Top 9 of 2008

Okay, this has to be a top 9 because well, there aren't 10 books that I feel that I can say I loved this year - of course that probably has a lot to do with the fact that I'm down from over 70 books read from last year to just over 30 this year, including audio books. Oh, and it should be noted that it doesn't mean that they were published in 2008 - just that I read them in 2008.

So, without further ado, here were my favorites of 2008 listed in no particular order (other than the order that I read them):

1. The Second Virginity of Suzy Green by Sara Hantz. I'll be honest, I picked this one up because Amanda Ashby is Sara's good friend and I absolutely loved Amanda's book, You Had Me At Halo - it's one of my all time favorite books. But you know what? I really liked this book. Very smart, relatable characters that I liked and a believable storyline. I'd definitely recommend it to others.



2. Stupid and Contagious by Caprice Crane. I'd read the author's other book, Forget about it last new year's eve and couldn't put it down. It was hysterical. So, I picked up a copy of this book - which I believe was an earlier book. Anyway, this one was hysterical too. The heroine is not always believable in the things she does but the writing and the fun of it all was so good, I didn't care. If you want to laugh, I'd say this would be a good choice.


3. The Devil's Daughter by Laura Drewry. I'm a huge fan of all things Laura Drewry. I've read all of her books but I have to say, this one was my favorite. The things that come to mind that I loved so much about the story are things that would give plot twists away and include spoilers and I don't want to do that but I can say without hesitation, I really liked this book a lot. :)



4. Remember Me by Sophie Kinsella. I'll start this by saying, I don't recall specific details of this story because I've read several "amnesia" stories in the last year and a half. However, I do recall the feeling that I was reading a classic Sophie Kinsella, which would mean I loved it. I've enjoyed everything she's written, with the exception of the Shopaholic and Sister story - and I was glad to see that one book was the fluke that didn't fit with the others.


5. Unpredictable by Eileen Cook. This was a book that I was seeing talked up early in the year. I'd put it on my "save for later" cart over at Amazon but never actually got around to purchasing (I blame school and work). Then I met Eileen in San Francisco and instantly liked her and got an autographed copy of the book. It wasn't long after that that I pulled it out and read it and it is hysterical. Seriously, I don't know when I've laughed so much. It's up there with my favorite books of all time. Highly recommend it.

6. The Fidelity Files by Jessica Brody. This is one that I saw recommended on Amanda Ashby's blog. She had met Jessica in San Francisco and interviewed her for her blog (Jessica later returned the favor via Skype). On the blog she had the book trailer. I got to tell you, few book trailers have made me want to buy a book but this one did. It was done like a movie and I still want them to do the movie. When my local bookstore didn't have it in stock, I ordered it online and promptly read it when it arrived. It lived up to the trailer. Another I would highly recommend.

7. What Would Emma Do? by Eileen Cook. After I read Unpredictable, I started following Eileen's blog. She's had the WWED information up for a while now. And to be honest, I hadn't expected to buy it, after all it's a YA. Then one day I was checking out her blog and decided to check out the first chapter of the book. I only read a couple of paragraphs before I went over to amazon and ordered the book. I ordered several other books that I had to wait for because WWED wasn't released yet. It came a day or two before Christmas and I read it within a couple of days of when it arrived. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Now, that's all I had for "chosen" reading to list but I wanted to come as close to 10 as I could so I decided to include "required" reading (ie for class/school). I'm not going to post the cover here though - sorry. ;)

8. Cymbeline by William Shakespeare. I took a Shakespeare class and this was the only one that I didn't have to read page after page of "footnotes" in order to understand the language. I'm a visual person and I could totally visualize this story. I totally did the laughing out loud with a maybe snort laugh when reading this one. :)

9. The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I was drawn in immediately into the story and instantly cared about the characters. It wasn't at all predictable and I loved that even though, by today's standards, it's a historical, it was a novel that when written reflected the times as they were then. That's so fascinating to me. The only downfall to this story for me was that we were having to read criticisms of the novel as we went along and they had some unexpected spoilers in them - which wouldn't be a problem for someone else just picking up the novel to read.


So that's my list. Now, I want to say that this doesn't mean that other books on my list weren't good, it just means that they didn't stand out like these did for me.

But that's my list. . . what made your list?

Spotlight on...Eileen Cook

I haven't gotten to read as much this year as I would like to, what with school and changing jobs (twice) but that just makes finding a well-written, funny story all the more enjoyable. What Would Emma Do? by Eileen Cook is one such book. I read it mostly in one sitting - I couldn't put it down. (You might recall I had a similar reaction to her book, Unpredictable, as well.)

It's smart and funny and I thoroughly enjoyed it. (You can see her book trailer here.) So, I emailed the author and asked if she would answer a few questions - and she said yes. Here's what she had to say. :)

Tell us about your story.
Thou shalt not kiss thy best friend’s boyfriend…again….

There is no greater sin than kissing you best friend’s boyfriend. So when Emma breaks that golden rule, she knows she’s messed up big-time. Especially since she lives in the smallest town ever, where everyone knows everything about everyone else….and especially because she maybe kinda wants to do it again. Now her best friend isn’t speaking to her, her best guy friend is making things totally weird, and Emma is running full speed toward certain social disaster. This is so not the way senior year was supposed to go.

Time to pray for a minor miracle. Or maybe, just maybe, it’s time for Emma to stop trying to please everyone around her, and figure out what she wants for herself.

What's a typical day like for you?
I like the idea of having a typical day, but my life doesn't seem to work that way. I still have my day job on a part time basis so my days are split between those where I wear pantyhose and those that I spend in my sweatpants with my imaginary friends. I tend to set weekly goals for my writing, some days I write all day, sometimes just for an hour, somedays not at all. I try not to worry about any particular moment, but keep the focus on moving forward.

How long have you been writing? How many books did you write before you sold?
I've been writing as long as I can remember. My parents saved a homework assignment I did in second grade. We were supposed to practice writing sentences and I managed to string mine together so that they made a story. The teacher wrote on the paper "someday I'm sure you'll be an author!" After I sold my first book my dad hunted her down. She was in her nineties and in a care home. I brought her a signed copy of my book. She was more interested in telling me about her bunions.

I had at least three completed books before I sold and I can't even tell you how many barely started or half finished projects there were. I still have all of these things saved in my filing cabinet. I'm a believer that you never know when they might come in handy.

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
The first is to read and read a lot. There is so much to learn and you can learn from the very best by simply taking their book off the shelf. For books I really like (and those I hate) I break them down chapter by chapter to see what the author has done. The second is to write and keep writing. There will be plenty of people who will tell you to quit, but the decision to keep going is with you.

Where do you get your story ideas? What inspires you?
I love to read and I collect odds and ends the way black pants attract lint. I have files stuffed with stories ripped out of papers or magazines. If I see a picture I like it goes into the file as well. I keep a notebook with me at all time and when random things occur to me, or overheard snatches of conversation, I write that in there. I figure my brain is a bit like a compost pile, I just pile everything in there and wait to see what happens.

What do you wish you'd known before you reached where you are now - and would it have made a difference in the steps you've taken to get there?
A wise writer friend once told me: " Writing is a craft, but publishing is a casino." So much of this business is subjective. What one person loves someone else will hate. Genres come and go in terms of popularity. For every person who loves your book someone else will be more than happy to write a long blog post on why they can't stand it. There are many really good stories out there that haven't been published.

I don't think this knowledge would have changed any of the steps I've taken thus far, but it may have cushioned the blow from time to time.

Are you a plotter or a pantser?
I am a panster who has secret plotter envy.

What's it like to write in two different genres? How do you transition between the two?
After I completed my first book, Unpredictable, the market for romantic comedy tanked. My agent suggested that I give writing young adult a try. She thought my voice would work well with that genre. I gave it a try and loved it. There are some genres that while I love reading them, I don't think I could write them. I think the secret to genre jumping is to know your core voice.

I saved my diaries from junior high and high school so I'm thrilled to have a chance to use all that teen angst.

I want to thank Eileen for her time. For more information on Eileen and her books you can visit her website. What Would Emma Do? is currently available at amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com. Oh, and I want to go on record now, I totally plan to stalk Eileen in DC this summer - assuming she goes. ;)

Heroes, Heroines and other Writerly Stuff

In 2006 a friend of mine was having a contest for a $250 gift card to the bookstore of your choice. Being the book whore that I am, I wanted that gift card. Bad.

How it worked was your name got thrown in the pool if you read 10 books. For every five books beyond that, your name got thrown in again for another chance to win. The contest started on June 1, 2006 and ran through the end of the year. So, from June 1 to December 31 of 2006 I read something like 85 books. (I didn't win the contest, in case you were wondering. *sigh*)

In 2007 I read 70 some-odd books for the entire year.

This year, what with school and all, I haven't had as much time to read. So, with required text books included, I've only read like 30 books this entire year. Which is so depressing. But, I have two weeks off and I'm trying to make up for lost time here, which I don't want to spend on crappy books.

So, what makes a crappy book? Well, it can differ from book to book for me but I started one the other day that goes in the "I rarely ever do this but I'm pitching this book without finishing it" pile. Why? Because there's nothing in it that I can grasp on to to believe. The hero is a country boy (he's done the city life before and didn't care for it so it's not like he doesn't know what he's missing out on - he does and he's not interested in it). The heroine is a city girl, visiting the country on her way to fame and fortune. They meet and are immediately in love with each other - just like that. There's no buildup, no nothing. They just know they want to spend the rest of their lives together. Not that they've said as much to each other. No. As far as that goes, they're standoffish. The hero has something the heroine needs but he's not willing to let her have/use it and politely tells her no. She tells him, in no uncertain terms, that she WILL have it and she's not letting up until he gives it over to her. That's where I have the biggest problem. I want to see the build up of the relationship. I want to see the chemistry take over. I want to fall in love with them. But, when one says no (politely or otherwise) and the other takes steps to manipulate what they want out of the other, that's when I'm done. If they don't respect each other - and show it - I can't get behind the pairing. Not to mention, I don't see how this story can resolve itself without one giving up their dream. How is that a happy ending? This story is part of a series (that I've read a couple of the others of) and everyone ends up in this small country town. Which means the heroine has to give up her dream of fame and fortune. Sure, she might be happy for the here and now but what about in 10 years when he's burping and farting and scratching his balls all the time? Will she still be glad she made the decision she did? Which is another thing, I have to believe that 10, 20 years down the line the couple will be happy. And I just don't see it in this story. So, after only 50 some-odd pages of reading, I'm officially done with that book, for now.

Okay, enough about that - on to the other writerly stuff.

A couple of weeks ago the romance community was having an auction on ebay to help out an author who had lost her husband and had catastrophic medical bills to contend with. So, I went to check out the items and saw this and totally had an image in my head how I could use it in my writing. You see, I've been clipping pictures of people and saving them in an envelope. But I want to use this for the visual. I can post the pictures on the board (the flowers in the corner are magnets) and then put their pictures in the album, telling their story. It arrived yesterday and I can't wait to get it all together and start telling the story.

And hopefully I'll avoid the pitfalls I can't stand in other writer's stories.

I've just shared one of my pet peeves in books. What makes you want to fling a book you're reading across the room? Inquiring minds want to know. :)

White Elephants

Today my group at work had their holiday party. The meats were paid for by the department but everything else was of the potluck variety. I kept a list in my office where people could - but weren't obligated to - sign up so they could see what was needed or be sure they got in what they wanted to get in. We had a pretty good spread.

(That's my boss in the background.)

After we ate we played the White Elephant Game. You know the one. If you want to play, you have to bring a gift. All the gifts are placed on a tableand those bringing gifts draw a number. The person with number 1 goes to the table and picks a gift to unwrap.


We had some interesting "wrapping" - that envelope WAS the "wrapping paper".

Anyway, when number 1 is done, number 2 can either "steal" the present from number 1 or take another gift from the table. If the gift is stolen, then the person whose gift was can either steal someone else's gift (if it's further down the line - if only two have gone there wouldn't be another gift to steal, and you can't steal back your gift). Each gift can be stolen twice before it's "frozen" and it stays with an owner.

What we did to make sure we knew when a gift was frozen was they had to put on a hat - or other item available (hats in the picture above). Someone mentioned that people wouldn't want to wear the hats so I stipulated that if they didn't wear the hat, their present became unfrozen again and could be stolen. Yeah, I know I'm bad but it was totally worth it! lol

The first person to have their gift "frozen" was given a boa to wear.


Doesn't he look thrilled? lol I think it's a good look for him.

Anyway, a couple of weeks ago Christy Craig was having a contest over on her Killer Fiction blog and I said if I won (it was a pooping Santa), I'd put it in a Victoria's Secret bag and put it in the white elephant game at work. And I won. Well, I didn't win-win but she gave me one anyway - I think to see if I would do it and take pictures - and I did. :)

I have to confess that I thought about using something else because I really thought the pooping Santa was cute but I couldn't find the "replacement" gift I was going to use - my step-father's CD with the title song of "I don't look good naked anymore". I mean, really, how funny would that be in a Victoria's Secret bag? But, since I couldn't find it to save my life, I went with Plan A and used the pooping Santa.

Well, it wasn't any time before it got stolen - bag and all.


And a few minutes later, it was forever frozen (and since I was the last number in line, it was before I could steal it :( ).


So, I didn't realize how many "stealers" we'd have in our group and didn't know how many "frozen" hats I'd need. Well, I'd brought three headband hats and the boa. I borrowed six sombreros. I figured that would be enough. Well I was wrong. So, when we ran out of those, I had to get creative. Below are the "alternate" "hats" (yes, I thought the words should be quoted separately ;) ).


(By the way, he was the only one that didn't return his "hat" at the end of the game. No, seriously. lol)


And one last one with all the "hat people".A good time was had by all. :)

Nostalgia

You may have heard the story about the 9-year old Alec Greven who wrote a 46-page book called How To Talk To Girls. You can see an article on it here but basically he wrote it for a class project, went on Ellen Degeneres' show and sold the book to Harper Collins (Ellen came before the sale).

They did a story on this on our local news this past week and were showing pages from the book on air. It's 46 pages - with pictures. As they were discussing it they said something about it being made into a movie. If it was a joke, the reporter (the entertainment reporter at that) didn't let on and the anchors were asking if he was serious and then they all had a brief discussion as to how a 46-page book could (pictures or not) could be made into a movie.

And that's when the nostalgia kicked in. Now, I know I'm dating myself with this but remember Drive-In movies? Carloads of people going to the movie and, depending on where you went, paying by the person (in which case people might hide in the trunk until you got in) or by the carload (in which case you took as many people as could fit in the car for the cheaper cost). You could take the entire family. You could have several carloads of friends and all park together.

You would sit in the car and hang the speaker on your window or bring lawn chairs and sit outside to watch the movie. You could sit on your car - there were any number of ways you could watch the movie. They usually had two movies playing on each screen so you could come and watch two movies back-to-back, or you could leave after the first (or come late and only watch one - some drive-ins charged less if you came later). There was a concession stand usually at the back of the drive in that you could get your drinks and snacks at. And some drive-ins had multiple screens where different movies were playing. Those usually had a community concession stand accessible by all the areas. Some even had areas for the kids to play if they weren't interested in the movie playing.

By now you're probably wondering what all this has to do with the 9-year old's book, right? Well, there really is a connecting thought. See, the movies at the drive-in usually started with some sort of short thing. Maybe a short cartoon or little advertisement. I can't remember whether or not they had previews (I'm thinking no?) but when the little short (whatever it might be) came on, you knew the movie was about to start. I was thinking since it was such a short book, maybe they could make it into a little thing they played at the beginning of the movie at a drive in.

In any event, this strange little story got me to thinking about something I hadn't thought about in a long time. I used to enjoy going to the drive-in and watching a movie - and other such things that have fallen by the wayside.

So what about you? Anything you wish they'd bring back - even just for a day?

I like my theory better

In case you haven't heard, Houston had a snow day the other day. Tuesday the weather was warm - mid to upper 70s, and then a storm came through.

Wednesday it snowed. It snowed! In Texas!!!

Okay, I know there are parts of Texas where snow is not that uncommon but around here? Very uncommon. In fact, it's only snowed here 4 times in my entire life.

Anyway, I had just asked to leave early so that I could go to the grocery store before I had to go to my last class of the semester. My boss said OK and when I got into the parking lot it was already snowing. Not hard and not so that it would stick but still, it was snowing. I went to the grocery store, came home and put on my pajamas. Then I emailed my instructor saying "here's my final exam (thank goodness it was a take-home test!!!) and unless I hear differently from you, I won't be at class tonight because I don't do snow." or words to that effect. I heard from her about an hour and a half later and she emailed me back my grade (including my final grade - I got an A in the class). I heard from a friend the next day. Apparently I was the only one that wimped out on the class but she had everyone grade their own final and then dismissed class. (I would've been so ticked off if I'd gone in just for that! Particularly since I was freaking about the snow - you do know about my two traumatic experiences with snow, right? If not, just know they really were traumatizing and I don't respond well to snow now as a result.) My friend said on her way home there was a light dusting of snow over the Fred Hartman Bridge and you couldn't see where the lanes were. Did I mention I freak out just thinking about driving in snow? Yeah, so glad I didn't venture out.

But the topic is about my theory and the snow. You see, I think we had record snowfall in Baytown, where I live. We had 4 inches of snow. My neighbor was able to build a snowman at a height of probably at least 5 feet (I'd post a picture of it if I could email it from my cell phone but, unfortunately, I don't have that capability...I can text it though) - part of which is still in his yard. Anyway, I got up Thursday morning and my yard was the only one in the neighborhood that didn't look like a winter wonderland. It was actually kind of funny. But that's where the theory comes in. You see, a man at work was explaining something about the heat and trees and snow on the ground where there are trees. He said that basically the snow in yards with trees melts faster than the yards without trees. I didn't really understand the particulars of how it worked but since I'm the only one with trees in their front yard, it made sense that mine would be the one with the fastest melting snow.

On the other hand, my theory was that God understands how much snow freaks me out and was just helping me out. You know, making it melt first and all.

At least that's my theory, and I'm sticking with it. :)

Confession Time

As most of you know, I did the online dating thing this past summer. The purpose was to keep me "entertained" during the summer, when I wasn't too busy with classes. If something happened, great. If not, it wasn't a big deal. Well, the experience wasn't all that exciting. The only person I actually "met" from there (or even took it beyond talking on the online website) was the guy I knew before I got married. I haven't seen him since the alcohol enhanced meeting. So really no activity came from that.

But, since I seemed to have 3 extra minutes a week (after work, school and now the marathon training), I started thinking about giving it another shot. When I got the letter offering me three months for the price of one, I took them up on it.

And then it hit me. I signed up for this during the holiday season! So not cool. My membership expires a couple of days before Valentine's day. Completely uncool! I'm not a Ms Lonely Hearts and I certainly don't want to meet a Mr. Lonely Heart so I'm thinking I'm just wasting another three months membership. Oh well.

Anyway, there was one match that looked promising - at first. He's a firefighter. His profile looked really good. And then I looked at his pictures. Now, normally I'd be all over someone who judged a person based on their pictures (or lack thereof) but this was different - hear me out.

There were six photos total. Only one was of Mr. Firefighter. The other five were of his kids (one was in there twice so really only four other different pictures). First one was of his son and daughter together - it was sweet. Next two were of his son alone. Last one was of his son too. He was standing by an ice chest of sorts - and he was proudly holding a deer's head, with another one visible in the ice chest.

Now, I'm not a vegetarian but I never knowingly eat deer meat. I'm not judging those that do, it's just not for me. I'm also not judging those that hunt, but again, it's not for me. And, honestly, I think I would have been okay with him being a hunter, who eats deer meat, if we'd met, but it was shocking to see that picture with his profile.

I wanted to be open-minded though, so I didn't automatically close the match - I wanted to think on it a while. Then, I got a "communication" from the guy, asking me to share my pictures (I did finally post one but it's not open for all to see automatically). Hmmm, so he wants to see my picture before he does any further communication, does he? That suggests he's going to judge me on my picture maybe? Well, if that's the case and he was going to judge me on my picture, I decided it was okay to judge him on the one he posted - of the dead deer head.

Match closed.

Happy Turkey Day

For those that got an email from me with the pictures mysteriously missing - here they are. Happy Thanksgiving. ~L

Runner's Knee

Last Saturday I did Day Three of week three of the Couch to 5K program. I was running (no pun intended) behind on what day I did day three on so I didn't skip any days before I did Day One of week four - on Sunday.


So, when my knees started aching right after the run, I thought that was the reason. They still hurt on Monday - my right knee in particular - and I still didn't think a lot about it. But I sent an instant message to SCG at work and told him about it. I totally expected a smart ass response from him so was kind of surprised when he seemed all concerned and started asking me all sorts of questions about what kind of shoes I had and telling me I might need a pronated shoe. He mentioned a runner's repair manual book that he had and said he was going to look up my symptoms and let me know what he found out. I thought his concern was very sweet but I was seriously wishing I hadn't said anything by the time the whole instant messaging was over with because I honestly thought the pain was a direct result of running two days in a row.

Okay, so Tuesday my knees were feeling a lot better and I went out for another run. I took Brewsky with me (my dog, not an alcoholic beverage :) ). (Harley had been the dog I'd run with on Sunday - Max was Saturday.) We were doing good with the five minute brisk walk - and then we were told to run. I took about two steps at a run and knew it wasn't happening. But I tried anyway. I probably ran for less than twenty seconds when I decided that the best thing I could do was go back home and call it a day, which I hated doing.

The next two days my knees (right one in particular) hurt bad enough that I was seriously considering emailing the marathon coordinator and taking her up on her offer to refund my money (long story but apparently they will make an exception to their "no refunds, no exceptions" rule - I'll leave it at that). But I wanted to give it a little longer. Friday I didn't run. No real excuse but I'll just say I was tired and it was cold.

Then came yesterday. I had lunch with SCG and his wife (Mrs. SCG). He'd brought his runner's repair manual book with him and started asking questions about the pain I'd been experiencing. I told him where it had started and where it had moved to. He flips right to a page and says, "I think you have runner's knee." Uh, okay. He starts reading the symptoms, which involve swelling of the knee. "There's been no swelling," I tell him. "Hurts on the inner side of the leg," he goes on. "No, it's hurt on the outer side of the leg," I reply. He reads a few more symptoms that don't apply and closes the book with purpose, declaring - again - that I have runner's knee. I just gave him a smile that said "good boy, now shut up" and continued a conversation with his wife. We finished lunch and before we left he tells me how I need to "treat" my "runner's knee". I thank him for the tips and we part company.

So, last night, I decide to try running again. My knees feel pretty good and I don't want to get behind on the program if I don't have to. But, I'm fully prepared to come back home if I can't handle it. It was Max's turn again so I clipped on the leash and headed out the door (after at least ten minutes of fighting Harley and Brewsky to keep them INSIDE the door).

We weren't two houses down when I realized that I'd forgotten to put on Max's Halti - same as I had last Saturday. I think I may have discovered the problem. Don't think it had anything to do with running two days in a row and everything to do with being drug around the neighborhood.



I was fine last night, today I can feel it. The Halti - don't leave home without it!

Another reason not to cook

Being single and not having kids to feed, I don't have to cook very often - and I don't. But, over the last few months I have put on quite a bit of weight (20 - 25 pounds!) and I've been trying (unsuccessfully) to take it back off. I keep buying fruits and vegetables and making the cabbage soup but well, it doesn't work if you don't then eat the food and stick to the diet, but I digress.

I think it was Monday of this week (because I think it was Dancing with the Stars that I was watching) that I was making yet another batch of cabbage soup. I had pulled out my trusty cutting board with three "legs" (who the heck knows what happened to the fourth leg!) to chop the ingredients on. But, since it only has three legs, I stuffed a paper towel under the board where the fourth leg would be so that it wouldn't be unstable while I chopped things up on it. I'd placed it on the stove for some unknown reason. Anyway, after I'd chopped everything up and put the ingredients (including water) in the pot, I wiped down the stove top with the paper towel before I put it on to "cook".

I'd decided that I wasn't going to follow the cabbage soup diet completely but rather try to follow Weight Watchers, incorporating the soup. So, this is why I decided to also hard boil some eggs while I was cooking the soup (my morning snack at work). I put in five eggs added water, turned on another burner and went into the living room to watch DWTS (I think). The plan was to go back and check on things during the first commercial and if the eggs had started boiling, to set the timer.

Well, I get into the living room and start wondering if I'd turned on the right burner under the eggs. See, since I don't cook often - or much variety when I do - I rarely use more than one burner at a time. And when I do, I usually use one of the back burners - which I hadn't for the eggs. Even though this doubt was in the back of mind (whether I'd turned on the right burner), I was still going to wait until the first commercial to check things out. Only, I couldn't stand it. I had to go check it out. And it was a good thing I did! Not only had I turned on the wrong burner (I had turned on one of the back burners that I would've normally used), the paper towel I'd used to support the cutting board and then used to wipe down the stove top was on the burner I'd turned on. (I would have sworn I threw it away!)

Thankfully I don't have a stove top that works with actual flames or I would have been in serious trouble. However, the paper towel had that look a fire in your fireplace gets. You know, the one that if you give it one good blow it catches fire and you're good to go. Yeah, that one.

I freaked out a little bit because I knew I couldn't just pick up the paper towel (or at least I didn't think I should). But you know what? Tongs are really good for that kind of thing so I grabbed my tongs and flung the thisclosetobeingonfire paper towel into the soaking doggy bowl in the sink. Since I don't make a habit of intentionally setting fires, I'm not sure if the smoke that followed (and filled my kitchen) was because of the almost fire or the putting out of the almost fire. Either way my house smelled like smoke for two days.

In any event, the crisis was averted but created a perfect excuse to not cook and order take-out instead. :)

Running in the rain

I wasn't going to post about my experience running last night because I mentioned it over on Fat Chicks Running but well...

I didn't run Sunday because I just had other things I wanted/needed to do (like read a book - The Fidelity Files lived up to its trailer, in case you were wondering :) ). So, that meant I really had to run last night - even though it was raining.

It didn't seem to be raining that hard when I left with Max but I didn't get far before I decided that I couldn't really run with a wet dog so I took him back home and took back off. I was probably at the furtherest point from my house - and running - when I heard a horn honk. My first thought was to run through the names of people I know in the neighborhood and wonder which one of them had discovered me running through the neighborhood. You see, I'm pretty sure my running isn't a pretty sight and I don't mind so much being seen by people I don't know but I don't want to be "caught" running by people I do know. So I was dreading looking over to see which one of my "friends/neighbors" was seeing the sight.

Turns out it wasn't anyone I knew at all. It was just some random man who saw my running - my training running, if you will - and thought I was attempting to run home because it was raining, instead of training in spite of the rain. He said (and followed it up with the ASL sign), "It's raining!" Then he asked me how far I was going, as if I had been dropped from the sky on a survival mission to find something, as opposed to being in my own neighborhood, no further than two miles from any point in the subdivision, and offered me a ride. I said thanks, I was training and he said oh and drove off.

Really, it was a nice gesture but I have to wonder what he was thinking. I mean, I had my mp3 player, running shoes and my standard running outfit - my yoga pants (what? they have "give"!) and t-shirt (which was soaking wet and clinging to me). Hmmm, okay, I'm refusing to think he had ulterior motives. It was just a nice gesture.

Anyway, in other running news. SCG was in the office yesterday and sent me an email that said something like "Hey! I'm in the office today in an all day meeting. I'll give you a shout later - I want to hear about your training." I read the email as a co-worker stood in the doorway. The conversation went something like this.

Me: Training? Have I gone to a training lately.

Co-Worker: Did you go to a training?

Me: I don't know, I'm drawing a blank but my friend said he wants to hear about it.

CW: (with same perplexed look on her face I think I probably have) What kind of training?

Me: I have no idea. I don't know what he's talking about.

Then it dawns on me...he wants to know how the marathon training is going. Some days I'm slower than others - and it was a Monday. (I never heard from him, by the way.)

Week Two - Day Two

I'm kind of behind on my schedule for week two. I ran on Sunday, as planned but I wasn't scheduled to run again until Tuesday. So Monday I worked late and came home Tuesday and got sucked into watching the election returns until I couldn't keep my eyes open anymore (it hadn't been decided yet but it was all but a done deal at that point, as far as I could tell - and it turned out the way it looked to turn out).

Last night I had class so I wasn't able to run yesterday either. So today was my first opportunity since Sunday night to run.

I took Harley with me this time. He didn't have the "OMG a crazy lady is running after me" look in his eyes tonight and he actually did more running beside me, which was good. I felt pretty good out there. I ran the first 90 seconds with no problem (although, don't get me wrong, I was glad to hear "you can walk now"). And I wasn't all that upset when she said it was time to run again. It hardly seemed like it could be 90 seconds again when she said it was time to walk again.

I wasn't quite ready to run again when it was time for the next 90 seconds but I did it anyway. I was actually thinking I would make it all the way through the full six runs this time but at the fourth run, I decided that would be the last - again. Even though I was doing pretty good at that point - better than I have to date.

So, I came home, changed clothes and logged on to blog about it, when I felt something scratching my neck. At this point I was at full rest mode (the energy fades quickly) so I kind of brushed at it. Turns out, my pajama shirt is on backwards. Maybe if I get another burst of energy this evening, I'll turn it around...

Vote

It seems like everyone I know has had a blog post about voting lately. And despite my recent blog post where I said I was a follower, that's not why I'm posting this entry. I'm posting this because I think it's important that people exercise their right to vote.

Tomorrow is election day in probably the most important election there has ever been. Most certainly the most important in my lifetime so far.

I don't know many people who didn't already vote early but, for me, there's something about election day - I didn't want to vote early. I've been pretty firm in who I intended to vote for for a while now but I still wanted to wait. In the last presidential election I was not happy with the candidates on the ballot - at all. I had discussed it with a friend of mine and told her that I was torn on whether to vote for Daffy or Donald - Duck. And the sad thing was, I was serious. I was that disgusted with the candidates. But, as I stood there in the booth, debating on whether or not I really wanted to write in one of the Duck's names, I thought about what she said to me - "if you're going to go vote, make it count." So, standing there, I made a decision and voted for the one I thought was the better of the two candidates.

This time, I'm not ambivalent about my vote. I know who I'm going to vote for tomorrow and I don't have any reservations about it. The chances that my candidate will win my state are not great but that doesn't mean I shouldn't vote because every vote counts.

So, if you haven't already done so, be sure and vote tomorrow for the candidate you think will do the best job for you and this country - whoever that might be.

My name is Lucy and I approve this message.

Confessions of a Book Ho

My name is Lucy and I'm a book ho. It's been three hours and ten minutes since my last book purchase.

Hi Lucy.

Since the first of the year I haven't had nearly enough time to read for pleasure. It's mostly because I went back to school and then changed jobs - twice (in two months). Then the hurricane and everything else going on, it's been really hard to justify spending my free time on pleasure reading because I feel so behind on everything else. Never mind that I have 70+ books that I brought home from San Francisco. Or that I have purchased several books since then. OR that I LOVE to read.

But today I decided to screw responsibility and read. I think it was in large part due to the book trailer I saw today. Amanda Ashby had it posted over on her blog and, like her, I've never been overly impressed by book trailers but this one was an exception. I promptly called my local bookstore to see if 1) they were open (you'd be surprised at how many businesses are still closed because of the hurricane) and 2) if they had it in stock. Sadly they didn't so I was forced to order the book on amazon. And the thing about Amazon is that, if you buy so much in books, your shipping is free. Yes, I know they're getting you to buy more with that program but, being the book ho that I am, I overlook that. So now I have to wait. *sigh*

But, here is the trailer that got me to shirk responsibility and read. The Fidelity Files by Jessica Brody.

Running - Day 3

Well, I went running last night. Since Brewsky was the dog I took with me, there was no chase him warm up or cool down.

I clipped on the MP3 player and was listening to some good tunes with someone telling me when to walk and when to run. You know, I thought I was doing better than I am because I could still feel the burn when I ran (one minute is a LONG time - don't let anyone ever tell you differently!). Anyway, I had taken a shorter route than what I take when I walk them (but longer than I took Harley the other day) but I wasn't near being done when I got back close to my house. So I went down another street, thinking there was no way I wouldn't be done by the time I made it back around to my house. I was coming back around the corner by my house and looked at the time on the MP3 player - I'd been going for 20 minutes. The session is just over 30 minutes but I decided to pack it in and go home - I was too close. So, as I rounded the corner, she said "this is your next to last run". I responded with "uh, that was two runs ago sweetie" and I walked the rest of the way home. I felt like such a loser but well, I was dying and decided I'd rather die in the privacy of my own home than on the streets in my neighborhood. Plus, recent experience has shown that Brewsky wouldn't have run for help - he'd just have run (although he was pretty tuckered when we got home so maybe he would've just laid down beside me 'til he got his second wind).

Anyway, I got home and changed clothes and logged on to the computer to look up the link for the podcasts - I'd told someone at work I'd send the link. Well, I clicked on the wrong thing and ended up at the coolrunning.com webpage. For the first couple of weeks it says to do the routine for 20 minutes! Not 30 - 20! Which means I accomplished the task. Yeah, I'm still dying but I did it.

And the thing is, I do actually feel better after I've done it. In the long haul it will be good for me too - once I get used to it.

Oh, and something else I've learned about myself through this whole experience. The other day I went to the grocery store. I was buying healthy food to go with the exercise program. I'm walking/running now, with the goal of running a half-marathon by March. But what did I do? I drove around for ten minutes looking for a good spot. Apparently I'm one of those people - the ones who drive around a while to find a spot at the gym so they can walk on the treadmill, sort of people. Anyway, the irony didn't really sink in until I was walking into the store. If I'm going to run/walk 13.1 miles, I can surely walk a little further to get into the store, don't you think? Next time!

Happy halloween!

Save yourself!

That's kind of what I was thinking last night as I went out for my run. I hadn't seen the link to the Couch to 5K podcast Mel provided so I was on my own again, running when I thought I should and stopping when - okay, let's be honest, stopping when I wanted to.

I took Harley this time and somehow managed to avoid the whole chase-Brewsky-down-the-street-because-he-got-loose-as-I-tried-to-get-out warmup of the other night. Harley, who has in the past been the best walker, not pulling or stopping to pee or anything, decided that last night was the night he wanted to change HIS style. At first he was pulling on the leash and then he'd want to stop and smell something and then I'D pull the leash. When we ran, he would get immediately in front of me so that I was afraid of stepping on him or tripping over him and FALLING on him. He apparently had the same fears because he periodically looked over his shoulder with a "OMG this crazy lady is gaining on me" look on his face. I took a detour of our usual walk (making it shorter because I didn't think I could handle the full one, walking and running) and when we would walk, when Harley would want to stop, I reached a point where I thought, "Am I crazy? Let the dog stop and smell the roses - I'll just lie down here so he doesn't feel rushed." I didn't do that - I just thought about it because I knew it would be harder to get back up and he wasn't likely to send back help.

Anyway, overall he was actually okay (other than me thinking I was going to trip over and fall on him). It kind of made me think his previous owner might have been a runner. Either that or in his previous life he was chased by what he perceived to be a crazy lady.

Anyway, we made it back home in one piece and getting back into the house is usually the easy part. I'd put my house key in my shoe and thought I'd felt it shift as I stepped up onto the porch. I reached into my shoe and had it, until it slipped down into the shoe so that I had to take the shoe off, only to find it empty. I took off the other shoe and there it was. So, I was holding both shoes and Harley's leash, opening the door. Normally the other dogs will back away from the door and let whoever enter. Not last night. Brewsky saw my vulnerability and darted past me, as did Max. I dove for Brewsky (Max is usually pretty easy to handle) as my shoes went flying. I missed him but the dive was broken by the corner of the door jamb. Max and Harley both stopped (okay so I still had a hold of the leash with Harley attached to it but I'd like to think he wanted to stay behind) and Brewsky ran down the street, obviously thinking I needed a "cool down" portion of my run (little did he know I was content to do my cool down in the comfort of my living room). I changed shoes and came back to the front door to find Brewsky waiting to get in. It would have been okay but Max pushed past to get out and he took off again. He went as far as my next door neighbor's.

So, the run was okay but the "events" at home aren't as "fun". And I have a big old bruised goose egg over my left temple to prove it. I woke up in the middle of the night with pain in my left knee too (apparently the left side of my body is the sissy-side of my body) but I'm doing better this morning. And I'm looking forward to running tomorrow with the podcast that tells me "run" now "walk" now "run again" on the official times I'm supposed to. (Thanks Mel!) :)

Oh what a feeling!

I love that everyone is being so supportive of my joining in on the marathon fever. Really, I am. But I've discovered something about myself. I'm a follower. I'm not the leader - the pied piper, or the person with the great idea. No, I'm the one who gets tapped on the shoulder and asked "where's everyone going?" I say something like, "I don't know, something was said about a bridge, something about jumping. . . it sounds like fun though. Join us!"

It was that way with school. Last year Kristen and Ellen decided to go back to school. I followed suit in the spring.

It was like that with the marathon too. Inspired by others, I jumped right on the marathon train (oh if it were only that easy) with both feet and registered before I could change my mind.

Today is day two and I worked out with Richard . . . Simmons. I was sweating to the oldies. Tomorrow I will run again (I'll take Harley this time I think - and we'll hopefully skip the "chase down Brewsky as he bolts out the door and down the street" warm-up we had yesterday). I'm going to plow through the pain and work to achieve the goal of finishing a half-marathon in March.

In the meantime, I'm being told how cool it is that I'm doing this. People are proud of me. People are envious of me - or at least of what I'm doing/trying to accomplish. It's a nice feeling, really it is, but I can't help but find it kind of funny that I can't feel my legs but I'm inspiring people. :)

Torture - Day One

Well, I've done it. I registered for the half-marathon in Little Rock. It's happening March 15, 2009 and I'll be there.

The exercise started last night - with my credit card. After I registered for the marathon, I went to the mall to get proper running shoes (not sure I've accomplished that task sufficiently but we're going to try what we have for now). The shoes cost more than the marathon.

I left there and went and bought an MP3 player (my first) so I could download tunes while running. Turns out you have to pay for tunes so my credit card got even more exercise (and because of some computer glitch that I stayed up ALL NIGHT trying to fix, I can't even download songs - don't get me started).

I finally gave up and went to bed about 5:30 this morning, got a few hours of sleep and decided to start training (more like get the running for the day over with but whatever). I got dressed, and was going to take Max with me. Brewsky didn't care for that and darted out the door and ran down the street (he started out too fast and burned out quickly - which was a good thing, all things said and done). I got him in and then Max and I hit the ground running - well, not immediately but still. . . you get the idea.

By my third round of running and then walking, I could feel it in my legs and was wishing I lived closer to where I was at the moment (I think Max was too, truth told) but we kept on. (Kind of because we had to but that's beside the point.)

We finally made it home and I had an epiphany - I understand what they mean when they say there is a runner's high. It's not so much a feeling a runner has so much as a state of being - anyone who enjoys running has GOT to be high! It probably started with a Jeff Spicoli kind of person (Sean Penn's character from Fast Times at Ridgemont High) saying something like "Duuuudddde, that runner's high." Someone heard "Duuuuudddde, that's runner's high." and the rest, as they say, is history. That has to be it.

Anyway, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go settle into a running induced coma now . . .

Someday has arrived

Several years ago my ex-boss's wife ran a marathon. She was at least in her late fifties, possibly in her early sixties. I was very impressed. And a bit jealous because it's something I'd like to do myself. Yet, I did nothing about it then. Time went by and I still did nothing about it. I'd hear about upcoming marathons and think "someday". But still, I did nothing.

Fast forward to this past week. Wednesday we had an offsite team building activity at work and I carpooled with two other ladies to the event. During the course of conversation, one of the ladies mentioned that she was training for the half-marathon in January. The bug of jealousy bit me again but I just kind of swatted at the pesky little thing.

That evening I logged on to the internet, stopping by my usual places and came across a post (can't remember where I first saw it to be honest) where a writer friend of mine, Mel, along with another friend of hers were gearing up for half-marathons and decided to blog about their journeys here. I was really impressed and inspired but I still got out the can of bug killer for the jealousy bug flying about.

THEN, the next day I was chatting with this man at work that I not so secretly have a crush on (everyone but him knows about the crush - at least I hope he doesn't know) and he tells me HE's training for a half-marathon.

It's like the story where the river starts rising and rescuers try to save this man who keeps saying "Jesus will save me". He passes on the vehicles that come, the boats that come, the helicopter that comes - all to save him. Then, when he dies in the flood he asks Jesus, "why didn't you save me?" and Jesus responds, "Well, I sent you a vehicle, a boat and a helicopter..."

Now, it's not like I'm going to die if I don't do this or anything but I do think there's something to the fact that in such a short time it's become like THE topic of conversation among my friends and I want to take a look at that. It's something I've wanted to do for a while and if I do it this time around, I won't be doing it alone.

So, I've been online and the Houston Marathon is full - I can't run in that marathon but I CAN run in the Little Rock marathon in March, with Mel. Tell me this isn't fated. It falls on the first weekend of my spring break. My step-father lives in Arkansas so I could visit him (and not have to kennel my dogs!) and see Mel. How can I not think I'm supposed to do this - now?

I do have to admit though, that heavy breathing you're hearing from me at the moment isn't because I'm winded from just running - or because I'm excited or anything. No, sadly it's the kind of breathing that comes from hyperventilating. I mean, I am excited about this but I'm also anxious about this. But I can do this, right? Just because I throw up a little every time I say (or type) that I'm going to do this doesn't mean anything. It doesn't!

But that all said, I'm all in. I AM doing this because someday has arrived!

Greatest American Hero

For Maria, who had never heard of the Greatest American Hero - one of my favorite shows from the 80s. The premise was he was a reluctant hero, having been selected by the aliens. They provided the suit and a manual, but he lost the manual and had to wing it - figuring out what it did as he went. Kind of like Stephanie Plum, she doesn't really know what she's doing so she plays it by ear.

Oh, and he was a high school teacher by day - super hero by night.

Loved the show. :)

Gender-neutral Friendships

Growing up my best friend was a boy named Darryl. Our mothers were best friends and so we were always together. We were about five when I realized we had differences. You see, that's the first time I had the "show me yours and I'll show you mine" conversation (and for the record, I've never known a male who wasn't willing to show his - just saying). I was shocked and stunned and devastated because we didn't have the same "equipment". But I still didn't think we were really all that different. Of course, that was before I tried to pee standing up. (Don't ask.)

Until that point in time, I was completely unaware of any boundaries or differences between boys and girls.

But, as time went by the differences seemed to become more "obvious". Interacting with the opposite sex had to mean something. You couldn't just be friends. There was a time when I thought it was just my family that had that view point (I can't talk about my male friends without starting the story with "we're just friends. he's married/gay/whatever." and interjecting that into whatever story I'm telling a couple of times and closing with that as well.) but recently I've found myself being asked about SCG. Granted, there was a time when I had feelings that went beyond friendship for him but that's all in the past. We really are just good friends now.

When I was in San Francisco, SCG kept in touch with me via text messages. He woke me up, at least once, texting me (two hour time difference SCG!!! when you're arriving at work, it's still the middle of the night in SF!). The day I evacuated for Ike, he called me to be sure I was okay and find out what my plans were. He kept in touch with me throughout the entire thing and came over the first day I got home and helped me clean up the mess in my yard, without me asking for help.

He's introduced me to his family - and we've all bonded. (His wife and I go to lunch without him!)

If he were female, no one would question anything about it. But the penis factor makes it all suspect to many - most, actually. I find myself getting asked if he's "my guy" a lot. Uh, no, he's my friend!

I'm tired of trying to explain it. I'm tired of trying to understand it. I'm tired of trying to figure out when it became unnatural to be friends with someone just because of gender. I'm going to quit trying to figure it out. When Harry Met Sally is one of my all time favorite movies and in it they ask the question, can men and women just be friends. Well, you know, I don't care what people think because I've decided I'm going to stop analyzing it and just be thankful that we're such good friends. Because, you know, penis or no penis, such good friends are hard to come by.

Sweet. :)

The romantic in me really likes this. :)

In Case of Emergency...

When I got my new job I noticed that there was a sign like thing on the door that said, in big bold letters, FLOOR WARDEN. I had a bit of an idea what it meant but I wasn't 100% certain and just decided not to worry about it until it came up because the person who trained me (hahahaha, what a joke that was!) didn't mention anything about it.

Then this morning I noticed that I had FW training. Not making the connection I started calling other people on the invitation to see what FW was. I was told "Fire Warden". I figured it out from there.

Anyway, so I went to the Floor Warden training and they started discussing what our roles as Floor Wardens is. Let me just start by saying, my idea of how it worked is quite different than what we actually do. See, I held a similar role at another site and there my responsibilities were to get the list of names of people who should be on the floor/in the area and check them off. I never got to test my skills though because, fortunately, we never had an emergency.

My role in my new building is that it's my responsibility to ensure that everyone in my designated area get to safety - whether that be outside or somewhere else inside the building. I have to go from office to office and make sure they are empty of people and then close the door. If, by chance, someone has closed their door, I only have to knock on the door and yell "EMERGENCY - GET THE HELL OUT OF THE BUILDING" or some such thing and move on. But what this means is, if there is a fire in the building, I can't leave until I've gotten my people out - or done what I could to get them out first.

Considering I'm the designated hysterical person in a crisis, it's not necessarily the best plan of action. Unfortunately though, they didn't like my suggestion of letting my people know they should just follow the sound of my voice as I ran, screaming, out of the building. Go figure.

The cleanup continues

Well, I'm waiting for the adjuster to show up to assess the damage. I finally called a tree guy last week about the "limb" on my roof (and embedded in the ground). They couldn't give me any kind of estimate as to when someone could be out - to give me a quote. Said they'd tape the quote to the door if I wasn't home. Thing is, I'm not going to haggle. I need the limb down and this is a company I've used in the past - they're fair and reasonable on their charges. Just send someone out please.

The fence isn't holding up as well as it was, which is a concern for me. The poor dogs haven't been let out unsupervised since we returned from Arkansas and nobody is happy about that. I do, however, leave the back door open when I'm home - if it's not too hot and if they're even remotely interested in being outside (although, have to say, all I have to do to get them interested in going outside is to CLOSE the door!).

I have no idea who to call about my chimney. None whatsoever. My concern is that it could potentially be a leak threat and we're expecting rain (for the first time since the hurricane) today and tomorrow. Although, I suppose if it was going to leak with any consequence, it would have done so during the hurricane.

As for those who gave input on the gift card - thank you. I did end up getting them a gift card. I had lunch with Mrs. SCG the Tuesday after they came out (SCG got pulled onto another job - related to damages caused at another facility - for three to six months so I may not see him much, if at all, for a while). She acted like it burned her when she touched it and said they couldn't accept it. I told her they had to because it had their name engraved on it (it didn't but she didn't look - and it worked because she took it then). She said SCG would be pissed though and he did send me a text that evening letting me know he wasn't happy. I spoke with him the next day and I told him that I just wanted to do something nice for them and thought they could use it for a nice dinner out and after that, he seemed okay with it. By the way, Mrs. SCG insisted on paying for my lunch that Tuesday - in fact, she had arranged it with the waitress before I arrived, yet they were reluctant to accept something from me (lunch was $30, by the way - 1/3 of the gift card, right off the bat!).

Oh, and in other Ike crap . . . I have a rental property out in Hempstead, Texas. It's a little shack really. My mother crew up in it and the tenant that lives there now has lived in it for more than 30 years. She pays all of $80 a month (and I've often wondered if I'm overcharging her - seriously!). Well, the house lost a good portion of the roof apparently. I asked her if she could find someone to come out and take a look at it and she said she would. Of course there were no roofers that could come out immediately so she called a jack of all trades guy who gave us a quote of "somewhere between $12,000 and $18,000. Yeah, so not happening! I asked the tenant to call the blue roof program so we'd have more time to consider our options. Have to say, the house isn't worth $12,000 so there's no way I can afford/justify paying that on the roof. Not to mention, at $80 a month, I won't be re-cooping that expense any time soon. Not sure what I'm going to do about that. (The house is not insured - I tried a few years back to get insurance but it's not up to code so is uninsurable at this time so the cost would be 100% on me.)

Anyway, hope to have all the Ike stuff cleared up soon and have life back to normal. In the meantime, I really appreciate all the good thoughts and vibes.

What's going on in y'alls worlds?

After the Storm

Well, SCG and his family got here Friday around 10:00 a.m. and worked until about 4:00 p.m. - and we didn't finish the clean up! I remembered that I hadn't used up all my exposures on the disposable camera I got in San Francisco so I snapped a few shots and took them to be developed (if nothing else, Ike got me to get pictures from Nationals developed).

Here is a shot of the pile of limbs in my front yard waiting to be picked up. And just let me say, this picture doesn't do the pile justice - it looks more massive in person, seriously.


Below are some shots of the backyard, as it looks now:

It may not look like it but I could stand upright when inside that dog house. And what's not green is covered in limbs that need to be raked and bagged up to be hauled out to the front. The dogs walk gingerly over it.

SCG kept saying he thought I should contract someone to cut down this tree and haul it off. I love this tree and couldn't understand why he would say that but looking at this picture, it does look kind of sad, doesn't it?By the way, the limb resting on the ground is attached to the one coming down from the tree AND the one shooting off to the right. The branch shooting off to the right is resting on my house and the way it's all laying, we couldn't get it down. It's likely it will cause damage to the roof and/or windows when it is brought down.

I took this next photo to kind of show how the fence had to be propped up. The tree in this picture is my favorite and doesn't seem to have sustained much, if any, damage as a result of the storm.


So, my question to you all. . . I want to do something nice for SCG and his family for all their hard work. I was thinking of a gift card (say MasterCard) of $100, that way they can use it how they choose to. I know it's not much, particularly given that it was a family of four that worked for 6 hours but it's all I can afford at the moment. Do you think it will be insulting? Should I get something more personal? And if so, suggestions?

If it helps, I didn't ask SCG for help - he offered. He called me Thursday a week ago as I was loading up my car to evacuate and asked if there was anything he could do - anything I needed. Then he kept in touch with me throughout the next week, letting me know how things were here and asking that I let him know when I would be back so he could help me. He even sent a text the day I came back, asking if I was back and when I'd be back so he could come help me. And he didn't hesitate to come out and he - and his family - worked their tails off for 6 hours to get done what we did.

So, thoughts? Suggestions? Help please! :)

O. M. G.!

Well, as Gabrielle can attest, I have a crappy camera that never works when I need/want it to so I wasn't able to take photos on it (although I did take pictures with my cell phone, only I don't have the internet on my phone). But OMG, the friend who told me about the damages in no way prepared me for what I came home to. She said, "Of course there are branches on the ground." Uh, yeah. I have about a quarter of an acre here (large for a subdivision lot) and there is no ground that isn't covered. And we're not talking any pansy ass small limbs, we're talking big huge honking limbs that make walking through the backyard impossible. Not to mention, the french doors are blocked by branches.

She also failed to mention (although not a big deal) that the dog house has been up-ended. I've been wanting to get rid of it so I'm really okay with that. But the 40 feet of fence that is down? Uh, try about 100 feet of fence down! And the posts are snapped off - not uprooted, broken.

But with all that, amazingly, no windows were broken.

SCG and his family are coming out within the next hour to help clean up my yard and repair my fence. He lives in a brand new home and mine is 25 years old and in need of a facelift. I'm not really comfortable with him seeing my house but I'm so so so so so grateful for him for helping me because I couldn't do this on my own.

I do have electricity and enough water for a few days - hopefully enough to last until the "boil water order" is lifted. No cable though (which was a disappointment to SCG's daughter lol).

Anyway, so that's how things are here. I'm home and grateful for what I have - including good friends. :)

Onward and Upward

Well, I woke up this morning in a much better mood. My step-father hadn't been out of bed five minutes (literally - he hadn't even poured his morning cup of coffee yet) when I announced that I wanted to have breakfast at Anglers here in Mountain View, Arkansas. He was quite agreeable and had to wait for me to get dressed.

So, we headed out to Anglers, only to find out that breakfast isn't served except for on weekends. Okay, not a problem. We got back into the car and headed towards Fifty Six, Arkansas. They DO serve breakfast on weekdays at Cody's in Fifty Six. So my step-father ordered one egg over-easy and ham, with biscuits and gravy. Mind you, I wasn't hungry - I just wanted a good breakfast before I left here. I ordered 2 eggs scrambled, sausage, biscuits and hashbrowns. My step-father ate his egg, one of his two (delicious) biscuits and some of his ham. I cleaned my plate, just shy of licking it. It was that good. And remember, I wasn't even hungry.

As for the other stuff going on in my life - I think I'm going to head home tomorrow. I have reason to believe the power is back on again - at least some in my neighborhood have electricity. But even if I don't - I just want to get back home. Things need to be done. But I'm not complaining now - just stating facts.

Anyway, I wanted to mention the thing about packing for evacuations and things you want to keep in mind. First of all, the decision for me to evacuate was a last minute thing. I hadn't planned on evacuating, ever again, after Rita. Technically I'm just outside (as in less than a mile) of the mandatory evacuation zone if the hurricane is a Category 5 hurricane. But I took off Thursday and was clearing out potential projectiles from my yard and came in to see that the town I live in was under a mandatory evacuation order.

I freaked a little bit at that and all thoughts of staying quickly left me. I tried to remain calm but when I went into my bedroom to pack I realized that was a lost cause. I started yanking things off of hangers and throwing them - unfolded - into my suitcase. Then I started grabbing laundry and throwing that into a different suitcase. Shoes and books in another, etc. I kept thinking I needed to get my mortgage/deed/insurance papers together but never got them when I thought about them so they got left behind.

With the same consideration I'd thrown things into my suitcase, I threw things into the trunk of my car. Dog beds, dog food, suitcases (I had to combine the shoe/book one with the dirty clothes one because they weren't all fitting into my trunk). I brought some food and water (learning from the Rita debacle) and some other miscellaneous "stuff".

And I promptly fled, in the clothes I had been working out in the yard in.

Now, here's where I mention that my "yard work" bra is different from my "every day" bra. (Can you see where I'm going with this?) And yes, the only bra I brought was the one I was wearing. Let me tell you, it wasn't pretty. Mountain View is a nice town but it doesn't have much in the way of retail so I had to buy a bra at WalMart for public wearing. It's not great but for $10, I won't complain.

So, I learned about the food and water from Rita. This hurricane has taught me to be absolutely sure you pack the right bra, if you're going to be evacuating. :)

What would you want to make sure you had if you evacuated?