Pardon My Sense of Humor

Forgive me for this picture but a friend of mine on another blog site had this on her post this morning. She is a big time cat lover. I don't know why but I started laughing when I saw it and couldn't stop. The look on that kitten's face reminded me of my son when he is torturing his sister.

Anyone out there wanna help me with my MS Excel homework? I can get all the buttons and stuff BUT I'm just having a difficult time setting up this workbook page. I may be scratching my head over it most of the day.

TJ is having to eat his breakfast while attending a last minute assigned Physical Science class. It would be nice if they would give some advanced notice OR stick to the iLinc schedule. Here he sits in his pajamas and eating breakfast while listening to his teacher and answering questions. Isn't technology great?

It is sunny today...so far no snow. Can't say it's very warm, but, hey, it is only the end of February.

That's it for today. I need to get back to 'work'. Housework, homework...


Enter the ICHC online Poker Cats Contest!

So Much for Refunds

I am driving TJ's car. I will be the rest of the week. My van is in the shop. New rotors, brakes, has a loose tie rod, needs a front end alignment and an oil change. None of the work is that time consuming for the mechanic but is it bank account emptying for us. The only good thing is this mechanic is very honest, does a good job and does NOT gouge you on the repair bill. It really was a God send that Troy came across this guy when he first moved to the Dayton area 4 years ago. And TJ's car will be going in when mine is done. He needs brake work done also...new 'boots'. He also needs a new relay put in his heater blower. Then he should be good to go!

His car handles pretty good and I can't complain about the gas mileage! SO much better than my van. Perhaps I should drive his car to college all the time.

We had class last night. I drove to class in spitting slush. When we got out, though, the roads were frozen and slick. Slid all the way home. Actually, TJ's car did really well. It was the other drivers that made me nervous. HELLO! THAT ISN'T WET PAVEMENT...IT'S ICE!!!

I got the highest score in the class for my presentation. 2points away from perfect. She took the 2 points away because I did not set a time limit on the little exercise I was having them do. I didn't set a time limit on purpose but...whatever.

I don't mean to jinx any of this but Bethany is on a roll. She is making up for lost time and grades. Glad to see her feeling so much better and doing so well.

TJ is moving along too. Took him long enough. Had to do some gadget snatching to get his attention. wah.

So, tonight I have computer class. yippee. I got a couple extra hours of sleep this morning because Bethany had a two hour school delay because of the ice. I don't know what good it did because it didn't warm up any and the spreading of the salt is limited.

And then there is Scrawny...diving into the squirrel feeder practically licking it clean. I tapped on the window and she jumped down and waited at the door. I opened it up with a handful off peanuts. She didn't even back up. I handed her one and she snatched it and jumped up on the railing while I dropped the rest. I think once the weather warms up, though, I am going to be handing her a scrub brush to clean off the railing.

Falling Slush

We aren't QUITE getting actual snow...since the temp is STILL a degree above freezing AND since the atmosphere can't make up its mind...we are getting slush. Heavy, wet, yuk. But we have been promised it is supposed to start freezing up on us as the temperature drops.

Tonight is supposed to be my last Employee Training and Development class. I have my presentation just about ready. Just a matter of running off directions. BUT...there is NOW the possibility that if the slush keeps falling, freezes, turns to snow then class may be canceled. All that work for nothin'. That means I will have to do extra special great on my final becuz that will be the only grade...except for participation and I did plenty of that. Although I'm not sure the input last week about getting rid of the employer sponsored daycares and turning them into employer sponsored senior centers for parent care would technically be considered worthy of points...even though my teacher started that whole thread of conversation. Her fault.

While I have made the statement that Bethany gets snow days off from school while TJ doesn't because he is cyber schooled...there IS a different kind of day off from school for him...failure to connect. It seems his school site is off line this morning...except for the link to his interactive class sessions. SOOOO...he has two one hour class sessions he can attend today...hee hee. This would be a GREAT opportunity for him to catch up on his recorded Government classes, too. I am sure he is thrilled by all of that!

Troy WAS going to go out of town tonight but since we started getting this nasty weather he decided not to go. Since it is something he can put off...

Well...I'm off to work on my presentation some more...just in case the weather decides to cooperate after all.

Getting Dumped On

Nothing 'fancy' on here today. We got 'bombed' again last night with snow. Just like Tuesday night. Bethany is thrilled. There was no school Wednesday day and there is no school today.

However, Wednesday morning I got her up...she got ready for school. I didn't open one curtain, one blind...didn't turn the morning news on...nothing. Bethany got ready for school. I went out to start the van and warm it up. I hit the button on the garage door to open it as I got the van warmed up, I looked out and just about fell over! WOW! I went running back into the house and checked the closings and sure enough! No school. She said, "Oh, sure! The one time I am actually ready a little ahead of time!" Oh, well. LOL

And Wednesday morning, just like this morning, I no sooner wished that snowblower guy would come and clear my sidewalks and driveway...TADA! He arrived and did the job. (there is this guy that lives a few houses down that will go down the sidewalk and clear them AND clear everyone's driveway too. I haven't had to shovel snow all winter!)

Troy had to battle his way from Cincy to Columbus last night in the snow and freezing rain. It took him twice the time it normally would! I was just relieved when he called to let me know he got there safely.

I had thrown some carrots out in the yard for the rabbits a few days back. I noticed the bunny tracks in the snow this morning...they were looking for more. So, I guess I'd better go out and throw out some more and fill the squirrel feeder before Scrawny climbs up on the grill on the porch and stares in the window at me!

WWMD part deux

I am doing...or trying to do...our taxes...online. I have done our taxes online for years. Turbo Tax. SO way much easier and faster. They take my info, fill in the forms that need to be filled in and submit them for a small fee. I print out the forms when they are done and file them away. I would go paperless and just save them all on a CD...just keep adding the next year's BUT...I still have to have the official W-2's and 1099's and 1098's, etc. on file anyway.

It is back to cold but the winds have died down and the snow is swirling. I highly doubt we will get much, if any, accumulation.

Troy is without a computer. He got up early this morning and went to the nearest UPS mailing station and had it sent out to his company's tech department to have it overhauled. They were SUPPOSED to send him out a loaner. He is partitioning for a newer model. Yeah...good luck.

No school today for either kid. Not that they are doing anything with their day off. I didn't either when I was their age.

Now...back to these tax forms...there has to be a better way of squeezing money back out of the govt. What would MacGyver do?

WWMD? (what would MacGyver do?)

The squirrels aren't coming out today! The wind and the rain is hurrican like!

I have a friend, Kristy, just across the Indiana line. We were discussing this weather on the IM. She said she wished she had a boat. I told her I planned on taking the roof off over my back porch and using it for a floatation device. THEN we decided to make a list of items necessary for survival that would make MacGyver proud!
1. filter pitcher
2. duct tape (you can NEVER have too much duct tape)
3. large sheet of plastic
4. paper clip
5. safety pin
6. tube of super glue
7. rubber band

Of course one should ALWAYS carry a swiss army knife and a cell phone. You can take down a whole foreign government with those devices alone!

Feb. 14th

glitter-graphics.com

It is Valentine's Day. One of those made up holidays that makes everyone feel like they should be showing others how much they love them...and if they don't they get into trouble. OR if they have no one special in their lives it just makes them feel worse.

But...for better or for worse...

Happy Valentine's Day!



Poor Bethany is having back problems. She could barely move her head and one arm yesterday and she said it hurt to breathe (twisted vertebra). So I took her to the chiropractor. He helped some and she seemed to be moving better last night. This morning she got up and was very carefully moving. Then, on the way out to the van, her foot slipped coming down the steps and she landed on her bottom. The muscles in her lower back went into spasms and she started to scream and cry. I had to help her into bed and prop her knees up...ice on the back. I also gave her some PM pain reliever to help her relax. I got her calmed down. I know how she feels. I've had those spasms.

I bought a medi pot at the chiropractor's yesterday. I have been having such trouble with my sinuses and my one ear was just paining me! So, I brought it home and used it (it was the last one they had). After that one use, my ear quit hurting. I will probably have to use it once a day for a while. It helped clear things out so I could breathe freely last night. But I am all stuffed up again. It will take awhile.

TJ could use that medi pot, also. He has been complaining of headaches and he is so groggy all the time.

Troy won't be home for a few days. Too many customers to have to visit.

And it is a clear but frosty day. We are supposed to make it just above freezing late this afternoon. We'll see. I looked out the kitchen window yesterday only to have a little squirrel face staring back in at me. She was wondering where her nuts were! So, I opened the back door and dropped a handful out to her. She gathered them all up in just seconds and away she went...without even a 'thanks'. LOL

Stay warm!

Much Ado About Nothing

5-10". That's what they told us. The grocery store parking lots were packed to the edges again last night. I didn't know by personal observation. They showed us on the news. People were stocking up. Kids were counting on missing a few days of school.

I think we got less than two inches of snow. HOWEVER, we are getting some slight rain on top of it. Crunch crunch. Our city schools decided to close. Troy still had to pack up and head off to Columbus. From what it shows on the TV the traffic on Rt. 70 is moving slow and careful but it is pretty much clear. The radar shows much of the nasty business moving past us much, much farther south than anticipated. I think the meteorologists expected us to get sandwiched in between two storm systems. It didn't happen. This is the third time this winter that they gave us a big tale of doom and gloom and nothing much materialized.

I guess it is just as well for Bethany that there wasn't school today. She went to bed at 7:30 last night. It is almost 9:30 and she is still in bed! I checked to make sure she was breathing! She opened one eye and said, " No school!" and rolled over and went back to sleep. Alllll righty then.

Of course the other one hasn't materialized, yet. He will have to soon. No snow days for him. He has a couple online classes today.

AND, unless my professor says otherwise, I have class tonight, too. Didn't see any closing announcements for my college on the television.

Hope everyone stays warm and dry!

Getting It Done

Bethany went off to school yesterday...erpy stomach and all. But she did it and didn't complain. I told her at the end of the day how proud I was of her. She seemed rather surprised that I would say that...she enjoys her days at school. She was thrilled that she was able to get most of her missed work made up yesterday. What helped was that fact that there had been so many kids out with the flu so the teachers had to lighten the load.

Today she has he newspaper editor duties after school...AND the promised haircut. She ran a picture off and everything. She has only been bugging me about it for over a week.

TJ has been bugging me for a haircut too. So, today, in between homework assignments I will take him. He showed me a picture of what he wants too. Nothing weird...just shorter than what he has...which is okay with me!

He was up rather early this morning. I didn't have to kick his butt out of bed or anything. He was actually anxious to get started on his work and get it done. He is waiting for his earth science teacher to send his test to him. The reason he is anxious to get his work done is this...his friend Steve is having an all night "Halo" party. (TJ says, "yeah...we're nerds"). For those of you unfamiliar with it, "Halo" is a video game. And Steven has an internet link for his Xbox 360. He invited TJ, Shawn ('Fat Asian'--that is what he nicknamed himself), and another kid they know from the JVS--Mark. They are going to link up with other players and play all night. Hey...whatever I can use for leverage to get him to get his work done! And they aren't getting into trouble. TJ was after us to get an internet hook up for his Xbox 360. #1) they aren't cheap; #2)I have a hard enuff time keeping tabs on whether or not he goes to sleep at night as it is; #3)he would have just one more thing to distract him from his school work; #4) I don't want my basement full of teenage boys all the time cleaning out my fridge and pantry! LOL

Troy is home but is anticipating another week in Columbus next week. At least it isn't too far off.

And me? Same old, same old. I have an internet securities paper to write but still have two weeks to get it done. AND I need to start working on my Tuesday night class project. Teaching a concept. I don't know...after so many years of teaching, do you think I can pull that off?

Rivers

I didn't get much sleep last night. The force of the wind and the rain made me nervous. At one time I could have sworn a tornado was descending upon us. It is after 2 p.m. and it is still raining. We just had another massive downpour an hour ago. There's rivers of water running down both sides of the road.

My daughter and I spent 5 hours of our life messing with an ER visit MOnday night. Her temperature had gone down (yes, DOWN) and with the flu epidemic, doctor's offices were filled to capacity and the clinic down the road was swamped. They were telling everyone to go to the ER. I didn't want to do it but when her temperature (that had started to get back into the normal range) started to go down again, I decided I should take her. It turned out she has an upper respiratory viral infection and they can't do anything about it anyway. So, I have just been giving her decongestants and fluids...as instructed.

My son, on the other hand, is struggling with depression. He is trying to adjust to cyber school again. Having his meds changed has not been what he had hoped for. He is finding the affects to be much less than what he was experiencing from his previous meds. It is a daily struggle to keep him encouraged and on track.

I am enjoying my human resource class..Employee Training. I really like the teacher and her way of doing things. I like her perspective on employers/jobs/and what one should expect. She told us last night that we really should remember our own personal values above everything. A company/job should not make us change them. If their objectives go against our personal values, it is time to get out. She says she had to do that once and she never regretted it. She also said that she got to see that company implode upon itself.

Well, on with the rest of my day. Let's hope it dries up out there soon.

Hamster Wheel

It has been a little over two weeks since Bethany lost her hamster, Cookie. I think Cookie just died of heart failure. Poor thing. Of course, I guess I'm glad that I'm the one that discovered her dead...and not Bethany. However, the sight of that poor thing will not leave my mind.

Her new hamster, Pete, seems to have gotten used to us, for the most part. I think Bethany is disappointed, though. She got another male Teddy Bear Hamster so that Pete and Jacques could play together. Pete seems to be scared to death of Jacques and won't have anything to do with him.

We have a playpen area for them. And in it is various hamster climbing and gnawing things. I also bought this big running wheel thing that is up on legs. The hamsters have to climb up this tube and into the enclosed wheel. As they run in the wheel, it rotates around the circular platform. Pete climbed up into it and he keeps running in the wheel first one way...and then the other. It seems to be driving him crazy trying to figure it out. Cookie did the same thing at first. Jacques was never all that interested in it. Mainly becuz he is rather lazy. That...plus he has an equilibrium problem. He will fall over backwards a lot. We took him to a vet and I paid $98 for a $3 to get well. It didn't work. But he has learned to deal with it...and we have too.

So much for pets.

How I Cure Insomnia

I go shopping. It is the only thing that I know of that can tire me out like it does. I am not sure if it is all the walking or the tension of putting up with the crowds of people.

Tomorrow is my husband's 43 birthday. Even though I don't care much about my birthday anymore, he likes us to make a big deal out of his. I try. Every year I make him a cheesecake for his birthday. This year he wanted a cake with raspberry filling. So, I bought it already made.

One thing about his birthday...since it is the day after Groundhog Day, we never forget about the groundhog looking for his shadow. Not that it matters. We always end up with AT LEAST 6 more weeks of winter. AT LEAST!

So, now that I've gotten myself good and tired...