Thursday Thirteen

Last week we left on vacation. Can you guess where we went?

Late evening.

The view from the 15th floor at the elevators.

Glowing Tourist Trap

From under the umbrella.

Castle by the sea.

Hubby doing the relaxing thing.

The pool area from the 15th floor.

Casting a shadow.

Mr. & Mrs. Thurston Howell, III

Lady bug! Lady bug! Fly away home! Your house is on fire! Your children are gone!

The view to the south.

The view to the north.

The beach side of our "resort."

Okay, so we went to the beach. We went to North Myrtle Beach, to be exact, which is . . . north of Myrtle Beach. It's a little quieter area that is not as crowded as Myrtle Beach proper.

My husband and I figure that we've each been to the Myrtle Beach area about 30 times or more in our lives. This is where our parents vacationed with us when we were children, and this is where we have vacationed at least 15 times in the 28 years of our marriage. The trips tend to run together - we have a hard time remembering which year what little trivia happened.

The area has changed a lot in that time. The hotels have gone from three or four stories to massive towers that rise 20 or more stories into the sky. The things we loved as children - the Pavilion area - has been torn down. It's now more a place to go play golf and shop. I suppose it reflects the changing mores of American society.

I strongly suspect we won't return to the beach again any time soon. Neither of us play golf, nor are we much on shopping.  Then there's the "I am now allergic to seafood" issue, which makes it hard to find a good place to eat since most everything serves fish down there.

This trip I was sick the entire time; I was ill before we left. I had hoped that the sea air might help and I did feel better after a few days, though never completely well. Monday evening I fell ill again, just in time for our return home. This morning I am so sick that I need to go back to bed.





Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here. I've been playing for a while and this is my 263rd time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday.

This Ol' Farm Feels Like a Long Lost Friend

I made sure you didn't miss me, but I have been away.

Hubby and I went on vacation, and returned just about an hour ago. We came home to find the house sitting on 60 degrees - BRR!

We spent some time at North Myrtle Beach. We only had one bad day of weather, which was yesterday.

I took my laptop with me but on the first night there I became concerned about the security of my Internet connections and decided to put the thing in the car and forget about it. I don't seem to have had anything compromised, although the spam box of one of my gmail account seems to have more sex spam than normal, but it is hard to say. I don't check my spam box that often.

Also, I don't have a smart phone. All I do on my cell phone is talk on it, so it wasn't much help. I think it was the first time I finally understood the desire for the smart phone, though.

But not being in touch also had its perks.

We had a nice time. Unfortunately I was sick the entire time, still, and whatever I have been fighting (some kind of sore throat/respiratory thing) decided to rebound Monday night. I was in Damon's getting ready to eat a few of their wonderful BBQ ribs when my throat suddenly started feeling like someone was scraping a knife down it.

I won't bore you with the details of the trip; we spent most of our time sitting on the beach. I read books, he read magazines, we watched the waves and people. We went there to rest and that is exactly what we did.

I'll post some photos later in the week, though I'm pretty sure I didn't take anything spectacular.

88 Questions Part 4

I stole this from Sunday Stealing. It's actually 88 questions, which I am chopping up into 22 at a time. Thankfully, this is the fourth and final part.


67. Has anyone put their arms around you in the past 5 days?

A. Yes.

68. Do you miss the way things used to be?

A. Sometimes.

69. Song you're thinking of right now?

A. Um. I wasn't. But let's see. How about Vincent (Starry Starry Night) by Don McLean. It is one of my favorites.

70. Want someone back in your life?

A. Can't think of anyone. If they're not in my life now, it's for a reason.

71. Will tomorrow be better than today?

A. I always hope that it is.

72. What's the color of the underwear you are wearing?

A. That's rather personal, isn't it?

73. Who was the first best friend that you ever had?

A. I think it was Chris in the third grade.

74. How do you react when someone disappoints you?

A. Depending upon the disappointment, I might become sad (even cry) or I might just shrug it off.

75. Is there anyone who understands your sexuality?

A. Pretty much every heterosexual woman would, I would guess. What a weird question.

76. Are you a naturally happy person? Or is your happiness forced?

A. I am not a naturally happy person. I work at it, which is not the same as forcing it.

77. Is there anyone you wish would fall in love with you?

A. Well, a multi-millionaire who would die in a few days after rewriting his will to leave me his mass fortune would be nice, but I don't expect that to happen.

78. What do you wear when you sleep?

A. A nightgown that I bought at Walmart. Made by cheap labor in some foreign country, I'm sure, and I should be ashamed of myself for making that purchase.

79. Are you obsessed with something right now?

A. Yes. Getting these questions answered and over with.

80. The first person you loved is?

A. I have loved a lot of people, but I would guess my brother in a sisterly fashion, and then my husband, though I also love my friends in that friendly sort of way.

81. Something terrible happened with you?

A. With me? With me? What, is this the bad grammar meme? Do you mean did something terrible happen to me? Look up the word "with" and tell me how does that apply to this sentence? Did something terrible accompany me? Because of me? From me? Against me? What in the world are you asking?

82. You are locked up with your celebrity crush for days, what happens?

A. I don't really have a celebrity crush, so I will have to think about this. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Okay. We'll go with George Clooney, and by the time the doors open he will run screaming into the jungle, never to be seen again.

83. If you could wish something, what would it be?

A. I would wish for civility on the Internet. That would create a huge chain of events that might ulimately bring about world peace.

84. Ever try to force someone to do something?

A. Yes.

85. When you are alone, what do you think about?

A. Everything. My brain whirrs constantly.

86. How was your first sex?

A. Too personal a question for me to answer.

87. What's your favorite music genre?

A. Pop, pop, pop music. American Top 40.

88. Are you happy I only wrote 88 questions?
A. Yes, very.

88 Questions Part 3

I stole this from Sunday Stealing. It's actually 88 questions, which I am chopping up into 22 at a time. This is part 3.



45. What were you doing yesterday at midnight?

A. Sleeping.

46. What are your LEGAL initials?

A. MYOB.

47. Who's the first B in your contacts?

A. My bank. You know, B is for Bank.

48. When was the last time you laughed really hard?

A. It's been a while.

49. Your number 1 top friend walks out of your life, do you go after them?

A. Yes.

50. Explain your last awkward moment?

A. Oh, there's so many, you wouldn't have time.

51. Are you afraid of the dark?

A. Not usually.

52. Do you have good vision?

A. No. I have had poor vision for a very long time.

53. Have you ever tripped someone?

A. Not intentionally.

54. Have you ever slapped someone?

A. Yes. I got into a girly fight in high school.

55. Are you Irish?

A. Aye, actually, I am. There's a wee bit o' Irish running through these here veins of mine, yes indeed.

56. Do you use chap stick?

A. I use Burt's Bees lip stick.

57. Do you have any scars?

A. I have quite a few, actually.

58. Is there someone you will never forgive?

A. Yes.

59. Are you dating the person you last held hands with?

A. Actually I am married to him.

60. Name the last person to text you?

A. Here we go with that text crap again. Although I suppose "Phone Company Rep" might fit the bill, as I think I did get some kind of "welcome to your phone company" text from them once.


61. Would you marry someone 8 years older than you?

A. If I were in love with him, yes. But I'm taken so it's a mute point.

62. Can you go in public looking like you do?

A. Nope. Not right at this minute I can't.

63. Have you ever kissed someone whose name started with a A?

A. Not that I recall.

64. What side of the bed do you sleep on?

A. The one that he doesn't sleep on.

65. What's the first thing you'll do on your wedding day?

A. Already been there and done that. The first thing I did on my wedding day, as I recall, was wake up and call my husband-to-be.

66. Do you fall for people easily?

A. Not generally, no. I fall over people easily if they stick their feet out, though.

88 Questions Part 2

I stole this from Sunday Stealin. It's actually 88 questions, which I am chopping up into 22 at a time. This is part 2.

23. Why do you think so many people cheat?

A. Because they are bored with their lives, or made poor choices, or just can't keep it in their pants. I imagine there are as many reasons as there are cheaters.

24. Tell me what's on your mind?

A. Why is the world so unkind?

25. What are you looking forward to in the next three months?

A. I have several projects going, including some paying work (yay), an edit of a novel, and a class I am going to teach in November. Plus there is Christmas.

26. Have you ever worn the opposite sex's clothing?

A. I always wear pants. And I like to wear my husband's t-shirts.

25. When did you last talk to your BFF?

A. Yesterday.

28. When is your next road trip?

A. Not sure.

29. Do you have someone of the opposite sex you can tell anything to?

A. Yes.

30. How's your heart?

A. I have high blood pressure, but otherwise it beats just fine, thank you.

31. Have you ever felt like you weren't important?

A. Yes.

32. Do you think somebody's secretly in love with you?

A. Heavens no.

33. What are you planning on doing after this?

A. Answering another question, I suppose.

34. Last time you yelled at someone?

A. About two weeks ago.

35. Have you told anybody you loved them today?

A. Yes.

36. Who do you not get along with?

A. Obnoxious, mean, or cruel people.

37. What does your most recent text say?

A. Sigh. I don't text. So my most recent text says. "    "

38. What are you wearing right now?

A. My bathrobe.

39. You're locked in a room with the person you last kissed in high school, how is it?

A. Gruesome.

40. When's the last time you had a grilled cheese?

A. Probably over a year ago.

41. What's your favorite boy and girl name?

A. I like the names James and Susan.

42. How did you feel when you woke up?

A. I have been sick but I feel a little better today.

43. Do you wish someone would call or text you right now?

A. I am always happy to have a conversation with someone I know or love.

44. Do you think Clint Eastwood would have been better talking to a table?
A. LOL. I think he would have been better not talking at all.

88 Questions Part 1

I stole this from Sunday Stealing. It's actually 88 questions, which I am chopping up into 22 at a time.

1. What type questions do you hate on a meme?

A. The type whereby the answer might allow someone to steal your identity.

2. If you married the last person you texted, what would your last name be?

A. Um. I don't text so this one doesn't apply. Or maybe my last name would be "I don't text."

3. Were you happy when you woke up today?

A. I wasn't miserable or anything.

4. When were you on the phone last? And with who?

A. About an hour ago with my husband.

5. Who are you excited for?

A. Is this the same thing as happy for? I am happy for my nephew, who is doing the college campus visiting thing. I am happy for my niece, who did her dance thing Saturday. I am happy for my friend, who recently returned from a nice visit to CA to see her son and his new wife, and for my blogging friend who just returned from London where her daughter was married. And for anyone else I know who has good stuff going on.

7. Honestly, who was the last person to tell you they love you?

A. Honestly, my husband!

8. What's the last thing you put in your mouth?

A. A pink-lemonade flavored icee.

9. Have a best friend?

A. Yes.

10. Were you ever or are you scared to fall in love?

A. Who isn't? Or hasn't been?

11. Do you think teenagers can be in love?

A. It's probably lust but yes, I think they can experience love, too.

12. Last person you wanted to punch in the face?

A. I would rather not say.

13. What time is it right this second?

A. 3:14 p.m.

14. What do you want right now?

A. For my head to stop aching.

15. Who was the last person you took a picture with?

A. Classmates at Hollins, back in May when I graduated. I think.

16. Are you single/taken/heartbroken/or confused?

A. Taken.

17. When was the last time you cried?

A. About two weeks ago.

18. Do you have a good relationship with your parents?

A. No comment.

19. Do you find it hard to trust others?

A. Yes.

20. How fast does your mind change?

A. Well, I am reconsidering my commitment to do this meme at the moment. So 20 questions fast, perhaps.

21. I bet you miss somebody right now. Who is it?

A. My grandmother.

22. Can you honestly say you're okay right now?

A. Yes.

Thursday Thirteen

We purchased a game camera last year, and I have enjoyed putting it out and seeing what it captures. I have been hoping for a bear but none so far. Here are thirteen shots from the game camera that were taken in September:

Squirrel (there were about 135 pictures of squirrels on the camera).

Doe, a deer, a female deer!

Critter. Probably a raccoon but not sure.

My favorite dear on his tractor.

A little too close for the close-up.

Gobble gobble! Turkey lurkey!

Ready for Thanksgiving!

The Deer family. Not the Von Trapp family.

Foxy-Loxy making the rounds.

My favorite dear again on the backside this time.

An unknown trespasser! I hid his face (he's not my kid, after all), but if you know this fellow, please tell his mom to keep him home and out of the fields, especially during hunting season. He might get hurt.

Posing beautifully for the camera.

Little fawns.

Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here. I've been playing for a while and this is my 262nd time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday.

Wordless Wednesday - Sunrise

Autumn Sneaks In

Autumn sneaked in with fog, not breeze

Bringing color and change to leaves.

A crispness cast across the pass

while leaves fell softly upon the grass

Acorns dropped with a mighty plunk

And Autumn pulled petticoats from her trunk.

For the seasons change, they come they go

and life goes on, as we all know.

The Harvest Moon

I overexposed that one a little bit.

Up close and personal.

Too Tired to Lift My Head

It has been a hard day gathering acorns. I need to lie here a while. Whew.

Okay, I think I'm starting to feel the burn now.  Maybe I can get up!

Yay! Back at it! I am going to run down this tree!

Sick Days

Tuesday evening my throat felt a little raw. In the middle of the night, my husband woke me up.

"You're snoring so badly you're going to have a sore throat in the morning," he said.

But I already had a sore throat. The glands in my neck had ballooned up and when I put my head down, everything pooled in the back of my throat.

I was also running a fever of 100 degrees. That is high for me, as my temperature usually stays around 97.6, a degree under normal.

Normally I try to wait these things out, but I had a full schedule and things to do, so I trotted off to the doctor on Wednesday. She gave me an antibiotic and told me to go home and go to bed.

Which I did.

Now it is Saturday. Improvement has been minimal. The fever broke yesterday and some of the swelling in my neck glands has decreased, but the amount of drainage seems to have increased and not lessened.

Everything I had scheduled from Wednesday through Friday ended up being cancelled. I had hoped to spend today at the Medieval Faire in Roanoke County but I won't make that. I have never been and I want to go but haven't made it yet even though they've had it for the last five years. I just want to see one.

I had also hoped to bake something to take to the library book sale but I don't do things like that when I am germy. Who wants what I have, you know?

So anyway, this is where I am. Looks like another day in bed for me.

Migration Time!

Flowers I planted this spring have proven to be a great draw for birds this fall. This unanticipated benefit has brought me a lot of fun. I am enjoying this opportunity to watch the birds.

However, I don't know their names. I have looked these up in a field guide but I am not sure I am right. If you know differently, please feel free to correct me.

I think this is a Carolina chickadee.

Not a mirror image! Two birds, one on each side of my plastic fence I use to keep the deer out of my flower garden.

I think this is a blue-headed vireo.

I think this is a mockingbird.

Better shot of the mockingbird.

Thursday Thirteen

TV shows I watch or my husband watches or shows we are planning to check out in the new season:

1. Big Bang Theory. This show cracks me up. It nurses my inner geek. New season starts tonight.

2. Survivor. I have watched every season of this,and have seldom missed a show. But if someone were to ask me why I watch it, I would have to say, "I have no idea." There's nothing redeeming about it, that's for sure. It is the only reality show I watch.

3. Elementary. This is a new show, with Lucy Liu as Watson. It airs tonight. I hope I can stay awake long enough to watch it.

4. Sons of Guns (husband). He likes this show a lot. Guns and explosions. Guy things.

5. Mythbusters. I don't know if this is still on, it seems to have moved to the Science channel in reruns, anyway, but we have enjoyed it for years.

6. Swamp People (husband). Gaters and guns. 'nuff said.

7. Deadliest Catch. We both watch this show. Men go crab fishing, form relationships.

8. How Its Made. This is an informative show on Science, I think it is. You learn how boats are made, wicker is created, light bulbs are manufactured - all sorts of things.

9. The Newsroom. We loved this show when it aired over the summer, and look forward to its return.

10. Game of Thrones. Another HBO series we both liked. However, it's not a show I will watch a second time: too gory.

11. Jeopardy. This is an old staple in the evening. Quiz show that pits brain against brain.

12. Bill Maher. We usually catch this one in reruns since we tend to both fall asleep by 10 p.m. these days. Hazard of growing old, I guess. Political commentary from the middle of the road.

13. Insert something here, as I can't think of another. :-)

I don't watch much TV, really, and when these are on, I am usually reading. I have the crud and couldn't think much deeper than this for my TT.

Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here. I've been playing for a while and this is my 261st time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday.

Meme Answers

I took this from Sunday Stealing:



1. Ever been given or received an engagement ring? Yes. In July 1983 and the wedding band followed in November the same year.

2. Longest relationship? Present one - 29 years in November.

3. Last gift you received? A friend paid for a cup of tea for me this morning. If you're looking for something tangible, then I guess it would have been a Barnes & Noble gift card.

4. Ever dropped a mobile phone? Yes, but it did not break.

5. When's the last time you worked out? This morning. I walked on the treadmill and used the recumbent bike for a little while.

6. Thing(s) you spend a lot of money on? Books. Notebooks. Chocolate.

7. Last food you ate? A Weight Watchers Smart Ones meal (280 calories).

8. First thing you notice about the opposite sex? Smile. Then eyes.

9. One favorite song? Band on the Run, by Paul McCartney and the Wings

10. Where do you live? On a farm in Virginia.

11. High school attended: The one down the road.

12. Cell phone provider: Why do you want to know that?

13. Favorite shop: A book store. Any book store.

14. Longest job: Writing for the newspaper.

15. Do you own a smart phone? Why? No, I do not. They are too expensive. Plus I am afraid I would get addicted to it.

16. Do you prank call people? Heavens no. I am an old woman. Old women don't do that.

17. Last wedding you attended? It's been a while; I think it was one of my husband's coworkers.

18. First friend you'd call if you won the lottery: Either all of them or none, I am not sure which. I guess it would depend on the amount.

19. Last time you saw your best friend(s): Several weeks ago now. No, wait, I saw one of them at the library last week.
 
20. Favorite fast food Restaurant: Bellacino's, where they serve great pizza and subs.

Hay

One Thousand Words

Saturday night we watched a movie called One Thousand Words. It stars Eddie Murphy and if you haven't heard of it, don't worry. Most people haven't, I think.

Rotten Tomatoes heaped lots of bad reviews upon it. However, I liked it.

It's an enlightenment fantasy. Jack McCall (Murphy) is a fast-talking literary agent. He attempts to grab the book of the latest hot mystic, but he gets pricked by a special tree. The tree then appears at his house. Every time McCall says a word, a leaf falls from the tree. He soon realizes that he must choose his words carefully and that when the last leaf leaves the tree, both will die.

As a writer and a communicator, I enjoyed the story. In the end, the most important words - the ones that saved - were "I love you" and "I forgive you," with the last three being key. Forgiveness is hard to come by these days, and it is good to have a reminder of how important that truly is.

A thousand words is not very many. It's about four typed pages, single spaced. While that may seem like a lot if you're 13 and doing a Social Studies report (do they even still have Social Studies?), in a lifetime - in a day's time, really - it is nothing at all.

Words are sacred. That was the moral of the movie, something which seems to have slipped by many of the reviewers. This is the kind of movie we need more of, something with a strong message that points out right from wrong. Wrong: being a glib talker who cares only about money. Right: being a good father who is involved in his child's life.

Wrong: taking advantage of people. Right: taking care of your elderly mother.

Wrong: pretending to be what you're not. Right: forgiving someone who has wronged you.

Wrong: telling your wife/friend/lover that you love them all the time, but not backing it up with action. Right: saying I love you and meaning it, with thought and deed behind the words.

I loved seeing these good, strong messages on the screen. I loved being reminded that words are sacred, that our day-to-day use of them has power that should not be taken lightly.

"When words are scarce, they are seldom spent in vain," said William Shakespeare, the greatest playwright ever. Now there was a guy who knew what he was talking about. It is why stories need editors, why articles have word limits, why some of the best writing is "short" writing.

"Words may show a man's wit, but actions his meaning," said Benjamin Franklin, one of the greatest spokesmen to ever come out of the United States.

In today's word of texting and telephone talking, when everyone is connected to their favorite device, scared to miss a word, are the things you're afraid of missing really worth that time and effort?

Doesn't that give you pause?

If you only had one thousand words, what do you think you'd say?

Here and Now

There are days when I think I might stop blogging, times when I run out of words and I wonder who wants to see yet another photo of a deer, or of my view.

Even though it is, of course, a lovely view. You can't take a shot of a mountain and not have it be a lovely view.

But really I do not run out of words, I just can't find a topic that I think belongs on a public blog. Sometimes my thoughts are running so deep and personal that I can't share. Because really who wants to read that anyway? Or maybe I should say, who visiting this blog, which is about many things and nothing at all, wants to read that?

Out my window this morning, this fine, Sunday morning, the mountains have just a tinge of color change on them. Before long the trees will put on their fancy dresses and delight us with reds, oranges, and yellows. The scarlet will look like flames against brilliant October skies.

Autumn is here, in all her glory, bringing with her days of crisp, clear weather, falling acorns, and pumpkins. A time of death with a promise of renewal to come.

Sort of like the spiral to the resurrection.



*The above photo was taken down at the barns and all of the visible land is part of the farm.*

Books: The Sixth Man

The Sixth Man
By David Baldacci
Copyright 2011
Audiobook
Read by Ron McLarty and Orlagh Cassidy
7 hours

This is the latest in the King and Maxwell series of Baldacci's books.

His website notes that TNT is creating a King and Maxwell pilot TV show.

The series is about two former secret service agents, Sean King and Michelle Maxwell, who are now private investigators.

Baldacci appears to have taken the characters as far as he wants; this book was a let-down as far as characterizations go. There was a lot of action in this book but it was more about plot than character.

Edgar Roy is a super genius who has been used by the US government to help with intelligence-gathering efforts. All of the information from all intelligence sources is sent to a visual "wall" and displayed. Roy then uses his super brain to figure out patterns and make educated guesses about terror plots, etc.

But Roy is in jail, apparently a man gone insane, for the police found six bodies buried in his barn. His lawyer, Ted Bergane, asks Sean King and Michelle Maxwell to join him in Maine, where Roy is being held in a maximum security facility. King and Maxwell head up there and en route to the prison, discover a car on the side of the road with Bergane in it. He is dead.

After that, it's a long romp through government agencies along a trail littered with dead bodies to find out what is going on.

I missed the character-building this series has shown in the past. Maxwell and King could have been any hired gun helping out the FBI as this book moved forward.

Several reviewers on Amazon wondered if the author even wrote this book. I wondered the same thing - it certainly didn't have the zip of previous ones.

I have read all in this series and a few of Baldacci's other books as well. I would rate this one as the worst of all that I have listened to or read. If you're a fan of the series you'll want to read it to keep up, I suppose, but honestly there is so little character building that, except for the ending which *should* be referenced in any next book, there isn't much of a need to read this one.

The Date in Decades

Sometimes I look at the calendar and I try to recall what I might have been doing on specific dates.

There is no real reason for this; it's just a mental game.

But 40 years ago (damn, I am old), on Thursday, September 21 1972, I would have been 9 years old.

That means that most likely I was in school, in the fourth grade at Breckinridge Elementary. Classes would have been in session for only a few weeks, because back then we started school the day after Labor Day. Mrs. Lanning was my teacher. She had a reputation for being a hard task master but I loved her.

In this month and year, the TV show MASH started this year. It ran for 11 years (the final show would air in 1983, the night my future husband's grandfather died). The Waltons also began its 10-year run on TV. Bob Barker began doing the first showcase showdowns on The Price is Right. Richard Nixon was president, and Watergate was underway, but I was too young to pay much attention to that.

Thirty years ago, on Tuesday, September 21, 1982, I would have been out of high school. I had not yet met my husband. I would be enrolled at Virginia Western taking ... something ... and I would be employed at a machine shop, where I was the parts manager. It was a job I disliked and would leave within the next six months. I wasn't dating anyone.

Ronald Reagan was president. Apparently not much was happening, because there is little of note about this date online. The TV shows Family Ties, Cheers, and Knight Rider began.

Twenty years ago, on Monday, September 21, 1992, I was employed at a local law firm. I was also attending school at Hollins College, working on my bachelors degree.

I was married and working on year 9 of that institution. By this time we'd built the house we live in now. We were on year five of trying to have children and we were on the cusp of realizing it was something that wasn't going to happen.

We did not yet have Internet service or cell phones.

In the world, George H. W. Bush was president (and would soon lose to Bill Clinton). Gas cost about $1.05. Hurricane Andrew had come through about a month prior to this September date.

Ten years ago, on Saturday, September 21, 2002, I would have been at home. Probably cleaning my house, if routine serves as memory. My mother would have passed away in August 2000, and I would be moving on with my life after that event.

I would have been on the Internet for a number of years. I had a cell phone. For employment, I was a freelance writer with a steady contract with local newspapers. I loved the work.

In the world, George W. Bush was president. We would have had a one-year anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attack on the U.S. The drumbeats for war on Iraq would have been banging full force. Gas cost about $1.62.

On TV, Firefly would make its debut (it crashed and burned quickly).
I would be anxiously awaiting the December release of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, at the theater.

Which brings me to today, Friday, September 21, 2012.

Here I am, a middle-aged woman, looking for work and still trying to figure out what I'm going to do when I grow up. I had thought I would have had that sorted out by now, but I guess not.

I will spend my day today keeping a couple of appointments, shopping at Kroger, working on a project, and fixing dinner. I also plan to hit the treadmill as soon as I hit the publish button on this blog entry.

And that's my life by the decades.

Thursday Thirteen #260

I spent hours yesterday filling out forms for a very small part-time job. Here is a list of some of them:

1. an "employee bio data sheet"

2. a "data form"

3. a "new hire" form

4. a "notification and release"

5. an "orientation acknowledgement"

6. a "Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification from the Department of Homeland Security

7. Form W-4

8. Form VA-4

9. Voluntary EEO Identification

10. a "physical demands" worksheet

11. Receipt of the summary of the policy on alcohol and other drugs

12. Direct deposit authorization

13. Identification card request form

plus others.

Apparently I have been out of the job market for too long. I had no idea you had to jump through so many hoops. No wonder people can't find work. Just filling out the paperwork is enough to scare you senseless, or frustrate you to the point of insanity.

Ridiculous.

Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here. I've been playing for a while and this is my 260th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday.

Wordless Wednesday

Questions and Answers

1. You have been awarded the time off from work and an all-expenses paid week anywhere in the United States. The catch is that it must be somewhere you have not been before. Where do you choose to visit?

A. If it must be somewhere I have not been before, I would have to choose the northern states, Maine, Vermont, Connecticut. I think it would be fun to visit them now, as the leaves are turning. Wouldn't it be great to be driving along country roads, the top down on some convertible, your hair wrapped in a scarf, sunglasses on, looking at the trees?

2. Name three of your guilty pleasures.  A. Chocolate. Reading. Video games.

3. The best kind of Girl Scout Cookie is: A. I don't eat Girl Scout cookies because I don't know any Girl Scouts. But my favorite cookie is a Keebler Fudge Stripe (original).

4. What do you value most in other people? A. Honesty, tolerance, and patience.

5. Be honest. Do you sneak some raw cookie dough when you’re baking cookies? A. Of course. It's the best part of making cookies.

6. Have you ever looked back at your life and realized that something you thought was a bad thing was actually a blessing in disguise?! A. Yes. I left a job in 1985 and thought it was a bad thing, but if I hadn't left I wouldn't have gone on to Hollins College and obtained my bachelors degree.

7. What is the most beautiful place you’ve ever visited? A. I live in the most beautiful place I know. But I also enjoy the beach on the South Carolina coast.

8. Are you more of a thinker or a feeler? A. I'm a thinker. I'm an INTP on the Myers Briggs, which means I'm an introverted, intuitive, thinking, perception person. Sort of the absent-minded professor type. You can find your personality type for free here.

9. Name three things you are thankful for right now. A. That my husband has decided to paint the bathroom. That it is raining and washing the pollen out of the air. That I am seeing the doctor this morning to deal with a health-care matter.

10. Have you ever participated in a three-legged race? A. No. At least, not that I remember. I can't be sure of what I did when I was very young.

11. When you are at an event that plays the National Anthem, do you place your hand over your heart? A. Usually, yes.
 
12. What kind of work do you do? A. I am a student of words, a writer of wrongs, and chief cook and bottle washer.

13. During the course of your lifetime, which job or career has been your favorite or most fulfilling? A. Writing for the local newspaper.

14. Do you think it’s necessary in your life to have a day-to-day “career” that is meaningful and service-oriented or do you function better in “just a job” with a steady paycheck? A. A career is important to me.


15. Was there ever a time in your life when you wanted to stay home with your children instead of working, even if it meant less money in the household? A. I never had children, but money has never been that important. I imagine if I had had children, I would have stayed home with them.


16. Tell us your worst boss story. A. I once worked for an attorney in the nearby city who was cheating on his wife by sleeping with his other secretary. When he found out that I knew about it, he fired me. It is the only time I have ever been fired.


17. Have your ever been the boss? A. I have been self-employed for many years, so have been my own taskmaster for a long time.


18. What is your dream occupation? A. Probably to be a best-selling novelist making $100,000 a year. Or a college English professor. Or the editor of a newspaper. Something along those lines.

I took this meme from Sunday Stealing, which collects memes. Obviously it is not Sunday, but Tuesday. Not that it matters.

To Herb or Not To Herb

I started seeing an acupuncturist in December 2005. One of the things that Chinese Medicine practitioners use are herbs.

My first acupuncturist prescribed herbs for my lungs and other aspects of my Qi (energy flow) that were in dire need of substantial assistance.

The herbs looked like this:

To use them, I put the herbs in hot water and let it steep for 10 minutes or longer. The herbs helped my allergies and asthma and were very beneficial. Yes it looks like dirt, and pretty much tasted like it, too. But I faithfully drank cupfuls of it.

My first acupuncturist left the area, and I am now on my third acupuncturist. After my recent treatment with needles, she said she would like to add herbs to help my lungs. I haven't had herbs in over a year, so I agreed.

I was expecting something similar to the above.

However, when I picked up my concoction, what I received were two brown bags. One held this:

And the other this:

I am not sure what all of this is. Pieces of trees, for sure. Bark.  Vine, maybe grape vine. I have no idea what the white squares are. Chalk or rock?

To use these herbs, I have to cook them in water for a long time (30 minutes or so, depending on the bag), strain them, and then divide the liquid up for drinking.

So far I have looked at these items, sniffed them, and felt them. I confess I am not keen on making a tea out of them and drinking it. I think I prefer the bag of dirt as opposed to the bags of sticks.

I am pretty daring and don't mind trying new things, but for some reason this seems a bit much for me. I will have to think about this for at least another day.

Good Day, Sunshine

I was born in the early 1960s. I don't recall much about that era - go go boots, Neil Armstrong landing on the moon, and psychedelic colors come to mind when I think on it.

That makes me a 1970s era girl, I suppose, since that is when I came of age. The time of the "me" generation, though by age I am stuck at the tail-end of the baby boomers. I remember only vaguely things like the shootings at Kent State, the kidnapping of Patty Hearst, and Watergate. I would have only been 10 years old in 1973, after all. Certainly unworldly, growing up as I did on a farm in a rural Appalachian area of Virginia.

I also remember gas lines, and gas costing only $0.25 a gallon. I remember S&H Greenstamps, the Maytag repair man, "Whirlpool makes a super dishwasher, Whirlpool" (pretty sure that was the commercial), and the Brady Bunch. We could only receive one station - ABC - on our television so I only know those shows.

My mother drove a blue Dodge Charger for a while, and I remember one night my parents went to see the movie Deliverance at the drive-in theater. My brother was put to bed in the back window and I was told to go to sleep on the back seat. Being a rather precocious child, I did not. I remember listening to the movie and being very upset by it.  I would have been nine years old at the time. It is not a movie for children.

I grew up knowing right from wrong. I learned this at home, at school, and through books. If I did something wrong, I received a whipping and quickly learned not to do it again. Some whippings were deserved, others not so much. Even the teachers whipped students back then, though only once did I receive the end of the paddle my second-grade teacher used at the time. I remember one poor kid named Jerry found the end of that piece of wood nearly every day.

This was the time schools were being integrated. This did not bother me, though it bothered my parents. One of the worst beatings I ever received came after a PTA meeting when I was in the third grade. My father had asked me not long before the meeting if there were any black teachers at the school. I had said no. My third grade teacher was black, but I loved her and I honestly did not notice that her skin was different from mine. After the PTA meeting I received a beating for lying, though to me it wasn't a lie.

Even at that age, I knew racism was a wrong. I don't know how I knew it, but I did. I knew that it was a problem for many people, and that it was divisive. I swore not to be a part of it, something I've kept to to this day.

I have a strong sense of social justice. Every day I see things being stripped from people. I see the decline of the middle class as the perpetuation of a great evil, and the men who are pursuing this downward decline are, to my mind, very evil men. They are American Wraiths, Nazguls who are power-hungry, greedy, and  hell-bent on destroying the social contract put in place by Franklin Roosevelt. They seek a new gilded age in the 21st century, a time when money means everything and they enslave the rank and file through financial dependency and illiteracy.

They've very nearly succeeded. I think back on the 1960s and 1970s now as a time of climax, the time when US society reached it pinnacle and then began this long, downward slog to where we are today.

I miss the psychedelic. I miss the color.

I miss the better times.

Failure of Morality (Caution: A Rant)

Yesterday I ran into a woman who was an old friend. Talk turned to politics, and she said:

"I would rather let children just die than give their parents my tax money."

Once I put my lower jaw back where it belonged, I turned on my heel and walked away. I called over my shoulder, "I guess you can't say you're pro-life anymore."

I happen to know this person is also pro-birth. She certainly can't be "pro-life," not if that is her attitude. How in the world can there be any morality in forcing a woman to have a child only to watch the child die because you don't want your tax dollars to support it?

At least if you're going to force women to have babies, have the decency to cough up the money to support the poor unfortunate (and unwanted) kid.

If this is your morality, as far as I'm concerned, you are a fascist waging class warfare on people you are condemning for ... whatever reason. Maybe you think you work harder or something. I don't know. It's not something I can get my mind around because I don't think like that.

Actually this is not thinking. I don't know what it is, but it certainly is not any kind of rationalization that I or any other person of morals can condone. If you do condone it, I suggest you go take a good long look at yourself. Put the fascist label over the mirror while you're there so you'll know what one looks like when you see your reflection.

Where is the humanity - the Christianity - the morality - in that kind of brain?

What have we come to?

Is this how it is, your dollar bills are more important than a human life? It is more important that you keep it all in your pocket than ensure that your neighbor does not die? Is that what you think, really? Hooray for me and f*ck you? Is that how you want to live your life?

Have we all become fools over money? Is not that really the god we're worshipping here? Are we not all bowing down before the golden calf?

If that is what we have become, a nation of money-grubbing, backstabbing, self-centered and selfish footlickers who can't come up with a decent thought that isn't hypocritical, injudicious and ludicrous, then we are doomed.

God help me, this is not the kind of world I want to live in. It's not what I grew up in and it's not what I was expecting. This rancid turn of attitude is going to be the end of us all.