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March 29 Birthdays and visitsMy precious niece had her 8th birthday yesterday. I'm so proud of her. She's so special and sweet and I LOVE children at that age. I found out that she loves horses which is ironic as I do too. Several times I've been told how much like me she is. I want to have the opportunity to spoil her as if she were my own child. Dad's birthday is Tuesday and I REALLY need to do something for him.
I spoke with my mom last night. Every year for the last four years, my parents have said that they were going to come to our house for a day visit. This begins every March or April and continues throughout the summer. When Spring comes, I always get the phone call of saying that they are wanting to get away and want to come visit for the day. At first it starts out that they are going to come some time in May. When May comes it's always, the excuse that they are too busy and haven't had time to get away and they'll be down in June. From June to July and July to August. By the time the summer's over, they still haven't visited so then it's always, we'll do it next May. So last night, it started again. The only difference is that now Mom has settled on a date of April 22nd. I'm hoping that they are coming for sure this time but now I have to worry about cleaning the house (top to bottom), making sure the yard looks good and the Oasis is set up. They are also going to be bringing my niece with them. Why so much paranoia and work, you ask? Well, the last time they came to visit was about 4 1/2 years ago, 2 months after hubby and I bought the house. At that time, it was okay that the house was messy as we had just moved in and were still unpacking boxes. I want to show them how much the house has changed since then. The only time they were here was in November and you know how blah yards and gardens get around that time.... dead! Well, this time, I'm going to do what I can to make sure things are super-nice for them to see. I keep remembering things I need to do before they get here in 3 weeks and 2 days. I really am excited they are coming though. This way I can give Dad his birthday present personally.
Mom's asked me about my blog on here and about Myspace. Somehow, I think she would do better here, reading this blog then going to Myspace where most of the people there are younger. Let's put it this way, this is a much calmer and nicer place for her. Take care!!! March 20 Have you ever?There's a game that I used to play in college called, "Have you ever". It's when you ask your group of friends if they've ever done...__________ and then if those in the group have, then they take a drink or sip of drink and go on. Anyway, today I am playing have you ever, but this time it's just a one sided game with rhetorical questions.
Have you ever thought of someone from your youth and wished you could find them and talk to them? I have
Have you ever looked for them? I have
Have you ever been successful? I have
I didn't have many friends growing up, but what friends I did have, I usually kept close to me. I've found friends that I hadn't seen since I was 8 or 9. We don't really keep in touch, but at least I was able to make contact with them. Most of my friends from 6th grade, I hear about them from my parents since my parents are still friends with their parents. My high school friends are scattered to the wind but we still keep in touch. My oldest college friend likes to lurk and post here sometimes. I've "lost" 3 of my closest friends through time and distance. The first person I lost was Jules. She's the lurker here. :) It took me several months to locate Jules. When we got back into contact, I can't tell you how thrilled I was! I think she was just as anxious to renew and maintain our friendship as I was. It's been 16 years since we've seen each other, but we still call, and email and we are still close to this day after relocating each other 5 years ago. Cheers to you Jules! She'll never know how much I love her as a sister.
The second person I had to find was Nicola. Nicola and I were fast friends 28 years ago. We lived down the street from each other in New Jersey. Nicola and I were sisters in soul and spirit and NO ONE could tell us differently. We dressed alike and we even LOOKED alike which was even slightly more disturbing. Nicola and I moved to different cities and states on the same day and we still managed to keep in touch for about a year afterwards. We lost touch but then found each other again about 10 years later. Then we lost touch again for another 4 years. This time I was living in Athens and she called me at my apartment out of the blue! Seems she had called information and found me through my parents. Shortly thereafter, we lost touch again. 10 more years went by and I tried to find Nicola again. It took me about 6-8 months to find her as she hadn't left much of a paper trail AND she'd married to a guy I didn't know his last name. Needless to say, we have maintained our friendship to this day (7 years later)! Like Jules, Nicola has been there for me during some tough times, just as I have been there for both Jules and Nicola.
The third person I had to find was Ellie. Now, Ellie and I have been friends since high school and she's a few years younger than I. Ellie and I were close and we were 2 of a kind. I lost touch with Ellie about 16 years ago and always tried to find her or find out what she was doing. Last week, I felt that I had to find Ellie again. I put on my detective badge and went to work. I googled her first and found a little information. From there, I just went to work and within 30 minutes, I had tons of information but not a valid home or email address. Persistance paid off when a thought of a blogging website came to mind. I tried it and started looking for her there. On a hunch, I looked in several places and I FOUND HER! During my search, I also found some pictures of her, my she's changed, and I had some information verified. I was a little nervous about emailing her after all of these years and I wasn't 100% sure that it was Ellie, but I sent an email anyway. Well, today I've been blessed after a 1 day search, I've found her! The most satisfying moment was when I got a reply email from her today. Turns out she tried to look for me a few weeks ago. We are now planning a little reunion and I can't wait to be able to sit down and catch up. Sometimes we CAN find what we're looking for if we keep at it. Have a super day and to Jules, Nicola and Ellie. Thanks for being such awesome friends and incredible people! Take care! March 14 My how time flies!!My how time flies!!!! I was watching the news last night and they were talking about the snowstorm we had. Everything was shut down and snow was blowing everywere. Most people were snowed in at home, but a few people went to the mountains to see the snow and were now stranded. It was the worst blizzard in a number of years. When was this snowstorm, you ask? It was 14 years ago. Yesterday it was in the 80's!!!!! I remember this blizzard VERY well as well as where I was living, what I had been doing, and so much more. It seems like it just happened yesterday, but it was in 1993! I guess my memory isn't failing afterall. LOL The night the blizzard moved in, I was literally moving into my first apartment and away from the alcoholic roommate from HELL! I had arrived at my new apartment at about 7pm and it was pitch dark. I had gotten off work at 6pm and driven straight to my apartment and unloaded my car. I then went to the market to get cleaning supplies and a little food. I spent that night trying to clean my apartment and getting some sleep. I remember how strange it seemed to me. I was sleeping on an airmattress at the time and the apartment seemed so HUGE for just one person. I woke up the following morning and saw ALL the snow. My foolish self went later that afternoon and drove 30 miles in the snow to work. I remember how scared I was driving down that lonely LONG road and I was afraid I was going to slide off the road. I did fine thought, but by the time I got to work, the power was out and I was told that I could stay for a few hours to see if the power would come back on. I was completely alone in the basement of a building where the radio station was housed. By 10pm, I was cold and hungry and quite lonely. My boss had trecked down to check on me and to sleep at the station and he told me to go home. I'd gotten an offer to spend the night in town at a local B&B where some friends of mine were the proprietors. I was foolish and turned down the offer and proceeded to treck back home in the DARK AND SNOW all by myself at 12 midnight. I did fine, but my muscles hurt for days as I wound up driving home completely tensed up.
Now that I look back on that day, I realize how blessed I truly am. At the time I was single, alone, no friends, terrible job, scared, insecure, full of self doubt and very very poor. Literally a few steps from being homeless. At that time, I couldn't imagine things getting any better and thought I would probably end up dead on the street. 14 years later, here I am. I survived and I'm doing so much better!!! I'm married (have been for 8+ years), I OWN a home with lots of land, I have a wonderful job, and I've actually made a few friends! I have plenty to eat, and although I'm in debt, it's a good kind of debt as houses don't come cheap. I'm still a little insecure and I still doubt myself a lot, but I'm not scared anymore. In 14 years, I flipped the coin and I'm seeing the better side of life. Although I would love to win the lottery, I realize that what I WANT and what I NEED are 2 different things. I don't NEED anything anymore, but I just WANT for frivolous things. I would rather win the lottery and help out my family and friends, than to win the lottery and horde the money. Take care!!!!! March 09 What's Goin' On?I guess I have been neglecting the few of you who come by to check in on my life. I do apologize since I haven't had much to say, nor have I felt like writing. I was thinking about this blog the other day when I had checked the statistics page. No one's really been reading my blog and I really felt that I'd hit my zenith and fizzled out. Alas, someone did ask about me so here is the scoop.
Work is just awesome and I'm still LOVING my job. Hubby ran into a Trooper friend of ours from another post and apparently I'm "loved by my post and Troopers". Makes a lady feel really good to hear something like that.
So, what's new with me, you ask? Nothing at all! I found this awesome UT snowglobe for my Dad's birthday next month. I found it on Ebay and "won" it January 24th. I sent my check and to this day I haven't received a damn thing! I've called and emailed with no response. I checked with Ebay and they charge 25 dollars to "reimburse" but then I'd only be getting $1.99 back which is a true rip off. I'm really upset about it and I'm not sure where to turn. Just ruined my birthday surprise for my Dad's 65th birthday.
Bella's doing fine. She's still not housebroken and I doubt she'll ever be. She's too stubborn and hard-headed. She tries to chase and terrorize the poor chickens and she won't come when you call her as she's too hard-headed.
I've been enjoying my "shows" lately. I'm loving Jericho and Heroes more and more. With Survivor and Amazing Race on, I'm entertained almost nightly. Haunting Evidence comes on in June for Season 2 and it's going to be amazing! I think Ghost Whisperer has wrapped up for the season, but I'm not sure. Seems like my life has just started to settle down and now consists of work (which I LOVE) and home. I guess I just thought that I would have a more active social life, but when you live in a small town there really isn't much to do. Hubby and I are going to go shopping on Sunday. Whew! It's been a long time since we've done that. Talk about SHELTERED!!! LOL
I've been thinking about starfish lately, and I'm not sure why. I found this on a blog somewhere and thought I would share it. Take care!
The Starfish Story
Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.
One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up. As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean. He came closer still and called out "Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing? "The young man paused, looked up, and replied "Throwing starfish into the ocean." "I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?" asked the somewhat startled wise man. To this, the young man replied, "The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in, they'll die. "Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, "But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can't possibly make a difference!" At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said, "It made a difference for that one." |
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