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 |   My thoughts/experiences/feelings/beliefs, depending on my mood. Blah, blah, blog. |
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** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only **  Winner of "Best Blog of 2011" for "The Quills"  . Previous winner of "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" Round 1. A big, heartfelt thank-you to all of my fans and supporters!  Welcome to the randomness, silliness, craziness, and all-around tomfoolery – what a great word that isn't used nearly enough – that is my blog. Don't get me wrong, it isn't always silly and crazy. Sometimes it's serious or sad but, more often than not, it's comical. Nonetheless, it is always entertaining. I try to see the fun in life. I'll add to it as much as I can so make sure you check back often.  Feel free to leave a comment or review to let me know you stopped by.  DISCLAIMER: If you are someone who gets offended easily, then you shouldn't go any further. I'm up-front, to-the-point, sarcastic and honest (sometimes brutally so). I tell it like it is, or the way I think it is. If you don't get offended very easily, then you've come to the right blog. All are welcome. The fun is free! My life is an open book blog. Hilarity and chaos ensue... ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** |
I understand that April showers bring May flowers but this is getting ridiculous! I swear, it seems like we've only had about 3 sunny days for the last month.  If anyone even utters the word "drought" this summer, they will get bitchslapped!  This weekend was the 8th Annual Easter Classic Soccer Tournament in our Township. My husband runs it. He's the President of the Soccer Board here and he's also on the Sports Advisory Board. This tournament is his "baby". He's the one that thought of doing it all those years ago. It's grown to be one of the biggest (and one of the best) in the state! It's an Easter weekend tournament but they never play on Easter. The games are Friday night and all day Saturday. Friday night it was freezing cold and pouring rain. We were miserable down at the fields. It's one thing to be standing outside in rain. It's something else entirely to be standing outside in bone-chilling, cold rain. Ugh! They got all the Friday night games in. It rained through the night. We were up at 4:30 Saturday morning. My husband called an emergency meeting with his soccer board to decide on whether to cancel. The forecast was calling for rain most of the day with thunderstorms in the afternoon. There were teams in town from all over the place. If they had canceled, everyone would have lost money. They decided to try to get in as many games as possible. It's a good thing they did too because we never got the thunderstorms. The sun came out for a while yesterday afternoon. It didn't start raining again until last night after the tournament had finished. I'm glad they were able to get all the games in. He puts a TON of work into that tournament every year. The one thing that drives me nuts is when people ask how old our kids are and what brackets they're playing in in the tournament. That leads to the inevitable, "We don't have kids" conversation where they go on about how shocked they are that we do this out of the kindness of our own hearts and we don't even have any kids. I hate that conversation. I know these people mean well. They don't know about the endometriosis. They don't know I almost died. They don't know that I had to have a hysterectomy. It sucks. But I digress. The tournament turned out well. I have several friends with kids who play in the tournament. One of my best friends was down here for the tournament. Her daughter plays in it so the whole family was down here. They live about an hour away so we don't get to see each other too much. It was nice to see them 2 days in a row!  I did leave the fields for a little while yesterday to run some Easter errands. Fortunately, I didn't have to host. My in-laws had everyone over for dinner. I still had some errands to run though to get gifts and something to take for dinner. One of the gifts was for my husband and there's a pretty funny story around it. There's this little "mom and pop" coffee place near us. We love coffee. My husband more so than I do. I don't really care how I get my caffeine in the morning. As long as I get it, all is right with the world. This coffee place actually roasts a lot of their own coffee. There's one called "Black Cat" that my husband really likes. It's a really bold coffee. He was out of coffee and stopped in a few weeks ago to get some more. He wanted to try something different. They happened to be roasting an Ethiopian Blend when he went in. They gave him a free cup of it as a sample. He really liked it so he bought some. He couldn't remember what the name of it was. He only remembered the type of blend. So, I stop in this coffee shop yesterday to get him some for Easter. I was going to get him 2 half pound bags of something different to try. The conversation went a little something like this:Coffee Shop Dude: "Hi there! What can I get for you today?" Me: "Hi! I'm here to get some coffee for my husband for Easter." Coffee Shope Dude: "OK. What were you thinking? We could make up a basket with some small samples or you can get him a 1/2 pound or pound of something you know he likes. What'll it be?" Me: "Well, he really likes the Black Cat." Coffee Shop Dude: "That's a good one. It's one of our most popular blends. Do you want to get him some more of that?" Me: "I'd like to get him something different to try. Maybe a half pound each of 2 different blends?" Coffee Shop Dude: "Sure! Would you like to get him the Black Cat and something else?" Me: "Besides the Black Cat, there's another one here that he really likes." Coffee Shop Dude: "Do you know what it's called?" Me: "He stopped in here a few weeks ago and you were roasting an Ethiopian..." *pause*  *cover my mouth with my hands* "Oh my God! That came out sounding really, really bad!"Coffee Shop Dude: *looking at me like he's trying not to laugh hysterically*...*finally breaks down and cracks up laughing to the point that he has tears in his eyes* Me: Hey, I'm mostly Irish. The blushing thing happens on a regular basis. Coffee Shop Dude: *finally regains his composure enough to speak* "Now that was damn funny! I'm sorry. Anyway, I know which blend you're referring to. Would you like some more of that?" Me: "Yes, please. A half pound." "Is there anything similar to that or the Black Cat?"Coffee Shop Dude: "How about the Mocha Java?" Me: *at this point, I just want to get the hell out of there* "Perfect. A half pound of that too, please."Coffee Shop Dude: *packs everything up* Me: *I pay, thank him and turn to leave* Coffee Shop Dude: "Have a nice day! I hope your husband enjoys his Ethiopian." Me: ...and I bolt from the store hearing the dude laughingI'm pretty sure I gave this guy a story he'll be telling for years to come. What can I say? It's always entertaining with me, folks. Plugs and Props I was playing around a little yesterday before heading to the soccer fields. I ended up writing a funny, little acrostic. Well, it's my own unique spin on acrostic. It's a thank you to WDC.
There are a few reviews. One of them came earlier today from The StoryMaster  . It was a private review with a 4.5 rating and he said it was really cute. He sent a bunch of GPs with the review too. I've never gotten a review from him before so I thought that was a pretty cool thing for him to do. Fivesixer  and Brooklyn  , I think you'll get a kick out of the poem, especially the last line. Recap of the Stanley Cup Eastern Conference Quarterfinals and “the bet” between me & Fivesixer :Game 1 – Thursday, April 14th: Sabres 1 – Flyers 0 Game 2 – Saturday, April 16th: Flyers 5 – Sabres 4 Game 3 – Monday, April 18th: Flyers 4 – Sabres 2 Game 4 – Wednesday, April 20th: Sabres 1 – Flyers 0 Game 5 – Friday, April 22nd: Sabres 4 – Flyers 3 Game 6 – Sunday, April 24th: Flyers 5 – Sabres 4 We are all tied up at 3 games a piece. You know what that means, right? Game 7. The most exciting game in all of sports! Game 7 will be Tuesday night in Philadelphia. There's no nail-biting emoticon so I'll have to settle for the worry emoticon.  I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter and I hope you enjoyed the weekend! Hopefully your weather was better than what we had here. With all the rain we're getting, I thought this song would be appropriate. I know it's not November but oh well... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SbUC-UaAxE |
| I know you’re all going to feel my pain here. You’re in the supermarket. You’re in a hurry. You have a handful of things so you get in the express (20 items or less) line. And you get behind that person. You all know the one. The person who has way more than 20 items. The person who has way more than twice that! Grrrr! This happened to me last night. It was about the millionth time it’s happened to me. Why was it different last night? Because it got ugly, folks. I’m going to start off by saying that I am not a racist. I don’t care what ethnicity, religion, race, sex or anything else that you are. You could be black, white, orange, green, purple, whatever…and it makes no difference to me whatsoever. But, if you are purple or green, I may question whether there are peacocks somewhere in your lineage. Do you know what I do mind? People who are ignorant and people who are racist. What happened last night, has a little of both. Now that we’re through with my disclaimer, hopefully, no one gets offended. I’m simply re-telling what happened.I have my 6 items. Yes…1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 items was all I had. I get in the 20 items or less line. There’s a person in front of me and a person in front of her. The person in front of me has no items. I don’t think anything of it. I just think to myself that I should be in and out quick. Wrong. The woman in front of me starts yelling out to someone else who was elsewhere in the store. Still, I think nothing of it. People continue getting in line behind me. Next thing I know, she says (to no one in particular), “I’m gonna go get my cart.” Um, cart? She gets out of line, walks over to the lane next to us and comes back with a cart full of stuff. On the way back to our line, she bumps her cart into a guy. She doesn’t say she’s sorry. She doesn’t say excuse me. She hit him so hard that his arm started bleeding. And she decides she’s just going to get back in line in front of me. Still I say nothing. I feel bad for the dude she just hit with her cart and ask if he’s OK. He says he’s fine and gives a look of disdain to the woman. I just shake my head at the ignorance and hope that I can still get out of there soon. All of the other lines are packed so I decided to stay put and take my chances. Bad move by me. The girl in line behind me has only one thing and it’s a sheet cake that she’s carrying. I turn to her and say she can get in front of me since that’s all she has. She started going off about the woman in front of me with the cart full of stuff. She said it loud enough so that the woman could hear it. So begins the chaos. The lady with the cart full o’ shit yells out to her friend who comes over. They start telling sheet cake lady that it’s none of her business and they’re splitting the items so all is good. People continue to gather around because they’re creating quite a spectacle. I’m still not saying a word. I’m not going to stoop to that level. I just want to pay for my damn 6 items and get the hell out of dodge. Things continue getting ugly as more people start saying stuff to them. They insist that since it’s being split between the 2 of them, it’s fine. By the way, I counted while they were checking out. They each had over 40 items a piece. There were even more items than that but, as they were checking out, they would ask the cashier to check the price and if it was too expensive, they told her they didn’t want it. The voices start getting louder as more people start giving them shit over this. The manager ends up coming over to ask what’s going on. She ends up telling everyone that, even though they have more than 20 items each, the cashier still has to check them out and can’t ask them to leave the line. I think that’s a bunch of crap. I'm so ready to call bullshit at this point but I continue to keep my mouth shut. What’s the point of having an express line? As the manager walks away, the 2 women who are splitting this cart full of junk are bitching to each other about people giving them crap over it. They’re very loud about it, too, so that everyone can hear them. Then, one turns to the other and says, “White people are so stupid!” HOLD. UP. I think to myself, “Did she really just say that?!” I’m a white person of moderate intelligence. I took offense to that. Especially given the fact that I was the one in the 20 items or less line with less than 20 items! So are all the people in line behind me. So, who exactly are the stupid ones here? The look on my face must have been plain as day because sheet cake lady said, “Oh yeah, she just went there.” The guy in the next line over that she had rammed with her cart was the one to speak up when they said this. He said, “We’re stupid? You’re the ones who can’t count! Did you even finish kindergarten?” UH. OH. Needless to say, the yelling started all over again. People from all over the store had come over to watch. The manager came over. Again. Finally, she decided she needed to open some more express lanes. Ya think?  Since I was next in line, they called me over first but I let sheet cake lady go ahead of me. That cake she had been carrying looked damn heavy. While I was checking out, the other 2 had finished in their line. I still had not said anything to them. I was not about to stoop so low as to say anything. I walked out behind them and heard them discussing where they parked. They walked up and down several rows of cars, with all their stuff, before they found their car. Sometimes karma is a bitch…So, the moral of the story is what? Were they wrong? Absolutely. What they did was downright ignorant - way too many items, getting out of line & cutting back in, hitting someone with their cart to the point that they drew blood...and then the racist remark they made. The whole, “White people are so stupid!” comment. Why take it to that level? They were wrong. Period. Instead of 'fessing up and apologizing, they kick it up a notch and go there. It was completely unnecessary. The dude that said something back to them was wrong too. He had a right to be pissed. He was, after all, holding a paper towel to his arm that was cut from her shopping cart. He still should have never said what he did either. Two wrongs don't make a right. I know that it all boils down to ignorance. It’s really sad too. It’s 2011 and, without sounding too cliché, can’t we all just get along? Last I checked, we were all members of the same race: the human race. We’re all on this ride together, folks. We’d better learn to get along. I know it’ll never, ever happen but it’s a nice dream, isn’t it? This ends my rant for the evening. Plugs and Props It’s been a pretty damn good writing week for me. Here's a little breakdown:  My poem, "Invalid Item" , is one of PatrickB  ’s choices for Mandy on "Invalid Item" , week #14. Please check out their page and the other awesome poets they have listed on there. Guess who else is one of their featured poets? Our very own, Brooklyn !! I hope you're feeling better, Brooke! I also had 2 different poems featured in 2 different weekly newsletters yesterday. They are:
 !
Last, but not least, my poem,
 ) yesterday. Thank you to Jakrebs  for that!Recap of the Stanley Cup Eastern Conference Quarterfinals and “the bet” between me & Fivesixer :Game 1 – Thursday, April 14th: Sabres 1 – Flyers 0 Game 2 – Saturday, April 16th: Flyers 5 – Sabres 4 Game 3 – Monday, April 18th: Flyers 4 – Sabres 2 Game 4 – Wednesday, April 20th: Sabres 1 – Flyers 0 We are all tied up. Looks like our boys are going to make it very, very interesting! Game 5 is tomorrow night. Yep, that's Good Friday. I hope my Flyers can make it a GREAT Friday! Tomorrow is Good Friday and I’d like to wish you all a very Happy Easter (in case I don’t talk to you). It's not only Good Friday, it’s also Earth Day. There are some great things going on here at WDC in honor of Earth Day. One of them is the following:
I wrote and submitted the following:
I will also be participating in the reviewing challenge. If you’re not inspired to write something, go check it out anyway and sign up for the reviewing challenge! There are lots of great prizes.  I hope you’re all having a great week! Given what the first part of my blog entry tonight was about, I’ve chosen a special song to leave you with. I’m not a religious freak or anything like that but I do believe in God. I pray. I go to church once in a while. And, I also believe that we do all live under the reign of one King. If you haven’t figured out what the song is, here you go, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lKBro5YkPs. |
This is for all my peeps that have made my WDC life, well, amazing. You guys are the best! As a token of my appreciation, you will be receiving raffle tickets (if you haven’t already) for the following:
They are my gift to you. It’s a little something to say “thank you”. I just ordered them last night and the raffle ends on Thursday. Hopefully you’ve received the ticket numbers already. If not, you should be getting them soon. You are my write family and you have no idea how much I missed you while I was gone. Click on the link above (for the raffle) to see what you have a chance of winning (oh God, I just thought of Charlie Sheen). Good luck in the raffle! Also, please feel free to buy additional raffle tickets for yourself or your friends. It's a very worthy cause! Thanks to ~WhoMe???~ for doing it!!Fun fact of the day: Yours truly got a free lunch. Again. There’s a pizza place not far from my office. For those of you that don’t know, I work in a very “touristy” area. There are tons of tourons around at all times. Tourist + morons = tourons. It’s a word my co-workers and I came up with several years ago. We use it quite frequently. Anyway, this pizza place always draws a big crowd at lunch time. The line is usually pretty long (damn tourons). Every so often the one guy that works there will give me my lunch for free. It’s usually when the line is really long, like it was today. My co-workers think the dude likes me. I don’t really care. Free lunch is free lunch. I’ll take it. Recap of the Stanley Cup Eastern Conference Quarterfinals and “the bet”: Game 1 – Thursday, April 14th: Sabres 1 - Flyers 0 Game 2 – Saturday, April 16th: Flyers 5 - Sabres 4 Game 3 – Monday, April 18th: Flyers 4 – Sabres 2 Flyers are up in the series 2 games to 1. Game 4 is tomorrow (Wednesday) night. I am a lifelong Philly sports fan. We’re BIG believers in jinxes, hexes, curses, superstition – you name it – so that’s all I’m going to say about it…for now. If you’re new to my blog, please see "Invalid Entry" , especially the comments of that entry. It has the details of the bet between myself and Fivesixer . I must say that some of the comments are pretty damn hilarious! Scrapple anyone?  I hope everyone had a good day. I’ll leave you all with a quote instead of a song. “The greatest gift is a portion of thyself.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson |
| For those of you that don’t know what that means, here’s a link to the definition in Urban Dictionary. http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=craptastic My week actually wasn’t that bad. Sometimes I’m just overly dramatic because, let’s face it, that was definitely an attention grabber, right? Here’s a little breakdown for you: Monday… …was actually pretty good, actually. We had some “visitors” at work from other offices. I work with some great people. Both in my office and in our other offices. It’s nice when my co-workers from other offices visit. Especially when we’re able to go out for drinks after work and hang out and catch up with each other. Tuesday… …was just usual craziness at work. I know I’ve mentioned that I was put on a “special” project when I went back to work after my disability ended. I promised to go into a little more detail about it but I’m just not “there” yet. I will. I promise. Suffice it to say that I was handed 10 pounds of shit in a 5 pound bag. I was asked to clean it up. That’s what I’m good at but this client might be well past the point of saving. That’s all I’ll say for now. Tuesday night I had a doctor’s appointment. That should be my last appointment until next year. The reason I say “should” is because my last visit was supposed to have been right before I went back to work (I went back on March 14th). At the end of my second week back, I did something really stupid. I lifted something when I had been told I wasn’t allowed to yet. I paid for it. I had to have an emergency visit with my doctor. Tuesday night’s appointment was the follow-up from that. He ended up doing a little procedure. I’ll spare you the gory details. Let’s just say it was rather unpleasant but, considering all I’ve been through, it was a walk in the park. I’m glad it’s over and I really hope that this time he’s right when he says he doesn’t need to see me again for a year. As long as I don’t do anything stupid again. Wednesday… …an awful day at work. I really, really do love my job. Even with this project, I still love my job. I’m frustrated by the situation we were put in but I need to suck it up and hope like hell I can get this client straightened out. After work I had a hair appointment. I’m friends with my hair dresser so I went to her house with a bottle of wine. She cut and colored, we drank wine and we caught up on life. It was a good night. I love her - she’s awesome! Thursday… …chaos again at work. One good thing, though, was that a manager from one of our other offices had taken an e-mail I had sent and forwarded it to my boss’ boss. She wrote, “I know you know this already but Julie is AWESOME. She’s so proactive and just amazing to work with.” It, of course, made it’s way to me with a nice note thanking me for all I do. It’s nice to be noticed and appreciated for what you do sometimes. Especially since I’ve been getting really discouraged with the problem client I’m working on. Friday… …anyone want to guess? Yes, another crazy ass day at the office. Late in the day Friday, I got an e-mail from one of our competitors. His exact words were that he would like to “nab” me for an open position they have. I had interviewed with them in August because someone that I worked with had left my company to go work there. He tried to hire me to come work for him. I turned it down. My job and my company are far from perfect but, this competitor has some major issues. They offered me the job that I interviewed for in August. I turned it down. Then they went after another one of my co-workers. He ended up taking it. That guy is now trying to come back to my company for less money than he was making before. Yeah, that’s how bad it is. I still haven’t replied to the e-mail I got Friday. I will politely, respectfully decline. Again. My hubby and I ordered a nice dinner in on Friday night. That’s what I needed. A quiet, relaxing night at home after the week I had. Saturday… …apparently, NJ, PA and DE have a monsoon season. Evidently, it occurs all in one day. That was Saturday. I never got the memo on that one. We got almost 4 inches of rain in some areas yesterday! What the holy effin' hell? I’ve never seen it rain that hard, for that long, in my life. I considered building an ark. I ran a ton of errands in the morning and, of course, got soaked. Then I went to my friend Theresa’s house to see her and her daughter, Faith. Got soaked again. Faith is 8 months old and the most beautiful, pleasant baby I’ve ever seen. She’s adopted. Theresa and her husband had tried everything to have a baby without success. The adoption process was a wonderful experience for them. Faith is a lucky girl to have them for parents. They named her Faith because they never lost theirs. That chokes me up every time I think of it. They’re amazing people and I’m so happy for them. Our friend Tonia came over too. It was so nice to see Theresa, Faith and Tonia and just hang out with some good friends. Last night, my husband and I went to dinner with 2 other couples. It was a good time. Oh yeah, and we all got soaked because it was raining so damn hard. Sunday… …the weather was beautiful today! I’m so glad it wasn’t raining. I did the usual Sunday thing…laundry, cleaning, etc. Nothing exciting. I did write a short story today. A very short story. It's for a contest. It's the first short story I've ever written. I think it may suck though. It's gotten some views but absolutely no ratings/reviews. That's why I think it sucks. If you guys want to check it out, feedback would be appreciated. Again, it's REALLY short.
For those of you that are keeping track of the Stanley Cup Eastern Conference Quarter Finals and the bet between myself and Fivesixer , here’s a recap:Game 1 - Thursday, April 14th: Sabres 1 - Flyers 0 Game 2 - Saturday, April 16th: Flyers 5 - Sabres 4 That’s right, folks, we’re all tied up right now. Things are going to be real interesting over the next week. Game 3 is tomorrow night. Also, I’m a member of the Talent Pond and I now officially have my blog “docked” at "Talent Pond Blog Harbor MOVED TO 1700829" please stop by and check out some of the other blogs docked there.I will leave you all with this. I like this song and, for some reason, I can’t seem to get it out of my head. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6rYPHmSzcE&feature=fvsr |
| Did anyone happen to catch 60 Minutes on Sunday night? They did an awesome piece on Albert Pujols. He’s not only a great player; he also seems to be a great guy. Yes, I can give credit where it’s due unless it’s the Yankees, Cowboys or Devils. I will even give a shout out to David Wright who plays for the Mets. Yes, that’s for you, Fivesixer , my friend. He’s a good third baseman and he’s not too hard on the eyes either. Now that I’ve completely wandered off topic, let’s get back to Albert Pujols. We'll start with his baseballs stats. He’s been playing for 10 years. His batting average has never been below .300 in a season. He’s never hit less than 30 home runs. He averages over 100 RBIs every year. Can you name any other players that have done that well on the field? The answer would be a big, fat NO. The segment on 60 Minutes briefly spoke about his accomplishments as a player. The heart of their story was what he does off the field. This guy does so much for so many and, before this aired, I had no idea. Here is a link to the segment, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yB4lHAEsSyo. I got tears in my eyes watching that prom scene for those kids (and again with the kid with cancer). Wow! What an awesome thing to do. The hero worship in their eyes said it all. And that’s not the end of it. His foundation helps people, not just in this country but in his home country, the Dominican Republic, as well. It is so refreshing/enlightening/heartwarming to see this, especially with all the negative publicity baseball has had in recent years from the steroid scandal. There are still nice guys in baseball. It got me thinking. Is he just another nice guy or is he a hero? Or is that something that is reserved only for those who put their lives on the line? Can we only deem soliders, firefighters, cops and the like as heroes? What about the person who pulls over to help the victims of a car accident they just witnessed? Is that person a hero? What about the kid on the playground who stands up for another kid who’s being bullied? Is he a hero? I know what my answers to those questions are but I’m curious to see what you think. Have I ever done anything heroic? That may depend on who you ask. I am that person who has stopped to assist people who’ve been in a car accident. I have a lot of first aid training. I thought I wanted to be an EMT when I grew up at one point. Does that make me a hero? Eh, who knows. If I’m on the train, in a conference room (in a meeting) or even waiting for a table in a crowded restaurant and an elderly (or just an older) person or a pregnant woman comes in, I always offer my seat to them. In my mind, that does not make me a hero. That’s a respect thing. It’s how I was raised. Does it make me a hero in the eyes of others? Maybe to the person who sits in the seat I gave up but I don’t know. Over the years, I’ve encountered people who, in my mind, are unequivocally heroes. I’ve written about them too. Perhaps you’ve seen them already but, if you haven’t, here they are. My dad was my hero and no one will ever be able to convince me otherwise. He was the greatest man I've ever known. He's been gone almost 10 years now and not a day goes by that I don't think about him and miss him terribly.
My best friend’s brother, who was like another brother to me, was a fireman killed in the line of duty. He was trying to save 3 little girls, all under the age of 5. Not only is he a hero but I believe there is a very special place in Heaven reserved for people just like him. Where there are no questions, there's no purgatory and, at the pearly gates, St. Peter merely says, "Welcome home." That's what I'd like to believe.
I think we all know how many heroic acts occurred on 9/11. Some of those heroes survived; most did not.
I’d like to know what all of you think the definition of a hero is and/or have you ever witnessed a heroic act? Do you consider yourself or someone you know a hero? If so, why? What's your story? I’m curious to see the responses I get, especially about your definition of a hero. I will leave you all with this, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqWRaAF6_WY. “True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.” ~Arthur Ashe Have a great night everyone! |
| I know the Flyers have been playing like crap lately but after last night's win over the New York Islanders, they are the Altantic Division Champs! Do you see that, Fivesixer ? They are the champs!! My Flyers will be facing your Sabres in the first round. I'm thinking a friendly little wager might be in order, don't you? Here's an article about the Eastern Conference Playoff Brackets. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/660052-nhl-playoffs-2011-eastern-conference-p... Oh, and B, I forgot to mention that mrsjq5 might be a Yankees fan but guess what? She's also a Flyers fan. For those of you keeping score at home, that's 2 against 1! In honor of the Flyers and their playoff berth, I decided to post a few pics of my puppy, Jameson (we usually call her Jamee). She's all Flyered up too! And a pic of me with one of the Flyers.Jamee in her Flyers jersey. I know it's a little dark. It was taken with my cell phone but you still get the idea. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** This one is Jamee "playing" for the Flyers. One of my best friends is a PhotoShop junkie. She also has a little too much time on her hands. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** This is a picture of me with Flyers forward Scott Hartnell. He came into the bar where my company Christmas party was being held. Yes, I know I look terrible but this was just a few weeks before my surgery so I felt terrible. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only **  In other sporting news, I stumbled across this on Yahoo today, http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ycn-8225993. It's in reference to this article that was in the New York Times Magazine and it's about the Phillies four starting aces. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/03/magazine/mag-03Phillies-t.html?_r=2The Phils are playing Atlanta today. Let's hope Cole Hamels has a better outing than he did in his first start. You know the worst part about playing the Braves in Atlanta? That stupid tomahawk chop that they do every 5 seconds. It's the most annoying thing ever. Hey Braves fans? STOP. IT. NOW. Sorry today's blog entry is nothing but sports, especially to those of you reading this who aren't sports fans, but it's all I've got today. I think I vented enough in yesterday's blog entry. I will leave you all with this, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgSMxY6asoE. LET'S GO FLYERS!!!! |
| It's my first week back at WDC and, boy, has it been busy! Busy at work, busy at home...and busy writing! It's been a big news week too. Earlier this week, a local story broke about a guy who was arrested for molesting children at his wife's day care. The wife ran a day care out of their home and the guy was sexually abusing the kids there. This happened a town over from me. They are still trying to identify all of the victims. One of the possible victims is the nephew of one of my best friends. He's 2 1/2 and already has some learning disabilities. My heart goes out to them and everyone who has ever been affected by something like this. What really makes me mad is that this guy was out on bail not long after he was arrested. Really? He's been released back into society, back to his home WHERE HIS WIFE RUNS A DAY CARE, just hours after being arrested? Where is the law? Where is the order? And, where is the justice for his victims? I am all for the right to a fair trial and being innocent until proven guilty but I believe that sexual predators are of a different nature and, when children are involved, the law should be protecting them. This whole situation makes me so sick to my stomach. In other news this week, the federal government avoided a shut down. Yay them. Yes, that was total sarcasm. If any of us performed as poorly at our jobs as our elected officials do, we'd all be out of jobs! Why are they not held accountable? The last I checked, this was a government for the people, by the people. Well, guess what? I'm one of those "people". My message to those elected officials? DO. YOUR. JOB! Politics has no place in the government. Yes, you read that correctly. I understand politics. I understand the different parties. Hell, I'm a registered Democrat. I vote but the sad thing about that is that I'm picking the "lesser of two evils" among the candidates. Those elected to office are "supposed" to become bi-partisan when they take the oath of office. That is the only way they can truly govern and work for the American people. Instead, they remain tied to their party and vote on things according to their party's beliefs, rather than doing what is right or voting for what they believe in. Whatever happened to united we stand, divided we fall? Does anyone else think our forefathers are rolling over in their graves? I do. I want this country, our government, our leaders to be what they should be. This is a great country. I know it is. I love my country and consider myself extremely patriotic but this isn't the country I know and love. We're not as great as we once were. I am so proud to be an American but what has America done to make us proud lately? Anyone? I can't answer that question either. Our government almost shut down. Our economy is a mess and, despite what they're trying to tell us on the news, it's not getting better. Tell the people who have been unemployed for 3 years (or more) and still can't find a job that things are getting better. It's not. This country was able to bounce back after the Great Depression. Ever heard the expression "the Dirty Thirties"? That describes the 1930s. It took an entire decade to bounce back from that but we did it. America stood strong and proud, worked together and the government helped the country out of that horrible era. Here we are 3 years in to a complete economic meltdown. Does anyone see any relief in sight? Unemployment rates are staggerlingly high. New jobs are being created each month but not enough to employ the millions of people that are out of work. Gas prices continue to rise. What happens when they get so high, people can't afford their cars anymore and have no way of getting to work? Cost of living continues to go up but, for those who are employed, how many of them do you think have gotten any kind of raise over the last 3 years? When the cost of living continues to rise but salaries stay the same, sooner or later something's got to give. I hope this isn't offending anyone and I really don't want anyone to think that I don't love my country. I do. I really, really do. I want us to dig our way out of this economic mess. I want us to be the "world superpower" we once were...that I know we are. I'm proud of our soldiers for fighting for the freedom that we all enjoy. It's because of them that I have the freedom of speech to be able to write this blog. It's because of them that I'm free to have the opinions I have. I'm even proud of our government for some of the things they have "stepped up" and taken care of. They're trying to get the economy in a better place but they need to put the politics aside and work as a team to do so. I'm proud that our government was one of the first to offer assistance to Japan after the horrible events they've endured over the last month. This is the country I love. This is what makes me proud to be an American. Since this blog entry has gotten long enough, and I'm sure you're all sick of my bitching, I'll finish by saying that I am finally writing again. I've written 3 pieces in the last week. Check them out, let me know what you think.
The last one was very emotional and extremely difficult to write. It took a lot out of me to do it but it was a long time coming. I needed to write it. I had to get it out of my system as much as I could. I also (hopefully) have some new blog followers. Now that I'm back up-and-running, I hope they'll be by regularly to read, comment, etc. So welcome mrsjq5 (who happens to be one of my best friends over the last 20 years). I'd also like to say hi and welcome edwinpm. Keep coming back, guys! And, for my buddy, Fivesixer , how did you like my Phillies stomping all over your Mets on Thursday? 11-0...wow! I know, I know, you're going to tell me how much my Flyers suck right now. You know what? You're right. They'll limp their way to the play-offs and get knocked out of the first round. I don't know what the heck happened to them. They hit a wall...or something. I hope they can pull it together but, the way they've been playing lately doesn't give me a warm and fuzzy feeling. Thanks for the "shout out" in your blog, my friend. It IS going to get hot, folks! Bring it!!!! I'll be by your blog later to leave you a comment. Game on, brother. Game effin' on! Ha ha, I love it!I will leave you all with this song. After the "temper tantrum" I threw in this blog entry, I think it's fitting (when you see the name of the group). http://youtu.be/4C8e7nNLZNs |
That was some crazy ass weather we had today! Around lunchtime I looked at the radar on one of the local news station's websites. It showed that the entire Eastern half of the country was under some sort of tornado watch or warning.  That is insane!! Tornadoes in NJ or PA? Really?!  I work on the 10th floor of a highrise building in the city. I could see the storm(s) coming in. It looked like armageddon outside at one point! Fortunately, it was just a lot of rain, wind and thunder for us. It sounds like Georgia and Mississippi got the brunt of this storm. Hopefully this hasn't affected any of you guys.So, my buddy B, Fivesixer , has got to be LOVING this Phillies/Mets game right now. The Phils are down 7-1 in the top of the 6th. Sorry to say this B, but the Mets aren't beating the Phillies right now. The Phillies are beating themselves! And, a nice thank you to Cole Hamels for completely shitting the bed in your first start of the season. That's OK, you'll get 'em next time, Cole! Please? I hope?!! I know that they can't win every game but I'm still allowed to get cranky when they're playing bad, right?That's all I've got for tonight's episode of blog-ville. Thanks for tuning in! With the title of this entry and how I started out tonight's blog, I can't help but to leave you with this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhPu5AHDMHM |
| The return of Julie D and Cliff Lee in the same day?! Coincidence? Maybe, maybe not... You're probably all wondering where I've been for the last few years. The short answer is, I needed to take a break to deal with, well, life. The last few years have not been easy but I survived!  In the last 3 years I've lost my grandfather and my dog, Kelsey. I broke my left ankle again (in September '09). I got kidney stones and had several issues with that. My only real family (my brother and his wife and their kids) moved to Germany. My father-in-law suffered from a series of strokes. And last, but certainly not least, my endometriosis and ovarian cysts got to a point that drastic measures needed to be taken. I had to have a hysterectomy in January. Since I'm young and my husband and I don't have kids, there was not only physical healing from my hysterectomy but emotional healing as well. I'm getting there slowly but surely. It's hard though. Fortunately, I have very supportive, loving family and friends. I'm not looking for sympathy, just providing some insight on where I've been the last few years. Regardless of the reasons, I needed to take a break from writing. Now I'm back and, even though I may not be on here as often as I was before, I'll be checking in, writing and blogging as often as I can.That's not to say the last several years have been all bad. I've had some good times too. We got another dog. She's a Black Lab and she'll be 2 in May. Her name is Jameson (in case you forgot, we're VERY Irish) but we call her Jamee most of the time. I'll post a pic of her at some point. The Phillies WON the World Series in 2008! The day they won was my 3rd wedding anniversary. They've had play-off runs the last 2 years and are looking good so far this year. Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels - need I say more? I'm still working for the same place and I still love it. Again, I had surgery in January and was out on disability for 2 months. I just returned to work on March 14th. It's good to be back but I get tired so fast - still. My doctor said that's normal. There was a "special project" they were holding for me until my return. Lucky me! I'm happy to say it's going well. I'll go into more detail on this project in another entry. It's a LONG story. My friends are awesome. I wouldn't have made it the last few years without them. I definitely wouldn't have made it through surgery without them. Since my family (my bro & his family moved to Germany), my friends and in-laws really stepped up. For the first few days after I got out of the hospital, there was some kind of delivery to the house almost every day. Flowers, balloons, gift cards, a basket of snacks/magazines/word searches/a really soft blanket, etc., tons of food from Omaha Steaks and about 2 weeks worth of pre-made meals from a local Italian place. They knew that my husband would burn the house down if he tried to cook and also knew that I'd be unable to cook so all that food was SOOOOO helpful! I am so very fortunate for having them in my life. They are my world!I did post a new poem today, "Invalid Item" . Those of you that know me, know how much I LOVE sports, especially baseball. So I wrote a poem to commerate the start of the 2011 season. It's still a work in progress so go easy on me if you decide to review it! I have some other things I'm working on but haven't posted yet. I'll get around to it...eventually. I hope you're all doing well and I hope we can catch up soon. I've missed you all very much. And, please be sure to stop by my friend, Fivesixer 's new blog, "Who Do I Think I Am??" .Happy writing everyone! |
| I just stopped by quickly to let you all know that I'm not dead or anything. I've been on vacation. I won't be back until the weekend. I'll write more then...and I'll also stop by to see what's been happening in your lives. Enjoy the rest of your week and weekend! I hope everyone is doing well!! |
| I'm sure you're all wondering where I've been for the last week. Unfortunately, I was not whisked away on my birthday to some exotic location. That's not how my luck works. I have really, REALLY bad luck, remember? I did leave work early last Tuesday (my birthday) but it wasn't so I could go someplace fun. Oh no. It was because I had to go to the doctor. I was sick with a 103+ fever. The diagnosis? A really bad kidney infection. So not only did I feel like shit because of the fever but I also had to pee every 5 minutes and it hurt like hell every time! My doctor sent me on my way with 3 prescriptions and with my crap-ass insurance I have, I practically had to re-mortgage my house to get those prescriptions! Not a fun way to spend my birthday folks. By Wednesday, I started to feel a tiny bit better. Thursday I felt a little better but by Thursday night, I started going downhill again...fast. My husband was away on business. His flight didn't get in until after midnight Friday night. He was so concerned because my fever spiked up again, he was trying to convince me to go to the emergency room. He even had his parents come over here and try to persuade me to let them take me to the hospital. I refused to go. I hate hospitals (not that anyone likes them), I always run high fevers so I wasn't as concerned as everyone else and my ER co-pay is so ridiculously high I'd have to be at death's door to go. I'm finally, just now, starting to feel a little better. I feel human again. I think I might still have a little bit of a low-grade fever (maybe around 99...haven't checked it today). My back isn't killing me like it was. I was literally doubled-over in pain. I couldn't even walk up the steps. For those of you that don't know, the kidneys are in your lower back. Those of you that have suffered with any kind of lower back pain can probably sympathize. It was NOT a fun birthday! I swear, if it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all. All in all, despite the misery and pain, I tried to keep my spirits up. I just haven't had the energy to log on here in the last week. Sorry. Hope you can all forgive me. I feel better but I'm not 100% yet. It's a very good thing I have a good sense of humor. I hope everyone has had a better week than I have. I'll swing by to catch up on blogs as soon as I feel up to it. Right now, I'm pretty exhausted. I haven't exactly had much sleep in the last week since I have to get up to pee every 5-10 minutes. That's probably more information than you wanted or needed to know. I miss all of you guys. I'm so sorry I haven't been around to see what's going on in your lives for the last week. I promise I'll make it up to you somehow. Thanks to everyone for the wonderful birthday wishes and the "gifts" I received. You guys have no idea how much that meant to me. I'm touched, truly touched...and I love you all very much! You're the best! |
I just wanted to say thanks to sbutke and janieruthryals for the wonderful "birthday" merit badge! I appreciate that so much - you guys are the best! ![Merit Badge in Birthday
[Click For More Info]
Best wishes for a Very Happy Birthday, Julie!
From Janie Ruth and Greeneyedgirl](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/general-Birthday-210.gif) I'll write more later. I hope everyone has a great day! |
| As you know, I work in the city. My office is on the 10th floor of our building. We've got a great view. Even 10 floors up, we can still hear the noise of the city, like sirens going by since there's a fire house around the corner. We're used to hearing it but today was a different story. You can tell the difference when the fire trucks are leaving the fire house to go to a call and when they are actually responding to a fire nearby. That was the case today. We looked out the window and could see where the fire was. We all thought the fire was at the bar that we always go to for happy hour. Panic ensued and half the office ran out of the building and down the street to see for ourselves. Here's what we saw when we raced down there. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** The bar where we always go to happy hour is the first building you see in the picture. Fortunately, it's 4 buildings away from where the fire actually was. Whew! The good news is that this building was actually vacant. It's for sale and there was no one in there. I feel bad for whoever owned the building but thankfully no one was hurt. And thanks to the Philadelphia Fire Department, it looks like the damage was kept to a minimum because they responded quickly and got it under control so fast, we were all amazed. So it appears that our happy hours will continue as usual. In other news, it was hot as Hell here today. Actually, I think Hell might be a few degrees cooler. When I was driving home from work tonight, I heard on the radio that it was 101 (and that was at almost 6:00 tonight!). I'm not complaining but that's phucking hot!I'll leave you all with this. I think we could all use a little ice cream on a hot day like this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7I5sixwOQlg |
| ...but I love it anyway! Is it this crazy for anyone else? Yesterday was my friend Holly's birthday and also a high school graduation party for someone we know. Today is my friend Donna's birthday and tomorrow is yet another friend's birthday. Then on Tuesday...can anyone guess what Tuesday is? Tuesday is my birthday! It's also the anniversary for my brother and his wife and 2 of our friends (popular day, huh?). Here's what the rest of my June looks like: June 15 - friend's birthday June 16 - friend's birthday June 17 - friend's birthday June 19 - Pearl Jam concert (had to get that in there) June 22 - my hubby's birthday June 24 - my other brother's anniversary June 28 - friend's anniversary June 29 - birthday for 2 of my friends & my grandparents anniversary Between weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, graduations (and anything else you can think of) June is absolutely insane for us. We have some type of party/function to attend every weekend! I think we're also going to still try to go on vacation the week of the 23rd since we're not going to trial and my husband and I already have the time off from work. I SO need a vacation! Well, I did my good deed for the day yesterday. Actually, it's probably more like my good deed for the week. I was running some errands yesterday morning. I was stopped at a red light and I got rear ended. I was pissed. I pulled off into a store parking lot and stormed over to the other car. I fully intended to give them a whole bunch of shit until they rolled down the window. It was an old lady (I'm guessing in her 70's or 80's) and I saw the handicapped license tag hanging from her rearview mirror. There was a walker in the backseat that ended up being hers because she got out of the car, even though I tried to stop her. Then I looked over in the passenger seat and there was another lady, not quite as old. But this one had down syndrome. I wanted to cry. I think she may have been the driver's daughter. I asked them both if they were OK and they said they were fine. I thought the driver was going to burst into tears. She kept apologizing. There was no damage to my car at all. These women were upset enough as it was. I told them that my car was fine and none of us were hurt so we could just forget it ever happened. I checked with them again to make sure they were all right and see if they needed anything. They said they were fine. They thanked me. I told them to have a nice day and I was on my way. I didn't even tell my husband about it. I figured he would have gotten mad because I didn't call the cops but I just couldn't do it. I guess you can say I'm a softie. Hope you guys all had a good weekend! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXnR8y89TvI&feature=related |
| As a member of the "SIMPLY POSITIVE GROUP" , I recently donated a prize for the "Invalid Item" . The prize I donated was the following: 3 poetry/short story reviews for winner and friend (6 total) 1 merit badge or awardicon (winner's choice) for my favorite item 1 merit badge or awardicon for friend (their choice) for my favorite item in the friend's port A gushing blog entry dedicated to the winner and their friend I'm very happy to report that the winning bid was placed by twinkledee ♥'s you , who, very graciously, shared the prize with undocked22.I thoroughly enjoyed going through their ports and reviewing items for them. They are both very talented writers. If you have a chance, I would highly recommend that you take a stroll over to their ports and check out their items for yourself. As part of the prize, I reviewed the following for each (but I'll certainly go back to their ports to check out more of their items): "Invalid Item" by twinkledee ♥'s you "Invalid Item" by twinkledee ♥'s you "Invalid Item" by twinkledee ♥'s you "Invalid Item" by undocked22"Invalid Item" by undocked22"Invalid Item" by undocked22twinkledee ♥'s you , thank you so much for participating in the auction and supporting "SIMPLY POSITIVE GROUP" ! |
| I have to say, I absolutely love Verizon Wireless! I've been a customer of theirs for a very long time. So long, in fact, that they've done away with the so-called "older" calling plans recently. They notified me to tell me that my plan was changing but my monthly payment would not be. This new plan was actually better than the old plan I had too. Pretty cool. I typically pay my monthly bill on-line through their website. I've been meaning to set it up as an automatic payment through my bank account but I keep forgetting to do that. Yesterday, I decided to call Verizon. I didn't have one of my bills with me and I wanted to set up the on-line payment while I was thinking of it. I called them to get my billing cycle info and the approximate amount of my bill each month. Got that all squared away. The guy, who was extremely friendly I might add, said, "Is there anything else I can do for you today?" I asked him if he could tell me when I'm eligible for my next upgrade. Verizon has that "new every 2" where you get a new phone every 2 years. Currently, I've got a pink Motorola RAZR. There's nothing really wrong with it, minus the scratches and cracks from the million and one times I've dropped it. The guy tells me I'm eligible on October 28th. Then he keeps looking through the records and he says, "Wow, you've been with us for a very long time! Almost 12 years! In fact, it'll be 12 years on Tuesday...which is also your birthday!" I laughed and said, "Yes, I've been with you guys for a long time and I've never had a complaint." He said, "Can you hold on for a minute? I want to see if I can get a supervisor's approval to give you your upgrade now." I was like, "Sure!" Hey, if they're going to give me my upgrade now, I'm not going to argue. A minute or so later, he comes back on the line, very apologetic for keeping me on hold. I tell him it was no problem. He apologizes again and tells me that his supervisor is busy right now. He asks if he can call me back once he's gotten the approval. I tell him that's fine and not to go to any trouble on my behalf. He tells me that it's no trouble at all. This was around 4:30 yesterday afternoon. He called me back at 6:00 to tell me that his supervisor had approved it. He told me that I could order a phone through their website, in any Verizon store or if I knew what I wanted, he could place the order for me right then and there. I told him I wasn't 100% sure what phone I'd like so I'd just take care of it myself. Is that some damn good customer service or what?!! I heard this song on the radio on my way in this morning. I think it's a classic. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UuzW710af8&feature=related Happy Friday all! TGIF! Hope you've got something fun planned for the weekend. |
| For those of you who live outside of the Philadelphia viewing and listening area, there's been quite a bit of drama going on in the local media. Last Thursday, a local news anchor's house was raided by the FBI for tapping into the e-mail of a former co-anchor. The co-anchor was fired back in January for several off camera incidents. To read more about this very entertaining story, check out this article that was on AOL today. http://news.aol.com/story/_a/news-anchor-under-federal-investigation/20080604094... In related news, the fired co-anchor's boyfriend was fired from his job last week. What did he do for a living? He was the morning DJ on a rather popular local radio station. Here's some info on that: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Booker Anyone else think these incidents are related? There's nothing like having the people who report the news become the news. Jeez!My friend Jen just e-mailed me this. http://memoriter.net/flash/test.html It's the Tibetan Personality Test. All I have to say is that my answers were dead on. It was kinda scary, but scary in a cool way. Check it out. It only takes a few seconds. I know, between the reading and the test taking, I'm really making you guys work for this blog entry tonight. For your trouble, go to
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-Po8uJeoUw And a little blast from the past: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJGkG66XZI0 |
| It has been a busy couple of days but there's really not much to blog about today. We had people in from another one of our offices today and yesterday. They were training the managers and seniors on some stuff. It was all day yesterday and half the day today. Once that ended, I was playing a lot of "catch up". The training was good though. We all went out to dinner last night too, which was nice. But I'm tired as hell. Has anyone seen this bank surveillance video of a deadly tornado in Iowa? This is CRAZY! http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/weather/2008/06/03/vo.tornado.surveillance.vide... I heard this song today. Remember this one? It's one of those songs that you forget about until you hear it on the radio (like I did today). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVL-zZnD3VU |
| This blog entry is dedicated to my friend, Fivesixer and his blog entry "Run. Run like hell." (hope you don't get mad at me for this, B). He has a crush on his CWC (cute Walgreens chick). When I tuned in today for the latest episode of As Walgreens Turns (I mean, when I read his blog entry today), he mentioned that he found out she has a 12 year old son and that he didn't think he was going to pursue this any further. My advice to him was that if he didn't think he could handle it, he definitely shouldn't pursue it. After all, there's an innocent child that could end up getting hurt in the long run. Before I met my husband I dated my fair share of guys with kids and without kids. If my husband had had kids, it wouldn't have changed anything. I still would have married him. I'm not here to preach. I would never do that. People need to do what they feel is best for them. What I did not include in my comment to B (for fear I'd end up blogging in his blog), was this: why are we all so afraid of baggage? And baggage could be anything, my friends. I'm not just referring to dating someone with kids. Let's face it. We all have baggage to some degree. It's just that some people only have a carry-on while others have a full 5-piece set of luggage. Seriously.Think about it. We're all carrying around something...a bad childhood, horrible dating experiences, life-altering events...or even the single parent thing. Again, I'm not picking on anyone here so I really hope no one takes offense. I'm just trying to say we're all a little "damaged" in some way. But those things are a part of us and who we've become. Ultimately, they've made us who we are - good, bad or indifferent, those are the breaks. I'm going to tell you something that only those closest to me know. I've always had horrible female troubles. Lots of problems with the plumbing. I'll try not to go into too much detail to spare my male readers. That time of the month was awful. I'd end up in the hospital every month because I'd collapse from the pain and blood loss. The ER doctors always thought I was hemorrhaging. Yeah, it was that bad. It took until I was 19 to get a diagnosis. I have severe ovarian cysts and stage 4 endometriosis. It's bad. I ended up having to have 3 operations for it within a 6 month timeframe. The third operation almost killed me. I was 3 months shy of my 21st birthday. Surprisingly, those operations are all done on an outpatient basis. I think I'm proof that they should not be. I was sent home. My parents were given instructions of what to do and when to call the doctor if there were any red flags. One of those red flags? A fever over 100. When I got home, I slept for hours. I got up, tried to get myself out of bed and collapsed on the floor. I crawled down the hallway, down the steps and found my parents. They took my temperature. It was 104.7. They called the doctors office and were told, "We don't mean to alarm you but please call 911 on get her to the hospital ASAP. The doctor will meet you there." To make a long story short (one of these days I'll write about the whole thing in detail), I needed a 4th operation to save my life. My parents & brothers were told to get anyone to the hospital who might want to see me one last time. The doctors said that they did not think the surgery would save me but, if I didn't have it, I'd die for sure. My temperature was almost 107 when I was wheeled into the OR. Obviously I lived. I spent 8 very long days in the hospital. My family and friends were there every day. My boyfriend at the time who lived over 2 hours away was there every day. The doctors told me that I might never have children but there was no way to tell until I tried. At 20 years old, I was a long way away from being ready for that. My boyfriend at the time was there with me when my doctors told me all this. He told me he was OK with it. The day came when I was finally released from the hospital. My boyfriend was supposed to come down, stay with me and help out my parents. He never showed. I kept trying to call him. No answer. Finally, months later, I heard from him. He said he just couldn't deal with it. Nice guy, huh? I can't blame him. That's a lot for someone to deal with. He certainly could have handled the situation better but that's beside the point. This brings me back to baggage. My baggage was too much for him to handle but he missed out on something great. I was heartbroken but I've come to realize that it was definitely his loss. I guess my point is that if we don't take chances, or if we avoid people all together because of their baggage, we could be missing out on something pretty incredible. Sorry, I know this was a pretty long entry and B, I hope you're not mad at me. I just wanted to share that. I hope it helps you with whatever you decide about CWC. I'll leave you guys with this... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Oec8RuwVVs I know I've been slacking on checking your blogs. I'll be by to  them as soon as I can but it probably won't be until tomorrow. It's been a long day and I'm tired. I think I'm gonna go to bed.  'Night! |
I just wanted to say thanks to janieruthryals! She's my Rising Star sponsor! I'd also like to thank GabriellaR45  for her wonderful group, "Invalid Item" .Thank you both! |
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