Thursday, March 30, 2006

Definitions...I'm helpful like that

For those who need them: (with help from Dictionary.com)

be·tray (b-tr)
tr.v. be·trayed, be·tray·ing, be·trays
    1. To give aid or information to an enemy of; commit treason against: betray one's country.
    2. To deliver into the hands of an enemy in violation of a trust or allegiance: betrayed Christ to the Romans.
  1. To be false or disloyal to: betrayed their cause; betray one's better nature.
  2. To divulge in a breach of confidence: betray a secret.
  3. To make known unintentionally: Her hollow laugh betrayed her contempt for the idea.
  4. To reveal against one's desire or will.
  5. To lead astray; deceive.
practical joke
n.
A mischievous trick played on a person, especially one that causes the victim to experience embarrassment, indignity, or discomfort.

Sunday, March 26, 2006

Great and Wonderful

She's kinda embarrassed by the nickname she has acquired. But everytime I click on "The Great and Wonderful Cowtown Stacy" I say to myself.... Yes. Yes she is.

She is Great and Wonderful mostly because she is the kindest person I know. She is NOT nice. Don't call her nice. She gets...well, not nice about it. But she is most definitely kind.

She is unlikely to call anyone on an injustice done to her. She is very quick to come to the defense when she sees an injustice done to others. But it breaks my heart to see her taken advantage of. That kindness being used against her. I (and others) have often offered to take up her cause but she has asked we not. Lest it make the situation worse. So we just stew about it instead.

She is kind because she had a vacation planned. A get away. But an emergency happened. An emergency near her vacation spot. She forgo the kind of vacation she had planned to sit with a friend at the hospital. She brought her sunny disposition and wicked sense of humor to a very worried wife as she waited for her husband to come through brain surgery. If for no other reason, that makes her Great and Wonderful.

I could list all the reasons she qualifies for that title. But I'm sure you have other things to do today. Suffice it to say... the list is long.

So here's a shout out and a bit of (inadequate) recognition.

Who is your Great and Wonderful?

Sunday, March 19, 2006

Blood Letting

Today was the Blood Drive at church. Sundays being Sundays, we signed up for one of the first slots. 8:45.

This is a mistake. Do not try to donate blood first thing in the morning. Whenever that may be for you. On Sundays, 8:45 is first thing. On a weekday, it would be mid-morning. I got up, got dressed and went to donate blood.

I had no water save that which I gulped after brushing my teeth. We tend to wake up on the dehydrated side of things.

One woman ahead of us couldn't donate because she was too dehydrated. They were worried about my ability for the same reason. No vein on the right side. They found one on the left. Of course it gave willingly and profusely once they found it.

Normy was ineligible because today is day 10 of his 10 day course of antibiotics after getting bit by that highstrung overgrown rodent of a dog our neighbors have.

But I am feeling that dehydration. I drank my orange juice. I had some Goldfish crackers and some Cracker Jack. But I almost passed out getting the fixings for lunch today at the grocery store on the way home. I am sitting quietly and consuming liquids now. I wasn't going to go to church because Emma is home feeling puny.... but I don't think it would be a good idea for me to go anyway.

Donate blood. It's a good thing.

Just make sure you're well hydrated.

Thursday, March 16, 2006

I Seriously Need to Do Something Else Today

You Are 68% Open Minded

You are a very open minded person, but you're also well grounded.
Tolerant and flexible, you appreciate most lifestyles and viewpoints.
But you also know where you stand firm, and you can draw that line.
You're open to considering every possibility - but in the end, you stand true to yourself.


...but Blogthings is so addictive....

But of course!

Your Summer Ride is a Beetle Convertible

Fun, funky, and a little bit euro.
You love your summers to be full of style and sun!


Huh.

Wasn't gonna GET the convertable.... Might have to rethink that....

If it only had a trunk larger than the glovebox....

New Additions

If you look over there on the right, you'll see a new blog. Mary is a knitter who frequently shows up to knit and share her expertise at Knitique. Needless to say, this is one of my favorite of her entries. And her Sockapalooza socks look even better in person (she brought them in yesterday!)

...and I really need to get the ol' digital camera out and take some pics of what I'm working on. Probably should have my own knitting blog.... Well, I do. But it doesn't have anything blogged...

Thursday, March 09, 2006

Stacy might be a girl...but I know another one

Ol' Normylicious Dirpus read poor Stacy's account of a spider IN HER SHIRT and blogged the following:

Girls. Sheesh!

Uh huh. One word, bub.

Snakes.

We useta live in a house with a backyard. We useta have a lovable Bassett Hound named Molly. Molly was the mellow sort. Not prone to histrionics at all. Not a barker. Not a howler, much. So my attention was immediately attracted when she started frantically barking in the backyard. I looked out the window and thought "the dog has gone looney" cause she was indeed frantically barking.

At the ground.

Her nose was almost in the dirt. Probably would have been if she could have barked in that position.

I sent the child out to investigate. She looked. Took a giant step backward and said:

It's a snake.

{SIGH} Now I gotta deal with it.... okey fine....

I got the leather gardening gloves out because you never know with wild critters. I pulled the dog away and shut her in the garage. (which immediately caused her to calm down, probably took a nap.) The snake was coiled up tight with its head down the center of the coil. You could see it breathing hard or its heart beating hard. I picked it up and pet it. I could see and feel it relax.

I determined it was of the 'garden' or 'garter' variety. (Dirp is reading this and thinking... You weren't SURE???!!!! It might have been a KING COBRA!!!!) I took my glove off and pet it some more and encouraged the child to do the same. As the snake relaxed it started to uncoil and so we took it to the back fence and showed it the way out the fence into the garden behind us where it could slither free of raving Bassett Hounds.

I related this story pretty much the same as I have here to Dirp when he got home. And when I got to the part about letting the snake go free....he came unglued.

WHAT??? You LET IT GO??? You didn't get a shovel and pound it until it was DEAD???

Uh. No.

Then he remembered the part about the snake touching HIS gloves.

Dirpus got new gloves......

Yea... Stacy was a big ol' girl. But at least that critter was IN HER SHIRT....

Tuesday, March 07, 2006

Attitude

Kaitlyn takes zero period Spanish. That means, she has school before school starts. It allows her to take an extra elective. But it means school starts for her at 6:55am. I drive her. It's generally dark and cold, and today it was also rainy, at that time of day. I usually stumble out of bed and go wait for her in the car while heating up the seat heaters.

Today I overslept and she was w.a.i.t.i.n.g. for me. {SIGH} Great annoyance. Fortunately for her I was only about 25% awake and had only a vague impression of all this going on.

Norm turns on the news when he leaves for work for me. The idea is that people talking in my room will wake me up. It usually works... The impression that it wasn't Walt Gray, but Matt Lauer speaking is what woke me up on September 11 just in time to see the second plane hit on live TV.

In my quasi-awake state this morning I was fully aware when the announcement of the death of Dana Reeve was made. Loudly, I said "OH! NO!" and Kaitlyn came running (as much as one can run with a 25 pound backpack on...) Surely she was worried I had done something to further delay our departure....

"That poor boy...he's about Emma's age...." (actually more her age, but it was early and I couldn't remember)

And suddenly she was more relaxed about the whole getting to school thing. Will Reeve woke up this morning without parents. His mom wouldn't be taking him to school at any time today. In an instant she got that. And as I dropped her off at 6:45, her usual time, she said, as usual.... "Thanks...love you..." But maybe with a bit more gratitude in her heart.

Rest in peace Dana and Chris. We'll all be watching over your boy....

Friday, March 03, 2006

Tip of the Day

If you are in search of a good night's sleep, do NOT ingest 2 quarts of water 2 hours before bedtime.

Now I need more caffiene....

Wednesday, March 01, 2006

Shoes and Socks

All this fussing about both socks then both shoes.... or is it all one foot before the other? Which foot must be dressed first?

Who the hell cares?

Put on your underwear... this includes socks. Brush your teeth, put on your makeup (if you are so inclined) then put on the rest of your clothes. If you put on your pants and shirt before brushing your teeth, you are guaranteed to have some sort of tragic toothpaste accident in a socially inappropriate location.

Then sit down and think a minute....

Where WAS I when I got tired of wearing shoes yesterday???

Go to that place that you FIRST think of. Stand there and look at the spot without shoes and think... "ok, where was I ACTUALLY?"

Remember. Fetch shoes. If you are wearing the GOOD shoes, just slip them on. If you have the nasty kind with laces, sit down and put them on in any order.

Stand up and wonder.....

How long until summer and I don't NEED shoes and socks???? Cause this is just way too much bother....