counting flowers on the wall

1.11.2008

At 7:25am this morning, it is snowing in Taji, Iraq.

I just thought you all would want to know! Yes, there will be pictures up in the gallery soon...I just have to wait for them to upload one at a time. It is a painfully slow procedure, but everyone complains when I don't put pictures up!

We were without internet, phones, network, printers, scanners....almost everything for almost a week. It was horrible! Thankfully we finally got connectivity back after the IT crew working overnight a few nights. Of course, we're still trying to get everything else to work...like the scanner, so I can email documents out.

Then there are mornings when you wake up, go use the bathroom, and discover that there is no water on your side of the building. THAT is always a pleasant surprise, let me tell ya! Or the mornings you wake up and discover that the proverbial 'someone' has flipped off the switches to the hot water heaters and you have no hot water to shower with. That is always a nice surprise as you stand there naked.

I need to get back to running back and forth to the printer/scanner every time someone from IT emails me. Just wanted to post a quick update. Hope all is well and that everyone is staying warm and dry!

01.03.2008

Happy New Year everyone! I would like all three or four of you reading to know that I'm alive and well, a little sleep deprived, but fine nonetheless. Of course, the sleep thing is probably because I'm still experimenting on how to not only keep my mattress from leaning to one side, but to also keep it from immediately forming a bowl shape when I lay down. Do you know how hard it is to sleep on your stomach in a bowl? Through creative use of pillows and folded sheet sets, along with the stolen extra mattress, I think I have a workable bed situation worked out. For the record, though...two bad mattresses do not, in fact, make one good bed!

Anyway, the holidays were both very nice and very sucky. I had a very nice time since my friend A got to come visit. It was great having someone here who knows me well enough to make me laugh at myself and most everything around me. I really needed that! Sucky because I had Christmas on the phone with my family, missing them horribly. I was a good girl and didn't open my presents until then...and I made out like a bandit! Lots of toys, some plain gold earrings, a nice St Christopher medal, more toys, some chocolate, books, more toys, a giant coloring book, cars from Cars, and finally, more toys.

Thank you to anyone and everyone who sent presents and well wishes! The wish lists are still there (Dec 3rd entry, if you are curious), and I am continually adding/removing things from the Amazon list. I just ordered myself some more workout clothes so that I can go to the gym more often. I should have ordered some warmer clothes, as it is absolutely freezing this week and it is going to get colder next week!

Specifically to everyone who has sent me books...I wanted you to know that I am passing them along as I am finished reading them. I think it is good book karma to keep them circulating rather than languishing in my little room. To the random anon people who sent books from my wishlist, thank you a million times over! Your generosity is awesome!

So...yeah, still here at Camp Cooke. Things are still nice and quiet, just like I like them to be (knocks on wooden desk). We work every day, though Fridays are our "short" day, which usually just means we're working for free that afternoon. I might start sleeping in a bit on Fridays just to take advantage of not having to be here at any specific time.

I've only travelled to the Green Zone since I've gotten here. It was very nice to spend New Years there with people I know. The container I got placed in was awesome, as it had it's own bathroom and shower In. The. Room! Oh what luxury! There is also an espresso shop just across the street, which was a most welcome sight. We got to go eat at the Palace before we came back to Taji, which was awesome...they have sandwich presses!! It was just nice having a change of the usual dfac food. It gets old after a few weeks...steaks which may or may not be cooked within an inch of their lives, fish that is so heavily breaded that you aren't sure what it is, breaded...well, everything is breaded I think, except the steaks, lobster tails, and ribs. Dont' be too impressed...have you ever tried to eat a t-bone steak that's cooked to Very Well Done with a plastic fork and plastic knife? Or eat crab legs with no claw crackers? At least I didn't pull out a leatherman like the men...I broke mine open and poked the meat out with the blunt end of the plastic knife. I rule! :)

I'm going to be uploading some pictures today, so please be patient with me in case it starts to take forever. We are on, I'm convinced, the slowest internet in the world! Hope you all are well. If you would like to drop a card or something in the mail, let me know and I'll shoot you my address. Mail Call is the best time of the day, just sayin' :)

12.03.2007

Just a quick entry to let you all know that I am not dead or anything. Most webpages that I'd like to visit are blocked...so there's that. I can't post to livejournal...blocked. Perhaps I can get there from the MWR building, not sure.

I desperately need a hair cut. I'm already getting bored with the dining facility, though I can't complain about the food at all. I should have packed some clothes to go to the gym, that's for sure. Hopefully the box from John and Crash will get here soon and I'll have clothes to go work out in.

If you want to get me something for the holidays, I have an amazon wishlist here:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/registry.html?ie=UTF8&type=wishlist&id=HTZX8P0A0SYU

I also have one on thinkgeek.com, or here:

http://www.thinkgeek.com/brain/gimme.cgi?wid=81d625b19

Yes, I'm too lazy to figure out the code to link it...so just do a cut and paste and it'll be fine! I will update the shipping address on think geek just to make sure it comes to Iraq rather than Alabama.

If you want to send me a card (and I would love some!), shoot me an email at michelle dot bannnister at gmail dot com. I know there is an email link over there...but honestly, I don't check it very often.

OK, back to work for me...you all have a great day and I hope to hear from you soon!

Going, going...

OK. I've been on a bunch of motorcycle trips, gotten a pedicure, mailed off eight boxes of stuff, had quite a lot of sex, pickled my liver....

Guess it is time to go to Iraq tomorrow!

See ya on the flip side! I'll post pictures when I can!

07.25.2007

OK....so I've been horrible about writing. Let's see what has been going on...

I came home from New Orleans in early May. It was lovely being home again and playing around with the garden. I flew up to Seattle to visit with M1 and her girls. Had a great time, as usual. I still can't believe her youngest is so big now!

In early June John and I went to Vegas for a long weekend. Had a lovely time and went to see Love at the Mirage. Amazing show...though I might have remembered more of it had I not had the killer drink just to get the cute plastic cup! Didn't come home big winners this time but all in all, good times!

Later in June I flew up to Columbus to visit with my girlfriend Kim and go to her Mom's birthday party. After her mom was so sick over the holidays, it was awesome seeing her so healthy and strong now. Did a little bit of shopping and just sort of hung out for the weekend.

That brings us to July I suppose. I'm getting ready to go back to New Orleans for another two months....then (and this would be the "newsy" part of the entry) I'm finally going to go to Iraq for six months. My name came up on the list and they offered me a position. After a lot of talking with John, I think he begrudgingly understands my wanting to go. It has caused a few waves at work, but nothing I can't handle while I'm gone. Everyone has been very supportive about my being gone again, and at least while I'm in New Orleans I'll still be taking care of them remotely. When I leave for Iraq, I won't be able to do that.

So that is life in a nutshell right now. We redid the ceiling in the living room and now it is beautiful and smooth. We also painted the walls and added an accent color around the fireplace. It is finally starting to look like we actually live here now! We're going to refi the house next month, hence my deploying to make some extra cash in case we need it.

Hope everyone is doing well. There are some new pictures up in the gallery, even if I didn't notify y'all!

Home...still not dead

Just a quick note to say that there are new pics in the gallery. I'll try and write some more soon. We're off to pick up a new dining set and I'll try and remember to take some pics and upload them later.

still not dead...

I honestly would swear to you that it has been a week, tops, since I'd last posted. However, I see from the date that I'm completely wrong, as usual.

I have one week left here. Today I am volunteering at Jazz Fest and, in exchange, get free entry. I am going early to shop and eat before my 2-6pm shift selling beer, soft drinks, and water. After my shift I shall wander between Bonnie Raitt and Jill Scott, trying to catch a bit of both concerts.

My last weekend here is also the second weekend of Jazz Fest. My going away present to myself was a VIP pass for the whole weekend. Pricey but worth it to me. John Mayer, Harry Connick, Jr., Eric Lindell (and if you don't know who that is, google him and listen to the music!), Joss Stone, Steely Dan...and so many others. I like to think of it as a 3-day going away party for me!

I'm ready to go home. I miss my family and my house. I miss feeling like I have any sort of a life. I'm ready to just take it easy for a while, go riding on the bike with John, spend some time with Crash...just relax and enjoy the summer. I can't wait for all my travel plans to take place. I'm looking forward to seeing M1, Kim, Tammy, and everyone else I'm going to see over the next month and a half. And Vegas....we can't forget about our trip to Vegas!

Have a wonderful last week of April/first week of May. I'm going to be spending a lot of time this week sampling some of the places I'm going to miss having around to get a bite to eat. I'm sure I'll be back to visit before the end of the summer!

Not dead...just working

I'm sorry. I know I said I would post a picture yet I never did. I can see on the calendar that a month has gone by yet you'd have a hard time convincing my brain of that fact.

To recap March:

I did go home for a long weekend. I stopped off in Birmingham along the way to visit my doctor for the one year check up after surgery. I'm doing great, though I could have lost a bit more weight. I've been slacking where that is concerned, not eating just protein first, etc. The vampires in the blood lab took 15 vials of blood for the work-up. I really wish I was kidding about that number. All in all, nobody has called to tell me I'm going to drop dead any minute, so I'm going to assume that my bloodwork is all good to go, or can at least wait three months to give me the mediocre news.

John and I had a wonderful weekend while I was home. We went for a few bike rides, my first on his new bike! I also got my first leather jacket. I feel like quite the badass when I wear it. I love being on the bike...now I just need to find myself a pink helmet!

The rest of the month seems to have flown by. Went out a few times with a bunch of people. Got sick with bronchitis and had to see the doctor for a steriod shot. Decided to volunteer one afternoon at Jazz Fest at a drink tent. Decided to buy myself a weekend pass to the last weekend of Jazz Fest, which is also my last weekend here in New Orleans for a while.

I'm working about 97 hours this week (ending Saturday evening) and then heading over to my dad's house to spend Easter with the family. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone again.

I'm going to Nashville the weekend after I get home. I've still got to plan a flight to Seattle for Crash and I at some point this May or June. I'm flying to Columbus for a long weekend towards the end of June. I'm going to be 41 this summer. Crash is going to be 17 and entering her senior year of high school. Surprisingly, I'm OK with that.

Remind me to tell y'all about the psychic reading I had down in the French Quarter not long ago!

Walking with the Zulu Rascals

So I need to write about this mostly because I was an idiot and forgot to put the memory card back in the camera the morning of the parade. Because of that, I only got a few pictures from the start of the parade. The flip side to not having the camera to use is that I was able to put it away and just concentrate on having a good time.

So here are my thoughts on the whole morning...

We had to be at the Zulu Krewe club building at 6am so that we could get our faces painted for the parade. We also needed to unload all the extra beads we had and load them on to the support truck. Andrea picked me up at my hotel and we made our way to the club. We went inside and they were serving breakfast. Eventually Laura showed up and we painted our faces real quick. Everyone loaded in the back of the support truck and we made our way to the starting point for the parade.

Once we got there we were told what float we would be walking behind. Our float was #6. Everyone was on the phone calling friends who were watching, telling them where we would be. I called a few people but ended up not seeing them. Behind us walking would be the Rebirth Jazz Band. We stood around for a bit waiting for all the other floats and marching bands to go by so that we could fall in on our position. Finally it was time to start walking!

Things started out pretty slow at first. Lots of starting and stopping, which was fine, since we were all dancing and having a wonderful time. I was handing out beads at a furious pace. It was fun in the parts where there were no barricades and you could walk right up to people and put beads on them. Everyone was stepping out in to the street asking us to stop and take pictures.

We were getting close to Gallier Hall which is where all the TV cameras and the Mayor were. Everyone loaded up on beads before we got there. Seeing so many people and having the band right behind us to keep everyone dancing was just amazing! I was trying to throw beads to people in the back. Everyone wanted coconuts (which must be passed hand to hand now, no more throwing!)

We danced/walked the entire parade route, which was over four miles. Then we danced our way back to the Zulu Club. We started at 8am...we got back to the club at approximately 130pm. I was on the move for five and a half hours!

Andrea and I packed up the last of our things in her car and she dropped me back at my hotel. I loved all the looks that I got walking through the lobby! Then I had to walk down to the store to get some soda. The people on the street were very nice and told me how much they had enjoyed watching our parade, since it looked like everyone who was in it was just having the time of their life. It truly was one of the great times of MY life! I'm already planning on doing this every year!

Now I just need to figure out how to make my own coconuts to give out...

(I'll edit this post once I get to my laptop at the hotel. I need to include a photo of me in costume!)

02.10.2007

I know, I know! I haven't been writing!

There are some new pictures up in the gallery. I finally made it to a Mardi Gras parade! Gots lots of beads and had a nice time taking pictures. We're going to a few more parades this evening after work.

I just came back from the bead store. Why? Well, I'm walking in a parade on Fat Tuesday!!! A friend and I were invited to walk with the Zulu Krewe. We have to wear costumes (which involve a black wig, gold shoes, and a grass skirt!) and, while they do provide some of the throws, we were told that we'd probably want to buy more. People, I now have more than five cases of beads in the back of my car right now! I bought five cases of various beads, then about 10-12 more bags of various beads that I liked but didn't want a whole case of. I will be sure and take lots of pictures of them once I get them sorted out a bit.

Enjoy the pictures from last night. I'll hopefully have more to post tomorrow morning from tonight's parades!

01.25.2007

Holy cow, when did it become the end of January??!!

I'm back in New Orleans (in case you hadn't figured that out yet!). Will be here at least until March 9th. Just working every day and waiting until 2/15 when John comes down to visit for Mardi Gras. We're going to have one hell of a weekend and I can't wait.

I'll try and post more. No really, I promise!

11.16.2006

No new pictures today. Just a quick update on what I've been up to.

Still working a whole bunch. Currently set to work over 100 hours this week. Really looking forward to next week when Crash and John come down for Thanksgiving. I'm excited about not only seeing them, but meeting my new sisters from South Africa!

Best dinner out so far was at Emeril's. I had the gumbo, a duck schnitzel, then a nice cup of coffee as everyone sitting around me had dessert. Everything I ate was just heavenly!

Tomorrow night we are going downtown to watch the NOLA portion of the Comic Relief show for Hurricane Katrina. Keep your eyes on the crowd for me! I'll try and post some pictures on Sunday before I forget to!

11.04.2006

There are more pictures added to the Halloween in the French Quarter gallery. They were taken on 10/28 after we'd gone to VoodooFest. We saw RHCP, Blue October, Social Distortion. Had a great time!

They are trying to talk me into going back down to the French Quarter tonight for someone's birthday. I'm thinking about it. A few of us are trying to get together to go to Commander's Palace for dinner on Sunday. I think we need to call first and ask if we can wear tennis shoes :)

11.01.2006

There are some new photos up in the Gallery. I took them last night in the French Quarter.

Having a great time, working about 14 hours a day, loving every minute of it!

10.03.2006

This is what I look like having lost 80 pounds so far. I promise to take some pictures this coming week in clothes that actually fit me!

09.30.2006

I really should wait to type until I go get my nails done, but for now I'll just hope I don't hit too many extra keys...

Sorry for the lack up updates! Work has been killer with the end of the fiscal year so I've been exhausted every day. I'm glad it is over and now I can focus on either deploying to Iraq or deploying to New Orleans.

I know, I've not talked a lot about Iraq but for now, there isn't a whole lot going on. I made the list, meaning that they said I was qualified to go...I just don't have a position to go to. Camp Cupcake doesn't have a position for me for at least four months, and that is assuming that the person in the position now doesn't extend. Then while talking to people in the green zone, there are no openings there right now either. One of the engineers in my office is going back down to New Orleans in a few weeks (and the funny thing is, we're actually going on vacation at the same time to the same place!), so maybe he can get me a 30-60 day deployment. I'd like to make a little extra cash for the holidays anyway, and I'm sure that John and Crash wouldn't mind coming down to NOLA to visit me.

The weight loss is still going fairly strong. I've officially lost 80 pounds now! I would take some pictures today and show myself off but John has the camera and he ended up staying in Anchorage for an extra day. I think that in a few years, I'm going to have to go deploy for a year just to have all the extra cash for all the plastic surgery I'm going to want. I know that the insurance company isn't going to cover everything I want. My stomach and upper thighs are utterly embarrassing and gross...but smaller! I knew this was going to happen so I can't really complain too much. I'm healthier, stronger, and much smaller. Excess skin is actually a small price to pay.

And speaking of weight loss, if those of you playing along with the home game are keeping track, yes, it means that my weight officially starts with a 1 rather than a 2. I thought I would be a lot more psyched about it, and while it was a very nice thing to see the first number on the scale finally change, it was just another day with another pound lost. I can wear a size 16 skinny jeans from Old Navy or a regular size 14. Evidently I've got size 16 thighs and a size 14 waist. It has been forever since I've worn jeans that actually have a big gap at the waist because it is too big there. I'm just thrilled to be wearing anything with the word 'skinny' in it! Last night for a girls night out dinner I wore the skinny jeans and the shirt I got from Glarkware. I was told I looked awesomely cute...which made venturing out a total success!

So I promise, I'll be taking lots of pictures in the coming week. I'll try and get them posted before Crash and I go to Orlando. We're driving down on Friday (shh, don't tell the school!) and then returning on the 13th. I'm still debating on taking the laptop with us. I might just so that I have a place to dump all the pictures we'll end up taking! We're doing both Disney and Universal Studios. The big night will be the 8th. We're doing this. Yes, I know it is going to scare the living daylights out of me. Just to make sure I am an idiot, I sprung for the RIP tour tickets for us. Ya know, so that I won't have time to think about NOT going through a house while standing in a 2 hour line. Crash laughed at me when I said I didn't even like looking at the website. Some of the pages are pretty creepy...like the house page for The People Under the Stairs. I really just want to go ride all the rides!

09.13.2006

Just a quick note to Patty and Kathy....I'm sorry there are no new pictures posted. Took me a million and a half hours to get home yesterday and it was late by the time I was able to even think about the computer. I'll post some soon!

09.09.2006

Hellooooooooooooooo Seattle!

Got here on Thursday. First order of business was waiting forever for my small suitcase to show up on the baggage carousel. Went down to Alam0 and was given a nice Grand Prix for the long weekend. Got on to I-5 south and it really felt like I was "home" for a little while. I stopped by LASA and got to visit with everyone there. The new office is a lot bigger than the old one, though they could still use more room. It was a little strange realizing that it's been almost two years since I was last here.

Friday was spent being girly and getting a mani and pedi with Michelle1. I was all stressed out on Wednesday since I wasn't sure I was going to have time to get my nails done when she reminded me that we'd have all day Friday to do what we like. After girlifying ourselves we went to lunch with the LASA ladies. I opted for a teriyaki place since there isn't any REALLY good places to get it in Alabama. I wasn't disappointed. Michelle1 loved all the women I used to work with and I was sad to see lunch come to an end. After that we ran home and got her girls settled with the sitter and headed off to Bell Square. I was on a mission to hit Lush and stock up on my shampoo and conditioner. I also got some more henna, since I'd used most of what we had left. Crash will be thrilled with another block of the Marron henna. I had (and really, still have) shoe-envy of Michelle1's new Earth shoes. They are absolutely adorable and honestly, I'm not even sure where I would find them where I live. I think that John and I are just going to have to plan yearly trips out here to go shop. Anyway, after our shopping it was time for Steak Night! We had a lovely time along with a perfectly cooked filet. I didn't realize how much I've missed having girlfriends to just sit around and have dinner with. We were there for over three hours and it was worth every penny. There was a lot of good conversation and many laughs. I think it was just what Michelle1 and Jody needed.

Today we spent the day with the girls and took them to the Seattle Aquarium. They had a great time and I took a ton of pictures. I'll have to upload them once I'm home. I think I shocked Michelle1 when I had an extra memory card for her camera, so she was able to continue taking pictures until her batteries died. After the fish, we stopped by the Crab Pot to have a late lunch. M1 and I had the boil where they had mussels, crabs, oysters, crab legs, shrimp, halibut and salmon skewers, andouille sausage, as well as the corn on the cob and potatoes. We also had a cup of clam chowder, because really, could I be here and NOT have some?? I don't think so! Lunch was heavenly and while we were able to put a nice dent in the pile, we didn't even come close to finishing everything. It was finally time to head home, and that is where the story gets interesting...

We were almost to Fife when it happened. We were just driving along in the lane next to the far left. We hadn't changed lanes or anything, just driving along minding our own business and listening to the girls serenade us with various songs. All of a sudden we feel the van being pushed to the right. Some asshole in a little silver car had freaking hit us, either by drifting over to our lane, or not paying attention while trying to change lanes. We started to change lanes to the right so that we could pull off at the next exit. At first, the car that hit us was following us, acting like he was going to pull off as well. Once we were comitted to actually exiting, he pulled back over to the left and took off down I-5. Good thing we'd already written down his plate number, huh? We pulled into a parking lot and called the state patrol. They showed up and already had the address and phone number of the other driver. Hopefully he'll be prosecuted. M1's van is still drivable, just some big black rubber marks on the back left wheel cover and the rear quarter panel. Still, very strange, the whole hit and run on the freeway.

Tonight we're going to put the girls to bed early and then fix ourselves a drink or five.

08.23.2006

Well, everything is in motion now...

ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT ASSISTANT (OA),GS - 0303 - 7 BAGHDAD / IRAQ
2006-08-23 - Your resume has been referred to the selecting official for consideration for this vacancy.

I'm already in contact with people there. Yes, they want me. Now it is a matter of doing all the paperwork, physicals, etc.

I'll keep you all posted!

08.16.2006

Nothing much going on. I'm sitting here killing a few minutes while I wait for Crash to finish her homework and change her clothes so we can go work out and then go tanning.

I've lost 70 pounds.

Yup, 70 freaking pounds. 25% of my total weight from when I started. Not bad for five months, huh?

I'm waiting on some emails and confirmations...but there should be some news in the coming week or so. Nobody but me seems super thrilled about it, but hey, I'm an adventurous girl and I want to do it. I know...all the mystery and such. I'm not going to say anything until I know for sure it is going to happen. Well that, and I really should tell Crash before I tell all of you.

Vegas, baby!

Yes, that is me standing in front of the Wynn hotel in Las Vegas. I apologize for not taking off the hat and sunglasses, but people, it was probably about 110 degrees at that point, and we'd walked from the Venetian to the Wynn. It was H.O.T!

John and I got home yesterday afternoon. I'm still tired. We came home with money, which is always nice. Tomorrow we're going shopping for new living room furniture. Yeah, we came home with a nice little chunk of change :)

Crash is now driving. I still swear that I'm not old enough to have a child old enough to drive! She passed her test on the second try. I can't blame her too much for the first failure, as she was only getting into the turn lane like she must do to turn on to our street. However, when you scare the testing person, they pretty much fail you on the spot. We spent the rest of the day of the test failure practicing changing lanes gracefully, and she passed with flying colors the second time around. I got a little freaked out the following weekend when she followed John and I to Costco to fill up her gas tank. It hit me that my child was in a car, driving, behind me! And I wasn't with her! And she could, potentially, hit my new car! She didnt, and was rewarded with a full tank of gas.

Other than Vegas, nothing much going on. It is back to work on Monday, and then hoping for another deployment so I can make more money to go back to Vegas. I've got more trips planned already...Atlanta for training at the end of this month, Seattle in September to spend some quality drinking time with Michelle #1, and Orlando in October with Crash, which should be wonderful for her and scary as hell for me since we're going to do Halloween Horror Nights. Finally, John and I will head down to Biloxi in November for a long weekend and to catch up with some friends. And yes, I'm already trying to plan another trip to Vegas....now to save up another few grand so that we can go back in January or February to scope out places to renew our vows.

Home

So I'm home and I'm 40 now. Had a wonderful birthday party at The Shed in Ocean Springs, MS which was also a See Ya Later party, since I was leaving a few days later.

I wish I had all the words to describe how hard it was to walk out of the office for the last time. I'd worked to exhaustion some days. I'd made some amazing friends. I'd laughed and cried when my co-workers pressed many, many dollars into my hands so that I could go buy children's books for the library. I laughed every single day at work. I don't know many people that can say that.

I stopped into my office yesterday. Everyone was happy to see me, and likewise, I was glad to be back. The only nasty surprise on my desk was the fact that someone had used my mouse with sticky fingers and the roller wheel was gunky. I wiped it clean and was glad that was the only major malfunction after three months.

Coming home is sort of like living in a timewarp. It is weird to think that when I left, all the garden was just beginning to show signs of life, and now things are shooting up and blooming and putting out a ton of veggies. When did that happen? I don't feel like I've been gone for three months, and at the same time it feels like I was gone forever.

Today we're hosting a combination Welcome Home/Happy Birthday BBQ for me. I've been cooking and cleaning all morning and have just now sat down to take a quick break before our home is invaded with friends and family. I can't wait to see everyone and just sit and visit.

I don't FEEL 40. Can I still pretend I'm 12?

Good Day

It was a very good day. In three days I had over $625 donated so that we could buy children's books for the library in Pass Christian, Mississippi.

First, I had a bunch of people handing me money. That is always a good thing.

Then, we decided that we had to get some lunch first. Fuel for shopping and whatnot.

Then we went to Barnes and Noble, which opened recently after the hurricane. They didn't like us taking photos in the store, so I'm quite sad to say that there are no pictures of us having an absolutely wonderful time shopping for all the books. The clerks in the children's section were just as excited as we were and helped us out a whole bunch by keeping a running total of our purchase. They also made some wonderful suggestions on books.

We finally emerged with a long receipt totaling exactly $600. The girl on the left is Sherri, who I work with for 12 hours every day. The girl on the right is one of the clerks who helped us. I would be the one in the middle looking like I'm wearing clown clothes since all my clothes are too big now.

We loaded our haul into the car and headed back to the office to make a list of all the books and put the book plates in them.

After we were done with the listing and labeling, we headed off to visit Miss Sally at the library. To say that she was over the moon would be an understatement. She was commenting on all the books that we'd bought and exclaiming how each one was perfect. She's holding a book called "A Girl and Her Gator", which I had picked out because the artwork caught my eye. That is Miss Sally on the right. The polite young man on the left is Jim, a Quality Assurance person here from West (by God) Virginia. He's been here for 90 days and is leaving next week.

It was almost like story time with Miss Sally. The book she is holding is about how little Russell the sheep can't fall asleep. The art in the book is awesome and every time I looked at a page I noticed something different. And the pictures of the sheep sleeping are hilarious!

I had to include this picture for a few reasons. First, the new face in the picture is Patty, who was actually taking most of the pictures today. Second, can you read the book that Miss Sally is holding up in front of Jim? Yes, it is called "I Like Myself!"

Here we are holding all the books that we bought today. I'm holding books 1-12 of the A Series of Unfortunate Events!

There you have it. Our very good day. Donating the books was great, and knowing that I've still got more money to give so that they can order books that haven't been released yet is even better.

72 books for $600 donated by about 30 people.

Go get some good feelings for yourself and donate some books!

06.14.2006

Today I got to spend some quality time at the Pass Christian Library. It is housed in a donated trailer. I met quite a few children as well as all the librarians who are working there. To say that I am in awe of them would be an understatement.

Another understatement would be to say that my co-workers are a bunch of softies. I actually got all teary-eyes this morning when I collected even more money from them than the day before. I should have at least $500 to purchase children's books on Friday and I can't wait.

Go buy books for these people....please?! I'll post pictures either Friday or Saturday, so check back for them!

Get yourself some good karma...

Go there and donate books. Or money. Or books AND money.

I am going to go buy some books and deliver them in person to the library in Pass Christian. I'll post some pictures of the little field trip.

Life here is pretty much the same. I did take off a Saturday and Sunday to spend the weekend in New Orleans with John and Crash. We stayed at the Inn on Bourbon and it was lovely. We got a balcony over Bourbon St and had a great time throwing beads down to the drunks. On Saturday we had a great lunch at Margaritaville with my parents. Always a great time seeing them. Hopefully we can get together again when we all have more time.

I'll be here until the end of this month, then my presence is 'required' back at the office. While I will feel bad knowing that I'm leaving before the job is completed, there are still going to be some great people here to finish things up and do whatever else needs to be done. I did find out that I was selected to go to training for our "strike team", which means we'd deploy first in the event of a disaster. I've got a lot of pre-training stuff to do, as well as a week of training before John and I head off to Vegas at the end of July.

Still going to Curves at least three times a week. Weight loss is spradic, but the clothes are still getting looser and looser so I'm not going to complain. I did go in to the Gap the other day and walked out with a bag of clothes that fit. It was pretty nice buying things from someplace besides the fat lady store. Loss so far is about 50 pounds and moving out of clothes with a W at the end of the size tag.

I'm off to shower and get some sleep. Don't forget to donate! And visit the site and let them know what you donated!

Thank You

Thank you all for your very kind emails :) I have read them all....and then I usually go shower and fall in to bed. I keep thinking, "I should answer so-n-so." and then I fall asleep. Sorry!

I'll try not to wait so long in between updates.

As far as the surgery, still going strong as you can see. I'm not the fastest loser, and that is OK with me. I figure if I take it off a little slower, I'm more likely to be able to maintain it. No complications at all. No puking, which is always a good thing in my book! My head doesn't always wrap itself around the idea that I've already lost 45 pounds. I see myself every day so I don't really notice it.

05.20.2006

I was talking to my friend the other day and he was giving me a hard time about not writing here. I had to laugh, since it would be very much like this:

Dear Diary, today I woke up at 430am. I worked for around 13 hours. Then I went to Curves. Then I showered and went to bed.

Wouldn't that bore you guys to death? Hell, I'm the one living it and it bores me to death!

Instead, here are two pictures. The first one is from last June when I visited my dad before spending a week in New Orleans. Obviously not one of the greatest pictures, which would be why nobody has really seen it before now!

The second picture is a face-shot I took while standing in front of the hotel mirror the other night. Not a wonderful shot, but it gives you an idea of what my face looks like now that it is thinner.

Other than that, not a lot going on around here. I'm here at least until the 15th of June, up to a month after that if I would like to stay. Tempting since John and I have a trip to Vegas planned for the end of July!

I should go get ready for work. I've got some errands to run later, namely I need to go buy a phone charger since some skeezy asshole stole mine out of the office. My personal cell is dead until I get a charger, so I guess I'm hitting Wally World later.

4.17.2006

Hello from Mississippi!

So I had Easter sunday off. It was quite nice and I drove over to Breaux Bridge to visit my parents. And let me just say to my sisters: Neener Neener Neener, I got to ride on Dad's boat first!! :)

It wasn't that bad of a drive. The traffic on Saturday evening was pretty light and moved right along. I think I averaged about 80 or so most of the way. I got in and we all sat up too late chatting. I was given a lovely Easter basket and the world's cutest stuffed lamb. Yes, it is sitting on my bed here in the hotel. On Sunday we got up and took the boat out on the lake/swamp/bayou. I got some color, though that color is currently RED! We had a lovely time zipping up and down the waterways. I took so many pictures that I killed the battery and had to use the ones from Dad's extra camera. Of course, it is still sitting dead in the bag, so I haven't gotten anything uploaded yet. Soon...I hope.

Today it was back to work as usual. I know for a fact that I'll be here until at least May 31st. That is the goal date to have everything done, but of course there is always the close-up process, and I'm hoping to stick around for that. After work today another woman and I went to Curves for our first workout. It was more fun than I thought it was going to be, and at one minute per exercise you really don't have time to think about how much you hate something. I'm sure I'll be a little sore in the morning, but a good sore, ya know?

I'm off to shower and lay in bed until I fall asleep. I have a whole bunch of great lavendar smelling stuff to use to help me off to la-la land.

03.31.2006

I know, I haven't been writing again. I promise, no secret surgeries or anything. I was totally tired when I got home from work for the first week or so. Like exhausted tired. Like go to bed at 630pm and sleep like a rock tired. Thankully I'm able to stay awake a little later each night. I was even wake until 11pm the other night when we went to the Motley Crue concert! Oh, and speaking of, I would love a recording of the solo that Tommy Lee does. It was quite techno sounding and I was probably one of the few people in the arena that actually really liked it!

So I'm deploying again! This time I'll be down on the actual gulf in Mississippi. I leave on Monday morning, so the rest of this weekend will be spent making sure that I've packed everything that I need to pack. I'm even going to take my tiny fridge that I'd bought.

Still sitting at about 25 pounds lost. I'm trying to stay off the scale and just be happy that all my pants are getting loose :)

03.19.2006

Tomorrow I go back to work. I'm actually looking forward to being out of the house for a full day. I can only watch so much daytime TV without losing more brain cells!

Yesterday John and I spent the day outside gardening. We pulled up two ugly bushes in the front bed. Then we planted some bulbs and put two of my larger rose bushes into the ground. I think they'll be happier there, since that area gets much more sun than they got in the back. We also bought two more bare root roses (Moonstone and Peace) that we placed in the front bed as well. I'll certainly be babying them this Spring. All of the other roses are doing wonderfully well in the pots out back. I have a feeling that more of them will end up in the front beds in the next year.

In the large bed under the dogwoods we planted some more bulbs along the monkey grass border. Then, behind that in the semi-circle bed, we'll just plant shade wildflowers. I'll go toss some seeds every week for a month out there, just to keep a constant bloom going on things. In the summer it is way too shady for any kind of rose bush (which we sadly found out the first summer we were here) so wildflowers it is. I didn't want to feel like half my yard was hostas, which I have under the Japanese Magnolia in the front.

I'd go take some pictures so you can see the difference, but of course it is raining this morning. I think I'll wait a little while and take some pictures once things start to bloom. We're also going to be redoing the outside portion of the enclosed front porch, mainly so that it looks more professional and neat. I'd like a nice bead board out there, going up and down. Then we can repaint the exterior, put some insulation in, then drywall the interior like it should be done. I think we'll tear down the ceiling on the porch to see what's up there. I'd really like to have a ceiling fan out there, but we don't have quite enough room with the ceiling as it is. Perhaps we can once we take that out. If nothing more, I can put some decent lighting out there.

That's about it. Oh, here are the lovely Get Well flowers that were given to me! My room smells lovely!!!

Aren't they all just beautiful??

Have a great week and I'll keep you all posted on how I do. I'm taking Crash with me on the first day, so she can do my filing and also carry anything I need carried in to work. I've also got some boxes at work that need to come home, so she can load those into the car for me.

Oh....and 20 pounds gone as of this morning :)

03.14.2006

One week ago I was having surgery right this minute.

Thankfully, I feel a whole hell of a lot better today than I did then. I know I'm not supposed to step on the scale and all, but here's the deal. According to my scale at home, I've lost about 14 pounds since surgery. 14 pounds in one week. 14 pounds!!

I'm drinking my water and all like I'm supposed to. In the mornings I snag about 2-3 oz of Crash's protein shake for my breakfast. For the rest of the day I'll have either soft scrambled eggs or some pureed soup. For someone who hated corn chowder before surgery, my favorite soup right now is a chicken corn chowder. I put about 2 oz in a little bowl, add a few bits of grated cheddar cheese and nuke for about 30 seconds. Instant happiness for my stomach.

I'm finally starting to feel hunger pains. At least I think that's what they are. When I wake up in the morning there is an ache in my stomach that goes away once I've had the protein shake. A few hours after that, it starts again. If I have about 2oz of food 4-5 times a day I keep my stomach happy. The hardest thing is not drinking with/after meals. I am almost counting down the minutes after a meal until I can take a sip of water.

I'm looking forward to being able to eat more 'real' foods in a week or so. I'll probably wait until after my appointment on the 27th and get the OK from the doctor. So far nothing has really made me want to get sick. I've not finished my egg a few times, mainly because I just felt like I was done, if that makes sense. I have no desire to test the limits of the pouch. Just telling me that I might get sick if I have sugar? That right there is enough to make me not even want sugar. Hello, I am Michelle, and I am the anti-puker.

Other than that, life is pretty darn boring. I need to find a support group up in this area, since the one for my surgeon is just too far away. I'm slowly making sure that all my clothes and such are ready for work next week. The less I have to do in the morning, the more time I have to prepare the food I'll take with me. Still not quite sure what all I'll take, but I have lots of those little 4oz cups now, so it shouldn't be a problem taking a variety of things. John bought me a wide selection of soups at the store, as well as three different kinds of water at Costco. I should be all set.

03.10.2006

I'm home. I'm sore. I'm 'rearranged'. I'm sore.

I'll give you all the general recap of what happened...

On Monday, the 6th, I had to be only on clear liquids as well as take the bowel prep. I was NOT having a good day and waking up with a bad headache wasn't helping things. I was dehydrated and knew it, but no matter how much water I drank that day, nothing seemed to help until John brought me a few extra strength Tylenol. We had to drive to Birmingham, and thankfully by the time we got to the hotel I was no longer in danger of getting sick from the headache. I am also now a big fan of the Propel fitness water.

Tuesday morning I was up and in the shower by 4am. We reported to the hospital at 5am and got done with admitting within 15 minutes. When we reported to the surgical floor we were told that surgeries don't start until 8am (!!!!) but that we might be called back sooner than that. I sat down, prepared to wait for a long time. Within about 20 minutes I was called back to change into the hospital gown and try to pee for one last pregnancy test (routine, and no, I'm obviously NOT!) They finally brought John back to me and we sat around waiting for them to put the good stuff in the IV and wheel me off. Once they got the negative results, I was given some good drugs. I think I promptly fell asleep, since I don't remember saying goodbye to John nor being wheeled into surgery. I do remember getting on the operating table and the whole mask thing. Then I remember waking up.

Pain. Lots and lots of pain. The thing about pain is that it tends to make me feel sick to my stomach if it is bad enough. I was pretty drugged and couldn't tell the difference, so they kept pumping me up with either morphine or anti-nausea drugs. Once my pain was at a manageable level they released me from Recovery and sent me to the room. I remember John being there. I remember being annoyed at the nurses that needed to take my vitals. I kept feeling like I was sliding down the bed, so I raised my legs up a bit with the button and found a slight v-shape to rest my ass in.

My hospital stay can be summed up with my not sleeping more than a few hours at a time, bad television, clear liquids, and lots of walking. I won't bore you all with the details, but the doctors were pleased when they would come to see me and I was released immediately after lunch on Thursday, the 9th.

The ride home from the hospital was probably the longest two hours I've spent in a vehicle. I hadn't had any pain meds since the night before, so every little bump in the road was an unpleasant experience. John finally got us home and deposited me onto the couch once I'd changed my clothes. Then, being the angel that he is, he went to get my prescription for the liquid lortab filled. I don't think I've ever been so happy to see him come back home as I was after that trip.

The Lortab helps a lot with the pain. I'm still sore, but it is manageable. I'm 'eating' liquids and will add in a protein shake tomorrow. My doctor's after-surgery diet is much more liberal than most, so I'm trying to find a nice middle ground that will allow my pouch to heal without scaring me. I'm drinking more than 48oz of water a day, usually closer to 64. That is a lot of sipping people! I can't drink with meals, and I'm not supposed to drink for 15 minutes prior and 30 minutes after 'eating'. Today I had a total of 8 fluid ounces of soup. And lots of water. Tomorrow I will have 8 fluid ounces of soup, 4 ounces of a protein shake...and lots of water. I think tomorrow's diet will pretty much be the one I follow until I have my follow-up appointment with the surgeon on the 27th. Not only do I want to maximize healing, I'd also like to maximize the beginning weight I lose.

The Lortab is starting to kick in again so I'm going to go lay in bed and take advantage of it for a few hours.

03.06.2006

So you want to know why I've been so quiet here, right? You want to know what is going on with me, why I haven't written an update in well over a month?

OK, I'll spill the beans now.

I'm leaving this evening to head to a hotel in Birmingham. Tomorrow morning at about 5am I will report to the hospital for my gastric bypass surgery. Yes, I'm having a bypass. Yes, I've thought about this for years. Yes, I've tried everything else under the sun short of lopping off body parts.

Unless you've been a hundred or more pounds overweight, you have no idea where I'm coming from. Yeah, it must suck to need to lose ten or twenty or even fifty pounds. At this point in my life I'd love to be in that boat rather than this one. I'm not, though, and this is the route I have chosen to take to correct years of dieting myself up to this weight.

I wasn't always fat. In high school I had a great body and knew it. When I was in the military I was still in shape, forced exercise will tend to keep you there. However, when I got out I was a little "soft". That wasn't quite so bad and once I started going to the gym it was better. Then I got pregnant. And lived in Germany (the food....god, what wonderful food!). And then moved to the States and got depressed. On came the weight. I tried Redux (a form of phen-fen) and lost a little weight, only to put it right back on plus a lot more when I had to stop taking it. I did Atkins to no end...and while I have always felt better eating that way, I could never maintain the loss for any extended period of time.

Hello, I am Michelle and I love food. All kinds of food.

Today is, hopefully, the last day in my life that I will ever see this number on the scale. I will drive down to the hotel with John where we will go to sleep early (OK, we'll go to bed early...I doubt I'll actually sleep much!) and then we'll walk into the hospital in the morning to start changing my life.

I wasn't going to have the bypass surgery. I was going to try and get the lap-band. I even chose my specific insurance because they covered the band. I went to all my appointments, chose a doctor down south who performed the surgery I wanted. Then I deployed for a while and got a huge disappointment just before I came home....my insurance company was going to stop covering the surgery I wanted at the end of the year. There was no way that the doctor's office would be able to fit me in before that happened, so if I wanted any kind of obesity surgery, it was going to have to be the bypass. I was pretty stunned as I sat there and read the email from the nurse.

Then I started reading...anything and everything I could get my hands on about the RNY surgery. The pros, the cons, and everything in between. I actually made lists and was even close to making charts to help me make my decision. In the end, I decided that the trade-offs were going to be worth it for me, and the risks were not that much more than the band for me. I'm a healthy girl...I'm just fucking fat.

Yes, I am rearranging the insides in the hopes of gaining perfect health and a smaller body. Yes, I will have to take vitamins for the rest of my life. Yes, I will have to make sure I am vigilant about drinking my water, eating my protein, and exercising. Yes, I will more than likely end up needing my gallbladder out at a later time (for now mine is picture perfect so they won't remove it) as well as a high probability that I'll get at least one hernia. Me and Madonna baby, we'll have a lot in common I guess! I may need plastic surgery to remove excess skin if it doesn't 'bounce back' like I hope.

Unless you've been this heavy, you'll never know the insecurities that come with the pounds. You'll never feel the need to scan a room and see if you are the biggest person. You'll never eye those stupid plastic chairs, wondering if they are strong enough to hold you. You'll never know that the face on the outside is far from matching the feelings on the inside.

The comments of "Oh, you have such a pretty face...if only you'd lose a little weight." and "If you would just eat right and exercise..." are hurtful and humiliating. I've eaten right and exercised my way to this weight. I need this extra tool to push me over that proverbial edge onto the downhill slide where I can succeed.

Do you not agree with what I'm doing? I honestly don't care. Keep your comments to yourself in that case. I have this handy thing called a Delete key and I'm not afraid to use it. Feel the need to point me to all the websites with stories about bypass surgery gone wrong? Don't bother, I've found them all on my own already. Want to tell me about how your cousin's sister's boyfriend's mother died from this same surgery? Please don't, as I've already read dozens and dozens of heartbreaking stories. Do you just want to email me and call me names? Really? Are you 12? Do you think I don't KNOW that I'm fat? Do you think I don't look in the mirror every single day and hate what I see? I love myself on the inside, hate myself on the outside....and now I'm taking steps to fix that. Do you think I'm taking the easy way out by having surgery? Well, I have one thing to say to you then, and it will be the end of this entry....

Remember, it is a scalpel, not a fucking wand.

01.20.2006

I wish that there was a lot more to say. Unfortunately I've been busy as hell at work and trying not to get sick. Today I finally threw in the towel at lunch and came home to suffer in relative silence...save for the hacking up my lungs and whatnot.

We've been slowly working around the house trying to de-clutter it as best we can. We got the office cleaned out enough to put both computers in there, so now the living room doesn't look so strange. We've cleaned out closets and dresser drawers. Really, fun and exciting stuff...so you can see why I haven't been updating.

28 days until my trip to Vegas. I'm thinking about deploying again for a month after that. John is doing well with both of his college classes, though they keep him pretty busy. Crash is doing OK in most of her classes, but is usually grounded for not doing her homework. Hopefully she will understand that we're NOT fooling around when it comes to ger grades.

I'm going to go pass out in bed now. Take care and stay away from the people that are sick!

Meet....

Sally. I know....not that original, but someone else suggested it and everyone at the table agreed that it was a great name.

I already have the dash lights set to a nice pink/purple color. I've only put abut 80 miles on her since Friday.

I love her to death.

11.24.2005

Well I am home and slowly catching up on all my sleep. I don't think I've been awake past 9pm since I've gotten here. Of course, I woke up at about 3am this morning and finally gave up trying to go back to sleep 45 minutes later.

There is so much to be thankful for today, so of course, I have a list:

- My family. All of them combined, both near and far. Someday I'll have a holiday where I'm with my sisters and dad, but until then we'll just keep on calling and emailing and sending our love.

- My husband. I'll admit that there was a part of me that was a little pleased that while I was away from home he got a small taste of trying to raise a teenage girl on his own. He's wonderful and I wouldn't trade him for the world. I'm not just saying that for the reason to be given at the end of this entry, either!

- My daughter. As much as she can try my patience she really is a good kid. At least she's a lot better than *I* was at her age. She's slowly finding her way through the valley of teendom and I'm sure we'll all be glad when she locates a map or gps or something. We had a great day yesterday, spending most of it together acting like goofballs.

- My home. A year later and I'm just as in love with this house as I was when I first saw the pictures over the internet. It isn't perfect, but I love all the quirks and creaks and oddities. Besides just loving my house, I'm still feeling completely blessed to even have a home this year. After seeing the horrible damage done by the hurricanes this year, I am so thankful that I have a safe, dry place to return to every day.

- My job. I still love my job, probably even more after coming home. I was a little surprised at the number of people that seemed shocked that I had only worked for my organization for about six months when I deployed. I don't think that working someplace for years and years makes you want to help more. I am appreciated at work, like my co-workers even more, and really enjoy what I'm doing.

So there are the biggies for this Thanksgiving. I am blessed, be it by a higher power, good karma or whatever...but I'm really blessed to be where I am right now.

And I'm getting a new car. Not THE car I want, since John just will NOT agree to the Mini Cooper...but a new car none the less. A brand spanking new car that will be a lovely shade of either light blue or a silver color that is almost lavender. What am I getting (hopefully tomorrow!)? A Mustang :)

11.12.2005

My brain didn't really explode...but it was a close call. We finished the pay estimates and boxed up all the tickets and such that were reconciled. We also sent off two of the admin staff (out of four) to go to another office to enter tickets. Come to find out that our office was the ONLY office in the state actually doing what we were supposed to be doing. Who knew? We could have been slackers and stopped doing the tickets correctly like everyone else!

I'm in Vicksburg, MS for the next few days. Since all the tickets and related databases were sent here, all the reconciling is being done here as well. The girls up here asked me to come up for a bit before heading home for good to help them out. Good thing I did, since they were doing exactly what I'd done on the first PE. Way too much work. I explained all the ins and out of everything and everyone is much more relaxed about the whole thing. None of it is going to match exactly, and we can't change the contractor's bill, so whatever doesn't match just doesn't match and we can't pay it yet. End of story.

I am VERY much looking forward to going home on Monday. Weekends and Fridays don't have much meaning right now and I'm sure I won't know what to do with myself after just 8 hours a day of work. I'm taking off on Friday, the 18th so that I can go see the new Harry Potter movie. I hope that there will be a midnight showing but if not, I'll be at the first one with everyone else I imagine.

Time to go shower and get ready for my last weekend of work for a while.

10.24.2005

Hello. My name is Michelle. My brain has melted from learning Access.

We're doing pay estimates from the contractor now. Just inputting the tickets was fine, but now we're analyzing data, running a bazillion different reports, searching for actual paper tickets, etc etc.

I think my brain actually stopped working at about 11am this morning. I finally had to have the other admin start looking for missing tickets, since I'd gone through them so many times I really wasn't even seeing the numbers any longer. Fortunately her brain was still active and she found everything I needed to finish our end of the paperwork. Once it was all said and done, we'd done an excellent job.

I got home from dinner to find an email with pay estimate two.

I fear my brain is not only going to melt tomorrow, it will just explode.

this is why...

...I came down here.

Look

I'm going to bed.

10.06.2005

You know what's coming, right?

Yes, now I am going to be staying here for two months. The supervisor here sent a very nice email to my boss in Alabama and pretty much almost begged for them to let me stay. So now I'm staying. I get to go home for a long weekend on the 14th, though I'm not checking out of my hotel. They are a hot item here and you don't give a room up just to go home for the weekend.

Anyway, I'm exhausted and heading to bed.

10.04.2005

Good Morning.

Change 239487239847. Looks like I'm NOT staying here two months. I'll be going home for good in two weeks. My home organization denied the request by the people here to keep me an extra month.

I'm not quite sure how I feel about that. On one hand, I'm very disappointed that I won't be staying here, and it isn't all about the money. We're very busy and the office is doing a lot of good work. I don't really think that the reason for denying the request is all that valid, but who am I to judge that, right?

On the other hand, I feel totally flattered that my bosses think that they just can't get it all done with my being gone for another month. A few of the people here in the office said, "Hell, I'd want her home as soon as possible too!" which was very nice. Evidently, in an emergency, I'm the admin you want :) I have no problem doing the dirty work and I'll work until it is done. I wish that all the people who are deployed felt that way.

When I was inprocessing and finding out where I would be sent, I paired up with another woman who had deployed a number of times in the past. At dinner I had just one question for her concerning what was about to happen. I asked her exactly what would be expected of me as the admin. Her answer should be disseminated to every single admin that is going to deploy. "You need to do whatever the resident engineer asks." That was it, plain and simple answer that covered all the bases.

I don't know if I'll get to deploy again for this disaster. I know that if nobody intervenes and I go home, that I'll get whatever it is that need to be done completed and then perhaps look for another tasker. Right now though, it looks like I'll be heading home on the 15th and back to work on the 17th. I'm pretty OK with that for now and figure I'll end up wherever it is that I'm needed the most.

PS - Eileen, I got your email but I can't send from the hotel. Thanks for the kind words and encouragement :) Make sure Daddy is resting enough! I'll email you guys soon!

10.03.2005

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michelle is
michelle is from a family of skaters where her younger sister karen being a figure skater as well
michelle is always striving to achieve
michelle is amazed that one of her peers could be so "grown up;" her friend replies
michelle is connected to the following things
michelle is going to be there with david
michelle is a career educator
michelle is in vanderbilt hospital in nashville an is seriously ill
michelle is busy orchestrating eye screenings in illinois and teaching dance to her students at the academy of dance arts
michelle is a loving mother and beautiful wife
michelle is on the cover of harper's bazaar and there's a fun interview inside in which she lets us know her favorite movies of last
michelle is a royal academy of dance
michelle is washington state's oldest winery
michelle is none too happy
michelle is responsible
michelle is the managing editor of the australian astronomy research journal
michelle is involved in a number of professional associations including the aussie schoolhouse and oz
michelle is currently single
michelle is the great
michelle is in meetings in columbia
michelle is fingering claudia's pussy while she strokes her hair michelle is sucking
michelle is a little bit more experienced
michelle is far from shy
michelle is well known for her role in the bbc tv series eastenders
michelle is equipped with a very robust wine list
michelle is human
michelle is running high for the award
michelle is a terrific facilitator/coach
michelle is one of the dozens of celebrities who made holiday greeting cards that were hand
michelle is easy at my personal artist
michelle is sitting
michelle is front page news
michelle is acting like a tramp
michelle is still going out wif vin?
michelle is sexxxy
michelle is
michelle is ready for the surgery
michelle is dazed and confused
michelle is dumb
michelle is pretty
michelle is in
michelle is the pink lady"
michelle is highest rated in
michelle is so cool
michelle is reading my journal
michelle is so asian
michelle is the winner of more gold medals than any other female figure skater in the usa and in the world
michelle is on the way
michelle is truly my "brightest shining star
michelle is sitting with her back to the dressing room wall
michelle is safe and dry
michelle is like having another “me” to run with the ball when there just isn’t enough of “me” to go around
michelle is moving to dallas
michelle is an adorable twenty inch
michelle is my dear friend michelle
michelle is running away
michelle is a highly underrated comic actress
michelle is good
michelle is so cute and adorable
michelle is pretty too but katie has this mysterious aura about her that makes you more intrigued
michelle is one of those girls you drooled over in math class
michelle is a girlie girl
michelle is the general manager for viking ii
michelle is pretty i think vin diesel is sooooo sexy
michelle is on the telescope and will remain there until 30
michelle is in fact a welsh sheep farmer who drives a lorry
michelle is a carefree
michelle is the pink lady"
michelle is in los angeles
michelle is easy at my personal artist michelle is worried about michelle is sitting michelle is amazing michelle is safe and dry michelle is still going out
michelle is a "sweet little girl" who likes to ride bikes
michelle is a writer
michelle is the youngest of eight in the palmisano family
michelle is so many things she is so talented and always knows where she is going and follows her heart
michelle is the winner of seven world championship titles
michelle is responsible for 5 for kids reports that air every monday
michelle is also a former vice
michelle is already a legend
michelle is involved with numerous community volunteer efforts
michelle is a real estate agent that is known in the community of peace river for their dedicated client service
michelle is the regional account manager responsible for sales in scotland
michelle is a dangerous thing
michelle is a graphic artist who likes bands like scratch acid
michelle is a "true" actress
michelle is hot
michelle is an entrepreneur who has created and operated several successful business ventures
michelle is a mid
michelle is highest rated in washington state history
michelle is on her way back to crystal city to donate a kidney to the father she never really knew
michelle is a true champion
michelle is the usual assortment of potato chips/crisps and drinks
michelle is 12 years old
michelle is a real estate agent that is known in the community of york for their dedicated client service
michelle is currently undertaking a bachelor of business which continues our ongoing professional development
michelle is working at spotless
michelle is a true gift to those in need
michelle is an excellent instructor
michelle is writing a series of books
michelle is a 3
michelle is reason numero uno for us putting up with dawson's creek's angst filled show
michelle is gaining strength and becoming more dangerous
michelle is still our reality ride leader with 201 points
michelle is cute
michelle is a very outgoing girl and she loves meeting and playing with other children
michelle is an innovative dance educator
michelle is certainly on the
michelle is a gifted communicator who has the ability to entertain young people as she ministers through song
michelle is an animal lover
michelle is devoted to the issues of protecting our country
michelle is flourishing creatively
michelle is incredibly intelligent
michelle is a 20 year old student at the university of melbourne
michelle is a career educator
michelle is truly a legend in ladies' skating
michelle is expected to track slowly up the trough in a northward or north
michelle is featured on mtv's "house of style
michelle is just 21 years of age really
michelle is washington state's oldest winery
michelle is sustaining electrical engineering designs for the international space station
michelle is busy orchestrating eye screenings in illinois and teaching dance to her students at the academy of dance arts
michelle is always striving to achieve
michelle is the only woman to regain a world title twice
michelle is going to be there with david
michelle is born to claire ramsey and ed bauer
michelle is in the 4th grade but is very tall for her age
michelle is general counsel to the arizona association of realtors ®
michelle is easy at my personal artist
michelle is here
michelle is on top of
michelle is on top of world
michelle is
michelle is sitting
michelle is praying
michelle is no good
michelle is feeling the vibe
michelle is a go getter
michelle is a flyer
michelle is hollywood golden girl
michelle is safe and dry
michelle is caught off guard
michelle is front page news
michelle is moving to dallas
michelle is running away…
michelle is clit lesbian unclothed
michelle is freenudepics teenaged
michelle is out of surgery
michelle is dumb
michelle is a mole
michelle is not impressed
michelle is girlgirl transgender
michelle is homepage sexpicturs girles
michelle is the winner of more gold medals than any other female figure skater in the usa and in the world
michelle is on top of world sunday
michelle is sitting with her back to the dressing room wall
michelle is praying that morgan will treat her with tenderness
michelle is a highly underrated comic actress
michelle is a flyer for kilmovee
michelle is developed according to the china national standards
michelle is featured in this weekend's issue of "et on mtv and vh1" which airs frequently
michelle is a sweet little girl who likes to ride bikes
michelle is truly my "brightest shining star
michelle is the only figure skater
michelle is probably the most decorated figure skater in us history
michelle is running away
michelle is her partner eric leupold
michelle is front page news michelle is pretty michelle is the yummy girl michelle is
michelle is the regional account manager responsible for sales in scotland
michelle is that michelle is a girl and tiger is a boy
michelle is a "true" actress
michelle is a writer
michelle is an entrepreneur who has created and operated several successful business ventures
michelle is on the telescope and will remain there until 30
michelle is sooooo pretty
michelle is forever
michelle is a youngster too
michelle is so many things she is so talented and always knows where she is going and follows her heart
michelle is the youngest of eight in the palmisano family
michelle is responsible for 5 for kids reports that air every monday
michelle is already a legend
michelle is wise beyond her eighteen years
michelle is involved with numerous community volunteer efforts
michelle is gaining strength and becoming more dangerous
michelle is my role model she is the bomb
michelle is active and involved in numerous activities
michelle is like having another “me” to run with the ball when there just isn’t enough of “me” to go around
michelle is not impressed' from
michelle is a real estate agent that is known in the community of york for their dedicated client service
michelle is a graphic artist who likes bands like scratch acid
michelle is a dangerous thing
michelle is a ccai member
michelle is currently undertaking a double business degree which continues our ongoing professional development
michelle is a very outgoing girl and she loves meeting and playing with other children
michelle is saved by the starving bacteria stacy and paul chance are referred to the genetics center because their newborn
michelle is? no problem
michelle is washington state's oldest winery
michelle is a gifted communicator who has the ability to entertain young people as she ministers through song
michelle is acutely aware of the stress that the criminal trial process can cause
michelle is an adorable twenty inch
michelle is cute
michelle is sitting on her bed daydreaming
michelle is classically trained
michelle is sustaining electrical engineering designs for the international space station
michelle is smokin'
michelle is moving toward the northeast near 13 mph
michelle is general counsel to the arizona association of realtors ®
michelle is hot
michelle is intensely proud of the integrity and individuality of her business
michelle is wearing the default
michelle is busy orchestrating eye screenings in illinois and teaching dance to her students at the academy of dance arts
michelle is also responsible for the creation and production of an exciting new jazz series at the
michelle is devoted to the issues of protecting our country
michelle is always striving to achieve
michelle is a 3
michelle is reason numero uno for us putting up with dawson's creek's angst filled show
michelle is a true gift to those in need
michelle is a committed supporter of oxfam's campaigns
michelle is the great
michelle is truly a legend in ladies' skating
michelle is incredibly intelligent

10.02.2005 bonus

a thingy I found:

meme stolen from monique at everything in its right place

the Rules:

Go into your archive.

Find your 23rd post (or closest to).

Find the fifth sentence (or closest to).

Post the text of the sentence in your blog along with these instructions.

"I'm hoping that her more cosmopolitan friends at school don't out me to her during lunch. "

10.02.2005

Well good morning!

In an effort to completely waste the six hours I have off this morning, I have done pretty much nothing. I did pack up all my dirty laundry and headed off to the laundromat, only to find it completely packed. I turned right around, stopped at BK for some breakfast coffee, then came back to the hotel. I got to sleep until 830 this morning and it was loverly. Most people wanted the afternoons off, but not me baby....I am all about sleeping in! I'll get up a little early tomorrow and go drop off all the dirty clothes for someone else to wash.

Work is still work. We entered a bunch of tickets and then went shopping at wallyworld for a new printer. While we were there, I picked up some things to nuke for dinner, though I'll have to take them into work to do that since I don't have a microwave here in the room. I probably should have just gotten stuff to make sammiches since there is that whole "no ability to cook here in the hotel" thing going on.

Looks like I'm here for two months now. I should be getting a weekend off in the middle of October to go home for a few days. I'm really looking forward to seeing John and Crash again. I miss sleeping in my own bed with my husband and cats. I'll take a bunch of stuff home that I don't really need here, and bring a few things back that I don't have with me, like the correct cord to update my iPod!

I'm going to go wallow in the bath for an hour before work. Hope you all are having a great weekend!

09.27.2005

So then this happened...

I'm sure you all heard about the next hurricane to blow around down here. Rita I think her name was? Yeah, quite bitchy she was.

Our temporary office was flooded. As in I had to go put on boots and everything to go in there and try to salvage what we'd moved to the front of the office to make sure it didn't get wet. There were two power supplies that got ruined (not mine, thankfully!) and a whole lot of paperwork and shirts that got trashed. We were basically homeless office workers.

We all went in, got out what we could, and loaded up our cars with wet boxes. The boss asked who was at the HIEX, and since that was me, my room became the internet hub for two days. We also borrowed some table space from one of our contractors so that we could still enter our tickets.

Today we got a new office. It is actually quite nice and we're trying not to tell the other EROs (emergency regional offices) so that they don't get jealous. We're in a lawyer's office and we've all got plenty of space. The phone lines are a little wonky and we can't figure out how to fax yet, but there is a copy machine and plenty of big tables for us to use. We're no longer trying to cram four people into the space of one. Hopefully they'll have the internet connection to that office up and running tomorrow, because I can't send any backbite mail from the hotel room.

After work tonight I went and bought a small cube-sized fridge. It was only $50 and it will be nice to have cold bottled water again. It is small enough to fit in the car and for me to carry it, so I'll take it home with me or sell it before I leave.

I am exhausted and going to go shower then fall into bed.

09.25.2005

I'm afraid I'll start sounding like a loop: "Today I entered tickets for twelve hours, then came back to the hotel and entered tickets for another two hours."

That really is what is going on, and it isn't like a whole bunch of exciting things happen to you while you are glued to a keyboard for the majority of your day. I did dodge a bunch of bugs when I was outside talking on the phone to my parents.

We almost had half a day off but then that ended up not working out. We still have to ensure that we can support the contractors, and we are just barely doing that right now with two admin people. Unless we get another admin person to help out, we are not going to get the 6 hours off a week.

I did laundry last night. I parked right in front of the room where they have treadmills, and noticed there was a washer and dryer. I went in, no clothes in the washer, so I ran down to my room and gathered up all my socks, undies, white shirts and a light pair of jeans and took them all down to be washed. When I went to put them all in the dryer, that's when I noticed that somebody had flipped back the "Out of order" sign that was on the dryer. It heats up but doesn't turn the drum. Yeah...that's just great! I now have socks hanging off of the front of my dresser, underwear being held over the AC with bottles of water, damp shirts and jeans hanging up by the bathroom. I'm hoping they dry in the next day or so, and maybe I'll go to wallyworld to get a drying rack or something.

At least my room smells like clean laundry now :)

09.24.2005

Good morning.

I had to drive to Jackson yesterday to exchange my rental car. The vents in the old one stopped working. I only had AC in the defrost vents, and when it is raining outside? Not so safe, trust me on this.

Almost ready for work this morning. Worked until like 1030 last night putting tickets into the database. I was finally sitting at the table here in the room, a pillow on my lap and the wireless keyboard on top of it. When even that was uncomfortable I just gave up and called it a night. Thank goodness for massaging showers, since I stood there and let it beat on my arm for a good long while this morning.

Daddy, I tried calling you for a few hours yesterday and wasn't able to get through. I hope you guys are all OK and weathering the storm well. Please email me when you get a chance.

I'm off to work...

09.22.2005

Hooray for internet in my room now!

I changed hotels. When the HI Express had an opening I snapped that puppy up and quick. Much nicer and no bugs! No fridge and microwave, but I've got a coffee maker. It is all about the trade-offs I suppose.

I have no idea when I'm going home now. We're hearing that we're going to be extended here for at least 30 days, perhaps 60. I called John and had him cancel the vacation. Thank goodness I purchased the vacation insurance! I'm hoping that the cost of the insurance is all I'll lose. Figuring out if the park tickets and such were refundable was a little sketchy, but hopefully they'll be nice and give it all back.

We're still working 12 hour days, but tonight I'm not entering more tickets here in the room. Well, I might after I post this, but the bed is looking mighty inviting and I might just go to bed.

The rains have already started down here. I suppose I should dig out the rain jacket for the next few days. I dread wearing it, since it is so damn hot, but I'd rather not try pretending that I'm in a wet work shirt contest.

I have to call the car rental place and try to get a new car. The damn vents in mine don't work! This will not do, not when the temps are in the 90s and the heat index is over 100. I can get AC through the defrost vents, but that's about it. Great, my forehead is nice and cool while the rest of me melts.

I think I'm going to go to sleep. Stay safe everyone!

09.21.2005

I am exhausted. Completely and utterly exhausted. And I'm doing paperwork all day, which you wouldn't think would make one so tired, but you try sitting in an office with no air conditioning, typing information into Access for 12 hours a day. Besides feeling like I’m going to go blind, I have no desire to EVER to data entry as a job. Ever.

I'm in Southern Mississippi, for those playing along with the home game. I'm working at a regional staging area where we take and dispose of debris from the storm.

I am hot, sweaty and mostly not cranky, if you can believe it. We're so busy that the day really does fly by and before I realize it, we're packing up to go back to the hotel. I have been bringing work home and doing an additional two hours or so of work once I get back. It isn't so bad, especially since I can sit in the hotel room with the AC blasting on high.

A little less than three weeks until it is time to go home. At this point, I just hope I get the office all caught up on the paperwork before I go.

These guys are working hard, being outside in the sun for 12+ hours per day. They deserve every penny they are making, trust me.

I'm going to bed and will post this when I get to work tomorrow. We have internet there but not here at the hotel.

I'll wait and tell you the horrors of the hotel tomorrow night if my hands haven't fallen off by then.

*written 09-20-2005 at about 930pm*

09.16.2005

I'm all packed I think. I have jeans, red shirts, steel toe boots, rain gear, safety glasses, a hard hat, shower stuff, and enough underwear for almost two weeks. I have a case and a half of water, protein shakes, some snack crackers, and a map.

I'll be back some time on the 6th of October.

09.11.2005

I had to go into work this afternoon to finish up some work. On Friday I had thrown my name into the hat for going down south to help out one of our staging areas. While I was at work this afternoon I got the email that I'd been selected. Not sure exactly what day I'll be leaving, but it will be this week for sure. I'll be home on the 6th of October.

We had a nice time in Nashville and I'm looking forward to going back and spending more time. There is a lot to do and only so many places we could go in the evening with teenagers in tow.

Not sure if I'll be taking the computer, though there is supposedly a free wi-fi spot not far from where I'll be. Might be nice to have it for email and pictures.

I'll try and update again before I go.

09.02.2005

I've been glued to the TV for the past few days, watching the horrors that are happening in New Orleans.

I watch and keep thinking, "I was just there, I remember that!" and then, sadly, thinking "It is gone now".

I have pictures from my trip here.

I remember walking through the city my last morning there. All alone, just out to take pictures and enjoy all the beauty. Seeing such a beautiful place there is always the "...what if I could live here..." fantasy. I honestly can't even begin to imagine what it is like to know that everything you have is just gone.

When the call came out at work for people to volunteer for helping with the hurricane damage, you know I was one of the first. For now we've been told that they can't really use us, but we're still on the list for now. It would be a 30 day deployment and we're already getting briefed on the things we'll need to know if we do end up going.

I'm at a loss. Such a beautiful place has become a living hell on earth.

For everyone who has emailed about my dad, they are just fine. They were far enough west that they didn't sustain damage or have to evacuate. Thank you all for your prayers and thoughts.

We're off to Nashville for the weekend to visit friends. Have a safe and fun holiday weekend.

*edited to add link that I forgot the first time around*

08.23.2005

Let's see how fast I can type all this, because you just know I can't miss the beginning of Big Brother to find out what lovely catfights are going to happen now that Beau is HOH, right?!!

So Vegas...

Yes, we did indeed go, but I have very little proof of alleged trip. I didn't take one damn picture of John and I. I know, and I was all excited about taking strange pictures and whatnot. Who knew that if you were actually WINNING money, you are less likely to pull out the camera, since that would kill some time and you might not be winning as much/fast. Now before you think that we came home with a bazillion rolls of quarters or enough money to retire, please note that we pretty much came home with the money that we left with. I figure that as a win, since we were highly entertained for four days and my bank card wasn't in tears and refusing to leave my wallet. I learned many things in Vegas:

- When asked how long you are in town for, the correct answers are either "We live here, bye!" or "We're on our way to the airport right this very minute and don't have time to speak with you, bye!!" Really, trust me on this and feel free to use them next time you are on Fremont Street.

- There are penny machines all over the place now! And some of them are actually cool. And I don't hate the whole "ticket in/ticket out" thing like I thought I would, especially when I cashed up about $70.

- You can get very dehydrated and cranky in a short amount of time. Especially if you've handed off the driving duties to your husband and spent the day drinking beer. Lots of beer. And limes are NOT hydrating, I don't care what you've heard!

- You can score a new House of Blues shirt from your husband by doing the following: Make sure you throw away the lid to his iced coffee "on accident". Help him make a new iced coffee that fills the cup to the brim. Take off walking through the swanky Mandalay Bay casino. Stop to admire something. Stand around looking bored/lost/confused for a second. Make your husband think you are going to walk straight ahead. Make a quick left turn right in front of him, and make sure that he's holding his coffee in his right hand. Now this is very important...you MUST be wearing a white t-shirt! Once said coffee has deposited itself both down your front and back, as well as entered your ear, you are now primed for a new shirt. A bonus is walking into the women's restroom and having a woman give you a horrified look and yelp, "Good God, what happened to you!!??" While you are trying to twist a paper towel into a q-tip, your husband can be off at the House of Blues gift shop buying you a new shirt. Really. It works. Trust me.

- Find out that you will cry when your friends get married. It was incredibly romantic and sweet. Decide right then and there that you yourself NEED a wedding. Decide that it should take place in 2007. This is your advance notice family...Vegas, November 1st (Day of the Dead!!! WHEEE!), 2007. I haven't decided where, all I know is that a tux and wedding dress WILL be involved. We'll have been together for 21 years in 2007. Vegas is just fitting.

- I also learned that I have no shame in trying to save the center seat on a Southwest Airlines flight. We were packed into our row on our way to Vegas, which I suppose is to be expected. When I heard the words, "...fairly full flight..." come over the intercom, I instructed John to move to the aisle seat quickly and to NOT make eye contact with anyone. I set our purchased meal (Burger King if you must know) on the middle seat and suddenly became very interested in the SkyMall catalog. It ended up working and we had the row to ourselves.

So there you have it. No pictures for you. Another trip is already in the planning stages for the girls. We need a chance to go be the party girls that we are.

We're heading to Nashville for Labor Day weekend. I get to spend time with friends from high school and I can't wait! We're taking Crash with us, mainly because we're not feeble-minded enough to leave her home alone, no matter how mature she tells us that she is.

I'm in the starting stages of planning a trip for Crash and I in October to Orlando. She wants to hit Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios so I'm holding that over her head in exchange for good grades (meaning no grades below a C). She had better be getting great grades for what this trip is going to cost me! I'm already up to almost $2K, but that is including park line passes and one VIP tour for the haunted houses. I'll keep you all updated on how the plans are coming along. I've already threatened her that I'll take all the money and go back to Vegas with John if she isn't doing well.

08.10.2005

In casa you haven't seen already, there are some new pictures up in the gallery. The comments alone should be reason enough to click on each picture!

Not a lot going on. Had to get Crash ready for school again. So far so good, but then again we're only in the first week. We're keeping our fingers crossed.

Finishing up the laundry tonight so that all the clothes we're taking to Vegas are clean and ready to be packed in the morning. Looks like we'll be able to get away with not checking a suitcase, so that is good. I'm sure we'll look like a sweet old married couple, our matching suitcases...pink for me, blue for him. We'll try not to dress in matching outfits this weekend, don't worry.

I went and had a pedicure and manicure last weekend. I always wonder why I wait so long in between getting them. Since I got a full set of fakes, I'll need to go back every two weeks, so maybe I'll maintan the adorable toes I have now.

Crash is off to gran's house for the weekend. Don't get any funny ideas about breaking into the house or anything. We have killer cats, remember?

See everyone next week!

07.24.2005

I am glad today is over. Or almost over, since I'll be heading to bed soon after I update here.

We spent most of the day helping John's little sister pack and move some things to her new house. It is quite the cute little house and I'm sure she'll be making it a cozy home for her and the boys in short order. John will go over later this week to switch out some ceiling fans and light fixtures for her.

John's mom just called to let me know that my niece broke two bones in her arm, the part between the wrist and elbow. I'm sure if I'd have gotten a better grade in Biology or something I could tell you the names of the bones...but uh that didn't happen, so my description will have to do.

I guess she was helping out at the nursery at church and was holding a fussy baby. She got up to walk around with the baby and tripped over a toy. In her effort to protect the child she didn't protect herself. I guess she's pretty doped up at the hospital right now. They are waiting for the orthopedic surgeon to get out or surgery so that they can set her arm in a splint. From what I gathered from the phone call, she's on her second shot of drugs to make her sleep, so hopefully she won't even remember the splinting part.

I quickly assured my mother in law that of the three people in this portion of the family, two are already in bed. No injuries here, at least not tonight!

I'm off to switch out some laundry and head to bed. Hope everyone had a great weekend and was able to keep cool!

07.18.2005

Wow. What a great weekend!

Michelle and Les were here, everyone was comfortable and talked non-stop! We ate lots of good food, had many good drinks and hours of great conversations. Of course, we realized as I took Michelle to the airport this morning that nobody took one damn picture the entire time. Yeah, we're smooth like that!

Crash's birthday was a big hit. We had lots of family here and one of her aunts was nice enough to buy her the new Harry Potter book. I finished reading it today so that I could give it back to Crash to read. I won't put any spoilers here or anything...but uh wow. I loved it and I'm already dying to read the 7th book.

I think we're all going to bed early tonight. John is already asleep, Crash is already in the shower and I'm sitting on the couch fading fast.

07.14.2005 part deux

So uh yeah, that happened.

I was on the way home from the grocery store with John and told him how frustrated I am. It seems like every time we start saving up a little money, something else happens that costs us. We've got an orthodontist payment, the other half of his college class and now an insurance distater to pay this month. We've got a trip to Vegas next month that so far has hotel and flights paid for. I would prefer NOT to just spend the entire weekend sitting in the room doing nothing because we don't have much money. I'm sure we'll save a bit up before then, but still...so frustrating.

So Crash is cleaning house right now. I'm trying to get her to understand that she totally owes us $850 in hard labor now. She isn't too keen on her new name but hell, she deserves it! I am almost scared to have her out on the roads. She obviously has dyslexic feet!

So other than a crashed car, not a lot going on here. Getting the house ready for the guest invasion this weekend. Les and Michelle will be here tomorrow and then John's family is coming over on Saturday for birthdays. My fridge is close to overflowing and I still have a few more things to buy tomorrow. The last trip to Costco is always fun, isn't it? At least I can just buy bags of ice all weekend to keep the beers and sodas cold. By this time tomorrow night I will be sitting on my front porch with my bestest friends, dishing dirt, talking trash and drinking drinks. I can't wait!

07.14.2005

There are just no words.

07.09.2005

I'm feeling much better, thank you.

Work this week was pretty hectic, but that was to be expected after being gone for a week. When you are low man on the totem pole, you don't really have anyone else to do things for you. I got all caught up though, so it is all good.

We're working on the porch again today. John needs to clean out the gutters above that area as well as closing up the rest of the seams. We still occasionally get a bit of water in there when it rains hard. Since I'd like to insulate the walls and start paiting, it is pretty important that we get it all sealed from the outside. This is also vital to getting done today since we seem to be in the possible path of hurricane Dennis. I know we aren't that close to the coast so we won't get nearly the damage that they will, but it will still dump a bunch of rain on us and possibly blow some stuff around up here. Better safe (and dry!) than sorry!

I'm totally psyched about Michelle and Les coming out next weekend. She's flying in on Friday afternoon and I don't think I'll let her sober up until about 4am Monday morning when we take her back to the airport. I've missed our weekly Porch Night sessions. Now we'll have a porch with air conditioning and no mosquitoes!

I should finish getting dressed and go out to help John. We do need to get the outside done while it is still nice today. He also needs to get the grass cut, so I suppose some more help would be good.

Everyone have a great weekend...maybe I'll be back tomorrow with pictures of all our hard work!

06.30.2005

I am completely burned out. Utterly and unquestionably burned the fuck OUT.

Never again will I agree to spend 12 hours a day with someone so fucking hateful that I actually dreamt of gouging out her eyes and tongue with a spork. I honestly wish I was kidding about that last sentence.

I have been insulted, spoken to like I was an incompetent child, ignored, belittled in front of others, and, in general, just treated like I was pretty much scum. For. Twleve. Hours. A. Day.

Tonight I volunteered to sit in the hospitality suite we sponsored only because she was going out to dinner with the group. I figured that a few hours where I knew she wouldn't be might be good for my soul. It helped a bit. The beer I'm drinking now is helping even more.

I'm pretty bummed that I didn't get to go out and take lots of pictures but perhaps I'll finish packing tonight and go out to do that in the morning. I don't think my shuttle is coming until about 10am so I should have plenty of time if I wake up early.

I treated myself to a Lush shopping spree. I must give a huge shout-out to the wonderful clerks at the New Orleans Lush store. It was about two minutes until closing time and they let me come in and browse around smelling things for as long as I wanted. I got lots of great smelling soaps and shampoos and conditioners. If nothing more, my luggage is going to be the best smelling luggage down in baggage hold.

I went to Mulate's last night for dinner. I had the boudin for an appetizer and a bowl of Zydeco gumbo as the entree. I was in cajun food heaven! To add to such greatness, there was a zydeco/cajun band playing while we ate. If I hadn't been in such a rush to get to the Lush store I might have stuck around longer just to listen to them play.

I am tired and finally beginning to be less cranky. I can't wait to get home to my own bed, my own pillows and my own family. It has been a good trip, save for 12 hours a day. I'll have to get John to drive down with me some long weekend so that we can just hang out and have a good time.

06.27.2005

duh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nah "You say it's your birthday!" duh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nah "It's my birthday to, yeah!"

So uh yeah, I am almost officially "old" today. 39.

I'm sitting here on the 23rd floor of the Wyndham in New Orleans, looking out over the French Quarter. Not a bad way to spend your birthday evening, that is for sure.

I got a wonderful present from my boss and co-workers. They got me iPod socks! I already love them and have looked around for other things I can slip the socks on. So far I have socked the iPod, two Atkins bars and the camera.

I had a great birthday weekend at my dad's house. It was so nice seeing him and Eileen again. I really need to try and get down here more often. I loved standing outside and just listening. It is sorta funny, but I was out there last night looking at his lights and I kept thinking, "This is just how it sounds on one of those Disney rides...the log ride I think." We went driving around Lake Martin and saw a few gators and lots of birds. I took quite a few pictures and will get them posted later this week. I had to stop at Wallyworld for a gym bag so that my suitcase won't be overweight on the trip home. I also needed to be able to bring home the presents they bought me. Once I am home and get them arranged, I'll take some pictures.

Tonight for dinner we went to the Acme Oyster House. Yes, I had six raw oysters on the half shell and loved every one of them! I swear, I remember now why I hate going to dinner with about 10 people on one check. People just can't add, don't remember how much they really ordered and it is always short on cash. Then nobody wants to go to the same place, so I just started walking to where I wanted to go and everyone followed. I can't help it if Marie Laveau's Voodoo shop wasn't on their top ten list of places to go. They are all big boys and girls and can find their way back to the hotel, right? I finally walked off with one of the other engineers since we both wanted to stop at the Hard Rock to get a shot glass. I made some people in the elevator laugh when someone was telling me to call them in their room as the elevator doors were closing and I laughed and said, "Yeah, that'll happen!"

I really should be getting to sleep. Since I only took the disposable camera with me this evening on my walk, I don't have any good French Quarter pictures to share yet. I promise, tomorrow I will escape from the "mixer" early and head out to shoot some pictures. I think I will try and find K Paul's place to eat, since I would like some boudin. So far that is the only place people have mentioned when I've said that is what I'm looking for. Must be good, right?

06.18.2005

I guess it is time for the weekly update, huh?

As usual, not a whole lot going on. We had to take Oliver to the vet last weekend because one of his fangs was in the process of falling out and he couldn't close his mouth properly. Do you know how much cats drool? A LOT! Anyway, we took him in and they scheduled him for dental surgery on Monday. Of course, on Sunday night while giving him his last dose of anti-biotics before surgery we discovered that the tooth was completely missing. I would imagine that like a child, he was eating and it just finished falling out. He wasn't acting like he was in pain so we didn't worry too much. I still took him in the next morning so that they could knock him out and clean his teeth anyway. The difference is amazing.

The Child is still going to summer school and we're going to go ahead and put her in the second session. That means she'll only be a half credit behind most of her peers. She's doing pretty good but still thinks it is the most boring thing in the world, being in the same class for eight hours a day. She wants to get a job once the second session is done. John and I talked about it for a bit and we both think that we should wait until she gets her first report card, just so that we know she can handle all her classes. I've also offered up a major bribe of going to Orlando for a week in October if her grades are good enough. She was pretty psyched about that since they have the haunted house things at mo