Link Of The Week

We had a pretty wild storm move through the 'Ville on Tuesday morning. Thank goodness nobody was injured and there wasn't much damage but it was wild nonetheless. One reason it was wild was because it was a rare occasion when the Weatherazzi accurately predicted the time of the storm. But I digress. There were tornado warnings all over the place Tuesday from this storm, and in up in Chicago they were calling it a "Chiclone" because the winds were so high. Our diligent friends at NASA have a very cool picture of this storm that was taken Tuesday morning. Visit http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=46662 and check it out.

Just What The Doctor Ordered

I took a much-needed break from school today and so far as of the time I am typing this in, I haven't worked on school one bit. And it's been awesome. I was up early, had breakfast with the family and just puttered around the house until I was motivated enough to go out and run some errands and get a few groceries. When I got home, we all three had an awesome snack of nachos and then we all three had an awesome nap. I must say the nap has been the highlight of my day so far.

Flashback Friday

Today was the day when coworkers' kids and grandkids come by in their Halloween costumes and trick-or-treat the offices and cubicles. It's truly one of our favorite days of the year. But I digress. One of the guys in my department had his mother-in-law bring his two kids by this afternoon, and we while we were chatting with his two kids, I was happy to find out that some things never change. I asked his kids about their candy, and yep, kids still sort out their Halloween candy.

It was usually time for bed by the time I got done trick-or-treating, but the next day as soon as I got home from school I would dump out all of my candy and sort it all. The first sort was to weed out the candy I didn't like. That went into a separate container for the family to eat. Then the real sorting began. Candy bars in one pile, suckers in another, gum in another, etc etc. The sorting wasn't all in vain; I would get plastic bags to put the candy in them so I could keep them all separated. It wasn't me being OCD as a kid; it was merely for order. I wanted the candy sorted and separated so I wouldn't have to rummage through my big plastic pumpkin to find what I was looking for.

Brrrrrr

I've said it before and I'll say it again - when I say it's cold/cool, you know it's cold/cool. And it's cool. I left for work this a.m. wearing a long sleeved shirt, thinking it would be enough. By the time I got home 30 minutes ago I was cold.

I met a friend downtown on Fourth Street Live after work, and as soon as I parked the car and got out, I could feel the chill. I was very ashamed to admit to myself that I was unprepared and didn't have a jacket with me. But I persevered. Needless to say I didn't stay very long to partake in the festivities - a concert by a C list up-and-coming country singer - but I did walk and stand around for a while.

I guess I'll have to cave in and go down to the basement now and bring up one of my warmer, heavier jackets, because the forecasted temp for going-to-work time tomorrow a.m. is in the low 30's. Maybe I can get by with a long-sleeved t-shirt and one of my down vests.

Just A Reminder . . .

I want to take a moment and publicly proclaim how thankful I am to still have my Mother and Father in my life. Before, during, and after supper tonight, we discussed a current drama going on in the lives of some friends. Dad summed it all up when he said "I just need to remind you - don't ever be afraid to tell your Mama and Daddy anything. We might be mad or upset at first, but we're still your Mama and Daddy, and we love you no matter what, and we'll do whatever we can to fix it."

I have to say he's absolutely right.

Tornado Tuesday

If you were anywhere within a 200 mile radius of Louisville this morning between breakfast and lunch, then chances are you experienced Tornado Tuesday. Here in the 'Ville, the civil defense sirens started going off a little after 11:00 to let warn everyone of a tornado warning for the area. Thank the Lord none formed nor touched down, but it was pretty wild for the 45 minutes that my coworkers and I were huddled in the inner hallways and bathrooms of the first floor of our office. I'm proud to say that nobody freaked out, and things went smoothe. I did learn some things that will help me make my little department better equipped and prepared.

I'm going to buy a portable digital TV to keep at work, and more importantly I will make a point of keeping it fully charged at all times. Today during the storm, the only news and information we were getting was from a local AM radio channel that we could get on an iPhone thanks to the iHeart Radio app. I want to stay informed.

Quote Of The Week, Volumn 2

Today is a quasi-historic day in my life. Today is the day that I am getting back to the business of eating healthier and either riding my bike or walking every day. I'm ashamed to confess that I've put back on all but ten pounds that I lost 2 and a half yeas ago. This Saturday night I made this decision, and I prayed for strength and to resist temptation. Yesterday in Sunday School, the title of our lesson is my new favorite personal quote:

"The Old Way Has Got To Go"

Nuff said.

Link Of The Week

It's hard to believe that Halloween is only a week away. Where has the month gone? In case you don't have an idea for a Halloween costume, TWIT can help you out. Just visit http://halloweencostumeideas.net/ for some cool Halloween costume ideas. And if you use any of these, please send me a picture - I'd love to see your costumes.

Quote Of The Week

My current favorite quote was spoken by one of my favorite characters on "Grey's Anatomy", Dr. Bailey. She was putting one of the resident surgeons in her place, and they were talking about a patient being crazy. In all of her infinite wisdom, Dr. Bailey simply said:

"Crazy is relative."

Flashback Friday

A dear friend from South Carolina called last to chat and catch up, and during our conversation we talked about Gram. We both found it hard to believe that it's been 11 years this week that she died. It wasn't a sad conversation - we both laughed as we told our favorite Grandma stories. After my friend called last night, I didn't think anymore about it until today at work, when three friends called me to say they were thinking of me as they too reminisced about Gram today. That made me feel so awesome that others still keep her memory alive.

As I drove home from work today, I could just hear Grandma on the phone saying "Make sure to get onion rings when you pick up our fish tonight." We ate an order of rings in your memory tonight, Gram. And they were good.

It's A Small World

I just had a text and a call from a dear friend in South Carolina, saying that he had a slice of Derby pie at a Greek restaurant, of all places. Who knew? My only comment was if the pie he ate was trademarked. Anyhoo, if that isn't a good example of multicultural, I sure don't know what is.

Get Well Soon, Mom

TWIT would like to wish my Mom a major get well soon. She's been out of commission since Mon day afternoon with a nasty stomach bug. She's perkier today than she's been all week, so we're hoping that she's on the downside of it, but she still gets sick at her stomach. And needless to say, the Cherokee blood in her makes her stubborn and she hasn't called her doctor yet. Now I know where I get it from. But I digress. Dad and I have been doing our best to keep The Compound up and running all week but it hasn't been easy without our Chief Of Staff. We all hope you feel better very soon, Mom. When you're sick, we all feel sick.

Reflections On Yesterday

I've had ample time to calm down from yesterday evening's big meltdown over thinking my wallet had been stolen, and while I was thinking about it, I came up with some things about our wallets that I'd like to share with you, my faithful readers.

First of all, please do not carry anything in your wallet that has your Social Security number on it. I remember back in the day how Mom, Dad, Grandma and Grandpa all had a cool metal engraved Social Security card in their wallets. I cringe today at the thought of my Social Security number getting into the hands of someone else. If you have anything in your wallet or purse with your Social Security number on it, please take it out and keep it in a safe place at home.

Second, the next time you're around a copier, please take the entire contents of your wallet out and make a copy of everything in it, and then take the copy and store it at home in a safe place. It will be invaluable if you wallet is ever stolen.

Third, make sure you know all of the phone numbers to call if your wallet is stolen. Your bank/financial institution, all of your credit card companies, the DMV for your driver's license, your health insurance carrier, AAA, the library - any business that has issued you some type of card that you keep in your wallet.

Having this information on hand if your wallet is stolen could make a difference in someone stealing your identity and racking up big $$$ against your accounts. Be safe.

I Can Finally Breathe Again

Just a couple of hours ago, I endured one of the scariest moments of my life so far. For about fifteen minutes, I thought that my wallet had been stolen from my purse while shopping. Thank you, Lord, that it wasn't. But I can't begin to tell you how scared and panicked I felt during those fifteen minutes.

It all started at 4:30. I called home, like I do every day, to see if the 'Rents needed anything on the way home. Mom has been really sick since yesterday with a nasty stomach bug, and Dad nor I wanted to cook so I checked to see what he wanted to eat for supper and to see if Mom wanted anything. I jotted down the list of provisions they wanted, grabbed my purse and headed toward home and the WalMart. I did my shopping and when I got the checkout lane and reached inside the Prada for my wallet, it wasn't there. I practically dumped everything out onto the counter and still no wallet. I told the clerk it must have fallen out, and I ran out to the car to check. Still no wallet. That's when I panicked. It wasn't your ordinary anxiety attack; it was a full-blown panic. I ran back inside and found a security person and told them that I thought my wallet had been stolen. I then told them that there was a chance it had fallen out of my purse and was at work in my cubicle. A police officer was there on unofficial business and heard my story, and when he heard me say I was going to zoom back to work to check, he offerred to drive me there. So yours truly got to ride in a police car (uncuffed, thank goodness, and in the front seat) down the street to work. I was a bit disappointed he didn't put on the lights and siren, but at least he did go fast. He stayed in the parking lot at work while I ran in. As soon as I got to my cube I dropped to my knees and was crawling around looking for it. After a minute that seemed like an eternity, I found it. It had fallen out of my purse and was sitting on top of the computer tower on the flower. As soon as I picked it up and clutched it to my chest, I said a major thank you prayer for finding it. I ran back out, still clutching my wallet to my chest, hopped back in the cruiser and Officer Smitty hauled me back to WalMart where I was able to buy my groceries, and then I headed home, still trembling a bit.

I still have to say that I don't ever remember being that scared before. For the fifteen minutes that the cop was hauling me to work, I thought I was going to have a nervous breakdown. All the time I kept thinking "Who all am I going to have to call to let them know my wallet was stolen?" The list was long -- the DMV to tell them my drivers license was stolen, my credit union to tell them about my debit card, Chase bank to tell them about my [thankfully] one credit card, AAA, Anthem health insurance, and various others. But thank the good Lord I didn't have to make those calls.

As I type this, I've calmed down a bit, but I am still a bit nerved up. I just hope and pray nobody else has to go through that uncertainty.

Are You Ready For Some Football?

We're all pumped and ready here at The Compound for Monday Night Football. At 8:30, we will get to watch our beloved Tennesee Titans take on the Jacksonville Jaguars. Supper is long over, the dishes are done, and we're just relaxing and watching fill-in TV shows until kick-off time. We've got our pan of Jiffy Pop popcorn and a bottle of sugar-free A&W root beer on stand-by and we're just waiting for the kick-off. Normally we don't watch Monday Night Football because it inteferes with our other beloved show, "Dancing With The Stars", but the Titans take priority.
If you haven't made any plans for later on this evening, get your bath or shower and get your stuff ready for work and the stuff ready for the kids to go to school, and sit back and watch my Titans hopefully win.

Link Of The Week

I can't repeat enough how I like to get something free. I know we all do. Usually there are some strings attached with offers that are too-good-to-be-true. But this week, I came across a freebie that not only sounded too-good-to-be-true, it WAS true. Just visit this link and print out a couple for a free waffle at Waffle House. It truly works because I used my coupon on the way to work Thursday morning. The link is long but just click here: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=5nheftcab&v=00153jkMsybZmg-mYbuiJv44_k3bYmNn8QalUXE3-oMyhH22xHzx2wYD__-JujUyf-s9IORXwpIxHs4jCKVeh7OyBgOEn5sTGI0kWLrlM9Qog0-w7pzaJvsxClZf8a1gwsWxrjeuVOn87PP73f4o86uoHrm8hAA3NHml1RjcNEOIoVvKdQ9Q2vgWJPKZuTsGScUAiM3ZXuymljipiE7fx40wRbJtLuHz5w6PnY_mp1cNA4TCNRb1FYUoOKsd4ptyLe4I8MbA09GCe5yJjje3WE6d9qSua3hSWmb

The Light At The End Of The Tunnel

I spent the majority of my Saturday off working on my final exam for this class. Yep. While family, neighbors and friends were outside enjoying the awesome sunny, not-too-hot, fall weather we had today I was inside studying. I'm happy to report that as of about five minutes ago, my work for this class is officially over. Actually, the class does not officially end until noon tomorrow, but I completed and turned in my final exam, took my last weekly test, and posted the last of my comments on the discussion boards. I have a day to rest and then the next class starts on Monday. But as of right now, faithful readers, the end is in deed in sight. My next class is one I've been looking forward to - Terrorism and Extremist Behavior. But after the Terrorism class, there will only be one more to take and then I will be finished and will be the recipient of my second Masters Degree.

As you know from previous posts, this class was very overwhelming and stressful. In fact, it caused me to have my very first anxiety attack. But it's over, and I've learned a few things from this stressful class. The biggest lesson I learned was that I need to pace myself and not try to do too much. On Monday when the new class starts, I'm going to print out the calendar for the class and will pace myself and do a little bit each day. This new class doesn't have a midterm or final exam, thank goodness, but in place of the exams there will be two research papers. So now you see the need to pace myself. The next lesson, and probably the biggest, I learned is that this Masters degree program is supposed to be no-pressure; I did it one time already, and this second was is supposed to be for ME. I just have to keep remembering that.

Flashback Friday

My Grandpa's sister, Aunt Maimie, and her husband, Uncle Lon, lived about five minutes from us out in Valley Station. Whenever we would go visit, they would continue with Grandma and Grandpa's trend of spoiling me. While the adults would drink coffee or sip on some of Uncle Lon's homemade wine, Aunt Maimie would always have Orange Crush (in the old school brown bottles, of course) and a can of Underwood Deviled Ham and some saltine crackers for me to snack on while I watched TV in the den. Sometimes she would alternate and give me a little can of potted meat, but most of the times, it was Underwood Deviled Ham. To me, that was one of the most awesome treats.

This week, I tried to travel back to my childhood and had a can of deviled ham for lunch. I shared it with my coworker, friend and faithful reader SH, who shared her own story of how the Deviled Ham was a major treat when she was a kid. Lo and behold, we both thought it tasted the same as it did when we were a kid. At least that hadn't changed.

Dear Fall:

Dear Fall:

Thank you very much for visiting us this year. It seems for the past few years we haven't been able to spend very much time with you. Your friend Summer usually makes a quick exit followed on the heels of your friend Winter. But this year, we've been able to spend some time with you.

You've been a bit warmer than I would like, but I haven't complained. I've just kept the air conditioner on in the car and at home. And I'm so thankful you haven't been too cool; I don't think I could handle having the furnace on at home right now. Just keep up the temps in the upper 70's for a few more weeks and we'll get along fine.

You've been awesome in keeping us from having to have the grass cut here at The Compound for the past two months. We can't thank you enough. And you've also been very kind to keep your leaves from falling all at once. Once again, we can't thank you enough for that.

We hope that you can stay with us for at least another month or so before your friend Winter shows up. But just between you and me, I've always had a major crush on Winter. And with as much as I love the cold, I think Winter and I will always have a love affair.

Thanks again for visiting with us a lot this year. And as much as I'd love to see your friend Winter, I do hope that you can stick around for a while longer.

Love,
Puddin

I Want A New Drug . . . Test

When I walked to the lunchroom at work yesterday morning to put my lunch in the crammed-full refrigerator, I noticed a nurse was sitting at one of the tables in the lunchroom, with a bunch of stuff spread out on the table in front of her. I knew that our company-sponsored flu shots weren't until today, but then I saw the familiar "lottery" cards that us employees get when it's our time for a drug test. I was caught off guard - usually the nurse is out in the hallway at a small table by the mens and womens bathrooms, but today she was in the lunchroom. Of course I had to ask what was going on. She explained that they no longer used the urine analysis tests, where we all had to pee in a cup, and instead now they swab the insides of the employees' mouths. She said that it was more "effective." It looked like something from a "CSI" episode where the investigators were swabbing for DNA samples. Anyhoo, it was quite the topic of conversation yesterday and today.

Why Do They Call It That?

As part of my lunch today at work, I brought two hard boiled eggs and proceeded to slice them in half, scoop out the yellows and mix them with some mayo and mustard and make me some deviled eggs. Let me tell you it was quite the center of conversation in the lunchroom today. We started talking about deviled eggs, and a coworker and faithful reader asked if I knew why they called them deviled eggs. I told him that I didn't know, but reassured him I would find the answer.

Here's the history behind the the name. An Englishman by the name of William Underwood set up a small condiment business on Boston's Russia Wharf in 1822. It did pretty well both developing and selling new condiment products. In 1868, Underwood's sons began experimenting with a new product created from ground ham blended with a mix of special seasonings. They introduced a product line of seasoned meat products including ham, turkey, chicken, lobster, and tongue. They called the seasoning process "deviling," and the Underwood "red devil" was born. Today many other foods, including eggs and crab, are serve"deviled." For the record, to be considered deviled, a food has to have a kick from something like mustard, hot sauce, cayenne pepper or chopped hot peppers. Now you know.

Bonus Link Of The Week

I found a link today that is too good to have to wait almost a week to share with you, faithful readers, so I'm giving you a Bonus Link Of The Week. We all like to get something free, especially if it's something useful. Today I came across a link where you can get a free bottle of Advil. Just visit https://d1rzercstjfql6.cloudfront.net/sample.html and enter your name and address and they will send you a coupon for a free bottle of Advil.

Link Of The Week

It's not big secret now that I don't cook. I was raised in a house with two excellent cooks so thank goodness I never had to cook. But in the past few years, I've been dispensing cooking adivce to friends who know darned good and well that I don't cook.

This week I came across an awesome site for all of you cooks - it's from the good people at Betty Crocker. The site is one of the best recipe sites out there on the internet. Visit it at http://www.bettycrocker.com and happy cooking.

Flashback Saturday

I apologize for no post yesterday. I am taking a much needed short break. This week I reminisced about a time when I didn't have so many responsibilities going on at one time. It sure was a nice memory.

None For Me, Thanks

A new restaurant opened down the street from work, and they sent over a few copies of the menu for us to check out. Other than the food being a bit on pricy side, I would visit it. In fact, one day next week I plan on checking it out and getting lunch there. But you can rest assured one thing I won't be getting from them is a Fruit Bowel.

Things Are FALLing Into Place

I've struggled and worked and worked and worked some more and as of an hour ago I submitted the big final project for this class that I've been working on for over a month. Believe me when I tell you it felt like a huge weight was lifted off of my shoulders. Of course I still have two more week's worth of regular school work and then the final to do but this was a major relief. Thank you all for your prayers and words of encouragement. It means a lot to know I have a major support team standing right there with me as I get closer and closer to the end of this Master's program.

Take That, Paula Deen

We just finished with supper here at The Compound and I'm here to tell you that Paula Deen herself could not have made fried green tomatoes any better than my Mother did tonight. These were the last of the tomatoes from the garden here at The Compound, and they were perfect - not too soggy, not too crisp. Just perfect - that's about all I can say. We all three ate a couple of slices more than we should but boy were they good. Major props go out to Mom for frying them up and to Dad for all of his hard work in planting, cultivating and growing the tomatoes.

BRRRRR Update

I'm not ashamed to say that before I left the house this morning, I came back inside and got a jacket to wear today. When I left the house it was 49 degrees at The Compound. Yep, that's cool, even by my standards. But for those of you in the Ohio Valley (my Rents included) there is relief in sight - by the end of the week the temperature is supposed to be back up to close to 90. Just keep on wearing sweaters or light jackets for the new few mornings because by the end of the week you'll be sweating like the rest of us.

Link Of The Week

By now we all know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. To all of my faithful readers this means getting a yearly mammogram - yes, you men, too, need to checked out. This month is filled with lots of fundraising walks, and the major league teams are promoting awareness, too.

Please take a moment to visit the site of my favorite team and if you wear ballcaps, please purchase a special pink NFL Tennessee Titans ballcap. Visit http://www.titanslockerroom.com and order your special edition sideline cap today.

Relief Is In Sight

For the past few months I've been spending every waking moment at home working on school work for my Criminal Behavior class. That is no exaggeration. In between the insane amount of weekly reading and the weekly assignments, I've been working on a big final project for this class. In fact, I've spent the majority of my vacation days and evenings this week working on the project non-stop. I felt a lot better last night when I put the books away before going to bed - I had about 3/4 of the project written. I felt a huge relief. But me and my fellow classmates were all still stressed because the professor has been very lax in posting our grades. The last time he posted was September 1, so for a month we didn't know how we were doing. That alone is enough to drive a sane person crazy. But lo and behold, grades were posted today and if I could have done a cartwheel I would have when I saw that as of today, I am just one point away from an A. I'm not ashamed to admit that this class has been the hardest by far in this Masters program and at one point I was seriously thinking that I would have to take the class over (note: in the Masters program, you have to get at least a B- or else you have to take the class again). I've got two more quizzes, our final project and our final exam to pull an A out. Wish me luck, and as always, I'll keep you posted.

Flashback Friday

First of all let me apologize for not posting yesterday. I was deep into my research project for this class and was on the verge of an anxiety attack when I realized it was due in less than a week. Add to that the fact that I was still very worried about my boss and her condition fighting the ovarian and colon cancer and you had one rattled Puddin. On a happier note, I've made considerable progress on my school project today, thanks to still being off from work. But I digress.

Today is the first official day of the weekend long St. James Art Fair here in old Louisville, and the kids are all off from school today. The school system decided that since a lot of teachers would call in sick to take the day off to go to the art fair, they would just let everybody off. I'm just sorry that the St. James Art Fair wasn't that popular at Greenwood Elementary or Conway Middle School back in the day because we didn't get the day off.