Flashback Friday

I've been on vacation since last Friday, and today is the last official vacation day.  Yes, I know I have the weekend, but that doesn't count.  But I digress.  It's my last official day of vacation, and I have to be honest and say I'm ready to get back to my daily routine.  Note that I didn't say "normal" routine; we all know that "normal" is just a setting on a washing machine.  

Back in the day when I was younger, I would dread the last day of my vacation. Now that I'm in my 50's, I like my daily routine.  I know what time to get up; I know what time meetings are; I know what time lunch and supper are going to be, etc.  You get the picture.  

It seems like I've been on vacation for a month instead of a week and a day.  That's because we crammed a ton of fun in those days off.  But it's time for me and The 'Rents to get back to our regularly scheduled daily activities.

 

Rainy Days and Thursdays Do Not Get Me Down

It rained a lot today on my second-to-last work-day of vacation (I still have tomorrow and the regularly scheduled weekend) but it didn't matter at all because I was not at work.  The relatives and I did a lot of running around today and the rain didn't stop us from having a good time. 

Do You Believe In Omens?

I am going to share something that has been on my heart for a few months now: I'm thinking about dissolving Good Shepherd Security Consultants.  I haven't had any paying customers in two years, and it's getting very, very disheartening.  

Today, I think I might have gotten a sign to just put an end to it all: one of the GSSC magnetic signs on the Odyessy came off today during our trip to Cousin Wayne's farm.  

Maybe I'm overreacting, but we'll see.  I'm going to give it one more full year (the end of fiscal year 2017).  If I don't get any paying customers, or if I don't get any prayerful answers from God next year, then I think it might time to end it.  

As always, stay tuned. 

 

News From The Compound

TWIT and I would like to thank Cousin Craig for climbing up the ladder and hanging our Pap's Barn Art custom painted Carpenter's Wheel quilt block on our garage this weekend.  We hope that everyone in our neighborhood will see it and want to buy one.

Debate? What Debate?

While most of America was glued to their TVs tonight watching the Presidential debate, my family and I are outside under the gazebo with a fire in the fire pit, enjoying the company and conversation, and laughing and sharing memories.  And making new memories.  This was a much better choice tonight.

The Gala Recap

Yesterday seemed like a blur, with all of the day-long activities at The Gala.  But it was an awesome day, and the best part was all of us kinfolk getting to be together.

Gala Eve

Just like with Derby Eve, we are celebrating and partying tonight on Gala Eve.  Tomorrow is the long-anticipated Gala, to celebrate my Sweet Mother's birthday.  

We have one trip to the liquor store on the schedule for tomorrow, with a stop at the ice hut, and then it's game on.  

Today, we made the Awesome Beans, Shrimp Dip, baked a Decadent Carrot Cake, and got provisions in for tomorrow. 

For the rest of the night, we're on cruise control and are celebrating my Sweet Mother's Birthday. 

T Minus 2 Days

It's two days until The Gala.  Today, the grass at The Compound was mowed and trimmed, and the carport was pressure washed to get rid of the gigantic oil spot from where our various vehicles have leaked over the years.  The small refrigerator that we were going to throw away was plugged in today and at last check is cooling perfectly (so we might not throw it away after all).  

Two of the guests have arrived safely, and will be staying here at The Compound until next Friday.  

Now it's time for a nice strong cocktail.

T Minus 3 Days

The countdown is on -- it's three days until The Gala.  

My Dad is the on responsible for The Gala.  He named it.  He said it was more festive than calling it a "family reunion." 

As of now, we will have 22 family members converging on The Compound this weekend.  We have them coming from West Lafayette, Indiana, Phenix City, Alabama, Breckinridge County, Kentucky and good old PRP. 

We've planned a day of eating, drinking, and being merry, and most of all, being together.

Something You Don't Hear Every Day

Overheard at least 87 times tonight at a private five-course dinner with a different type of Patron tequila served with each course, and I quote:

"I like tequila."

Happy Talk Like A Pirate Day

TWIT would like to wish everyone a very happy Talk Like A Pirate Day.  

If you have a Krispy Kreme store in your area, if you go there and talk like a pirate, they will give you a free donut.  If you are dressed like a pirate, they will give you a free dozen donuts.  How awesome is that?

Things were crazy busy at work today, and I am sorry that I didn't get to say "Ahoy matey" or "Arrgghh" today.  But the thought was there.

Way To Go, Cards

TWIT would like to congratulate the UofL Cardinals football team on their mega impressive win today over the #2 Florida Seminoles.  The Cards sent the 'Noles back down to Florida with a 63-20 loss.  

It's not secret to those that know me that I am not a huge UofL fan;  I am part of the Big Blue Nation.  It's not that I dislike UofL; I just like UK better.  I will root for UofL when they play anyone except UK and UNC.  

I am giving credit where it is due.  WTG, Cards.  Give me time - maybe I will become part of L1C4. 

The Gala

About twon months ago, The Old Man decided that he wanted to have a quasi-family reunion.  We've never officially had one before, so now is a good time as any.  He named it The Gala. 

Starting next Thursday, we will have family converging from West LaFayette, Indiana, LaFayette, Indiana, Phenix City, Alabama, and Hudson, Kentucky.  Not to mention honorary family from Louisville, KY.  

As I said, we've been planning The Gala for about two months.  We have a timeline for next week -- for things that need to be bought and for all the things that need to be done.  Of course, yours truly planned the timeline.  Because that's what I do -- I'm a scheduler.  But I digress.

 I can't begin to tell you how much we are looking forward to The Gala - to be able to visit with our family.  After all, that's what it's all about. 

As always, I'll keep you posted. 

Congrats, GM

TWIT would like to wish my dear friend and coworker GM a very happy engagement.  This week, he got down on one knee and asked his girlfriend to marry him.  Of course she said yes.  She is getting one of the hardest working men that I know as her husband.  They haven't set a date yet, but TWIT wishes them a most awesome and happy marriage.

I Want My Jams, And I Don't Mean Jelly

Yesterday on the way home from work, I discovered some issues with my stereo (note: that sounds incredibly old school) in my old Blazer.  It would cut in and out, just like it normally did when I was playing a CD and hit a bump.  It got increasingly worse today on the way to and from work.  This really bummed me out. 

After supper tonight, I went out and got a piece of very fine sand paper and lightly wiped over the contacts;  my stereo has the face plate that is removable, so I'm hoping this might fix the issue.  If not, I guess I'll get a new stereo.  And I don't need to tell you that the stereo will probably be worth more than the old Blazer.

Thank You, Krogers

I would like to thank the Customer Service crew at my 'hood Krogers tonight.  They gave exceptional service, above and beyond what was probably required of them.  That's the main reason I do the bulk of my grocery shopping at this store - for the great service.  They were quick to give me rain checks on some items that were sold out, and didn't give any hassle.  

Keep up the good work, crew. 

Trivia Update

I am sad to report that after a two-week hiatus, Team Divas came in third place tonight out of six team.  At least we were in the top half.

In our defense, everyone (even the two teams in first and second place) agreed that the questions were way harder tonight than in weeks past.  

That's fine - we will just step up our game next week.

Link Of The Week

A dear friend and one of the most loved people in the city of Louisville, Dawne Gee, has a charity that is near and dear to all of our hearts.  It's called "A Recipe To End Hunger."  She has put together a cookbook with recipes from celebrities, and the proceeds go towards Blessings In A Backpack, an affiliate of Dare To Care.  The Blessings In A Backpack gives out backpacks full of food on Friday afternoons to kids in school who, without the food in the backpack, might not have a meal until they get back to school on Monday. 

I feel horrible for not posting this last week; this afternoon, a silent auction and concert was held to raise money for A Recipe To End Hunger.  I was very happy to be a small part of this.  And I am already looking forward to next year's event. 

Please visit http://www.arecipetoendhunger.com/ and buy a cookbook.  You will be helping the kids who might not have had a meal on the weekend.

Dog Days Of Summer

Our Krogers occasionally gives us "Best Customer Bonus" coupons - usually for something free based on the items you most frequently purchase.  Once a quarter we'll get a coupon for free Cheerios, Prego spaghetti sauce, etc.  This week, we got a coupon for a free box of Pedigree dog food.  And we have no dog. And I've never bought any dog food at Krogers. But I was glad to get the free box nonetheless, and gave it to a friend who is as cashier at Krogers for her little Shitzu.  Things that make you go hmmm.

Happy National Hug Your Boss Day

TWIT would like to wish all bosses out there a happy National Hug Your Boss Day.  

The morning started out very early; Fridays are my early get-to-work-at-5:45-day, so by the time most others in the office were rolling in, I was ready for a nap. One of the awesome trio that works for me, Katie, came to my office and wished me a happy Hug Your Boss Day and gave me a big ole hug.  I'm here to tell you it was the highlight of my day. 

Are You Ready For Some Football?

TWIT would like to welcome back the 2016 NFL season.  It's been eight long months since the last NFL game (which was the Super Bowl) and we're ready for some football.  Sure, we're have four weeks of pre-season games but tonight is the first regular season game.

As always, I will be cheering for my Tennessee Titans and the New England Patriots,  and will hope that I can give you positive weekly reports on the Zoeller Fantasy Football League.  

A Rough Day At The Compound

This has been a very rough day at The Compound.  The 'Rents have been sneezing all day long, thanks to the unusually high pollen and rag weed counts here in the Ohio Valley right now.  They've never had the pollen and rag weed to affect them like it has this week.  I forgot to take my allergy pill yesterday and last night before I went to bed, all I wanted to do was get my tooth brush and scratch the roof of my mouth. 

I'm hoping we can get some rain in the next day or two to wash all of that crap out of the air. 

Stop The Noise

For the past 24 hours, we've been dealing with an annoying incessant beep coming from our refrigerator.  We've read over the owner's manual for an hour, I've Googled for almost another hour, and even spent 20 minutes on hold just to speak with customer service, who told us to just unplug it, wait 30 seconds, and plug it back in; all to no avail. 

We reset the temperature on it, and the owner's manual said it takes 24 hours for it to reset.  So we're hoping and praying that at this time tomorrow, we will no longer be hearing the incessant beeping.  As always, stay tuned. 

Global Step Challenge Reflections

Our 100 day Global Step Challenge at work ended on September 1, and I honestly will say that the 100 days flew by.  I think the 100 days went by so quickly because I really enjoyed the walking. 

For the week before the Challenge, I wore my Fit Bit to see just how much I walked during the day.  For the week I was around 2500 or more steps.  So when the time came for the Challenge to begin, I made a big goal of doubling my average daily steps to 5000.  It only took a few days for me to start beating the 5000 step by by 1500-2000 steps.  So at the 25 day mark when we started phase 2, I bumped my goal up to 7000 steps.  Once again, I easily met that.  At the halfway point, I bumped up my goal to 7500 steps, and once again, I easily met and exceeded that.  During the third phase, I even had some 10,000 step days.  When the fourth phase came I didn't want to jinx myself so I set my goal at 8000 steps.  Once again, I met the goal. 

I'm not going to lie - there were some nights when I was walking up and down the driveway at 10:00 at night to meet my goal, but I did it.  And there were many evenings when I would go to Wal-Mart and walk around the inside of the store for a half an hour to meet my goal.  But I did it.

I'm proud of myself for sticking with it for the 100 days.  I gained confidence and pride in knowing I stuck with something I started.  I also gained some endurance.  I can walk for a half hour continuously now with no problem at all.  I could probably go an hour if I had the time.  But I also lost something during the Challenge. I lost 30 pounds in the last 100 days, just by walking more every day.  I didn't change much about my diet except cutting back on fast food for breakfast and lunch.  I first noticed a difference when I was able to get up into the truck easier, without having to use a stool to climb up into it.  And this summer I noticed a big difference in my shorts and pants.  They were baggy, and that made me very happy.

So now that the Challenge is over, I'm not stopping.  I'm keeping my daily goal of 8000 steps, and I'm going to continue walking on my morning and afternoon breaks at work instead of staying in my office.  I'm going to continue to park the car farther away when I go somewhere so I will get in more steps. 

I remember how scared I was at the start of the Challenge.  I was afraid I wouldn't make my goals and I would let my teammates down.  But I had a great team full of encouragers, and I think Team 17 for their support.  We ended in 10th place out of 21 teams, so that's not too shabby at all.

Race Relations 101

I went down to the river park tonight to finish my steps for the day, and when I was finished, I went to the pavilion and sat down at the only available picnic table so I could play my Pokemon Go game for a bit.  An African American family was having a picnic/party there under the pavilion and were using the other 4 big picnic tables.  

I sat there and was playing my Pokemon game and gulping down my bottle of water, and a few of the family members came over and asked if I wanted anything else to drink, or if I wanted to partake in their party with some fried chicken and baked beans.  I told them no, but thanked them so much for offering.  I told them I was just on my way home from walking to get my daily steps in and just stopped at the pavilion to play Pokemon.  They even offered me a cocktail with awesome Ciroc vodka.  I thanked them again for the offer, and as I left I told them I hoped we'd meet again down at the river. 

To sum it all up, I was alone and I was the only white woman there under the pavilion, but I wasn't a bit afraid.  And I was thrilled that they recognized me and invited me to be a part of their party.  And to tell the truth -- if I hadn't been still full from my Sunday lunch I would have sure taken them up on their offer for some chicken and a cocktail.

Overheard

Overheard at the store, and I quote:

"You ain't shit." 

Flashback Friday

Game On, Homes

For the first time in my 48 years of living in this house, we are having a feud with our neighbor.  It's not with Nadine nor PS and his wife Bev; it's with Nicky Boy that is directly next door.  Apparently, he does not like us getting on his part of the side yard, and today, he put concrete blocks up to evidently show us the line that we are not supposed to cross.  My bad -- in the history of living here, we've always parked one of the vehicles in the little side yard when we've moved one out of the garage.  Well, today, I guess that is stopping.  

Fine with me.  He just needs to remember that it goes both ways.  The first time I see one of his large dogs on our property not on a leash, it's going to be game on, homes.  All he had to do was tell me "Puddin, if you don't mind, please don't park one of your all's cars there on the side yard."  We would have been happy to comply.  But with him going all Trump Wall on us, I don't know what to think.