hey y'all.
does anyone remember the movie "The Triangle Factory Fire Scandal"?
it was a t.v. movie, airing back in 1979. i was in junior high school then.
the movie frightened me terribly. some of the images from the fire haunted me for years. i was reminded of it today, when i was reading this post at CareerDiva.
it was a true story, about the working conditions and deaths of people employed at the triangle shirt manufacturing sweatshop.
most of the workers were women and girls and this was back in 1911, before OSHA existed so y'all can imagine what it was like to work there.
sad and criminal that some people are still working under conditions that aren't much better.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
332: interesting reads
hey y'all.
i saw two interesting items of interest in my travels on the WWW today.
one of them was From Haitian Zombie Poison to Inuit Knives Made of Feces
the other: America's Money: In their own words
i saw two interesting items of interest in my travels on the WWW today.
one of them was From Haitian Zombie Poison to Inuit Knives Made of Feces
the other: America's Money: In their own words
331: today i noticed
hey y'all.
i noticed that one of my ears is pierced lower on the lobe than the other.
funny how it's taken me over 25 years to see it.
i noticed that one of my ears is pierced lower on the lobe than the other.
funny how it's taken me over 25 years to see it.
330: it's been a long time
hey y'all.
it's been a long time since i've had a headache.
today i had a massive one.
it started last night, no doubt fueled by the massive quantities of junk food i've been sucking down like air over the past few weeks.
when it comes to my eating habits, i'm an extremist.
some days i won't eat until night. some days i'll have lots of fruit, no veggies; some days are the opposite. most days i don't have any water; some days i'll have a little but not enough.
i am able to eat junk food in moderation as long as i don't bring it home. usually it's junk food i get from the healthy foods store. and although i still love my almond joy candy bars (which i'll only eat with plain potato chips) and my cherry twizzler strings, i'm good at forgetting to get them when i'm out. so i don't indulge too often.
i can manage to eat well for a time, even long periods of time. and then something happens to take me back to the Dark Side of eating. and i'll stay there -- spiraling down, down, down -- until something happens to bring me back to the light.
my current chauffeur is the headache.
i reiterate: it's been a long time since i've had a headache, specifically, a migraine.
yes y'all, the culprit is my diet.
years ago, i ate a lot of dairy: ice cream, cheese, milk, etc. my reward: almost daily sinus headaches.
when i became a breast-feeding mommy, my dairy habits gave baby bliss eczema and colic. my midwife said kill the dairy and you'll get rid of both. putting the cows back in the barn did indeed kill two birds.
my first migraine came soon after i began dating mr. bliss.
yeah, i should have known that all those weekends of chicken with mambo sauce and fries for dinner on friday nights, steak and cheese with more fries for saturday afternoon lunches, and sunday morning breakfasts of fried potatoes/sausage/scrambled eggs/grits/bacon/biscuits were just as bad for my head as they were for my hips.
add in all the chips, candy, soft drinks, cakes and popcorn we ate at his house (and at the movies) every weekend and y'all can see how disaster was inevitable.
all the good eating habits i'd struggled to make were washed down the drain in a sea of ginger ale.
i readily take the blame for it all. my mother has been a vegetarian and a researcher of holistic and alternative healing since i was in elementary school. (what?! no more hot dogs? no more McDonald's fish sandwiches? no way. i was traumatized.)
it's taken years but i've come to my own realization of how eating right can work for me.
part of my realization came shortly after the eczema/colic episodes, when baby bliss's dad and i visited his family a few months after i gave birth. someone had a book called "Eat Right for Your Type", a book that intrigued me with its seeming simplicity.
i bought my own copy and proceeded to eliminate the "no-no" foods from my diet. it worked well. not that i needed to lose any weight (i had already lost 50 pounds by the time my daughter was one month old), but i'm certain changing my diet helped me lose a little more and maintain the final 147 pounds i weighed at baby's first birthday.
my skin also looked better and i had lots of energy.
all my glowing good health scattered in the polluted winds of my hometown after we began hanging out and eating with mr. bliss.
it took me 10 years to gain the pounds, but i now weigh between 185 and 190 pounds. most people can't tell by looking at me because of my shape. but i know how my clothing sizes have increased over the years.
common sense would have had me examining my diet the minute my first migraine subsided. but no, my head was hard for a long time after the migraines started. years after. many years after.
i think baby bliss was two when i had my first migraine. we were at the circus in an old building with bathrooms located in the very top of the decrepit-ness. the bathroom was deserted and filthy too.
however we didn't know until we arrived there. if the migraine hadn't already nauseated me, the bathroom would have. thankfully i was able to hold in all stomach contents until we returned home.
members of mr. bliss's church -- who we had ridden to the show with -- were obliged to stay with the children in their group so baby bliss and i had to take a taxi back to mr. bliss's house.
before today, my last migraine was summer 2006.
i remember because it was the 3-day migraine that sent me to the E.R., where baby bliss laughed as i was shot up with imitrex.
today's migraine didn't as long, thank God. i know this was a warning of Things to Come if i fall off the wagon again.
* * * DON'T READ THIS NEXT PART IF YOU HAVE A WEAK STOMACH, ARE EATING, OR GENERALLY GROSSED OUT WHEN YOU READ YUCKY STUFF.
i was able to get rid of today's bugaboo by tried and true methods and the help of sweet baby bliss: flooding myself with lots of water, making myself vomit, drinking several cups of peppermint tea to settle my stomach, then laying down in a quiet dark place and taking a nap.
baby bliss said i napped for 2 hours, a rare thing in this house. (but maybe not so rare. most of my sleep is long naps. i average six hours in a 24-hour period.)
now i've got to make up my mind about making a permanent change in my eating habits. if i don't control what i eat, what i eat will control me.
one thing for certain, if it's the latter, there will be whopping helping of migraines for the main course.
.
it's been a long time since i've had a headache.
today i had a massive one.
it started last night, no doubt fueled by the massive quantities of junk food i've been sucking down like air over the past few weeks.
when it comes to my eating habits, i'm an extremist.
some days i won't eat until night. some days i'll have lots of fruit, no veggies; some days are the opposite. most days i don't have any water; some days i'll have a little but not enough.
i am able to eat junk food in moderation as long as i don't bring it home. usually it's junk food i get from the healthy foods store. and although i still love my almond joy candy bars (which i'll only eat with plain potato chips) and my cherry twizzler strings, i'm good at forgetting to get them when i'm out. so i don't indulge too often.
i can manage to eat well for a time, even long periods of time. and then something happens to take me back to the Dark Side of eating. and i'll stay there -- spiraling down, down, down -- until something happens to bring me back to the light.
my current chauffeur is the headache.
i reiterate: it's been a long time since i've had a headache, specifically, a migraine.
yes y'all, the culprit is my diet.
years ago, i ate a lot of dairy: ice cream, cheese, milk, etc. my reward: almost daily sinus headaches.
when i became a breast-feeding mommy, my dairy habits gave baby bliss eczema and colic. my midwife said kill the dairy and you'll get rid of both. putting the cows back in the barn did indeed kill two birds.
my first migraine came soon after i began dating mr. bliss.
yeah, i should have known that all those weekends of chicken with mambo sauce and fries for dinner on friday nights, steak and cheese with more fries for saturday afternoon lunches, and sunday morning breakfasts of fried potatoes/sausage/scrambled eggs/grits/bacon/biscuits were just as bad for my head as they were for my hips.
add in all the chips, candy, soft drinks, cakes and popcorn we ate at his house (and at the movies) every weekend and y'all can see how disaster was inevitable.
all the good eating habits i'd struggled to make were washed down the drain in a sea of ginger ale.
* * *
i readily take the blame for it all. my mother has been a vegetarian and a researcher of holistic and alternative healing since i was in elementary school. (what?! no more hot dogs? no more McDonald's fish sandwiches? no way. i was traumatized.)
it's taken years but i've come to my own realization of how eating right can work for me.
part of my realization came shortly after the eczema/colic episodes, when baby bliss's dad and i visited his family a few months after i gave birth. someone had a book called "Eat Right for Your Type", a book that intrigued me with its seeming simplicity.
i bought my own copy and proceeded to eliminate the "no-no" foods from my diet. it worked well. not that i needed to lose any weight (i had already lost 50 pounds by the time my daughter was one month old), but i'm certain changing my diet helped me lose a little more and maintain the final 147 pounds i weighed at baby's first birthday.
my skin also looked better and i had lots of energy.
all my glowing good health scattered in the polluted winds of my hometown after we began hanging out and eating with mr. bliss.
it took me 10 years to gain the pounds, but i now weigh between 185 and 190 pounds. most people can't tell by looking at me because of my shape. but i know how my clothing sizes have increased over the years.
common sense would have had me examining my diet the minute my first migraine subsided. but no, my head was hard for a long time after the migraines started. years after. many years after.
i think baby bliss was two when i had my first migraine. we were at the circus in an old building with bathrooms located in the very top of the decrepit-ness. the bathroom was deserted and filthy too.
however we didn't know until we arrived there. if the migraine hadn't already nauseated me, the bathroom would have. thankfully i was able to hold in all stomach contents until we returned home.
members of mr. bliss's church -- who we had ridden to the show with -- were obliged to stay with the children in their group so baby bliss and i had to take a taxi back to mr. bliss's house.
before today, my last migraine was summer 2006.
i remember because it was the 3-day migraine that sent me to the E.R., where baby bliss laughed as i was shot up with imitrex.
today's migraine didn't as long, thank God. i know this was a warning of Things to Come if i fall off the wagon again.
* * * DON'T READ THIS NEXT PART IF YOU HAVE A WEAK STOMACH, ARE EATING, OR GENERALLY GROSSED OUT WHEN YOU READ YUCKY STUFF.
i was able to get rid of today's bugaboo by tried and true methods and the help of sweet baby bliss: flooding myself with lots of water, making myself vomit, drinking several cups of peppermint tea to settle my stomach, then laying down in a quiet dark place and taking a nap.
baby bliss said i napped for 2 hours, a rare thing in this house. (but maybe not so rare. most of my sleep is long naps. i average six hours in a 24-hour period.)
now i've got to make up my mind about making a permanent change in my eating habits. if i don't control what i eat, what i eat will control me.
one thing for certain, if it's the latter, there will be whopping helping of migraines for the main course.
.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
329: we visited the in-laws
hey y'all.
i bet y'all are like "uh oh. a story about the in-laws. it must be some ghetto drama!" right?
wrong! LOL
mr. bliss has a brother who lives about 30 minutes away, with his family. he's one of the family members i'm cool with. his wife is cool too.
we 3 blisses went up for a visit on easter sunday, after church.
it was my first time visiting since they'd moved to their new house. it's a big old house. their master bedroom is big enough for a few king sized beds.
the men watched one of the "march madness" b-ball games and the ladies watched movies on lifetime.
everything was fine until baby bliss got my sister-in-law hooked on one of those games on the laptop. she watched as baby bliss played, commenting that the game looked "complicated" and saying she didn't want to play.
then baby bliss said, "auntie can you hold the laptop while i go to the bathroom?"
next thing i knew, #1 SIL was hooked.
every 20 minutes or so, she would say she was stopping. but of course she didn't. she played for hours. LOL
they served us a down home dinner: ham, tater salad, corn, green beans, and bread. baby bliss is allergic to corn and ham makes my head hurt (too much sodium?) but we ate well enough.
there was ice cream (i didn't have any) and homemade lemon pound cake for dessert. i had part of one slice. when it arrived, my slice had a big chunk missing. mr. bliss swore he didn't do it.
i froze my toes off when we left cuz i still had on the flip flops i wore to church. (note to self: wearing flip flops after dark before may does not induce blissful behavior.)
we headed to walmart for a few needful things before heading home. i kept asking if we had everything, if we were forgetting anything cuz y'all know how you go to the store without a list and always think of something you forgot right when you get back to the car.
i was the one who didn't remember.
grrrrr!
as soon as we crossed the door sill, i remembered what i forgot: the cherry twizzlers i love. it used to be the bites now it's the stringy ones. i like to put them in the freezer for a few days then eat a cable or two when i'm up working late.
i don't eat a lot of candy but when i do, it helps me drink more water. in fact, i drink more water when ever i eat something sweet. the only exception is when i eat an almond joy. i like those with plain chips.
utz are my favorites, unsalted utz best. but they just started selling utz down here and i haven't seen the unsalteds yet. it's not a big deal tho because i'm no longer a big fan of regular chips.
i've fallen in love with sweet potato potato chips. :-)
but back to my twizzlers...
so now i don't have any. i might get some tomorrow though cuz i need to get printer ink which means another trip to walmart.
yum.
.
i bet y'all are like "uh oh. a story about the in-laws. it must be some ghetto drama!" right?
wrong! LOL
mr. bliss has a brother who lives about 30 minutes away, with his family. he's one of the family members i'm cool with. his wife is cool too.
we 3 blisses went up for a visit on easter sunday, after church.
it was my first time visiting since they'd moved to their new house. it's a big old house. their master bedroom is big enough for a few king sized beds.
the men watched one of the "march madness" b-ball games and the ladies watched movies on lifetime.
everything was fine until baby bliss got my sister-in-law hooked on one of those games on the laptop. she watched as baby bliss played, commenting that the game looked "complicated" and saying she didn't want to play.
then baby bliss said, "auntie can you hold the laptop while i go to the bathroom?"
next thing i knew, #1 SIL was hooked.
every 20 minutes or so, she would say she was stopping. but of course she didn't. she played for hours. LOL
they served us a down home dinner: ham, tater salad, corn, green beans, and bread. baby bliss is allergic to corn and ham makes my head hurt (too much sodium?) but we ate well enough.
there was ice cream (i didn't have any) and homemade lemon pound cake for dessert. i had part of one slice. when it arrived, my slice had a big chunk missing. mr. bliss swore he didn't do it.
i froze my toes off when we left cuz i still had on the flip flops i wore to church. (note to self: wearing flip flops after dark before may does not induce blissful behavior.)
we headed to walmart for a few needful things before heading home. i kept asking if we had everything, if we were forgetting anything cuz y'all know how you go to the store without a list and always think of something you forgot right when you get back to the car.
i was the one who didn't remember.
grrrrr!
as soon as we crossed the door sill, i remembered what i forgot: the cherry twizzlers i love. it used to be the bites now it's the stringy ones. i like to put them in the freezer for a few days then eat a cable or two when i'm up working late.
i don't eat a lot of candy but when i do, it helps me drink more water. in fact, i drink more water when ever i eat something sweet. the only exception is when i eat an almond joy. i like those with plain chips.
utz are my favorites, unsalted utz best. but they just started selling utz down here and i haven't seen the unsalteds yet. it's not a big deal tho because i'm no longer a big fan of regular chips.
i've fallen in love with sweet potato potato chips. :-)
but back to my twizzlers...
so now i don't have any. i might get some tomorrow though cuz i need to get printer ink which means another trip to walmart.
yum.
.
Friday, March 21, 2008
328: thank you
to God, my Divine Creator, Father/Mother, Love.
for such a beautiful day!
we're at grandma's. all of us.
i'm blogging at a table on grandma's sunny deck, taking a break from work. grandma is weeding her yard. baby bliss is creating a play. mr. bliss just finished mowing grandma's yard. he's taking the trash up front. i guess he'll be leaving soon.
we might be too, actually. it's after 1 p.m. and it looks like the contractor isn't coming. maybe they forgot about Good Friday when they made grandma's appointment?
although the chaps are out of school (i think), it's quiet today.
for such a beautiful day!
we're at grandma's. all of us.
i'm blogging at a table on grandma's sunny deck, taking a break from work. grandma is weeding her yard. baby bliss is creating a play. mr. bliss just finished mowing grandma's yard. he's taking the trash up front. i guess he'll be leaving soon.
we might be too, actually. it's after 1 p.m. and it looks like the contractor isn't coming. maybe they forgot about Good Friday when they made grandma's appointment?
although the chaps are out of school (i think), it's quiet today.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
327: making time
hey y'all.
i need to make more time for my non-work writing. i know most writers will say set aside a specific block of time for writing and stick to it, no matter what.
that might work for some folk but i'm a home schooling momma and my office is at home too. being able to adjust to rolling priorities is a must around here.
i have hazy memories of a time when i had more time. they might be flashbacks of another lifetime... i'm not certain.
concrete proof exists in the form of writing i've started and finished or started and completed several drafts of. i'm a perfectionist when it comes to my writing. it takes me 10+ drafts to get a satisfactory version of a 3-page short story. which can take several days to several months, depending.
then there's the matter of making the rounds with submissions. thank God computers has made that process cheaper, easier, and faster. what i can't believe is that some publications still want snail mail submissions. maybe it's easier for them. i dunno.
as soon as i'm done with our taxes, my current projects for The Client, and the scarves i'm crocheting for my Dutch sister, i'll make time to finish up a bunch of stuff.
what i need to do is get one of those online trackers that shows how close someone is to finishing a project. i've seen them on other people's blogs. maybe that will move me to at least work on the works in progress until i can submit at least one.
i mean sheesh, it's almost april!
i need to make more time for my non-work writing. i know most writers will say set aside a specific block of time for writing and stick to it, no matter what.
that might work for some folk but i'm a home schooling momma and my office is at home too. being able to adjust to rolling priorities is a must around here.
i have hazy memories of a time when i had more time. they might be flashbacks of another lifetime... i'm not certain.
concrete proof exists in the form of writing i've started and finished or started and completed several drafts of. i'm a perfectionist when it comes to my writing. it takes me 10+ drafts to get a satisfactory version of a 3-page short story. which can take several days to several months, depending.
then there's the matter of making the rounds with submissions. thank God computers has made that process cheaper, easier, and faster. what i can't believe is that some publications still want snail mail submissions. maybe it's easier for them. i dunno.
as soon as i'm done with our taxes, my current projects for The Client, and the scarves i'm crocheting for my Dutch sister, i'll make time to finish up a bunch of stuff.
what i need to do is get one of those online trackers that shows how close someone is to finishing a project. i've seen them on other people's blogs. maybe that will move me to at least work on the works in progress until i can submit at least one.
i mean sheesh, it's almost april!
326: office issues
hey y'all.
i'm so thankful that i have a home office that i won't even complain about how long it's taking me to sort thru all my crap so i can toss out as much as possible before i put the rest where it belongs.
so now i have sorted piles of stuff all over the floor, stuff on various surfaces, and stuff that's still in boxes. which is good, for me. although i can usually find things in a few minutes, i'm not the most organized being who ever existed.
but i'm trying harder every day.
filing is second nature to me but organizing items is harder for me. not the how. it's the where that screws with my head.
uh oh. i ate some jiffy pop (y'all remember that?) and now i feel drowsy. hmmm. it's the same feeling i get when i eat potatoes. yuck!
now i feel nap-ish but it won't happen. i've got too much left to do today.
.
i'm so thankful that i have a home office that i won't even complain about how long it's taking me to sort thru all my crap so i can toss out as much as possible before i put the rest where it belongs.
so now i have sorted piles of stuff all over the floor, stuff on various surfaces, and stuff that's still in boxes. which is good, for me. although i can usually find things in a few minutes, i'm not the most organized being who ever existed.
but i'm trying harder every day.
filing is second nature to me but organizing items is harder for me. not the how. it's the where that screws with my head.
uh oh. i ate some jiffy pop (y'all remember that?) and now i feel drowsy. hmmm. it's the same feeling i get when i eat potatoes. yuck!
now i feel nap-ish but it won't happen. i've got too much left to do today.
.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
325: the other night we watched...
..."No Country for Old Men"
um, this one frustrated me.
but i liked it because it had two of my favorite actors in it: tommy lee jones and tess harper.
and mr. bliss is a big fan of movies by the coen brothers.
there's a lot of killing and cussing in this one.
my favorite line (tommy lee's): if it ain't a mess, it'll do til one gets here.
don't watch it if you're afraid of bloody violence.
um, this one frustrated me.
but i liked it because it had two of my favorite actors in it: tommy lee jones and tess harper.
and mr. bliss is a big fan of movies by the coen brothers.
there's a lot of killing and cussing in this one.
my favorite line (tommy lee's): if it ain't a mess, it'll do til one gets here.
don't watch it if you're afraid of bloody violence.
324: last night we watched...
..."Closer", with julia roberts, jude law, clive owen, and natalie portman.
i'd seen it before but mr. bliss saw it for the first time. of course we got into a disargeement about it. (have y'all seen it?)
if not,
*** SPOILER ALERT ***
mr. bliss said clive was right to be mad at julia for her affair, even tho he had a one-nighter.
i asked him if she was wrong-er because her outside dalliance lasted long-er? why is one a bigger sin than the other? i reminded him that the Bible doesn't say any sin is worse than any other. (not that i recall, any way...)
he annoyed the hell out of me when he laughed his head off at jude, when jude reprimanded julia for sleeping with clive again, when she was supposed to be being exclusive with jude.
*** END OF SPOILER ***
of course mr. bliss is entitled to his own opinion but mine was that they were all full of it.
my personal opinion: infidelity can be present in all sorts of actions, not just sexual ones.
if a husband has a gambling habit and loses every dime of his child's college fund, is that not a form of unfaithfulness?
or what if a wife has a terminal illness and doesn't tell her family until she's on her death bed? Is that a woman who has been true to her family?
yeah, it's totally a matter of personal opinion. mine is that many of us are unfaithful in many ways, at various times in a marital relationship.
the degree of pain and suffering the "injured party" feels is his or her own, to determine and deal with, however he or she chooses.
no matter what, i choose not to be a victim.
if my husband does something to cause serious disharmony in the household, one of us would have to go. but it would depend on what he did.
if mr. bliss came home and said he has sex with a hooker, i'm not freaking out about it. (i know some of y'all won't believe it, but i'm being for real.)
it's his pinga and he can put it where he wants to. i can't control it nor do i care to. he is his own man.
(and yes, we did take vows together. our's included the words "til death do us part" but maybe, like me, mr. bliss doesn't remember everything else we said.)
personally, i'm more likely to freak over anything concerning my child or my money. cuz those are the two things i'll be taking with me if i go and keeping if he goes.
any way, overall, "Closer" was a good movie. clive had the best lines, i think.
watch closely though cuz it's kinda tricky in the sense that time goes by and you don't know how much until the characters reveal what hijinks they've been up to.
not one for the kiddies.
i'd seen it before but mr. bliss saw it for the first time. of course we got into a disargeement about it. (have y'all seen it?)
if not,
*** SPOILER ALERT ***
mr. bliss said clive was right to be mad at julia for her affair, even tho he had a one-nighter.
i asked him if she was wrong-er because her outside dalliance lasted long-er? why is one a bigger sin than the other? i reminded him that the Bible doesn't say any sin is worse than any other. (not that i recall, any way...)
he annoyed the hell out of me when he laughed his head off at jude, when jude reprimanded julia for sleeping with clive again, when she was supposed to be being exclusive with jude.
*** END OF SPOILER ***
of course mr. bliss is entitled to his own opinion but mine was that they were all full of it.
my personal opinion: infidelity can be present in all sorts of actions, not just sexual ones.
if a husband has a gambling habit and loses every dime of his child's college fund, is that not a form of unfaithfulness?
or what if a wife has a terminal illness and doesn't tell her family until she's on her death bed? Is that a woman who has been true to her family?
yeah, it's totally a matter of personal opinion. mine is that many of us are unfaithful in many ways, at various times in a marital relationship.
the degree of pain and suffering the "injured party" feels is his or her own, to determine and deal with, however he or she chooses.
no matter what, i choose not to be a victim.
if my husband does something to cause serious disharmony in the household, one of us would have to go. but it would depend on what he did.
if mr. bliss came home and said he has sex with a hooker, i'm not freaking out about it. (i know some of y'all won't believe it, but i'm being for real.)
it's his pinga and he can put it where he wants to. i can't control it nor do i care to. he is his own man.
(and yes, we did take vows together. our's included the words "til death do us part" but maybe, like me, mr. bliss doesn't remember everything else we said.)
personally, i'm more likely to freak over anything concerning my child or my money. cuz those are the two things i'll be taking with me if i go and keeping if he goes.
any way, overall, "Closer" was a good movie. clive had the best lines, i think.
watch closely though cuz it's kinda tricky in the sense that time goes by and you don't know how much until the characters reveal what hijinks they've been up to.
not one for the kiddies.
323: tyrone
i have a friend who had never heard erykah badu's "tyrone".
so we sat in the car and listened to it. and cracked up.
i love that song.
so we sat in the car and listened to it. and cracked up.
i love that song.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
322: matrimonial b*
hey y'all.
it's difficult to believe that next month, mr. bliss and i will be celebrating 5 years of marital b*. but i've known him so long, it feels like we'll be celebrating 20 years.
i wonder what we'll do for our anniversary? i'm not sure if we did anything other years. i can't recall off the top of my head...
ooops, wait...
to celebrate our first anniversary, we spent a wonderful weekend at this wonderful B & B, in the mountains of virginia. (i just visited their website and all i can say is "wow!" those folks have been busy! i see that they've opened a school. now i'm thinking about moving back up north, so my daughter can attend their school. they are really cool people. smart too.)
we've been trying to get to a well-known mountain city that's not too far but haven't yet. or maybe we'll drop baby bliss off at grandma's and have the place to ourselves for that weekend.
but with the price of gas, the word "recession" being flung around, and the upcoming plans for Other Stuff That Will Cost Money, staying home sounds like the best option.
- baby bliss has a birthday in a few months. every year her party is a big shindig. more so now that we've moved away from my hometown. i guess because it falls in with another big holiday and family comes to visit. so we combine the two events for a weekend of family, food, and fun.
-my birthday is the month after baby bliss's. and we're supposed to take a trip (maybe two) this summer.
- mr. bliss has a birthday soon after mine.
- the end of summer will be slow (but hot) and i probably won't want to do anything special but it would be nice if we could squeeze in a few days at the beach.
- my dutch sister is coming in september and i know she wants to see the town (again). also, she has invited us to visit her family in florida in december.
*sigh*
why was my momma telling the truth when she said money doesn't grow on trees?!
although it would be nice to see the mountains for a few days, thoughts of paying for a place to sleep and food to eat and gassssssssssssssssssssssssssss gives me the heebee jeebies.**
yeah, we'll celebrate 5 years of wedded b* right here at home.
** mr. bliss likes to say i'm cheap. i think of myself as thrifty. so we can have some $$ for our old age, ya know?
.
it's difficult to believe that next month, mr. bliss and i will be celebrating 5 years of marital b*. but i've known him so long, it feels like we'll be celebrating 20 years.
i wonder what we'll do for our anniversary? i'm not sure if we did anything other years. i can't recall off the top of my head...
ooops, wait...
to celebrate our first anniversary, we spent a wonderful weekend at this wonderful B & B, in the mountains of virginia. (i just visited their website and all i can say is "wow!" those folks have been busy! i see that they've opened a school. now i'm thinking about moving back up north, so my daughter can attend their school. they are really cool people. smart too.)
we've been trying to get to a well-known mountain city that's not too far but haven't yet. or maybe we'll drop baby bliss off at grandma's and have the place to ourselves for that weekend.
but with the price of gas, the word "recession" being flung around, and the upcoming plans for Other Stuff That Will Cost Money, staying home sounds like the best option.
- baby bliss has a birthday in a few months. every year her party is a big shindig. more so now that we've moved away from my hometown. i guess because it falls in with another big holiday and family comes to visit. so we combine the two events for a weekend of family, food, and fun.
-my birthday is the month after baby bliss's. and we're supposed to take a trip (maybe two) this summer.
- mr. bliss has a birthday soon after mine.
- the end of summer will be slow (but hot) and i probably won't want to do anything special but it would be nice if we could squeeze in a few days at the beach.
- my dutch sister is coming in september and i know she wants to see the town (again). also, she has invited us to visit her family in florida in december.
*sigh*
why was my momma telling the truth when she said money doesn't grow on trees?!
although it would be nice to see the mountains for a few days, thoughts of paying for a place to sleep and food to eat and gassssssssssssssssssssssssssss gives me the heebee jeebies.**
yeah, we'll celebrate 5 years of wedded b* right here at home.
** mr. bliss likes to say i'm cheap. i think of myself as thrifty. so we can have some $$ for our old age, ya know?
.
321: walk this way
hey y'all.
thank God for bells. without them, baby bliss might have spent the night on our balcony.
she and i camped out in the living room last night, like we do from time to time.
at some point, she had a dream that led to her sleep walking.
we have bells hanging on the patio door and although i was sleeping, i heard them ringing in the wee hours. i also heard the lock being unlocked.
my eyes immediately opened wide. my first thought was that someone was trying to get in.
then i realized i wasn't fully awake because i was looking in the wrong direction. if i wanted to see the door, i needed to look in the direction of the door -- over my left shoulder -- to see what was really going on.
it was baby bliss, about to step outside.
i called her name. she paused then looked in my direction.
"yes mommy?"
"where are you going?"
"daddy told me to get something for him."
"what?!" i checked the time on my cell phone. it was 3:45 in the morning!
"no sweetie. daddy is asleep. come back and lay down."
"no mommy. daddy said get something for him." she locked the door and walked to the middle of the living room. "wait. let me see."
she walked around the corner to our bedroom.
at that point i must have passed out because i don't know what happened next. eventually i opened my eyes again and saw a body laying on the floor. i assumed it was baby bliss.
then my mind wandered to blogging.
go figure.
.
thank God for bells. without them, baby bliss might have spent the night on our balcony.
she and i camped out in the living room last night, like we do from time to time.
at some point, she had a dream that led to her sleep walking.
we have bells hanging on the patio door and although i was sleeping, i heard them ringing in the wee hours. i also heard the lock being unlocked.
my eyes immediately opened wide. my first thought was that someone was trying to get in.
then i realized i wasn't fully awake because i was looking in the wrong direction. if i wanted to see the door, i needed to look in the direction of the door -- over my left shoulder -- to see what was really going on.
it was baby bliss, about to step outside.
i called her name. she paused then looked in my direction.
"yes mommy?"
"where are you going?"
"daddy told me to get something for him."
"what?!" i checked the time on my cell phone. it was 3:45 in the morning!
"no sweetie. daddy is asleep. come back and lay down."
"no mommy. daddy said get something for him." she locked the door and walked to the middle of the living room. "wait. let me see."
she walked around the corner to our bedroom.
at that point i must have passed out because i don't know what happened next. eventually i opened my eyes again and saw a body laying on the floor. i assumed it was baby bliss.
then my mind wandered to blogging.
go figure.
.
320: potty paper
hey y'all.
i need to get one of those small tape recorders so i can voice-blog. i was blogging in my head in the wee hours and swore i would remember it. y'all know what happened right? LOL
this one crossed my mind the other day and it just came back to me...
soft toilet paper is one of the best things a girl can do for herself. (ladies, y'all know what i mean.)
i remember when i heard that the price of toilet paper was going up. i was worried and mad (cuz i think it costs enough already. y'all feel me?
we are paying too much for gas, food, shelter and -- everything! we are paying too much for everything already. how they gonna stick us up when we get our toilet paper?!
it's just too outrageous and disgusts me.
of course i know why prices rise: inflation, they say. but what is inflation, really? and why is inflation?
if it didn't affect the cost of my toilet paper (and other stuff i need), wouldn't i care?
any way, i'm thinking about changing brands. we currently use the one with the ridges in it. i think it's cottonelle. (i should know this, yes?)
or maybe i'll have to get it wholesale. (can you buy cottonelle wholesale without a wholesaler's license?)
sigh.
i don't know y'all.
what i do know is that all things being equal, i'm more likely to shop drugstore.com (or any dot com) when they offer free shipping on the things we regularly use but only buy when we run out.
i figure (without doing too much math) that as long as the item is comparably priced, i'm saving gas and standing-in-line time, if not actual cash.
.
i need to get one of those small tape recorders so i can voice-blog. i was blogging in my head in the wee hours and swore i would remember it. y'all know what happened right? LOL
this one crossed my mind the other day and it just came back to me...
soft toilet paper is one of the best things a girl can do for herself. (ladies, y'all know what i mean.)
i remember when i heard that the price of toilet paper was going up. i was worried and mad (cuz i think it costs enough already. y'all feel me?
we are paying too much for gas, food, shelter and -- everything! we are paying too much for everything already. how they gonna stick us up when we get our toilet paper?!
it's just too outrageous and disgusts me.
of course i know why prices rise: inflation, they say. but what is inflation, really? and why is inflation?
if it didn't affect the cost of my toilet paper (and other stuff i need), wouldn't i care?
any way, i'm thinking about changing brands. we currently use the one with the ridges in it. i think it's cottonelle. (i should know this, yes?)
or maybe i'll have to get it wholesale. (can you buy cottonelle wholesale without a wholesaler's license?)
sigh.
i don't know y'all.
what i do know is that all things being equal, i'm more likely to shop drugstore.com (or any dot com) when they offer free shipping on the things we regularly use but only buy when we run out.
i figure (without doing too much math) that as long as the item is comparably priced, i'm saving gas and standing-in-line time, if not actual cash.
.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
319: the "injured party".
hey y'all.
why is it that people assume that all women are the same?
specifically, that we will all react the same if we find out our husbands have strayed from the marital bed. (Women ponder why Spitzer's wife stood by)
every woman will not have the same feelings upon finding that the hubby got some nookie on the side. because all marriages are not built on the same foundations.
in other words, some women get married for things other than love and honor.
some tie the knot for cash incentives. these women are known as gold diggers.
some tie the knot to raise social standing. these women are referred to as social climbers.
some lesbians marry gay men because both need to get the family members off their backs. this is one version of a marriage of convenience.
some get hitched cuz they done got pregnant and think it's always best to marry the "baby daddy". later they divorce and are ever after known as so-and-so's "baby momma".
finally, yes, some do get married for love and honor. and yes, they might become the "injured party" if they ever learn they've been cheated on.
however, some women realize that "for better or for worse" could one day include a husband getting caught with his french bread in somebody else's jam pot.
but maybe some are mature enough to realize that monogamy is just one component of the marriage vows. and maybe they're mature enough to realize that although it might hurt now, one day it won't matter as much.
or not.
so maybe they pack their sh*t then hit the road or they end up sitting in county, for assault with a deadly weapon or attempted murder.
but i urge any woman who finds herself as the "injured party" to take a deep breath before picking up that ice pick or packing up the suitcases.
look deep within and ask yourself : do i really want to harm the man? do i really want to leave him?
then ask yourself what you'll be giving up if you do either one.
especially if you have young children.
if you think long and deeply and your answer is still fight or flight, and you decide on the fight option, then go for it. just make sure you've got a good attorney on speed dial, someone you trust to look after your children, and a whole lotta spare change.
cuz a good criminal lawyer ain't cheap and other people really don't want to raise your kids but it helps if they come with their own cash.
why is it that people assume that all women are the same?
specifically, that we will all react the same if we find out our husbands have strayed from the marital bed. (Women ponder why Spitzer's wife stood by)
every woman will not have the same feelings upon finding that the hubby got some nookie on the side. because all marriages are not built on the same foundations.
in other words, some women get married for things other than love and honor.
some tie the knot for cash incentives. these women are known as gold diggers.
some tie the knot to raise social standing. these women are referred to as social climbers.
some lesbians marry gay men because both need to get the family members off their backs. this is one version of a marriage of convenience.
some get hitched cuz they done got pregnant and think it's always best to marry the "baby daddy". later they divorce and are ever after known as so-and-so's "baby momma".
finally, yes, some do get married for love and honor. and yes, they might become the "injured party" if they ever learn they've been cheated on.
however, some women realize that "for better or for worse" could one day include a husband getting caught with his french bread in somebody else's jam pot.
but maybe some are mature enough to realize that monogamy is just one component of the marriage vows. and maybe they're mature enough to realize that although it might hurt now, one day it won't matter as much.
or not.
so maybe they pack their sh*t then hit the road or they end up sitting in county, for assault with a deadly weapon or attempted murder.
but i urge any woman who finds herself as the "injured party" to take a deep breath before picking up that ice pick or packing up the suitcases.
look deep within and ask yourself : do i really want to harm the man? do i really want to leave him?
then ask yourself what you'll be giving up if you do either one.
especially if you have young children.
if you think long and deeply and your answer is still fight or flight, and you decide on the fight option, then go for it. just make sure you've got a good attorney on speed dial, someone you trust to look after your children, and a whole lotta spare change.
cuz a good criminal lawyer ain't cheap and other people really don't want to raise your kids but it helps if they come with their own cash.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
318: my shoe thang.
are you a shoe person?
i'm not.
i'd rather be barefoot.
i'll wear shoes when necessary and i like to try to match the shoe to the occasion, which might happen once a year.
conversely, i have more pairs of shoes than i need. for the past few years i've been in love with flip flops.
not just any kind of flip flops tho.
they have to be wedgies or platforms.
i have one pair each of black and brown that have been sufficient for most of my outfits over the past year. i got them from WalMart for less than $5 each.
for the past several months i've been looking for more of the same. silly ole WalMart isn't on the job this time around. they have white, dark pink, and brown wedgie flip flops.
but no black.
so i got a pair from Target. but they're not the same. :-(
i've been checking online too and i found a couple of website with rockin wedgie and platform flip flops. lots of colors and styles. :-)
only one thing has stopped me from buying: the price.
i love my feet in comfy flip flops but i cannot bring myself to pay $10 (plus shipping) for a pair of flip flops, no matter how cute they are.
maybe i'll treat myself to one pair for my birthday. or maybe i'll get mr. bliss to do it. $10 for a pair of shoes is nothing to him.
.
i'm not.
i'd rather be barefoot.
i'll wear shoes when necessary and i like to try to match the shoe to the occasion, which might happen once a year.
conversely, i have more pairs of shoes than i need. for the past few years i've been in love with flip flops.
not just any kind of flip flops tho.
they have to be wedgies or platforms.
i have one pair each of black and brown that have been sufficient for most of my outfits over the past year. i got them from WalMart for less than $5 each.
for the past several months i've been looking for more of the same. silly ole WalMart isn't on the job this time around. they have white, dark pink, and brown wedgie flip flops.
but no black.
so i got a pair from Target. but they're not the same. :-(
i've been checking online too and i found a couple of website with rockin wedgie and platform flip flops. lots of colors and styles. :-)
only one thing has stopped me from buying: the price.
i love my feet in comfy flip flops but i cannot bring myself to pay $10 (plus shipping) for a pair of flip flops, no matter how cute they are.
maybe i'll treat myself to one pair for my birthday. or maybe i'll get mr. bliss to do it. $10 for a pair of shoes is nothing to him.
.
Monday, March 10, 2008
317: overheard at the home of bliss...
caught using his razor...
mr. bliss: honey. what's up?
me: nothing honey. why?
mr. bliss: using my razor, huh?
me (laughing): yeah. i guess i need to buy one for myself.
mr. bliss: uh huh.
me (still shaving): how long do they last any way?
mr. bliss: well they last a long time if your wife doesn't use them.
me: oh yeah? mine should last forever then cuz i ain't got no wife.
.
mr. bliss: honey. what's up?
me: nothing honey. why?
mr. bliss: using my razor, huh?
me (laughing): yeah. i guess i need to buy one for myself.
mr. bliss: uh huh.
me (still shaving): how long do they last any way?
mr. bliss: well they last a long time if your wife doesn't use them.
me: oh yeah? mine should last forever then cuz i ain't got no wife.
.
316: plastic baggies
hey y'all.
i had a thought earlier about the pinch-seal plastic baggies and i thought i'd share it with y'all.
it's a good idea to carry a few plastic baggies around in your purse. maybe a few assorted sizes too.
they're good to store things in:
- the children's snot rags and other trash that you don't want floating around in your car or purse.
- socks (and other items of clothing) that get taken off and forgotten in the back seat.
- teeth that come out at inopportune moments.
- anything small that you need to put in your purse but don't want to lose in the shuffle of bigger things.
- an extra pair of panties, just in case.
- adhesive bandages that have lost their packaging but haven't been used yet.
- extra feminine hygiene products that have lost their wrappers.
- wrapperless chewing gum/breath mints/candies
- extra fake nails and a small bottle of glue
- extra false eyelashes and adhesive
- safety pins
- bobby pins
- spare change
- extra jewelry
- spare panty hose
the list is endless, really.
i thought about it the other day when we were at dear neighbor's. baby bliss had borrowed a pair of my earrings but took them off when she wanted to play ball. she laid them on the counter and later told me to get them. i put them in my bag and now i don't know where they are.
if i had a small plastic baggie with me that day, i would at least know that where ever they are, they're together...
i had a thought earlier about the pinch-seal plastic baggies and i thought i'd share it with y'all.
it's a good idea to carry a few plastic baggies around in your purse. maybe a few assorted sizes too.
they're good to store things in:
- the children's snot rags and other trash that you don't want floating around in your car or purse.
- socks (and other items of clothing) that get taken off and forgotten in the back seat.
- teeth that come out at inopportune moments.
- anything small that you need to put in your purse but don't want to lose in the shuffle of bigger things.
- an extra pair of panties, just in case.
- adhesive bandages that have lost their packaging but haven't been used yet.
- extra feminine hygiene products that have lost their wrappers.
- wrapperless chewing gum/breath mints/candies
- extra fake nails and a small bottle of glue
- extra false eyelashes and adhesive
- safety pins
- bobby pins
- spare change
- extra jewelry
- spare panty hose
the list is endless, really.
i thought about it the other day when we were at dear neighbor's. baby bliss had borrowed a pair of my earrings but took them off when she wanted to play ball. she laid them on the counter and later told me to get them. i put them in my bag and now i don't know where they are.
if i had a small plastic baggie with me that day, i would at least know that where ever they are, they're together...
Sunday, March 9, 2008
315: workin, workin, workin day and nite! - a story of extreme gratitude
yes Miz Aly, mr. bliss had me working day and night, getting things all packed and moved.
and Sister Susan, can you believe that on thursday (of last week), mr. bliss told me i should have everything packed and ready to go by saturday?!
i told him he'd gone mad. even God needed 7 whole days to Get It Done.
how in the life of bliss did that man think i could pack up an 1100 square foot apartment full of furniture and things in less than 48 hours?
i told him i needed at least a week.
after i explained how my stress level would be so far off the charts if i even attempted to do what he was asking and that i might never regain the wife-mother sanity i'm hanging on to with both hands, he agreed.
but i digress y'all. lemme start from The Beginning.
we knew the lease on our 2BR would expire mid-march so i began looking at places a few months ago. we looked at houses and apartments in or as near as possible to our neighborhood cuz we love it here.
somehow, i needed more space cuz my dining room "office" was overflowing into the living room and driving us all crazy. (and the more i dragged into the living room, the more baby bliss felt she should drag into the living room as well...)
mr. bliss said he didn't care as long as i was happy.
baby bliss couldn't be bothered one way or the other as long as she would retain her own room.
(y'all can click here to read about the places we looked and how we weren't supposed to be moving at all.)
finally we decided to stay in our same complex for a number of reasons: we live in a neighborhood we love, it's close enough to family, the management already knows us well, and we've never had any serious problems with living on this property, blah blah blah.
around the first of february, i talked to the office manager about renewing our lease. he said we still had a few weeks before we had to sign the new one, no rush.
cool. so we kinda forgot about it.
mid way thru the month i recalled my frustration with my office situation and began dreaming of my own real office, at home.
initially mr. bliss said no when i brought up moving to a 3BR, cuz he didn't want to pay more rent. he also didn't want to move furniture. but i couldn't give up my dream.
i asked the office manager about a 3BR and he said if i had asked a few weeks earlier, he would have had one for us. he said 3BRs rarely came open and he didn't have any notices to vacate. but he said anything was possible so i should check back again before we came in to sign our lease renewal.
a week passed and i checked again. nothing... but he said to check back towards the end of the week.
well, i wasn't feeling any confidence in that because the end of the week would put us at our signing day.
why did i ever doubt that God would make my dream come true?
we went in on thursday to sign the renewal and office manager asked if i'd gotten his message from the day before: there was a 3BR available.
my eyes lit up and i looked at mr. bliss with a huge grin on my face.
office manager asked what floor we wanted. i said 2nd. he said it was a 3rd floor unit but if we wanted, we could look at it.
mr. bliss looked at office manager and said, "she'll take it."
i laughed and said we'd look at it first.
we all fell in love immediately. then i got kinda 'spicious and wondered how there was all of a sudden a 3BR when there hadn't been one open earlier in the week.
in other words, i began to doubt God. and being human (and true to the conspiracy theorist that i am), i began to imagine all sorts of scenarios in my mind about how and why the apartment was now available.
i told mr. bliss i wanted time to think about it.
we returned to the office to fill out the papers but couldn't decide on a move-out date for the old place.
office manager said we could take some time to think about it and give him our final decision the next day.
y'all see that? i had just said those very words and God gave it to me.
on the short drive back home, i realized i'd better start counting my blessings and stop complaining about bull puckie. ;-)
i'm not joking when i say as soon as we got our shoes off, i pulled out the tape gun, searched for empty boxes, plastic bags and anything i could use for packing materials.
then i went out in search of boxes. most places told us they had no boxes or to come back early friday morning. i was overjoyed when we got several from tuesday morning and a pizza place. cuz i was anxious to get started.
silly ole me should have been online arranging to move service for my utilities and doing our change of address with the post office. but it slipped my mind until friday evening. and i didn't get online to do the transfers until the wee hours of saturday morning.
most places need at least 2 business days to coordinate service transfers. our's went through just the way i needed them to.
hallelujah!
i'm thankful to everyone who helped us move: #1 brother-in-law, #1 auntie, grandma, youngest cousin, and our downstairs neighbor from our old building.
on friday, i did my best to empty furniture so it could be taken out saturday, the only day #1 brother-in-law would be available to help.
i managed to do all 5 dressers, 2 night stands, and 2 bookcases. saturday, #1 auntie helped me empty the remaining furniture (two lateral file cabinets, an armoire, and a buffet) while the men moved the empties and heavy boxes.
everyone was extremely helpful but i have to give an extra "thank you" to our dear neighbor.
who has become a member of our family in the short time we've known him.
he's gone to church with us and we'll be going with him very soon. we've all eaten dinner together several times and he's even gone grocery shopping with me and baby bliss.
if it had not been for him, i know we would not have completed this move in enough time. because of him, baby bliss and i didn't have to tire ourselves out walking up and down the steps, we didn't have to carry heavy boxes, and i didn't have to stress myself with moving everything out of the building by the deadline.
while mr. bliss was at work, dear neighbor carried boxes up and down steps, let us put some items in his storage unit, took trash to the dumpster, and was just an all around BIG help to us.
when mr. bliss came home, dear neighbor helped my hubby move boxes and small furniture.
and he would not accept a dime for any of it.
after we finished it all on thursday, dear neighbor dumped the last load of trash then biked home (about a minute away) to wait for baby bliss and i to freshen up so we could head out to grab some grub.
we picked him up and motored a couple of blocks to our favorite market. he offered to make us a real meal for our late lunch if we got the fixings. but we were all too hungry to wait so we decided on pizza.
i tossed two into the cart with the few other things i'd picked up while baby bliss and dear neighbor were busy stuffing their faces with tidbits of goodies they got while running back and forth to the sample area.
dear neighbor said we could eat at his place (cleaner and more organized than this place with boxes stacked and plates who-knew-where) so i took all my food there. no need to stop to unload when i would be home later any way.
our good time was interrupted by dear neighbor's "friend", who was waiting at his door when we got back.
but that's part of a looooooooooong story that extends in time both before and after this event. not something i want to get into at all.
this was the most stress-free move i've ever had. i'm thankful.
amen.
.
and Sister Susan, can you believe that on thursday (of last week), mr. bliss told me i should have everything packed and ready to go by saturday?!
i told him he'd gone mad. even God needed 7 whole days to Get It Done.
how in the life of bliss did that man think i could pack up an 1100 square foot apartment full of furniture and things in less than 48 hours?
i told him i needed at least a week.
after i explained how my stress level would be so far off the charts if i even attempted to do what he was asking and that i might never regain the wife-mother sanity i'm hanging on to with both hands, he agreed.
but i digress y'all. lemme start from The Beginning.
we knew the lease on our 2BR would expire mid-march so i began looking at places a few months ago. we looked at houses and apartments in or as near as possible to our neighborhood cuz we love it here.
somehow, i needed more space cuz my dining room "office" was overflowing into the living room and driving us all crazy. (and the more i dragged into the living room, the more baby bliss felt she should drag into the living room as well...)
mr. bliss said he didn't care as long as i was happy.
baby bliss couldn't be bothered one way or the other as long as she would retain her own room.
(y'all can click here to read about the places we looked and how we weren't supposed to be moving at all.)
finally we decided to stay in our same complex for a number of reasons: we live in a neighborhood we love, it's close enough to family, the management already knows us well, and we've never had any serious problems with living on this property, blah blah blah.
around the first of february, i talked to the office manager about renewing our lease. he said we still had a few weeks before we had to sign the new one, no rush.
cool. so we kinda forgot about it.
mid way thru the month i recalled my frustration with my office situation and began dreaming of my own real office, at home.
initially mr. bliss said no when i brought up moving to a 3BR, cuz he didn't want to pay more rent. he also didn't want to move furniture. but i couldn't give up my dream.
i asked the office manager about a 3BR and he said if i had asked a few weeks earlier, he would have had one for us. he said 3BRs rarely came open and he didn't have any notices to vacate. but he said anything was possible so i should check back again before we came in to sign our lease renewal.
a week passed and i checked again. nothing... but he said to check back towards the end of the week.
well, i wasn't feeling any confidence in that because the end of the week would put us at our signing day.
why did i ever doubt that God would make my dream come true?
we went in on thursday to sign the renewal and office manager asked if i'd gotten his message from the day before: there was a 3BR available.
my eyes lit up and i looked at mr. bliss with a huge grin on my face.
office manager asked what floor we wanted. i said 2nd. he said it was a 3rd floor unit but if we wanted, we could look at it.
mr. bliss looked at office manager and said, "she'll take it."
i laughed and said we'd look at it first.
we all fell in love immediately. then i got kinda 'spicious and wondered how there was all of a sudden a 3BR when there hadn't been one open earlier in the week.
in other words, i began to doubt God. and being human (and true to the conspiracy theorist that i am), i began to imagine all sorts of scenarios in my mind about how and why the apartment was now available.
i told mr. bliss i wanted time to think about it.
we returned to the office to fill out the papers but couldn't decide on a move-out date for the old place.
office manager said we could take some time to think about it and give him our final decision the next day.
y'all see that? i had just said those very words and God gave it to me.
on the short drive back home, i realized i'd better start counting my blessings and stop complaining about bull puckie. ;-)
i'm not joking when i say as soon as we got our shoes off, i pulled out the tape gun, searched for empty boxes, plastic bags and anything i could use for packing materials.
then i went out in search of boxes. most places told us they had no boxes or to come back early friday morning. i was overjoyed when we got several from tuesday morning and a pizza place. cuz i was anxious to get started.
silly ole me should have been online arranging to move service for my utilities and doing our change of address with the post office. but it slipped my mind until friday evening. and i didn't get online to do the transfers until the wee hours of saturday morning.
most places need at least 2 business days to coordinate service transfers. our's went through just the way i needed them to.
hallelujah!
i'm thankful to everyone who helped us move: #1 brother-in-law, #1 auntie, grandma, youngest cousin, and our downstairs neighbor from our old building.
on friday, i did my best to empty furniture so it could be taken out saturday, the only day #1 brother-in-law would be available to help.
i managed to do all 5 dressers, 2 night stands, and 2 bookcases. saturday, #1 auntie helped me empty the remaining furniture (two lateral file cabinets, an armoire, and a buffet) while the men moved the empties and heavy boxes.
everyone was extremely helpful but i have to give an extra "thank you" to our dear neighbor.
who has become a member of our family in the short time we've known him.
he's gone to church with us and we'll be going with him very soon. we've all eaten dinner together several times and he's even gone grocery shopping with me and baby bliss.
if it had not been for him, i know we would not have completed this move in enough time. because of him, baby bliss and i didn't have to tire ourselves out walking up and down the steps, we didn't have to carry heavy boxes, and i didn't have to stress myself with moving everything out of the building by the deadline.
while mr. bliss was at work, dear neighbor carried boxes up and down steps, let us put some items in his storage unit, took trash to the dumpster, and was just an all around BIG help to us.
when mr. bliss came home, dear neighbor helped my hubby move boxes and small furniture.
and he would not accept a dime for any of it.
after we finished it all on thursday, dear neighbor dumped the last load of trash then biked home (about a minute away) to wait for baby bliss and i to freshen up so we could head out to grab some grub.
we picked him up and motored a couple of blocks to our favorite market. he offered to make us a real meal for our late lunch if we got the fixings. but we were all too hungry to wait so we decided on pizza.
i tossed two into the cart with the few other things i'd picked up while baby bliss and dear neighbor were busy stuffing their faces with tidbits of goodies they got while running back and forth to the sample area.
dear neighbor said we could eat at his place (cleaner and more organized than this place with boxes stacked and plates who-knew-where) so i took all my food there. no need to stop to unload when i would be home later any way.
our good time was interrupted by dear neighbor's "friend", who was waiting at his door when we got back.
but that's part of a looooooooooong story that extends in time both before and after this event. not something i want to get into at all.
this was the most stress-free move i've ever had. i'm thankful.
amen.
.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
314: it's working! and so am i.
hey y'all.
just pics, not much to say...
this is the scarf i made for mijn goede vriend in Nederland.
okay y'all. gotta run.
we found out thursday morning that we would be moving on friday.
very last minute.
but very necessary and i am thankful for many, many reasons.
i'll give y'all more details later.
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