Prayers and Memes

You get two posts for the price of one today!

First, I just have to share with you a story about Lindsey and Theodore. They both spent the night with me last night. Before they go to sleep at night, they are in the habit of saying a little prayer. You know the one:

Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep
If I should die before I wake
I pray the Lord my soul to take

Last night I happened to be walking by the bedroom they were in when I heard Theodore say, "Wake up! We forgot to pray!" He bolted out of bed and knelt down with his hands in the "prayer position". He recited the prayer and at the end added on "God bless Gigi and Yaya, Mom and Dad, the rest of my family, all the people and animals of the world. Don't forget the mammals 'cause that's what we are. Amen.......Oh! And make me a good boy AaaaaaMEN!" I guess the drawn out Amen was to let God know he was really done praying this time as he crawled back into bed and waited for Lindsey to take her turn.

She started to pray and stopped herself. "Wait...I always get the dinner time and the bedtime prayers mixed up." Theodore reminded her how it went and she recited the prayer. Then she added "God bless my mom and dad, my sisters and brothers, my cousins, my nieces and nephews, and the rest of the world. Amen......And God bless me! Amen"

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Tee tagged me to do this 3's meme.

Three nicknames – CareBear, Kerri-O, and Buttercup (That’s not a real nickname…it’s what Lindsey used to call me when she was small and was mad at me. I guess it was her way of cursing, as in, "I don't want to, you Buttercup!)

Three things I like about myself - I'm trustworthy, I can sing (I think), and I’m patient

Three things that scare me – The thought of losing my husband, driving in a city, and flying in a small float plane on a windy day.

Three everyday essentials – Time with family, quiet time alone, and the internet.

Three things I'm wearing right now – My wedding ring, diamond earrings, blue jeans.

Three fave bands growing up – Only bands I knew were those my parents listened to: I’ll say Abba, The Manhattans, and The Temptations.

2 truths and a lie – (In no particular order) I’m allergic to cats, I want to move away, I like to watch cartoons.

Three things I can't do without – Coca-Cola (not that I’m addicted), e-mail, family

Three things I can certainly live without - Bills, the neighbors annoying dog, WWE

Three places I want to go on vacation – Hawaii, New Zealand, and California

Three things I want to do before I die - Be a parent, meet some blog/internet friends, build my home

I'm tagging three people- The first 3 people to read this! (or anyone else that wants to give it a go)

Bald Eagles

For a larger view, click the pictures.

Eagles are plentiful here. Almost as plentiful as oh, I don't know, pigeons, on some city streets. The difference is, Eagles don't crowd sidewalks or swarm you if you drop a crumb of food. You can, however, especially this time of year when the fish are swimming in the bay, look up at almost any tree and spot at least one.


I've lived here all my life yet the sight of one always takes my breath away. I can watch these majestic birds for hours. They soar high in the sky in a way that seems effortless. They swoop down to the water on what seems like a whim and with hardly a splash, snatch up their meal.

They're more than just a beautiful sight, though. To us, they are a symbol of one of our clans. Their feathers are used in regalia. Not like the big fancy feather head-dresses of other tribes, but they are used. Sometimes a solitary feather will hang from a robe blanket as a memorial to someone. Sometimes the end will be beaded and used during a dance...or hidden under the robe and occasionally used as a fan. Some women even wear them in their hair. The down is used in dances as a symbol of peace.


We have 4 main clans in our tribe. Eagle, Raven, Killerwhale, and Wolf. You are always the same clan as your mother. Michael is an Eagle. I am a Raven. Our families extend beyond our immediate relatives. Anyone in your clan is family. For that reason, there was a time where one could not marry a member of his own clan. It happens some nowadays but not too often. With inter-racial marriages becoming more common, this is one tradition that is sort of fading out.

I know I haven't mentioned my tribe's name. It's not that I don't want to share. I just don't want to do it here. I would like to maintain a sense (however false it may be) of anonymity. If you MUST know, hehe, send me an e-mail or an IM and I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have to the best of my ability. I'll try to think of more cultural things to post about. Thanks, Tee, for giving me blogging material! :o)

Tid Bits

I don't have it in me to write a proper post today. It's too hot and I'm too restless to sit still. If my husband wasn't at the clinic trying to get clearance to work, we'd be out don't something. The weather is too beautiful today to be idle.

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Anyway, to answer your questions: Yes, I have a Yaya. But I am not Greek or Chinese. Yaya means grandfather in our language. I talk more about mine here.

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Saturday we went to Craig's birthday party. I had so much fun making him laugh. He thought he was teasing me, but it was more like entertaining me. hehe He got a lot of new summer clothes and tons of Yu-gi-oh cards. He even got a Dark Magician card...whatever that is. He was quite happy with it, though, so it must be a good one. I chased him around the house and made a fool of myself doing it, but I couldn't leave without giving him his birthday spanks. hehe I can't believe he's already 7.

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Lindsey and Theodore have become obsessed with fishing. They're trying to talk Uncle Mike into taking them. Most likely, it's because everyone else has had their fill. They've been at it a solid week. We just might take them later on.

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I can't think of anything else at the moment. I hope you all are having a happy Monday! :o)

Monday Madness

This week it's fill-in-the-blank.

1. If I could just figure out how to hook up my dish washer, I'd be real happy.
It's a portable one that hooks up to the sink faucet. I've never learned how to hook it up and if I don't learn soon, I'll be washing dishes by hand the whole time Michael's at work!

2. I would be happy to hand over cleaning the kitchen floors to someone else.
I crawl around on my hands and knees to do it, though, so probably wouldn't be happy with the results if someone else did it.

3. One thing I try to do every day is tell my husband I love him.
My Yaya always told me that was the most important thing in a marriage. I couldn't live with myself if something happened and "I Love You" wasn't the last thing he heard me say.

4. Someone once told me that I was very patient.
That's probably what makes my job so easy.

5. Probably the one word/phrase I tend to overuse is "Whatever!".
But that's mainly said between my nieces and me.

6. I need to work on my self-esteem.
I think I put too much emphasis on what others think of me rather than what I think of myself.

7. When I'm cleaning house I like to listen to the Solid Gold Oldies music channel on DirecTV.
I grew up listening to oldies and country. That's pretty much all I know.

Going to the Chapel...

My best friend's little sister got married yesterday. Gosh, I feel old. Marie (the bride) represented a lot of "firsts" in my life.

She was the first newborn I have memory of holding. It was 2:00AM and her parents wouldn't wake up. They were so exhausted, they couldn't hear her crying. So Denise and I got up. Thinking she was going to take care of her baby sister, I went in the living room and sat in the rocking chair. Denise comes down the hall carrying Marie. "Here, I need to fix her bottle." She plopped her into my arms and I swear I went as stiff as a board. She had just come home from the hospital. She was only a couple weeks old and had already had an operation. That was scary enough to me. But she was barely over 6lbs. I couldn't even feel her in my arms she was so tiny. I was so afraid I was going to hurt her or drop her. Then Denise handed me a bottle. I looked at her like she was nuts. She said, "You'll be fine. Just put the nipple in her mouth." I did and she drank. Then she showed me how to hold her to pat her back. From that day on, everytime I hold a baby I think of Marie.

Marie and I were passengers in the same car when I was in my first car accident. Through no fault of Denise, we were rear-ended. The car behind us had a bunch of kids in it. The driver was trying to tickle his girlfriend and wasn't paying attention to the road. We stopped because there was a car at the stop sign. Then we pulled forward to take our turn at the stop sign. The kid behind us thought we kept going and rammed right into us. It's a good thing Denise had been babysitting her cousin's baby earlier that day. The baby's car seat was still buckled in and Marie thought it would be funny to squeeze into it. It probably saved her from getting seriously injured. Denise and I ended up in neck braces for a couple weeks. Marie had a sore knee from hitting the back of my seat.

I like to play with kids. I get right down on the floor with them and play with whatever they're playing with. I let them tell me stories. I read to them. I like to tickle. Marie was the first kid who ever tickled back. She still does. hehe When we see each other, we try to be the first to tickle the other one.

I almost feel like it was my baby sister who got married last night. I cried when she walked down the aisle. I cried during her reciting of her vows. I cried when she danced with her dad.

I don't usually get so emotional at weddings. It was just such a pretty ceremony and she's such a special girl. I only want the best for her and I think she found it.

Make Up Your Mind, People! (updated)

This corporation that has hired Michael is driving me batty! They have him jumping through all these hoops and each one is higher than the last.

They hired him...he was working an entire month before they said, "Oh, yeah. We need you to fill out an application." He did. "Hey, mind if we see your resume?" He gave them a copy. "Nice resume. Boss wants an interview." Okay, took them 2 weeks to set it up...but he finally interviewed and was told he was one of the better workers they've been able to find. Works hard, no complaints, blah, blah, blah.

Then they say they want to take him with them when they leave. Fine, he says...just tell me when to pack. Oh, but wait! They want a physical so they know he's fit to work. So Michael gets a physical. Clean bill of health. "Glad you went through the trouble, but we want to use our own doctor." So off to Anchorage he goes. Another physical, another clean bill of health.

He should be gone by now. They made the job sound urgent. Why is he still home?

Then the phone rings. "We need you to be cleared by a cardiologist before you can work." No explanation, just a phone number for a doctor in Colorado to talk to. It turned out they looked at his medical charts. Remember when he had to go in for a stress test? That threw up a red flag for them. Explaining to them that it was a precautionary measure becuase heart disease runs in his family didn't help.

So now he's hunting down all these papers that say his heart is okay. He'll send it off to them and wait to see what he gets to do next. Maybe some day they'll actually let him earn a pay check.

Update:
Now they want him to go to his doctor for another exam and get a form signed that he can work with no restrictions. The same doctor he went to weeks ago. The SAME doctor they said wasn't good enough. The SAME doctor who gave him a clean bill of health BEFORE their doctor did the same. AAAAaaaarrrrrrrrrrgggggggghhhhhhhh!

Bad Moon Rising

No worries. Nothing's wrong. It's just that looking at these pictures made that song pop in my head and, as usual, I can't get rid of it.

Anyway...


This was our moon on Monday night. The picture doesn't really do it justice. It looked huge. It seemed lower in the sky than usual and was very pretty to look at. Unfortunately, I'm not very good at taking night photos.


This one turned out darker than I hoped it would. I love watching moonlight reflect off of water.


I hope you can see the clouds. Michael took this one.

He took this one, too.

The "white rock" Revealed

Remember the shop-lifting incident?

Well, the "white rock" (aka marble) was used for my uncles grave.



I apologize if looking at graves makes anyone uncomfortable. I chose a far-away shot to try and prevent any uneasy feelings.

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Speaking of shop-lifting, it appears I'm a bad influence. Michael did a little shopping on his own the last time we were in Town. He went into a sporting goods store and spent $75.00. He gave the clerk a $100 bill and expected to get $25.00 in change. They handed him his change all at once...a few bills. He said thank you and stuffed them in his pocket along with the receipt, and left the store.

When we got back home, we were looking over all our purchases and counting up our receipts. Michael emptied his pocket and looked at me with eyes as big as saucers. I asked him if they shorted him and he said they had done the opposite. Rather than giving him the $25.00 as change, they took it as payment and gave him $75.00 as change.

I'm beginning to wonder how businesses manage to stay open over there. They give us free items and huge discounts every time we shop!

Seriously Lacking

My blog seems to be lacking content lately. I just haven't had time to sit and write a decent post. I'm not doing anything all that exciting. Just trying to spend as much time with Michael as I can before he gets "the call" and is off to who-knows-where for his first 3 weeks away from home.

He's been busy replacing our front porch. It was in dire need of replacement and now that it looks like he'll be heading out any day now, he finally decided to get it done.

The weather was quite pleasant today. Yesterday, too, with a light drizzle most of the day. Much better than the 80+ degrees we had on Friday and Saturday. I'm hoping it stays like this because Michael's next project is to replace the front door. He's going to have to replace the entire door, frame and all, so hopefully the weather will cooperate.

Michael's birthday is on the 3rd of July. I don't know that he'll be here so I think I need to plan an early celebration. He won't care if he has one or not, but I'll be in big trouble from his mother and sisters if I don't do something. It's sort of ironic, really, since as a child he never had a birthday party. Being the day before the 4th of July, he was usually forgotten in all the excitement of the town's celebrations.

Nothing else comes to mind so I guess I'll close for now. If I remember, I'll bring the camera in so I can post some photos. Not of me, just scenery type photos.

Monday Madness for 6/20/05

I've decided to play Monday Madness again. This time I'll put my answers in a comment so I won't ruin anyone else's fun. ;o)

Sunday, June 19, 2005
Until I can think of more creative questions, let's try another 10 anagrams! An anagram is a rearrangement of the letters of one word or phrase to form another word or phrase. Please list at least one anagram for the following words...

1. rentals

2. wreathe

3. intidy

4. ruling

5. peaks

6. imprints

7. meals

8. reserve

9. cosmic

10. heirs

Father's Day

I don't know what I could say about my dad that I haven't said already. We're going to go visit him soon. I made cupcakes for him. Spice cake is his favorite treat. I normally use two boxes of mix and layer them but only had one box so he gets cupcakes.

Anyway, my blog seems to be read strictly by women so I guess I'll wish all of your husbands/sons/fathers a Happy Father's Day! :o)

Say What?

The following are colloquialisms/idioms written in their literal form. Try to find all four.

Example: A Panthera Pardus is incapable of altering its texture. (A leopard can't change its spots)

1. Revert to the first quadrilateral of equal sides and angles.

2. One suffering from Macular Degeneration guiding one with less than 1/10 of normal vision.

3. Restrain your multiple Equus caballus.

4. The writing utensil containing small amounts of ink is more puissant than the iron hand-held weapon.

TOO Hot!

Michael and I snuck off to town today. Well, we tried. We got caught by my dad. hehe

Anyway, since we don't have a bank on the island and I had a paycheck, we used that as an excuse to run away. We did really good this time. I spent less than $50 at Wal-Mart which is a miracle considering I was with Michael. I bought a couple movies and a CD for Michael. I have no idea who the group is but he said he heard them before and they seemed "mellow".

We tried out a new restaraunt. Not NEW, new...just new to us. The food was alright, but they didn't have AC and the prices were a bit much for what they served you.

I got the chance to say hello to 2 of my sister-in-law's kids. They're always fun.

I'm sorry...I'm just kinda rambling because I can't concentrate. It is way too hot today! The last time I checked, it was 88 degrees. That was around 1PM. The wind has stopped so now it feels even warmer. I'm definitely over-dressed in these blue jeans.

I'll attempt another post when it's not so hot (yeah, right...about 3AM, maybe?). Happy Friday to you all...have a great weekend!

I'm a Copy-Cat

Jayleigh took this quiz so I thought I'd give it a go, as well.

you are lightcyan #E0FFFF

Your dominant hues are green and blue. You're smart and you know it, and want to use your power to help people and relate to others. Even though you tend to battle with yourself, you solve other people's conflicts well. Your saturation level is very low - you have better things to do than jump headfirst into every little project. You make sure your actions are going to really accomplish something before you start because you hate wasting energy making everyone else think you're working. Your outlook on life is very bright. You are sunny and optimistic about life and others find it very encouraging, but remember to tone it down if you sense irritation.

the spacefem.com html color quiz

Tsunami Watches, Warnings, and Alerts

Okay, so in response to the comments of my last post, I will explain a little more about what happened.

We did have a tsunami watch in our area for a few hours on Monday. It didn't go any further than that. In fact, a couple hours before the expected arrival, it was canceled.

A tsunami watch happens when there is an earthquake that could possibly generate a tsunami. There was a 7.0 magnitude earthquake Monday evening off the coast of California. They didn't immediately know if it would generate a tsunami or not, but because it happened in the water, they had to issue the warning.

When nothing seemed to be happening, it was canceled. If it had appeared that there would be a wave generated, even a small one, they would have issued a Tsunami Warning. That would have meant that we had to pack our emergency supplies, and be ready to evacuate.

If it appeared to generate a wave that was likely to reach our vicinity, they would have issued a Tsunami Alert. Then the town alarm would have gone off, we would have packed our emergency supplies into our cars and evacuated the town. Then we would just sit and wait until we were told it was safe to come home.

They don't issue warnings for every earthquake and this is not a direct result of the devastating tsunami that hit Southeast Asia last December. We've had these things for as long as I can remember. Thankfully, we haven't had to evacuate since I was in high school. Nothing ever happens when we do evacuate, but I guess it's always better to be safe than sorry. The one time I remember a wave reaching us, it was so small that all it did was raise the tide really high for a short while. There was no damage done.

Alaska has been hit before. In 1946, a tsunami hit the Aleutian islands destroying a light house and killing the 5 people inside. In 1957, the Aleutian Islands were hit again, but the only casualties were sheep. The village of Lituya was devastated back in 1958. The damage from the 1964 tsunami was greatest along the southeastern coast of Alaska. Many of the coastal communities along Prince William Sound and Kodiak Island were completely wiped out. In all, tsunami waves generated by the 1964 quake killed 119 people and caused approximately 300 to 400 million dollars in damage to Alaska alone.

So the tsunami watch was not new to us. We've been extremely lucky in years past and have not suffered any damage from any of the major Alaskan tsunamis.

Okay, lesson's over. Hope you were paying attention. There'll be a pop quiz later!

Oh, How Fun!

A Tsunami Watch is in effect. It's due to hit our area around 10:57PM. It's now 7:27PM. Now the question is, do I run to higher ground or wait it out? It's not a warning, just a watch. In effect from B.C. Canada up to Sitka, AK. I haven't heard any alarms so we must be okay. We haven't had a tsunami watch, warning, or alert since I was a kid. The one wave we did notice hit here, just gave us a really high tide for a few minutes. No damage done. Ahh, the excitement of island living!

Lucione the....Driver?!

Lucione spent the night with us last night. She had been out of town for about a week and after being homesick and bored out of her mind, she was very excited to be back home.

My home has always been a 2nd home to her. She spends just about much time here as she does at home. Some days, even more.

We live smack dab in the middle of town so it's easier for her to check in with me than to run all the way home. She checks in with me and I relay the message to her mother.

So, anyway, she spent the night. Michael and I are in the habit of taking a nightly drive just to get (me) out of the house and enjoy the scenery. Lucione is 13...she's got the itch to drive so we gave her a chance last night. Now mind you, I'm 5'6", not very tall and she's shorter than I am. We have a huge Ford 250 Crew Cab. She's used to driving her mothers little car.

I tried to jump out of the front seat and let Uncle be the coach but he wouldn't have it. He jumped in the back before I could even reach for the door handle. We were out on the runway (there used to be an airport here but it moved to Town when I was small) so we had plenty of room. She started off barely going 10mph but it didn't take long for her confidence to kick in and soon she was pushing 30mph. I kept saying, "Lay off the gas, Lead Foot!" She'd get all embarrassed and slow down. Then she'd get into the music and next thing you know, we're moving fast again. I told her that when she finally does get her license there is no way she's getting me in the car with her. If she drives 30 when she doesn't know what she's doing, I don't wanna know how fast she'll go once they let her free on the roads.

A couple of cars passed and I joked, "You better look 16 in case that' s a cop car!" She sat up as straight as she could. Funny thing was, her younger sister reacted the same way when I said that to her. Another car came and I recognized it as her mom. Michael frantically waved out the back window so she'd notice he wasn't the driver. She stopped immediately and just looked, jaw hanging in disbelief. Next thing we knew, her car turned like it was following us. When it stopped we turned around to see what she was waiting for.

Turned out that she had Lindsey with her and once she saw Lucione driving, SHE had to drive. So there we were, Lucione driving our truck, and Lindsey driving her mom's car. They did a few laps up and down the runway; always in opposite directions and always waving and yelling "I love you more!" back and forth at each other.

Once they had enough, Uncle took over again and as we were heading home, Lucione said, "You have to be 14 to get a Learner's Permit. I can't wait!"

That's a short 10 months away. *gulp*

Monday Madness

I thought I'd play Otto's Monday Madness today:
My answers are in light green.

Sunday, June 12, 2005

Thanks to everyone for playing Monday Madness! This week we're going to do something a little different... anagrams. What is an anagram? An anagram is a rearrangement of the letters of one word or phrase to form another word or phrase.

Please list at least one anagram for the following words...

1. praised: diapers, despair, aspired
2. idle: lied, deli
3. lamp: palm
4. tied: diet, edit, tide
5. lured: ruled
6. sang: snag, nags
7. hoes: shoe, hose
8. rats: star, tsar, arts, tars
9. mobbed: bombed
10. rifle: flier, filer, lifer

The Passage of Time

Sandy wrote a post about the passage of time and it got me thinking. I know there are times when we feel like time has gotten away from us. Like there's never enough time in a day. How many times have we thought to ourselves, "If I only had more time..."?

I know I have. But at the same time, I look at the world around me and am thankful for the passage of time. Time brings the seasons. Time brings change. Time brings growth.

Having the power to stop or slow time seems like it would be a nifty gift to have. But is it, really? I thought life was pretty good when I was 21. I had completed college, met Michael, and was leading a care-free life. As much fun as that was, I don't think I'd want to stay at that point in time.

Look at all that's happened since then. I've got a wonderful marriage, I've watched all of my lovely nieces and nephews grow over the years, I've got a rewarding job...

Sure there are things I didn't do. I haven't traveled as much as I would have liked, my dream house still is not built, I still have not had a child of my own. There are also things that I've lost in that time. My grandparents, aunts and uncles...

But all of those things made me who I am today. The only constants in life are the passage of time and change. How you react is the key. Let them beat you down or let them strengthen you. It's a daily choice we each have to make.

I'm not saying I disagree with Sandy. I think we all wish we had more time at some point. But I see it this way:

If time is flying by, it means I'm being active. I'm busy living. What I don't want is for time to stand still. Because then I'm just idle. I'm not achieving, I'm not living, I'm not growing.

Ya Know What? Bring it On...I Can Take it

Bring On The Rain (Jo Dee Messina with Tim McGraw)
(Billy Montana/Helen Darling)

Another day has almost come and gone
Can’t imagine what else could wrong
Sometimes I’d like to hide away somewhere and lock the door
A single battle lost but not the war (‘cause)

Tomorrow’s another day
And I’m thirsty anyway
So bring on the rain

It’s almost like the hard times circle ‘round
A couple drops and they all start coming down
Yeah, I might feel defeated,
I might hang my head
I might be barely breathing - but I’m not dead

Tomorrow’s another day
And I’m thirsty anyway
So bring on the rain

I’m not gonna let it get me down
I’m not gonna cry
And I’m not gonna lose any sleep tonight

Late Night Phone Calls

Well, I managed to get all my floors done yesterday. Straightened the living room. Did a load of laundry. Now I've just got to get the kitchen squared away and I'm set. I could have had it all done last night but Lindsey stopped by. She wanted to spend the night so that was a good distraction for me.

The only thing is, I think I got her worried about her Uncle Mike. She wanted to play the Game Cube but I told her if she did she'd have to play alone because I had to stay in the living room to wait for a phone call. We watched a movie instead and when Michael hadn't called by Midnight, we decided to go to bed. She decided she was going to sleep in "uncle's spot", which was something she hadn't done before, but she promised that if I let her, she'd sleep in. She's normally up by 7:00 and right now it's just after 9AM and she's still asleep.

Anyway, we went to bed and she couldn't sleep. She tossed and turned, turned the TV on and off a few times. Every little sound she heard she'd ask, "Is that the phone?" It turned out that my cousin invited Michael to see a movie once they got their hotel rooms. It was a late movie because it was after 7PM when they finally arrived in Anchorage. They saw Star Wars which is about 3 hours long so they didn't get back to their hotel until 12:30 or so. Michael finally called at about 12:45. Lindsey was still awake but as soon as I let her say her I love you's and goodnight's she fell asleep almost immediately.

I talked on the phone for about 20 minutes or so. He was telling me about his flights and his hotel room. I fell asleep sometime after 1AM and slept really well. Until about 5AM.

That's when Lindsey really started moving around. She'd go from "uncle's spot" on the other edge of our king size bed to the middle...then to lying right up against me and a few times even flung her arm and leg over me. I'd push her away and we'd start all over again. I finally had to sleep on top of the blankets to restrict her movement a little...at least when it came to lying on top of me. hehe

Today I'll get the kitchen done and she'll probably help me. The girl loves to clean. I have no idea why. She can't stand to see dust. I call the Swiffer Duster commercial "her" commercial because she's just like the lady in it. If there's dust anywhere, and even if there isn't, she'll pick up the duster and dust everything in sight.

Getting her to keep her bedroom clean? Well, that's a whole other story.

He's Leaving...On a Jet Plane

Today has been sort of a melancholy day. Michael leaves tomorrow and although it's only for 2 nights, it saddens me because it means that he is committed to this corporation. I know that it means steady employment and I should be happy about that. But it also means he'll be working elsewhere this winter.

We've kicked around the idea of me going with him, but it's not a definite thing and I'm not looking forward to only seeing him one week out of each month this winter. He could be working off the island for as many as 15 months.

He's been talking about it since he got his current job...but I kept telling myself it was way off in the future. In reality, he could leave by August if not sooner.

So anyway, if I'm not posting during the next few days it's because I haven't been able to drag myself out of bed to face the world. Haha, no...it's because I've decided to clean this house from top to bottom while he's gone to keep myself busy. ;o)

This Will Have to Do for Now

I'm rather busy at the moment so don't have time to do this properly. I hope this is sufficient enough for now.

Fizzy asked some questions about my home in the comments of the last post. I've decided to link to some posts in my archives so she can have a better idea about where I live.

First, here's a picture of the town from up above.

Here's a post where I mentioned some ramdom facts about Home.

And finally, an ABC poem I wrote one night out of boredom. :o)

Why?

Why did I choose TODAY to make a salmon casserole? The house was stuffy enough with the warm temperature outside and the lack of a cooling breeze. Why did I think it would be a good day to use the oven?

Don't answer that. I already know. I've been craving the casserole and bought the ingredients yesterday. That pretty much meant I had to do it today or I'd end up having to toss the ingredients. Even waiting until tomorrow would have been too late because Michael's leaving town on Wednesday. I always make too much and if he's not going to be here to eat the left-overs, it's a waste of time and money to make it.

He's got this job...with a big corporation. He's been with them for about a month now and they just realized that they don't have a physical on file for him. He went to the clinic about a week and a half ago but they won't accept the doctors note, for lack of a better term. They said they'd rather choose the doctor, so rather than accept this piece of paper that says he's healthy, they're going to find someone else to administer the exam. Fine. It's their money...getting it done here was free.

We thought they'd send him to town. We thought wrong. He received a fax on Friday with his itinerary. They're sending him to Anchorage on Wednesday...via Seattle. Crazy! It takes an entire day to get to Anchorage when you go to Seattle first so that day is pretty much a waste. He must have an afternoon appointment because they don't have him leaving Anchorage until almost 7PM Thursday evening. That means he won't get into Town until well after 9PM so he'll have to overnight there before he can come home on Friday. 2 nights, 2 hotels, all for a doctor's visit. A visit that will more than likely tell them what the doctor here already tried to.

But, I guess that's a corporation for you. They have to do things their way even if it inconveniences everyone and costs them thousands of dollars. I say thousandS, plural, because they're sending my cousin with him. Travel alone is over $1,100 just for one of them. That's not counting hotels and doctor's fees. They could have paid $23.00 a piece to get them to town on the ferry and have it over and done with in one day. Sheesh!

Trying Something New

Make a Free Flash Slideshow

The Traveling Wall

It took a while, but I finally found the photos I've been searching for. These are of the Traveling Wall. It's a mobile version of the Vietnam Wall in Washington, D.C. The field its in is a baseball field. The wall went almost the entire length of the widest part of the field. It was an awesome sight to see just from the size of it. These were taken during the day so you won't see the flame that is burning. They had local veterans stand watch through the night. It was very touching for a lot of people because we had so many of our community members, including my dad and many of my uncles, involved in the Vietnam War. Not all of our families were lucky enough to have our loved ones return home.

As always, clicking a photo will make it bigger.


Left side of The Wall.


Middle of The Wall.


Right side of The Wall.


Memorial wreaths and flags in front of the center of The Wall.


The long Traveling Wall.

Gifts

I did some Father's Day shopping today. It was almost an all day process. I had absolutely no idea what to give my step-dad. How sad is that? He's been my step-dad since I was a senior in high school and I know nothing about him. True, I used to go to my mother's each summer, but he was always busy. He was either out of town for business or riding/feeding his horses. We'd always invite him to come along but he always said Mom and I should have time alone. He only came along when there was food involved. haha

That got me thinking about the whole gift-giving process in general. Both my giving and receiving of gifts.

When it comes to giving gifts, Michael usually leaves that up to me. Mainly because, being the shopper that he is, he never knows when to quit. But also because he's pretty clueless about how to gift. He'd rather go into a store or open a catalog and buy a whole bunch of things and then figure out who gets what. I know who I'm shopping for before I even start and don't buy anything unless I'm positive they'll like it. I have a pretty good track record, too, if I do say so myself. (That is, of course, until it comes to my step-dad.)

Receiving gifts is usually a lot more fun. hehe What was the most memorable gift you received? When I thought about my gifts, I couldn't decide what my best gift has been.

I could say it was the watch I received from my dad the day I graduated from high school. He put it on the arm of a teddy bear. I was so tickled by the bear I almost didn't notice the watch at all. But then the sparkle caught my eye. I looked and was tickled to see a Mickey Mouse watch. On closer inspection, though, I realized that it was a gold nugget watch. A gold nugget Mickey Mouse watch! What a unique gift. I still have it and have never seen another.

That's a gift that's hard to top. But there are a few others that come to mind. A pair of shoes, for example. I complained that my shoes were becoming too worn and Michael snuck off to town and bought me a new pair of shoes. He insisted I try them on immediately. I watched him pull the tissue paper out of each shoe as he handed the pair off to me. I tried to put my foot in and my mind became flooded with visions of Cinderella's step-sisters. No matter how hard I tried, I could not get my foot in the shoe. I tried the other side and it fit fine. I checked the sizes to make sure they were the same. No problem there. He watched me struggle and finally said, "Maybe I didn't get all the paper, reach inside." I put my hand in the shoe and flung the shoe at him. "Oh, my god! Oh, my god, Michael, what did you do?" He just smiled and gave the shoe back to me. He encouraged me to reach in again and show him what was in the shoe. I pulled out a jewelry box and handed it to him. He opened it up with a huge grin to show me a ring. No, it wasn't my engagement ring, but it was the first piece of jewelry he gave me and the one I treasure the most.

I've been given other gifts, too. Intangible gifts. Like the love and acceptance of my family and friends even when I don't feel I deserve it. Like the look of pride on a childs face when they finally understand what I'm trying to teach them. Like the smile from someone I pass on the street that brightens an otherwise dismal day.

I think it's the intangible gifts I treasure most. :o)

I Received This as an E-Mail and Thought I'd Share

A Carrot, An Egg and a Cup of Coffee

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil, without saying a word.

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl.

Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me, what do you see?"

"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied. Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg. Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, "What does it mean, mother?"

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity ... boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.

"Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?"

Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength? Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?