and share them all now, here.

1. I have told many of you that it is because I am tired of working all the time.  This is very true.  It seemed like all of my free time was being spent working.  Even though I cut my hours at work back from 9 hours to 6 hours, I was still working all the time.  I have my job that is now 6 hours a day so that I could get home in time to pick up Aaron from school. (Loving this!) I have my morning real estate assistant job, that I have to get up about an hour earlier than I normally would, it only takes about half an hour, but it can vary, so I make sure I have the time to get it done.  Then, I would have the afternoon and evening for Aromatic Escape.  Aromatic Escape was obviously not a thriving business or I would be able to quit everything else and just do it.  But, I was busy enough that I was busy.  But, not busy enough to make it worth the effort I was putting into it.  If I was always working, what was the point in getting off "work" early so that I could spend time with Aaron, if I was spending it working?

2. I had decided in the middle of 2011 to go in another direction with Aromatic Escape.  I was going to delve into home parties.  This had worked well in the distant past.  I had 3 friends that were eager to be my first consultants.  I had the pictures taken for the catalog (Thank you to my wonderful family for being patient and agreeing to go through that process with me).  I had designed all the order forms, flyers and the catalogs and was ready to go.  All of it took me a good 6 months to prepare.  Then, I sat down and started adding up all the printing fees, the license renewal fees, the website renewal fees, the website design fees (I would need to have a more professional site).  It was going to cost me a couple thousand dollars just to get this new direction started.  Aromatic Escape did not have the money itself to pay for those fees.  So, that meant I would have to foot the bill.  I can think of so many other things that my family can do with a couple thousand than put it into Aromatic Escape, right now.  Not that we have a couple thousand just laying around...

3. Most of you know what trouble I was having from the Freebie sites posting about a free sample that I had offered to my 200 Facebook fans.  They took my post and posted it on their sites.  So, I got well over 10,000 requests for FREE samples.  The samples, I could handle, but the stamp fees would have been astronomical.  So, at first I explained on my Facebook page that I just couldn't handle all the requests and would send out what I could.  Then, towards the end, when months later, I was still getting at least 100 requests a day, I started trying to reply to each one and explain that I was a small company and couldn't afford to send the samples that the Freebie Site promised.  I actually got nasty replies back.  So, I quit sending those.  All the people requesting the samples were saying how wonderful the free publicity was and how I should be thanking the freebie sites instead of being upset with them for not checking with me before posting the free sample.  Those sites should get permission to repost my offer.  I got free publicity all right, but I'm afraid that most of it turned out to be bad publicity because I couldn't fulfill the promise that they made.  So, what's the point in continuing a company that has all that bad publicity when I don't have the money to fight back and turn it around?

So, even if I am able to come up with the time and money to bring Aromatic Escape back.  I would love to be able to do so, I had a good product that everyone loved.  But, unfortunately, it will have to be under a completely new name...

Consideration!

Consideration!  Consideration for other people!  What I want to know about consideration is when did we lose it?  When did our society lose consideration for other people?

Last night, I was driving to my Father In Law's birthday party.  A girl, maybe in her mid 20s, was riding her bike leisurely across the street.  No problem, except that people were waiting for her to cross so that they could make a right hand turn.  Did she speed up her pace to get across the street quicker and get out of their way?  NO!

I see this kind of inconsideration all the time!  When I am taking my son to school, I see it in the kids.  Parents are trying to turn into the school, but the crossing guard is holding them up so the kids can safely cross the street.  This is wonderful!  We have put the crossing guard in place to keep our kids safe.  How considerate!  Are the kids considerate and pick up their pace to get across the street quickly?  NO!  Do they care that the crossing guard is standing there holding up the sign while they take their time to leisurely cross the street?  NO! Do they care that there is a long line of cars waiting on them to cross the street?  NO!  9 times out of 10, the kids will not increase their pace at all and sometimes, I swear, they even slow down!

I was not raised this way!  I know my friends were not raised this way!  We were raised to be considerate of other people!  So, is it the generation after me?  I just hope it doesn't continue!  Consideration for other people is one of the things society can't afford to lose!

Writing Again!!

I am very excited!! My muse has returned!  While Jay was driving and I was riding in the car to GA last weekend for our mini vacation, I used that time to write more of my book that I started a couple of years ago.  Last night I finished a chapter and started another.

Not knowing exactly where my plot or the book itself was headed, I was having a hard time getting much written.  Last night, my muse kicked me in the butt and I think I finally have my story line and where I am going to take the characters and how everything is going to play out.  I am very excited to see how it all turns out though because I am still not sure how I want it to end.  I guess I'll see what comes out of my fingers when I get there. :)

No Disney Passes :(

We have been struggling with what to do to get ourselves into a better financial situation without sacrificing the changes for the better that we have made in our family life.  So, we came to the decision last night to try our best to save money and pay off our credit cards and other unnecessary bills.  Which means, no Disney Annual Passes this year. :(

I'm going to miss my favorite mouse and all the fun he offers!  But, hopefully, it will help us and be worth it.  With the housing market the way it is, we can't even sell our house and buy a cheaper one because we would have to do a short sale.  It's very difficult to turn around and buy another house when you have a short sale on your credit.

So, I am looking forward to paying off the credit cards and being a little more financially comfortable at the end of each month.  Even if it means saying M-I-C (See ya real soon) K-E-Y (Why? Because I love you!) M-O-U-S-E!  Hope to see you next year! :)

Best Mildew Remover?

Ever since we decided to get rid of the maid, our Master Bathroom shower has been getting worse with mold.  I couldn't figure out how to get rid of it.  It was a pain to scrub and I tried bleach, but it wouldn't get rid of it very well and it would come back very quickly.  I couldn't exactly call the maid up and ask her what she used.

So, I did some research on the internet.  Everything I found was people swearing by something called K-14 found at Lowe's.  I had only ever heard of X-14.  But, went to Lowe's to find this miracle product.  Just my luck, they didn't have any to be found.  Not even a spot for it on the shelf....No X-14 either.

Determined to get rid of this pesky mold once and for all, I bought 3 different types of cleaners and hoped that one of them would work.  If not, I'd just have to head back up there and buy 3 different types and just keep going until I finally had the mold problem solved.

I looked at all the labels, I must have spent at least half an hour just checking them all out.  Finally, I settled on Damp Rid Mildew Stain Remover, Kaboom Foam-Tastic & Tilex Mildew Root Penetrator.

I decided to try them one at a time, because if I found one that worked right away, I could return the ones that I had not yet opened.  So, I tried the Kaboom first.  After all, those showers they show in the commercials are waaaaaay dirtier than mine.  So, I sprayed a small area.  "When the foam turns white, you're ready to wipe!"  Yea right!  It was really cool to see the purple foam turn white, but that's about all it did.  It didn't even touch the mold!

Next, I tried the Damp Rid, I figured it had a really generic/professional looking label.  Again, I sprayed it on a small spot, left and came back a couple hours later.  It lightened the mold, but did not get rid of it completely.  So, it seems the only thing professional about this brand is the look!

I was getting really frustrated thinking I would have to go back to the store for more testing bottles.  Then, I tried the Tilex.  I saved the Tilex last because I remember using it when I was a teenager.  It was my job to clean the bathrooms and Tilex never really did work very well on the tile.  It worked fantastic when I needed to spray bleach spots on my jeans, but not so much on the tile back then.

So, I sprayed a small spot.  Well, they must have changed their formula because this time when I came back a couple hours later <cue the Hallelujah music> aaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!! The mold was completely GONE!!  I was so excited I sprayed the whole shower down and waited.  The waiting was like waiting for Santa to visit!  But, when I came back to check, it was like the maid had just been there and the shower was all white and clean!!

It was worth the experimenting to finally find the right product that will actually work!  I think we may have found Aaron's Science Project for next year!  He'll have to borrow someone's shower though because mine will never have mold again!!

Review: 30 Minutes or Less

Last night I tried to watch the movie 30 Minutes or Less.  I say "tried" because I did something I can't remember doing for a long time.  I turned the movie off and did not finish watching it.  Now, I am the type of person that prefers to finish what I start.  I suffered through Napoleon Dynamite; I even finish books that I am not enjoying because they might end up being good.

Keep in mind that I like "Stupid, Funny" movies.  I usually like Will Ferrell movies, the Hangover & Zombieland type movies.  However, 1 hour into this movie and I decided it wasn't worth staying up any later for.  They dropped the F-Bomb every other sentence, which isn't a problem if the dialogue is funny and it works to make it even more funny.  This movie was just a bunch of dirty words strung together with zero laughs in between.

I'm glad I decided to just go to bed as I'm sure my dreams were more entertaining than the rest of this movie would have been.

Super Bowl Half Time Show

As always, there seems to be a lot of opinions about the Super Bowl Half Time Show.  I remember watching the year Janet had her wardrobe malfunction and we all got a nice view of her boob!  I was shocked and surprised.  Honestly, it happened so fast, I wasn't sure I saw what I saw.  The girls in the room saw it, but the guys missed it.  Ironic that was!  But, it sure was entertaining and the show itself was really good!

This brings me to last night't "show".  And that's exactly what it was.  A show!  The past shows since the malfunction have been save and quite boring!  I was glad to hear that Madonna was going to do the show because I remember watching her as a kid and she always put on a great elaborate show.  She did not leave me disappointed last night!

However, it seems most of the guys did not agree.  During the show my husband pointed out that she was lip syncing.  I really didn't care that she was lip syncing!  The show itself was really great!  She wasn't quite as limber as she used to be, but she still pulled off an entertaining show!

Madonna is Flash & Wow and I think that's what I got last night!  Great job!

Bad Food Choices - Child Abuse?

I recently read this story about a 17 year old teen who was hospitalized because all she ate was chicken nuggets.  This makes me both sad and angry!  The story says at the end that her mother first gave her nuggets at 2, her daughter wouldn't eat anything else after that, so she gave up trying.  Seriously!?!

First of all, I have a big problem with parents who say my child "won't".  YOUR child will do what you tell them to do!  If this was my child, she would have eaten something other than nuggets or she would have starved until she got hungry enough to eat something else.  I mean let's get real here.  The child would not die of starvation!  I'm sure the child would have given in eventually if her mother had not given up first.

This "mother" should be charged with child abuse!  I wonder if she can still be charged even though her child is 17 now...

Read the whole story here:

http://usspost.com/sick-teen-says-shes-eaten-only-mcnuggets-63068/

Adele....Really?!?

Ok...So....Adele....I am wondering if people actually really like her music or do they just think they like it because the radio stations are constantly playing her?  Now, I grew up in the 80's screeching hair band decade.  So, you would think that I could handle music like Adele's that sounds like a cat got its tail slammed in a door.  But, come on!  It is just painful to hear.  Whenever her songs come on the radio, I look around my car for any sharp objects that I can jam into my ear to make it stop.  Alas, I don't have any....Luckily, I can just change the station.....

Disney Beards?

So, Disney is going to allow Disney workers to have beards?  Really?  Cuz, I thought only the Disney Villians had beards!  Now maybe my views are a little skewed because I don't like facial hair.  But, I think this is just another way that Disney is lowering their standards and making changes that are not for the better.

They have changed the Magic Kingdom parking lot from our loveable characters to Heroes and Villians and now they are allowing our cast members to have facial hair?!?   I just hope they don't lower too many other Disney standards.  Anyone who has been to both Disney & Universal know that there is a BIG difference in how the employees treat the customers.  However, the last time I went to Disney, I didn't get that same fabulous treatment from the cast members.  I felt like they should have been working at Universal...

Please Disney!  Don't take away Walt's vision completely!!
Read more here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/23/disney-will-allow-park-wo_0_n_1224824.html?1327358077

RIP Joe Paterno

So, Joe Paterno died today at the age of 85 from lung cancer complications.  This makes me sad. :(  It is sad that his legacy is now tarnished by someone else's evils.  Now, I may have incorrect information, but it is my understanding that as soon as Joe Paterno heard about the terrible incident that brought this scandal to light, he notified authorities.  What more could he do?

Obviously, according to the media and the school that he served well for so many years, it wasn't enough.  They took away everything that he worked for and most of what he lived for.  This is what can happen when you beat up an 85 year old.  They shut down, how could he go on?  Why fight the fight of cancer any longer when you are just fighting to stay in a life of scandal and ridicule.  Joe Paterno is another casualty of the media sharks!

Read the full story here: http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/news?slug=dw-wetzel_joe_paterno_obituary_012212

Gym & WWII Planes

Today was pretty good.  Even though I woke up late (6am).  My gym buddy, Cara, was running late too.  So, I made it to the gym only about 5 minutes behind her.  We had a good tiring workout.  I think my arms will be noodles for the next 2 days.

We did get a chance to check out our Body Fat % again.  We haven't done it since we joined back in October.  Being an accountant, I am all about the numbers and was starting to get discouraged because my weight was not going down.  I know, I know!  I am building muscles and muscles weigh more than fat.  Blah, blah, blah!  Darn it, I want to see some #s!  So, anyway, my body fat % has gone down 1.3%.  Not a huge drop.  But, a drop nonetheless.

I think it might help if I went on a diet.  But, I have found that it is super hard to change the way I eat.  Not only because I like my chocolate, pizza and other fattening foods.  I do like and eat vegetables when I can.  But, my hubby doesn't like vegetables, so a drastic change in diet is out of the question.  AND, we all know that one person changing the way they eat in a house doesn't work.  That's like trying to quit smoking when everyone else in the house is lighting up like the 4th of July.  I'll give it another month and see if I can get it to drop more without changing my diet.  If I don't see more progress, I may have to at least try changing my lunch since I don't eat that at home.

This afternoon, we took Aaron to see some WWII airplanes.  They have been restored and they were actually letting you go inside and walk through the planes.  For $425 per person, you could even go for a ride in one.  Um!  Yeah, we'll have to wait on that one!  But, we did enjoy checking out the planes.  Today we saw the B-17 & the B24.  They were supposed to have a Mustang there today.  But, it didn't show up.  Maybe it'll be there tomorrow.  Here are some great pictures we were able to take during the visit...If you can zoom on the stories of the planes.  I recommend it...very interesting!

Welcome!

Welcome to my blog!  I haven't written a blog in a long time.  But, I am excited at to be able to get my thoughts, ideas and opinions out there again.  Good things are happening in my life right now and I look forward to sharing them.

I don't know that I'll be able to write daily.  I think I'll treat this blog as more of a write when I have something to say.  No one wants to read a daily blog if it just has ramblings or forced writing and you can always tell when a writer is forcing the writing.

I love to read, so, I'll probably post some reviews of books as I read them.  I find that I mostly stick to the same genre of Paranormal Romance.  However, I will occasionally step out of that realm to read other things like Janet Evanovich.  I love her Stephanie Plum Series and am looking forward to the movie coming out next week.

I guess that's it for now...