I wonder if this is considered cheating if I write two blog entries within hours of each other. And this one shows up for the next day. Of course, then I have to ask myself, what the hell am I cheating on?

Must be the lack of sleep finally getting to me.

I've been perusing my old journal in my port. The first one I wrote way back when this site was still Stories.com.

Man, my writing style used to really suck!

Not that I'm perfect now or anything. But it was so choppy and impersonal. Like I was writing to impress an English teacher or something. *shudders in revulsion*

I think that's one of the reasons I don't go back and read my old diaries. Like the ones I wrote back in junior and senior high school. I think the majority of the entries was me whinging about how my friends treated me and how cute I thought my crushes were at the time.

Kind of boring, actually.

*suddenly notices how quiet the house is*

*goes to check on the children*

Okay, I'm back.

They were watching "Cars" on Eric's PS2 in their room. Then they fell asleep on Charlie's bed. They're so cute!

I gotta take a picture of them. *shifts into evil mama mode* Well, I think it's cute. Even if they tend to hate each other when they're conscious.

I took three pics of them. And they didn't even move when the flash went off! Here's the one I'm gonna post for y'all:



Just let me live in this moment. I don't get them very often.
 

Watching an interesting show on ABC tonight. It's about worrying too much. I know several people who worry too much. Being concerned about germs and global warming and terrorism and stuff that like is okay. But obsessing about it to the point of being incapacitated and having panic attacks is just too much. Putting things in perspective, getting the facts, and not worrying alone are more sensible approaches.

I try not to let stuff like that rule my life. I tend to worry about things that I have control over. Like how I drive, what I eat, how I take care of myself.

There's folks who try to live in a sterile environment, 'cause they're so afraid of germs and dust mites and bacteria and dirt. They're the ones making themselves sick because they're not being exposed to the environment and they're compromising their immune systems by doing this.

I'm glad my parents didn't raise me and my sister like that. And I don't plan to raise my two in a bubble either.

Personally, I think the media loves to scare people. Bad news makes money. Good news is boring. One more reason I am constantly skeptical of the media. I don't believe everything I read or see on TV. No sir, I just don't trust them.
 

I made a Medusa doll over the weekend. She's got green snakey hair and a burgundy/wine dress. I was surprised at how well all the colors worked together. I'll have to post pics when I get a chance.

And then, whilst wandering around outside (the weather was sooo nice) I came across some wire that looked promising. So I took it inside and bent it into.....this long-legged doll/thing. Then I started covering his body with fabric and stuffing to flesh him out. Oh yeah, it's going to be a him. Not that I'm adding THAT bit to him!

Yep. I'm on a doll-making kick. It's kinda funny, I see a shape or an item and start thinking how I could turn it into a doll. And I make them in a variety of scales, sizes, types, genres..... Just whatever pops into my head and I go with it. My sewing skills are still in need of improvement, but I like making my own patterns (for clothes, bodies, whatever). And sometimes I get lucky and teach myself new tricks!
 

Listening to: "They" by Jem
Reading: "Pyramid Scheme" by Eric Flint
Mood: Groovy

The dance last night went surprisingly well with only a few snafus. Charlie didn't want to dance at first. One of her little girlfriends came up and encouraged her to get moving. Then she started having fun.

Eric changed his mind at the last minute about not going. He and his buddies met up and had a great time. The only problem they ran into (or actually, IT ran into them) was this very badly behaved first grade boy. He kept running up to Eric and his buddy and kicking them hard in the ankles! I even got on to that little runt but that didn't stop him. If I'd have known who his mama was (Eric knew who she was from daycare and she wasn't there), I'd have had a little talk with her. But, I bet she lets him act like that all the time. She'd dropped him off in the first place, instead of being a responsible parent and staying to discipline him.

*mutters about neglectful parents*



*takes a deep breath*



*releases it*



Anyway, I think my two will want to attend future dances. They really DID have a wonderful time. I didn't participate, and neither did many of the other parents in attendance. It WAS for the kids, after all. I mean, really. Who'd want their parents dancing in public? *laughs*

So what I did instead was wait until we got home. Then I loaded up my CD player and we ALL danced!!
 

Tonight is my daughter's first school dance. She's eight. I'm going along to act as chaperone. She's going to dance with her "boyfriend" there. So cute. She's been reminding me all week long, so I won't forget. *grins* I think she's really looking forward to it.

Eric, however, isn't going. The little girl he likes isn't interested in him. I feel so bad for him, because that's how it was for me when I was his age (and all through high school, now that I think about it). I don't want to tell him there's other fish in the sea. That won't make him feel any better (wouldn't make ME feel any better either, if I were him). *sighs* My poor little guy. I hope he finds someone else who's worthy of his attention.

*puts on subject turn signal*

Anyone been watching "Survivor"? I liked last night's episode. There's this one guy who calls himself "Boo" who's quite accident prone. In one episode he: poked himself in the eye with a sign, cut his hand and then knee with an axe, and fell when the hammock he was resting in broke. And he's a construction worker in real life!

My favorite person on the show this season is Yau-man (sp??). He's a little Asian fellow who's very smart. He reminds me of some of our vets here in the clinic. He may be older, but he's as sharp as a tack. I was laughing when he was trying to be sneaky and look in Sylvia's bag to see if she'd found the Immunity Idol already!

"Survivor" is one of my favorite shows (besides my Saturday night fix of anime) that I watch regularly. Yeah, it's full of pettiness and cliques and conspiracies and mal-formed alliances. But I like it anyway! Sure beats the hell out of watching "Desperate Housewives", in my opinion.
 

I have chocolate! *does happy dance* Nothin' makes a day go by better than having a choco fix. Yeah, I'm a junkie for it. And I'm easily bribed with it (but only with the good kind, not that stuff flavoured with vanillin!).

Spent last night working on my 'puter. Had to defrag it and delete useless hard drive space-eating files. Maybe now it'll run better. I sooooo need to get a new one. And high-speed internet. Dial-up is molasses slow. I've been spoiled by the high-speed connection we have here at work. It's wonderfully swift.

And now I will be swift. It's time to go home!
 

We have been short-staffed and overworked today. Eleven walk-in patients (folks who don't have scheduled appts. coming in for various reasons) with only one nurse to work their cases. Whew.

I'm so glad it's Friday.

Since I haven't painted in ages, I plan on colouring some of my inked drawings this weekend. And maybe even work on my photoshop pics too. I have so much to catch up on, mainly because I'd been spending my Saturdays and Sundays working on my dolls. Last weekend it was fairy houses with my Charlie. She kinda wrangled me into that one, but it was fun.

Charlie likes to make fairy houses. She used to be content to make them outside by the trees for fairies to live in. Then I showed her examples of houses in my miniature magazines. And that inspired her to make more elaborate (and permanent) dwelling for wee folk. She had me get out all my crafty stuff and other odds'n'ends so we could build little natural houses for fairies. We glued pretty stones, silk flowers, and other pretties to a wooden base. The results were really charming. She's got hers by the window in case any fairies want to come inside to stay the night.

My daughter is so awesome.

And Eric has been keeping himself busy with his model cars. He's getting better at spray painting. So much that his grandpa (my dad) is going to build him a spray booth and teach him how to air brush. I think he'd be good at it as long as he keeps practicing. My son is just as creative as my daughter, and yeah, I'm a proud mama.
 

Too much information. Don't you hate it when you're talking to someone and they reveal WAY too much about themselves? Well, I suppose in normal conversation, it probably doesn't happen as much as it does in like, say, a clinic.

When I talk to patients on the phone or even when they check in, I often encounter TMI. Someone lifts their shirt to show me exactly what the rash looks like. Or how badly they burned/broke/smashed their hand/finger/foot/toe. The worst ones are the guys who are only too eager to start unzipping their trousers to show me what is bothering them. I have to tell them very quickly that I'm just a clerk and NO, I don't need to see it!!!

The phone is a little better. But not much. I had one wife describe in exciting detail the pus-filled bumps on her husband's groin area. I had to interrupt and let her know that yes, I'd tell the nurse and no, I am just a clerk. Not a medical professional. And trust me, you don't EVEN wanna know about the sore on one patient's scalp that....well, it was truly disgusting to hear about over the phone.


 

You ever get a whiff of someone who's wearing too much perfume/aftershave/cologne? Man. Makes my nose hairs burn! Some of our patients are prone to doing that. To me, it's just as bad as the ones who smell like they need a bath. Very strong. Very potent.

And the sad thing is, I'm related to someone who firmly believes in the power of body spray. She often smells as if she's rolled in it. I've told her about it but I think she's paranoid about strong body odor.

*sighs*

There's just no easy, tactful way to tell someone that they are wearing too much perfume.

*puts on subject turn signal*

I got some teensy pecans from a patient today. They're native to this state, hence their small size. I think they're cute, but I'm going to try planting some anyway. I've never had much luck getting pecan trees to grow on my property. Might be the soil or drainage problems. Might have to do some research on ideal growing places for them.

And they're pronounced "peh-cahns". Not "pee-cans". Pee-cans are what folks used to keep under their beds at night when they couldn't make it to the outhouse on time. At least, that's what my Grandpa Mansfield always says!

*glances up at clock*

Finally! I didn't think Monday would EVER end here at work!
 

For being off due to the snow (the kids were out of school Thursday and Friday), I've been rather busy! Cleaning, doing crafty stuff, goofing off....yeah, we've been doing it all. And Saturday we even went to visit my grandma and grandpa (they live in a teeny-tiny town named Floral, here in Arkansas).

But in other news.....

Found out Daniel Radcliffe (the dashing young man who plays Harry Potter) is going to act in a play. It's called "Equus". And apparently, he's going to be in his nuddy pants in a scene (or two). On the verge of sounding like a pervy old lady, I must admit, I wouldn't mind seeing that play!! I've seen the promo shots for it and the lad is shirtless! OMG!!!

I'd say he's growing up just fine, thank you very much. *big cheesy grin*

I think it's gonna be a Harry Potter year. The last book in the series is due out July 21st. And I am TOTALLY looking forward to it. With all the theories I've come across in various forums around the web, I like to think my beloved Severus is not as bad as he seems. Yes, he killed Dumbledore. But Dumbledore wanted him to. To save Draco. It was all planned out ahead of time. And Severus didn't want to (which is why Hagrid overheard him and Dumbledore arguing in the Forbidden Forest).

*sighs*

I believe in Snape. I really do. I just hope JK doesn't throw us for a loop and really make him out to be the bad guy. Harry's been wrong before. He's hotheaded and irrational at times. I think this is just another example of him jumping to conclusions. *crosses fingers for luck*

And tomorrow is Monday. Since the snow is now long gone (it was mostly all melted by Friday afternoon!), we will all be heading back to school/work. Feh. That means a ton of work to catch up on. Lots of appointments to make. And other junk to do. I just keep in mind that the VA is only the means for me to pay the bills. It's not my dream job, it's not my career for life. I have bigger hopes/desires.