Higher and Higher

I am thankful for one thing in my life at least that we are not in major debt right now in our life. I do remember years ago in our marriage where we were deeply in debt and that was a time when I dreaded to answer the phone or get the mail out of the mailbox because I new everything coming into the house was just another bill that we owed. I mean we have a couple of bills but nothing that has us drowning in debt at this time in our life and economy. But I do know a lot of people who are so deep in debt that they are in major trouble especially with the state that the economy is in right now. But there are ways that you can Avoid Bankruptcy with the help of some professionals. So if you are worried that you could wind up in bankruptcy there is an alternative for your. If you apply and your IVA application gets approved you could wind up with 70% of your debts written off. It is also possible that you would not have to pay any interest and that you could be absolutely debt free in a little as 5 years or even less. From what I am hearing right now on Television getting out of debt is the number one News Years resolution this year for people to try to achieve.

Christmas is over

Well, Christmas is over and for me I have to be honest I am actually glad. I don't know why but for some reason I am just not a Christmas person anymore. I used to be but over the years with losing important people in my life all the way from a child to both of my parents. I have just really lost the Christmas spirit that I once had. This year was particularly hard we are living in Pennsylvania and the girls and grand children are in Florida so that made for a very hard time for us. I was very thankful that we were able to watch the kids on the web cam open their Christmas gifts. For them it was a good Christmas and I am very happy about that. They had a good Christmas and they really deserved it. For that I say a BIG Thank You! But for me like I said before I am personally glad that Christmas is finally over. I just want to put the decorations away and get on with life and try to do the things that we know we need to do.

Higher Education

It is about time for high school students to start thinking about where they want to go to college. From what I hear filling out all of those applications and sending them off to all of the colleges you are interested in can really turn into a full time job. I have often thought there has to be an easier way and well now there is one. If you are one of these high school students you need to learn how CollegeZapps can help you apply to college. Now students can complete only one interview and they will automatically fill out their college applications to over 1,000 of the top four year universities and colleges in the United States. This is going to be the largest class of graduating high school seniors ever and with this online platform you can streamline the application process. Students will simply pick their list of colleges on the Zapps web site and then are given a very comprehensive interview to complete. The interview will take into account all of the colleges they have selected and then by completing that one interview the student is able to fill out multiple applications in the time it would normally take to complete just one application. Each application will be completed in the format preferred by each school. All the students have to do is to print off the application and put them into the mail.

The students will still have to study for the SATS and decide on their references but this will save them and their parents tons of time and stress. With the competition for placement in colleges these students have to use ingenious designs to increase their acceptance chances. Students really need to begin working on this process as early as their sophomore or junior year so that by the time their senior year arrives they already have created their plan of attack for this process.

Nasty weather

Today it was raining when I went to work then later in the day it started snowing and when I finally left work we had at least an inch of snow and it was still coming down pretty hard. But, I guess the forecast is that the snow is to turn into sleet and then freezing rain and right now the temperature is 28 degrees and that means that whatever is on the street is going to freeze. I have to say I don't look forward to the drive to work in the morning at all. I just hope they have plenty of salt and stuff put down on the streets before I have to go. I am not in a mood to slide all the way to work.

Can you stop now

We just recently had car trouble. When our car runs like it should I love it but when a car breaks down then I hate it. Well, our car recently broke down and it was at the garage for over a week. The problem we had was that the brake line broke and we totally lost our brakes. We kept calling the garage to check on the car and they kept telling us they were trying to get the new brake line and that they were having problems finding the parts they needed. I wish that we had needed some Renault Parts cause if that had been the case we would not have had such a hard time. But we own a Buick and like I said it took them over a week and when they finally got the brake line it. Would you believe that wherever they got the part sent to them did not send all of the clamps or something of that nature for the part and we had to wait another day until they could finish the job. In the meantime I had to bum rides to and from work and we were without a vehicle on our wedding anniversary. So needless to say I was not a happy camper. But finally in the long run and I do mean long run we were finally back in our car and going down the road and the best thing was that we were able to stop at the end of the road.

Proud as punch

I have to tell you that at this moment I have to be the proudest Nannie in the entire world. The little one in the center of this video is one of my grandsons playing in his first violin concert at school. He has only been playing since September and I can't believe how good he and the rest of the kids sound after such a short time.



Nate's Violin Performance from Jill Inmon on Vimeo.

I work therefore I am tired

Well we get ready to work the second job for 15 straight days. That is on top of me working every day at my full time job. But right now we are so needing the extra money it is not funny. I have to be honest I have no desire to get off work every evening and then go to the second job. What we do is we do polling work on the phone. Sometimes the polls we take are sort of interesting and some times...... well, lets just say they are down right boring to say the least. So since we have to do this one for 2 straight weeks I am really hoping that this one is not dull and boring. Cause I just might lose my mind or at least what I have left of it. Cause right now I have to be honest and say that I don't think I have much mind left to lose. I wanted to just rest and relax yesterday but we left here early in the morning and didn't get back home until about 5:00 PM we had to get some things done before the long run at work for the next two weeks. I had to pick up some little things for the kids for Christmas so that one day Randy can get that box sent off to Florida so that when Christmas is here they will have it. I think our last evening working will be December 22nd so that would leave no other time to get the Christmas things done. So just wish me luck that I make it through the next two weeks.

Some great ideas

I remember quite a few years ago I got Randy a really good knife for Christmas and to this day he still has that same knife. He has had to have it sharpened several times but it is actually as good as it was the day I gave it to him. My father always had a saying "if you buy something cheap you get something cheap". That would also go the other way if you buy something more expensive you get something that is much better. Ok so you know what I mean I just couldn't get it translated. Things don't necessarily have to be expensive to be good just not cheap. Although Randy does not have any 5.11 Tactical Knives I am very sure that he and a lot of other men would absolutely love to have one of them for all of those things they do every day in their lives that call for a good sharp knife. I know these knives are for police officers but they would still be a great knife for Randy. I just might have to give it some thought for this Christmas gift and right now I see I can actually get free shipping and also an extra free knife. That seems like a pretty good deal to me.

Looking to the sky

Today I saw two very different scenes in the sky. We had a very brief storm while I was at work. It got extremely dark and the wind started to blow and then it poured down rain for a bit. Then after the storm was finished the sun came out for the first time during the day. I walked back into my office and happened to look up and out the window and saw this beautiful rainbow in the sky. So I grabbed my camera and snapped a few pictures before it disappeared from view. Then on the way home from work We saw the moon in a very small sliver along with two planets, Jupiter and Venus. I snapped several pictures and although they didn't turn out as good as the rainbow it was an unusual thing to see so I think I will still post the picture that I took. Venus is a little bit harder to see but it is above and to the right of Jupiter so if you look closely you can see them both

Put your shades on

If you have someone on your Christmas list that owns a Motorcycle and you have no idea what in the world to buy them. Let me give you an idea you can purchase them something called memphis shades. Now I know you are dying to know what I am talking about. Well, it is a windshield for your motorcycle. I really wish I was several years younger and that we had a motorcycle cause they are really a blast to ride. But since I can't go back in time guess that isn't going to happen for me. But for all you youngsters out there get yourself out there on two wheels and see the country.

Bored

I tried to find one of those blog quizzes to put here but every one I did turned out not to be me. Maybe it is because I am in a funk tonight. But, maybe it is because none of them actually fit me tonight. One said the day of the week I was most like was Monday. Now that is just wrong. Trust me on Monday the only thing I want to do is to pull the covers up over my head and let the world go on without me. But guess I would probably feel that way too on Tuesday. Who knows. Maybe I am just bored.

Power up

I have been thinking a lot lately about what I will do this winter if something happens that we would lose power here in the house due to an ice storm. I know I would not have to worry about heat for the house and cooking since we do that with gas. After spending time in Haiti I can do without the electricity if I need to I have a ton of candles that we could use for light. However the one thing I wonder about is my laptop. I mean without my laptop I am a lost person. I know I have the battery power but that doesn't last forever. So I have been thinking about some extra laptop batteries. I think this is really something that I am going to give some serious consideration to.

Couch Potato

Today is Sunday and I have now been off work for 4 days due to the Thanksgiving Holiday. I don't understand why 4 days off work seem to go much faster than 4 days at work but trust me they do. Don't get me wrong as far as jobs go I like my job I just don't like working. If you know what I mean. But today I have done absolutely nothing. I know I should have done something like clean house or something productive. But I have not even gotten out of my PJ's all day. But the way I figure it the house work will all still be here tomorrow when I get home from work. I know I have to get things done this week because starting Saturday I will be working my second job for 16 straight evenings. That means I will work everyday at work for almost 9 hours. Leaving work at 5:00 PM and arriving at the second job at 5:30 (I will eat supper in the car on the way to work) and work that job until 9:00 PM every evening. I know after that much time I will be glad I took today to just be a couch potato.

Hunting season

With us living here in PA we are really noticing a lot of guys that go hunting during this time of the year. I really wish I had a hunter in my family and not just so that I could partake in the product of their hunting trip. But if I had a hunter in the family I would definitely do so serious shopping at the Nikon Black Friday Promo. Right now they have the "The Ultimate Hunter's Package" which has tons of items in it that you can right now save almost $145.00 by purchasing it. Plus if you have that hunter you are looking for a special gift for and you don't know exactly what they are wanting you can purchase gift cards for them and let them pick out exactly what they want for themselves. So what are you waiting for hope on over there and shop till your fingers drop.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

I just wanted to say Happy Thanksgiving to anyone who still reads my blog. I realize to most of you who happen to drop by it is probably pretty boring. But that is the way things go. I am very thankful that all of my family is healthy and relatively happy. (as happy as we can be when conditions are as they are)

Next holiday season we are going to kick butt. We will be back in Florida with our family and we are going to make up for this holiday season that we missed.

So to all of you out there take time to tell your family how much you love them and how much they mean to you.

To my Family. I love you bunches and bunches. Hug Hug Kiss Kiss.

Mom, Momma, Nannie

My babies three

I just got some new pictures of my grandchildren so I had to share at least one with you. They are growing up so big I just can't believe it. I really miss them a ton and I know they miss me. We are actually working on trying to move back to Florida to be with them all. I not only miss my babies I also miss my daughters just as much.

To my babies Nannie says I love you a bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck.

Hog Wild

I haven't ridden a motor cycle in years and to be honest I have never ridden on a Harley I wish I had but just never got the opportunity. I do remember my Mom telling me that her Dad bought a Harley and you would have to have know my PaPaw. He weighed about 150 pounds soaking wet with rocks in his pockets and the bike fell over on him and he needed help getting out from under it. Thankfully I don't think either he or the bike were hurt. But if he had done some damage to the bike he could have gotten the harley parts he needed with the click of a few computer keys. But wait a minute they didn't have computers back then. Oh well for those who need accessories or part for their "hog" it is now a very easy thing to accomplish.

My grandson ROCKS!

First let me say this is not a blog I am getting paid for this is just my personal bragging about one of my grandsons. Ok with that out of the way we will proceed. I got this email from my girls. They were at Downtown Disney on Friday evening and there is a group playing there through December called Nova Era and they play the acoustic violin and acoustic cello and the oboe. Well after they finished their performance Nate went up to the girl playing the violin and asked her what kind of violin it was because it is very unusual looking. She very patiently explained to him that it was an electric acoustic violin. Then she did a very unusual thing. She asked him if he played violin and he said this was his first year in school playing the violin. She then asked him if wanted to hold it and he said yes. She handed him the violin and then the bow and because it is a full size violin she helped him get in in place under his chin then she said. "Play me something" Well he played her a little bit just basically bowing across the strings and she told him that it was the most beautiful music she had heard. She has no idea (at least I don't think she does) as to how much that meant to her. After he finished playing it and handed it back to her he told her. "Thank you for lettimg me play your violin for free" It really made him feel special and right now they all need that feeling let me telll you. I am so proud of him that I could just bust. My daughter said that with this particular violin it is probably at least a $10,000.00 instrument that she just handed a 9 year old to play for her. Now I have to say I am impressed with them. They play classical music but they kick it up a notch. They are wanting children to develope a love and understanding for the classics in music. Well I give this group and this particular lady a thumbs up!

I am in a mood

Your Mood is a 4

You're feeling a little down, but not totally bummed out. Your mood is on the low side of average.

How Does Your Mood Rate?

I guess this pretty much describes me. I am down lately as the holiday's approach. I am really dreading Thanksgiving and Christmas being away from the girls and the grandchildren. Hopefully we will all be together again soon.

Let it snow

It snowed today while I was at work. All right so it did not show as much as you see in the picture but it did snow. OK All Right then so it was just flurries but for someone who has moved to the north from Florida any chance you get to see snow you have to love it. It did snow for a few minutes pretty heavy but it didn't stick to the ground or anything but at least it did snow.

Is it worth saving

It am so totally amazed when I hear that the National divorce rate is around 50%. My husband and I have been married for 41 years now and don't get me wrong it has not always been a walk in the park. There was a time when we separated after about 4 years of marriage and the biggest problem we had then was a lack of communication. We didn't talk to each other about the problems that were bothering each of us. We finally sat down one evening and talked about things and would wonders ever cease the problems were not that big. But when we didn't talk about them they seemed like mountains that we would never cross over. We didn't go to anyone for counseling but if I had know about the National Institute of Marriage we might have checked into getting some help from them. If I had known of all of the programs they have I might have saved myself a lot of grief early in our marriage. They have marriage counseling sessions all over the United States and I really believe that if you are having problems in your marriage you should try to work them out and only get a divorce as a final option when the marriage is not salvageable.


With the national divorce rate around 50%, there is no doubt that many marriages run into communication problems at some point. There is a communication epidemic. The National Institute of Marriage has created marriage counseling programs and resources utilizing a structure that is the most powerful format they have found for helping couples who feel stuck and hopeless. They have designed several programs to help couples move past the barriers and experience the marriage of their dreams.
NIM's Intensive Marriage Counseling Programs are unique from weekly marriage counseling in three distinctive ways:

· Intensive Marriage Counseling Format: Committing to an extended amount of concentrated time like the 2 or 4 day Marriage Intensive allows people to get to the root of the problem and stick with it in order to work through it. If you’ve been in traditional marriage counseling before, you may have experienced how you spend the first half catching up from the week before, the second half getting into the real issues, and then the time is gone. The Intensive format is designed so that people have the chance to go deeper without many of the other distractions of daily life and have enough discuss to consider solutions.

· Efficiency: One of the first steps in the process is an extensive assessment with some questionnaires. This allows the therapists to gather background information and can get an idea of the best strategy to proceed before you arrive for your session.

· Marriage Counselors: The counselors at the National Institute of Marriage are specialists in this area. One analogy we like to use is that of the Mayo Clinic: people go to their regular physician but may be sent to a specialist to work with specific areas. The NIM marriage therapists have been trained in this format to maximize its effectiveness. Also, the NIM marriage counseling programs provide the perspectives and insight of two professionals rather than one.
If you are considering divorce, you must try the National Institute of Marriage before giving up. They have developed a continuum of care that meets couples wherever they may be in their relationship. Regardless of the health of their marriage they have a service that can help couples improve their marital satisfaction. Visit their website at http://www.nationalmarriage.com. Read the incredible testimonies from the couples that saved their marriages by attending a Marriage Intensive at the National Institute of Marriage.

Weather

Well, the weather has gotten pretty cool up here again in PA. Right now it is 33 degrees outside. I think I am going to be pretty cold tonight sleeping. We have decided to try to only turn the furnace on when we absolutely need it and so far we have only run it a few minutes for a couple of mornings. So I am thinking that we just might need it in the morning.

Speed is a good thing

Many years ago Randy and I had an Audi and although we don't have that vehicle anymore I sometimes think it would have been need to have an audi turbo. I have always like to drive fast. I remember in high school (and yes I can remember that far back) I went out with this guy and he let me drive his Mother's car and we had a road on the levy and from one end to the other I managed to bury the speedometer at 120 mph. He was having a fit trying to figure out how to explain to his Mom when he got home. Maybe that had something to do with the fact we never dated again. But all that aside if you have a car that you want to super charge you have got to check out this web site at http://www.turbochargerpros.com. They absolutely have everything you could ever want to turn your car in to your fast dream car.

Movie Time

We sent a box at the beginning of the week to the kids and one of the things we sent them was Kung Fu Panda. They got the box yesterday and you guessed it last night was movie night. We also sent them their candy bars of their choice. Let's see if I can name the candy bars we sent. We sent rolo's, twix, 100 grand bar, peanut butter cups and milkey way dark chocolate. So what better way to watch a DVD at home than to do it with your favorite candy bar.

Fender Bender

We have some friends and the other week they were in the drive through to get a hamburger for their lunch and the idiot in a jacked up truck in front of them decided to back up for some reason and did a number on their hood and front grill. So now they are needing an auto body repair shop to get their vehicle back to pre-accident condition. It wasn't actually a fender bender it was more like a hood bender. They need an expert who does not compromise when quality when it comes to the work the do on your vehicle.

I owe I owe so off to work I go.

Well, we just finished working this evening our evening job for the week. Tomorrow is Friday and there are two good things about going to my day job tomorrow. One we always order soft pretzels on Friday and two it is Payday. Yeah for payday. Right now we are only working about 7 hours each on the evening job. But, coming up in December we are going to work extra hours. I will work all day long and then we will work until 9:00 PM and we will also work the weekends too for 3 weekends. But we can always use the money I am sure everybody know what I mean by needing money.

When you need help

I have been thinking lately of a lot of the things that I have gone through in my life that to be honest sometimes I am not sure how I made it through some of them. Sometimes I made it through some of the issues merely by the skin of my teeth as the saying goes. I won't actually get down in the pits by telling you everything we have been through in 41 years of marriage but some of them would really make your hair stand on end. But through everything I am glad and happy to say that I have never needed to have any sort of substance abuse treatment. But I know there are people who do need that type of assistance and for them I am glad that there are such good places like Promises Treatment Center where than can go to get the help they need.

Apply online

Well we did it tonight. I filled out the online application for Randy to receive Social Security which will start in February. This is really going to help us a lot with our finances. I know all of you out there who know us do not believe we are that old but well what can I say. It only took about an hour to do it from home with their online application so guess all in all that wasn't too bad. Glad we will be making it before it actually goes bankrupt.

I need clothes

Since moving to Pennsylvania and the weather getting cooler I am in the need of clothes. I have been picking up a few things here and there but moving here from Florida I had no winter wardrobe. I have never had a pair of tactical pants but after checking them out you just never know. One of the things that might spark my interest is that they have a total of 10 pockets. Hey a gal could do away with her purse and just carry everything in one of the various pockets. Just make sure you also wear a belt cause you don't want to weigh down your pants. But all kidding aside of you are in the need for good pants for working you have to check them out. The prices seem pretty reasonable to me.

Did you vote for the right man

This quiz I guess does describe me somewhat. I am an independent sort of person and I don't tend to drink the kool-aid. I won't say actually how I voted but those who are close to me would know I would cast my vote.

We Can't Predict Who You Voted For

According to our quiz, there's a 40% chance you voted for Obama. But that means there's an 60% chance you voted for McCain. You aren't very typical. You tend to be independent, and your vote is highly coveted. While we can't predict how you voted, there's a good chance you voted for the winner!

Did You Vote for Obama or McCain?

Keeping track

I have worked for many years in the accounting profession. Being in that profession one of the many tasks I have done was payroll and Human Resources. Keeping track of employee information can be a very difficult task if you do not have a very organized way of doing it. I have worked for companies both big and small and have been provided with great methods and crummy methods. I found this great software and the following site www.SoftwareTech.com and one of the great things is that you can download a demo which allows you to know what you are actually getting before you purchase the programs. To me this is a very great selling point. I am a firm believer that if somebody does not want to show you what they are selling you before you buy it then you don't want to buy it. But with Software Tech that is not the case at all. So what are you waiting for just go to the site and click on the "Download Now!" button and check it out for yourself.

I exercised my right

Well we went this morning before I went to work and voted for the person of our choice. We were really surprised at how quickly we were out of the polling place. We were in and out in about 30 minutes which I think was pretty quick. The only thing that upset me was that at our polling place they did not have any I Voted stickers. I have always gotten a sticker to wear for the day and was very aggravated that they did not have them. But with or without the sticker we still exercised our privilege of voting. I am a firm believer that if you don't vote you can't bitch about who actually wins the election. So guess this time I am able to bitch about a lot.

Don't drop it now

Last Christmas I did something that I had never in my entire life done. I did my shopping online for family presents. This year with the kids all living in Florida and us living here in Pennsylvania I may just do the same thing. This year I am going to be searching out those cyber monday discounts for the Black Friday ads that you always search out in the newspaper on Thanksgiving day. I know for Jill and Joy I would be very safe shopping at Bath & Body Works . That is something that I know with the girls I am always safe shopping. I just might see if I can order something online and actually have it shipped directly to them for Christmas. Then for the kids I have no idea yet what I want to get them or more importantly what they want for Christmas. But you know how it is when money is tight that what kids want is not always what they will get. But the one good thing about my grandchildren is that they are always happy with whatever gift they receive. But I would expect nothing less than that from them because that is the way I raised my daughters and that is the way their mother raised them. So now I just have to sign up for all of the black friday ads and have them delivered directly to my e-mail and then sit on the couch all bundled up from the chilly weather and just let my fingers shop and give my feet a rest.

There is a bit of a nip in the air

It now officially fall time here in PA and I think it is getting close to winter time. It has been pretty chilly here in the morning and the last two days the wind was blowing something fierce. I have been blessed lately with having a couple of opportunities to receive some free winter clothes. I have a gal who works with me who has brought me in some sweaters and sweatshirts that are absolutely beautiful. So I am very thankful for that. I also am so happy that I acquired an official Navy "Pea Coat" this was actually issued to a Navy sailor and is in excellent condition. So I am looking forward to wearing it this winter. I am also fortunate to have a job in an office where we can wear jeans, sweatshirts and tennis shoes or what ever to work. It sure makes it cheaper to dress for work than to have to wear dress clothes.

Time on my hands

I have never had a real expensive watch and to be honest I really don't know if I would want one. I mean I would always be scared that if I had a Rolex watch from someplace like Perpetual Diamonds that somebody would just steal it from me. So I guess I will just stick with my cheap watches. Yet in some respects I would love to have a really good watch and who knows maybe some day I just may have one. You just never know.

I Hate Cars

I am here to tell you that I absolutely hate cars. Living here in Lancaster County there are times when I think it would be much easier to drive a horse and buggy than to drive an automobile. As we speak ours is in the shop. It has been there since Monday but broken down since Friday. As of Friday the ability to stop the vehicle was no longer an option for us. We have discovered that the brake line is broken. I am just praying that it is a total accident and not something that someone has done to us. But they have ordered a new brake line from the Buick dealership (which the thought of that cost scares the dickens out of me) but they have not received the part in as of the end of today. So we are hoping for tomorrow. Today was our 41st anniversary and I had to bum a ride home from work again today for the 3rd day in a row and then we were stuck here and have been stuck here since Friday. UGH cars we can't live with them and we can't live without them it seems.

Christmas is coming

Well, even if we are ready for it or not it is time to start thinking about that Christmas shopping again. I remember one year when the cabbage patch dolls first came out that is all one of my daughters was asking for as her Christmas present. So Randy and I got up at the crack of dawn and went to the store which had them advertised for sale. We stood in line for a couple of hours and then were lead through the store in a single file line by the local police to purchase our doll and then to the register to pay for it and then home to try to hide the doll. Now we can shop on black friday with a major heads up approach. Why do you want to wait until Thanksgiving day to actually plot out your strategy as to where you want to go and what you want to purchase where. I know some people may find this strange but one of my favorite places to shop and I will be checking out their ads is Staples. I am telling You can actually get email alerts which will let you know when Black Friday ads have been posted online. So folks it just doesn't get any easier than that.

It is fall in Pennsylvania

Well it is officially fall here in Pennsylvania and we were out a bit last weekend driving around and yes I took a couple of pictures. OK, so I took over 200 pictures but with the digital camera it is so easy to just click away and then come home and delete the ones that wound up with a telephone pole right in the middle of the picture as you drove past that perfect scene. But I thought I would post a couple that I took and that I really like. We have not seen fall in several years living in Florida you have only one season there. That is just four variations of summer and each one is hotter than the previous one. So needless to say we are enjoying our fall season. The only thing that would make it better is to have our girls and grandchildren here with us. We really miss them to say the least. Ok this last picture has to be my favorite and then that is all the fall pictures I will bore you with unless I come up with a new favorite one.

No wheels today

I know it has been a bit since I have posted but to tell you the truth I have been busy working two jobs. But this weekend we were supposed to work all day today and all day tomorrow. But.... The brakes decided to go out on our car and so we had to cancel working. But that brings me to a new issue here I would love to have a new car. If I could have the car of my dreams it just might be coming to the car world early in 2009 although it might be slightly out of my budget. I a sure there are tons of people out there who unlike me will actually be able to afford this new vehicle. You ask what vehicle are you talking about, well let me tell you. The new Mercedes-Benz GLK-Class has to be one of the coolest new cars I have seen lately. This new SUV would absolutely be the one of my dreams. Well a woman can dream can't she??

I am woman hear me snore!

I am so tired lately. If anyone would have told me that at my age (no I won't tell you how old I am) but at my age I would never have believed that I would be working two jobs. Last week I worked my day job for 38 hours then worked my evening job for 35 hours. This week I did 38 during the day and 20 during the evening. So to say I am tired would be the understatement of the year. I am exhausted I feel like I could go to bed and sleep for a week at least. But that is not in the picture for me. We have to work the second job again tomorrow and then it is back to the day job on Monday morning. Thankfully next week we didn't get many hours nor the next week. At first I was upset but maybe God wants me to rest a bit for the next two weeks because the week after that I have another 35 hours to do on the evening job. So I will try to take it easy for the next two weeks and get some much needed rest.

Something about a man in uniform

I am here to tell you that there is just something about a man in uniform. It can be any kind of uniform really but we used to live in Florida and to see some of the police patrol the beach in their bike shorts and T-shirts was really something to see. I know I am an old lady or at least these days I really feel like it but hey there is nothing wrong with looking at the candy as it passes you by on the beach. I really wonder if they were all wearing gear purchased from 511 tactical? Well you just never know but hey if you are in the market for police gear go check things out you can get free shipping now and trust me there isn't much in life anymore that is free.

I am Independent

Your Independence Level: Very High

You do things your own way. Even if everyone else thinks you're wrong. You cherish your freedom, and you resent rules. No one knows what's right for you as much as you do. You can take care of yourself... and you do a mighty fine job of it.

How Independent Are You?

Well this pretty much describes me I do resent rules. I am one of those women too who my husband knows to never forbid me to do something because he knows that would be the one thing I would do no matter how hard it was for me to accomplish. I do believe I am a woman who can take care of myself and yep I do believe I can do a good job of it too.

It is almost that time

Well in my last post I put a picture of the pumpkin I took this past week and said it made me realize how close fall time was to being here. That just made me think oh my goodness if fall is that close then I know what is coming right behind it. That would be Christmas. This year with us being here in Pennsylvania and the grandchildren and our girls all being in Florida I really think I am going to need to shop early and shop online and maybe even find a way to shop online and have things shipped directly to Florida. I really think I am going to start this year and take opportunity of the 2008 thanksgiving sale which is also known as Black Friday. I am going to sign up so that I can get E-mail alerts to let me know when there are any new Black Friday ads so that I can check them out and if it is something I am looking for then I will be all over it like white on rice. This is a perfect way to check out all the ads before they even actually appear in my local newspaper. They actually will have the pdf and the zip files of the black Friday ads so you are able to see the actual ads. I already know one of the stores that I will be checking out to see what they have advertised and that store is Ikea. My girls turned me on to Ikea and I love that store I could spend a week shopping there but I seem to drop before I am through shopping but not anymore. I intend to shop until my fingers drop because I will be doing it online. I will let my fingers do the shopping.

To Bee or not to Bee

We were out in the country this weekend and I as usual took a ton of pictures. You always hope to get that perfect picture. I don't know that I have ever gotten that one perfect picture but I have gotten some that I really like. So here are a few of the ones I took this weekend

This is a big yellow jacket on a beautiful flower.

This next one is a picture of baskets of fresh tomatoes that we got.

Finally this last picture makes me think how close to fall we actually are. This field was full of gigantic pumpkins. I would hate to be the person that had to harvest them.

Work on your body

Our car we bought is not a brand new car to say the least. The AC does not work like it should and there are a few other things that could use some work on them. But, the one thing I am thankful for is that when it comes to the auto body it really isn't too bad. There is a little bit of work that could be done done under the car doors where it looks like a little damage from probably the salt they put on highways when it snows. But all in all it is in pretty good condition for being an older car. Hey it gets us from point A to point B and that is what it is all about if you ask me.

First day of school

The kids started school this week. Although they started on Monday they did not have school on Tuesday thanks to Hurricane Fae in Florida. But they went back to school today and after talking to them this evening they all seem to be having a good beginning to school. I know it has only been about 3 months since we have seen the kids after making the move here to PA. But goodness it really seems like they have grown like weeds. WOW! My babies are growing up and Nannie is just not sure I am ready for them to grow up. I want them to stay my babies. Although I will always call Ki "Baby Girl" cause I don't care how old she is that is what she will be to her Nannie is my Baby Girl. Wish we were still there with them. I know I talk to them practically every day on the phone but trust me that is not the same as being there with them on a daily basis. Well guess we can't have it all can we. But why can't we that is what I want to know.

First day of school

Way in

I have decided that it is time in my life when I need to take off those last few pounds I have packed on over the years. I am learning something new however on this matter. You ask me what I learned well I will tell you. It's Not Your Weight That Matters--It's How Much of Your Weight is Fat. This is something that I will need to figure out. Just how much of my weight is fat. Everything seems to have an emphasis on weight versus fitness in our western society's look at health and wellness. So therefore people of a normal weight may still face many of the problems that an overweight person faces such as elevated blood pressure, high cholesterol and high blood sugar if they are a couch potato and don't have some sort of exercise program. Now that the weather here in PA is getting cooler I think I am going to start walking some. I have started getting one type of exercise. Due to the fact we don't have a power lawn mower and were able to get an old fashion push mower I have been using that on a weekly basis to mow the grass. So surely that should help some.


Fitness Assessment: Measure Your Fat, Not Your Weight
It’s not how much you weigh, it’s how much of your weight is fat.
Simple test determines your fat content, health risks.

Carpinteria, CA – August 20, 2008 - Within the past week, the American Heart Association, Journal of the American Medical Association and the American Cancer Society have cited new studies that seem to indicate the deteriorating health of Americans may not be related solely to weight--but to declining overall fitness levels.

While it is virtually impossible today to remain oblivious to the importance of exercise for staying healthy, there has been a marked emphasis on “weight” versus “fitness” in western society’s perception of health and wellness. Consequently, many people of “normal” weight continue to be uniformed of the fact that they may still be at risk for elevated levels of blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood sugar if they lead a sedentary (inactive) lifestyle.

It has long been known that there are adverse effects associated with physical inactivity. Adults who are less active are at greater risk of dying of heart disease and developing diabetes, colon cancer, and high blood pressure. Illnesses related to physical inactivity and poor diet cause at least 300,000 deaths each year in the U.S.

Body mass index (BMI), which is calculated through a height-to-weight ratio alone has been the standard method of measuring a person’s “fatness” or “thinness” since 1950’s and 60’s, when obesity was becoming a noticeable medical concern in the U.S. As a result, being at a “normal” BMI weight is not necessarily a reliable indicator of health.

In fact, physically active individuals who have more lean tissue than their sedentary counterparts, as well as taller people, often have a BMI that classifies them as obese when they actually have healthy body fat levels. Likewise, and more dangerous, slender or thin but inactive individuals often have a BMI that puts them within normal, or even underweight, ranges when they actually have high levels of body fat.

Because of the overemphasis on BMI that has developed over the last few decades, these “skinny fat” people often remain unaware that they are at an elevated risk for developing diseases typically associated with obesity until they are already facing health issues.

According to the International Sports Sciences Association, an organization that has educated and certified personal trainers for more than 2 decades, using a quick but reliable method of measuring various body circumferences (e.g. neck, thighs, upper arm, waist, hip) to assess total body fat better determines one’s body composition (fat vs muscle) than BMI alone. Measuring circumferences also provides personal trainers and clients with a very easy way to gauge clients’ progress.

“For people to begin to take a proactive approach to their health, they really need to know what their percentage of fat versus muscle is.” said Dr. Sal Arria, CEO and Co-Founder of the ISSA. Dr. Arria goes on to add, “most studies have shown that by just adding ONE circumference measurement at the waist to BMI, you can better predict a patient’s risk for type 2 diabetes and for all-cause mortality. Waist circumference is also about twice as good at predicting future coronary heart disease than BMI alone.”

The ISSA believes that personal trainers and health clubs should be utilizing circumference measurements as another tool to assess body fat because trainers can achieve proficiency with a few hours of practice and when done properly, the results can be replicated.

Patrick Gamboa, ISSA Vice President of Education, cautions that a person’s true fitness cannot be assessed by body measurements alone. True fitness must also take into account strength, aerobic capacity and flexibility measurements to most accurately predict longevity. Most gyms offer this type of assessment for free to their members.

About the ISSA
Since 1988, the International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA) has provided certification and continuing education to more than 100,000 wellness professionals in 85 countries around the globe. The ISSA offers a core personal training certification as well as eight additional specialized fitness certifications.

What is your site worth

My site is worth $6453.2.
How much is yours worth?

This is what this site says my site is worth. OK, so who do I contact to get the money? Cause at this point in my life I sure could use the cash. Check yours out to see what your site is worth

Sprain 'em

An Ole Galic Blessing

May those who Love us Love us.

And those who don't love us

May God turn their hearts.

And if he doesn't

Turn their hearts.

May he turn

Their ankles,

So we will know them

By their limping.

Hired

I am employed again. I finally found a job. I was beginning to think I was never going to get back to work and one small part of me never wanted to work again. But the biggest part of me wants to eat, have a place to live, lights and everything else that goes with living. So after much work and too many interviews I am once again gainfully employed.

So today is the "First day" on the new job. I hate those days almost as much as I hate the interview. You always walk in and you know no one and everyone looks at you like your skirt is tucked into the back of your pantie hose. Makes you want to turn around and check just to be sure then you remember you aren't wearing any pantie hose and you have slacks on. So you still resist that urge to look just to be sure. Then comes the fun part finding out just exactly what all of your job description actually is. I mean there is always something they do not tell you when you get hired for the job. I had one boss that the last thing on everyone's job description was, "And all other assigned duties" it was those things that could be the killer. But hopefully I will not have any huge surprises on this job. I am praying that this is just the perfect job for me and that I will just love it. Yeah right I know it is a job and after the word diet I think job is the next worst word. Oh well I may let you know how things go and I may just keep you wondering.

Happy 9th Birthday

I can't believe that my babies are 9 years old today. They are absolutely the best grandsons in the entire whole wide world. They will call us on the phone just to see if we are ok here in Pennsylvania. They are the sweetest guys you could find. I wish we were there to celebrate their birthday with them. I remember getting the phone call saying they were born and thinking no they are not due for another two months. But here they were making their grand entrance and they are still good at making their grand entances. So to Zach on the left and to Nate on the right Nannie and Poppy say "Happy birthday to you" And from just Nannie I say happy birthday to Zachie Wackie and happy birthday to Nater Tater. Right now those nick names I have given them do not bother them but in about 10 years when I say it I bet I hear "Nannie". Love it.

Just taking up space

I have done a lot of thinking today. I actually started thinking about this subject before I ever got out of bed this morning. Randy and I are usually very involved people. We are usually involved in our church, our ministry, our family just plain busy. But after thinking this morning I have decided that at this point in life we are just taking up space. We are going to a new church and have not been asked to do anything there and do not want to push our way into anything there. We are no longer living near our family. Joy and the kids live in Florida and Jill lives in Holland and we are in Pennsylvania so that pretty much eliminates being closely involved in family. Right now we are not involved in doing anything for Haiti. So.... That just pretty much leaves us taking up space. I mean right now I feel like some useless appliance that is sitting on someone's kitchen counter just taking up valuable space. I am really feeling unwanted, unnecessary and unused. I don't really know what to do to change this feeling I have but I do want it to change. I feel like something sitting over in the corner with a cobweb fully attached to me.

Rainy days

Today is not been an actual rainy day but it has been a cloudy day. I heard thunder a little bit ago so I took the dog out to do his thing before it started raining and he did and as of yet it has not started raining. But still looks like it is going to start it any minute. But wait I actually think I can see just a ray of sunshine on the ground outside. Oh well at least it has been a veg out kind of day for us rain or shine.

Climb out of the hole

Back in the dark ages when my husband and I first got married he received an insurance settlement. We were so excited to get this money so early in our marriage. This was a great time for us, right....... WRONG! We turned that decent amount of cash into a large amount of debt. We purchased a new car. We bought Christmas presents and generally spent the money more than once literally. Debt relief was what we needed and we had to get very creative to obtain this goal. First we were able to get someone to take over our car payments and we took over their lower car payments. Debt help was what we needed to also accomplish and by swapping vehicles we were able to accomplish that goal. Debt consolidation was our final goal which would create a way to help us get our payments within our budget. To be honest this was a financial nightmare for us but with a lot of time and work we were able to dig our way out of the hole that was of our own making. This was a hole that I never ever in my lifetime wanted to find myself back in. We always need to learn from our mistakes and move forward.

Harvest Time

We are about ready to start harvesting from the garden. OK, ALRIGHT so it is just two tomato plants in plastic pots sitting on my outdoor small size picnic table. But it is the best that we have done in years. We were given like 5 tomato plants and we planted them in two plastic flower pots and they started growing and growing and then they started blooming and blooming and then what to my wondering eyes did appear but actual tomatoes. They are a very small pear shaped tomato and I think one pot is yellow ones and the other pot is supposed to be red ones. But Randy is going to get his overalls, and work boots on and get a basket and go pic tomato's this afternoon for his supper enjoyment. OK so I admit it he is going to use a very small basket but hey it is something we have done and he will enjoy them I can tell you that.

I am a purest

OK anybody who knows me know that when it comes to food I am a total purest. I mean I am a meat and potatoes kind of girl. I don't do veggies of any sort so when I heard about the Great American Food Cook off I mentioned it to my husband and I could see that twinkle in his eye. This is a man who loves to cook and experiment with recipes. So I challenged him to come up with a good seafood recipe that he thought was a winner. I know when we lived in Florida they had major problems with the availability of Grouper so there were times when you could not obtain fresh Grouper at the market so I am a big fan of the positiveness of domestic seafood sustainability. I am here to tell you there is nothing better than a good fried Grouper sandwich. But I digress.... So as I type here, the husband is busy with his pen and paper comping up with his winning recipe. If anyone out there has a good recipe for seafood leave it for me in a comment and I guarantee you my husband will check it out and probably make it for himself. Here is the recipe from the Husband.

Cold Sweet Salmon Salad
2 pounds of Fresh salmon
4 Hard Boiled Eggs
1 pound of elbow macaroni
1 pound frozen Peas
1 cup Mayonnaise
1/4 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1/8 cup Honey
1 medium Sweet Onion diced
Salt
Pepper

Broil Salmon and let cool. Flake Large pieces of salmo into a mixing bowl. Add the cooked elbow macaroni when it is cooled. Add sliced hard boiled eggs, 0nions and the frozen peas (after thawing do not cook peas).

Mix together the mayo, vinegar, and honey together (sweeten to taste by adding more honey if needed) salt and pepper to taste.

Take the Mayo dressing and mix with the salmon salad. Serve ice cold with crackers on the side.

Farm raised Salmon is ok to use but Fresh wild Salmon is much better!