CAUTION: Woman In Progress

Thirteen Things In My Refrigerator A conversation on one of the threads I frequent inspired this one. 1. Mayonnaise. For those rare and odd occasions I have stuff to make sandwiches. I'm not sure how old it is, though, so I might need to toss it. 2. Maraschino Cherries. I bought them to make some mini-cheesecakes and of course, it's more economical to buy the super huge jar than the little one, right? Doesn't hurt that they're tasty. And good with ice cream. NOT that I keep ice cream in my freezer. Much. 3. String Cheese. They're an excellent source of protein and calcium AND they pair well with... 4. Marinara (pizza) Sauce. Not that I actually make anything that warrants the use of the stuff but it's great dipping sauce for string cheese. Makes you feel like you're getting the whole pizza experience without all the pizza calories. 5. Sugar Free Pudding Cups. Mochacino Sundae. Mmmm ...Again, great source of calcium AND a low cal treat. And you get your cho...

Does what one keeps beside one's bed say anything about one at all? If it does...mine says I read. A lot. And I write. And I do my devotions. That's three novels, a devotional book, my journal, my weight loss journal and some pages from a mostly abandoned manuscript I took out to do some editing (and possible refreshing.) Oh, and well, there's also the trashcan and the can of bug spray. (no spiders creepin ' 'round MY bed. hehehehe ) Okay, so two of the novels were ones I'd finished reading and was too lazy to shelve while only one is in progress. (that particular novel is STILL in progress.) I do most of my reading in bed these days due to interruption by way of... Well, you get the picture. '-) Used to be I could spend hours upon hours sitting on my corner of the couch reading but now every time I pick up a book, magazine or even the manual to my dvd recorder I either get assaulted by a puppy on the chest or taunted with one of my shoes in her mouth. M...

Part One: Baking a Pie I don't do much in the way of cooking/baking. I have maybe three or four specialties that I drag out on occasion or upon request. Apple pie is one of them. I normally save this particular treat for Thanksgiving. I don't know why, but I do. However, Sis2 has been hinting for a couple of months that she was craving one so I caved and baked one this weekend. Not that I go to the trouble of, you know, making it entirely from scratch. God invented prepackaged rolled pie crusts so by George, I use 'em. Thank God for Pillsbury (or the generic equivalent!) But the booger takes ForEVER to bake and that's after you stand at the counter for an hour peeling, coring and slicing apples. An entire bag of red delicious this time. Thanks to tips from watching Rachel Ray the coring is infinitely simpler than it used to be. (Quarter the apple and then cut into the quarter on an angle to get the core.) But the peeling still takes a buttload of time. But I don't l...

This is what I've been doing off and on for the past several however many months. Needless to say, no eating takes place at the table anymore! LOL

Thirteen Lines From My All Time Favorite Movie, Steel Magnolias Don't beat me up if some of these aren't EXACT. I did it from memory. And I KNOW I left out some really great lines. This film was just chock full of 'em. ;-) 1. She’s got him so mixed up he doesn’t know whether to scratch his watch or wind his butt. 2. You are too twisted for color TV. 3. I was there when that beautiful creature drifted into my life and I was there when she drifted out. 4. I once had a radio in here but I threw it against the wall when I couldn’t figure out where the batteries went. Of course I realize now I was suffering from pre-menstrual syndrome. 5. We went skinny dipping and did things that frightened the fish. 6. As someone once said, "If you can’t say anything nice, come sit by me." 7. A dirty mind is a terrible thing to waste. 8. Do not put condoms on your sister’s getaway car. It’s tacky! 9. I’d rather have thirty minutes of wonderful than a lifetime of nothing special. 10. ...

I'm down 2lbs since the last time I weighed. That's down 2lbs of the 5 or so that I had re-gained recently. Not 2 new never before lost pounds. But I'll take it! To reward myself, I had a cream cheese danish yesterday morning. lol My best friend's little brother is in hot water. Took the frustration of his mother's worsening cancer out on a church van window by shooting it out. Could possibly do time in juvie. Best friend is indignant and pissed and claims she never did anything so stupid at his age. I was there. I know better. lol My nose and forehead are peeling from the sunburn sustained Friday. Not. Pretty. Can't wait for my scalp to start peeling and I look like some dandruff freak. Not. The Devil Pup is no longer allowed on my bed. I think she gave me fleas. *scratches leg* Sis1 is PAYING someone to organize her house. I've been begging her to let me do it for AGES and now she's paying someone. Totally not fair. I've got the BP commercial dit...

I lead such a dull life sometimes but after last weekend, I'm resolved to cherish the dull moments. ;-) So Friday was Staff Appreciation at work which basically means we sanctioned play time from 10-2. Free food, games, etc. My scalp got blistered but other than that, it was fun. I didn't play but one game but I had a blast watching my friends play this shuffle game. They're good for entertainment, for sure. I wish I could describe it but there's no words for how this activity worked and why it was so hilarious. You just had to be there. But needless to say, once we returned to the office, there wasn't a whole lot of workly type stuff going on. I suppose one day out of the year won't set back our work progress by that much. Friday night was kinda dull because Ghost Whisperer was a rerun...if it came on at all. I didn't even check. I was trying unsuccessfully to read but kept getting interrupted by a pup who shall remain nameless. lol She does NOT like for m...

Okay, my good friend Sara challenged (ordered upon penalty of severe scolding!) me to get back on my stationary bike for 10 minutes. Here's her proof. (No, I no longer have ANY shame and do not care how silly (stupid!) I look. Enjoy a good giggle! Getting started... (Okay, so this was totally staged but I had to set the timer!) I'm halfway there! (snapped this AS I WAS SPINNING hence the blurry quality.) Am I dead? (See the sweat?? It's totally rolling down my face and chest!) Ten minutes. I won't even charge you for the five seconds I went over. hehehehe Whew! I made it! Now, I'm off the hook today because I went for a long walk across campus for our staff party, right? ;-) Love ya, Sara! Thanks for always knocking my head when I get lazy.

Well kids, it's Friday! The day we all look forward to with much anticipation all week long. Today, in particular, is a good way to end the week. It's staff appreciation day on campus again and we get a free meal and four hours of play-time. Well, playing on campus. AND, it's the one day out of the year that I get to wear jeans and a t-shirt to work. lol But anyway, this week. What happened this week? Not much. I've mostly just been coasting. Work's okay. No more family drama. Nothing unusual or out of the ordinary. Well, nothing other than the fact that I've officially (meaning weighed steadily) four pounds back of that which I previously lost. I'm bummed and frustrated and disgusted. I know WHY I gained it. I stopped using my bycicle and started eating chicken biscuits for break. But I've enjoyed the respite from bland food and sweat. Guess I'll just have to chalk it up as being a "vacation" and get back to the business of eating respons...

I got nuthin' for a thirteen. Sue me. No, wait. Don't. I got nothing. ;-) Well, that's not true...I got this... And this... Oh, and this... So, turns out, I got LOTS. ;-) Just not much to say.

So Mama and I went last night and got her new camera. She got a slight upgrade from her old one so I think she's pleased. And guess what! I went ahead and splurged on one for myself! No more shameless begging on my part for anyone to buy one FOR me. hehehehehe Since that's taken care of guess what time it is, kids! Picture time! Aren't you so thrilled and excited and happy?? Presenting: West Clay High Class of 1997 10 year Reunion The welcome "wall"... Only one of these pictures had my little face in it. Go figure. Milling around... My buddy, Brad. Actually, he was my buddy, my "brother" and my sometimes crush. Yeah, that's him. And her, his fiance. Ain't they cute? Our table... Catching up... Me and one of my best buddies (and one of maybe three I've kept in touch with) Wanda. We match! LOL

So Friday was a bust. Complete bust. I'd be happy if I'd never lived it. I won't go into details because I promised my mother I'd forget about it and move on. A feat easier said than done. I'll never mention it to her again but forgetting is something it'll take me a long while to achieve. If ever. Unlike physical beatings, bruises left by words take a lot longer to heal. But she apologized and we hugged and made up and all was forgiven so I won't dwell. I just...well, I've never really been the most secure person when it comes to my family--or anyone, really. Not sure if it's anything they've ever done to make me that way or if I was just born that way. And lately, it seems, I just feel like I'm that last piece of crusty bread from a sandwich. You know, the one that you don't really want to eat but you feel bad about wasting it so you give it to the dog? Yeah. That's me. Anyway, after work Friday we stopped at Wal-Mart and I got all ...

that the people who love you most can't hurt you the worst. Let's just say that crying in the restroom is NOT the way I had intended on spending my lunch hour.

I've narrowly escaped having a stroke...twice. At least that's what it felt like. I know my blood pressure shot through the roof a couple of times. I felt dizzy, blurry and as though my eyes were about to pop out. Not because the job is terrible. I actually like the work. It's just this one particular aspect (person) that is going to cause me to stroke out if I don't learn how to just shut the crap up and ignore stuff. Arguing serves no purpose. I need to just learn to nod and smile and then go about my business. But it's sooooo hard when this person continually tries to interfere with what I'm doing. And I know her interference is well meant. She thinks she's helping. And in some ways, she is but in others...I want to throw things. I am not 2. I am not stupid. And believe it or not, I have managed to (quite successfully) hold down a job for six years without needing anyone to hold my hand. Just because suddenly I'm in a new position does not mean that ...

That's mah, genteel southun accent up theya. I do know how ta spale. Thirteen TV Shows I've Loved That Are No Longer With Us 1. The Cosby Show . I always wanted a dad like that. Involved, funny, fun. 2. My So-Called Life . I thought that show was so cool. (still do!) I was the same age, same grade as the characters so it was a great alternative to my REAL life. 3. Party of Five . As if Matthew Fox wasn't wonderful enough, it was a good drama with lots of angst and again, a teen about my age who I wanted to be like. lol 4. Homefront . And here-in lies the beginning of my love affair with Kyle Chandler. Sadly, it only last like a season and a half (or so) and I haven't enjoyed any of his TV shows since. Total bummer. But he's still hot. Love those big brown eyes. *swoon* Besides him, though, I loved post WWI era of the show. The costumes, the hair, the drama. It was a great history lesson with romantic flair. 5. Alias . Loved Jen Garners kickass heroine. Loved that sh...

My aunt sent me this riddle and I thought it was just TOO CUTE to not post. Enjoy! Riddle Arnold Schwarzenegger has a big one. Michael J. Fox has a small one. Madonna doesn't have one. The Pope has one but doesn't use it. Clinton uses his all the time. Bush is one. Mickey Mouse has an unusual one. Liberace never used his on women. Jerry Seinfeld is very, very proud of his. Cher claims that she took on 3. We never saw Lucy use Desi's. What is it? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Get your mind out of the gutter!...... "LAST NAME". ROFLOL

My head literally feels like it's swimming. Started another new part of my training this morning. (Is it possible to know less after a training session than you did before?) It's making my head swim a bit. (Or maybe that's the caffeine?) It's all so overwhelming when it's tossed at you like that. It doesn't help that there are others who, in the course of the training, horned in and used it as a bitchfest. Kind of annoying. Okay, more than kind of . I wanted to yell, "Hey, I'm learning here!" ala Sandra Bullock in Miss Congeniality . Oy. Why does this feel like deja vu? Oh yeah. Because it happens. All. The darn. Time. Anyway, I really do feel a little dizzy. I don't know if it's from the training or the need for new glasses or what. Either way, it's unpleasant and a little annoying. And I really feel like crawling into a hole and hissing and spitting at anyone who dares pass it. Maybe it's still the PMS. I dunno. *shrugs*

Okay, so I've been working with periodicals for FAR TOO LONG lately. LOL But were I to split the weekend reviews into volumes, nos. and years, I'd be on something like volume 3, no. 17, May 2007. Not that I, you know, sat down and calculated that or anything. hehehehehe Anyhoo, here's the 4-1-1 on the weekend ala me. Friday: Averted crisis of impending house guests Friday night by citing severe PMS crankiness as a potential liability. (It's true. I was severely cranky most of last week. Warned Sis1 that should she and Emmy persist with their plans of taking up space in my residence for the night I might inadvertently hurt their feelings, offend or otherwise annoy them.) Sis1 played it smart and skipped my house, did not pass go and went straight to the folks' house Friday night. Blessedly, it was just me, Libby and Ghost Whisperer Friday night. Joy! (BTW, how creepy was GW? I'm sooooo hoping they're not leading to ending the series. Heard any gossip Trix?) S...

And today, I proved just how much I ain't. *sigh* You know, you'd think I coulda waited AT LEAST another week into the new job to let my stoopidness shine. But really, it only took me a week. Actually, four days. Yes. I'm glad my new boss already somewhat knew what an airhead I am because had she not? I'd be muy humilated. Oy! So, help me remember. When dividing monthly periodicals into quarters, there are three (THREE!), not four, months in a quarter. *hides under desk*

Thirteen Things I Can't Live Without 1. Christ. He’s the man in my life and the ONLY person who I know loves me…faults and all. 2. Music. Soother of all bad days, spirit lifter, dance initiator, it’s my go to when I need comfort and joy. 3. Food. Okay, so we ALL need food to live but it’s an obsession with me. Eating, not eating, what I’m eating. It’s like a distraction from all the other important things that are missing from my life. Yes, I acknowledge fully that I need therapy. 4. Books. Ah, those happily ever afters, those ah-ha moments, those hunky fellas with their rock hard abs. Where else in the world can I date a fireman, a CEO and a cowboy all in the same week and not be a ho? 5. My mama. She drives me nuts and half the time I think we spend far too much time together but she’s my rock. The one person I can count on to always be there. 6. My friends. I’ve never been one to make friends easily and that’s why I treasure the friends I have. I have a small collection o...