Why I love the NO FRILLS GRILL

Those of you that read my blog on a semi-regular basis often see me mention the No Frills Grill as either a place I recently have been or am planning to go. I have been wanting to post about it for awhile but tonights visit was the trigger. This is a long post but I think it will entertain.

My family has been going to the No Frills Grill since they opened. There are 4 locations .... one in Arlington [the original], one in Ft. Worth [where I go now], one in Mansfield and one in Keller. I have spent time in all but the Mansfield location. It started out as a very simple bar and grill where the menus were hand stamped on brown paper bags and the variety of food was simple and yummy. One draw was the fact that they had NTN trivia and another was that they were right next to a movie theatre. The initial family favorite was shrimp quesadillas but our list of favorites has grown over the years as they have.

Here are some pictures from MY No Frills Grill taken last month :

[The outside of the No Frills Grill]

[Jessica - the favorite waitress]

[The NTN trivia game box]

Being a regular, when I enter the building, I know all of the waiters and waitresses names and they know mine. Without asking, within minutes a diet coke is sitting in front of me. The manager, Dave, may sit down at the table and chat for awhile and when it is a slow night the wait staff may also plop down for a visit.

There are many regulars, even a celebrity or two. Barry Corbin, who is known for his role as Maurice Minnifield in Northern Exposure, as General Jack Beringer in War Games, and more recently as Coach Whitey Durham on One Tree Hill is there almost every night when he is in town, with the 'Brain Trust' as I call them. He is super nice and will take a picture or sign an autograph if you ask. I've also seen local radio personality Kidd Kraddick from 106.1 KISS FM there with his family on occasion.

I enjoy the food, and as I have mentioned, I also play trivia on their NTN trivia game. I have always enjoyed soaking up trivia and quiz type games so I find this an integral part of the fun at the No Frills Grill. And it doesnt hurt when I outscore the 'Brain Trust' some nights.

But, the real reason I love to go to the No Frills Grill is the people. Not just the employees but the customers. I have seen and heard many things at the No Frills Grill. I've overheard loud conversations about sexual habits, I've seen grown men gather in an extremely organized manner to draft their fantasy football team live, I've seen a kid suck the ketchup out of a ketchup bottle while his mom wasn't looking. I've seen drunk people in Halloween costumes, I've counted the number of plastic cups a person has stacked in front of them on dollar beer night and wondered how they were getting home. But tonight was a banner night for observation and experience. Tonight I saw a girl reserve a table for 10-20 of her closest friends to have only 9 show up and that was at least an hour after she shoved 3 tables together. I saw Barry get dragged to the bar by some women holding his hand and shouting choo-choo like a train as she drug him along behind her. I saw a man in the dining room pull a saxophone out of its case and proceed to serenade someone in the bar and in the dining room with Happy Birthday and more importantly, I saw the girl with 9 friends walk around from the dining room to the bar several times with a piece of toilet paper hanging out of the back of her pants like Rapunzel. Here are two "blurry" cell phone pictures for proof, and when I left still no one had told her.

[Sitting at her table]

[One of many treks to the bar]

This is why I love the No Frills Grill.

Carry on.

Elevator Etiquette

I don’t know who raised half [or more] of the population but apparently whoever it was, they did not teach their offspring about elevator etiquette. I am asking you now to learn this lesson and pass it on. When you are waiting on an elevator, make sure you are standing to the side when the door opens allowing EVERYONE on the elevator time to exit before you move forward and step on. DO NOT plow onto the elevator the minute the doors open. This applies to basically ALL forms of public transportation, which an elevator is unless you have one in your home and then you can do whatever the hell you want to. This morning at school as I am trying to get off the elevator three girls plow into me, trying to get in, when there are still more people trying to get off. As I walk by them, they rudely say “Excuse me.” as they knock my backpack from my shoulder in their rush to enter the elevator. Needless to say, we almost had a throw-down.

Be polite. Be considerate. Do unto others.....

Yep, it's the busy season.....

....so December brings in many things, one of which is what I call the busy season. That time of year when I have a million things to do. Sadly, it is the time of year that I usually want to savor and have go by slowly so that the time my parents are here for Christmas seems to last longer and the few days off I have from work seem more restful. But that is never the case. So what is on my calendar this month ?

Well, I did get a couple of things done last week. One, I put a fresh coat of paint on my hair....ha ha ! Yep, those greys were starting to take over. And, yesterday, I finally finished putting up my Christmas tree. I'm still looking for the tree skirt [white sheet] that goes underneath - but here are a couple of pictures for you.

And....this week is crazy.

Monday - Class/Work/Part 2 of Trigonometry test [Part 1 was was easy]
Tuesday - Work/Dinner with the White's
Wednesday - Class/Haircut appointment / group study for Applied Math final
Thursday - Working to have Saturday off
Friday - Class/Work/Review for Trigonometry final
Saturday - Trigonometry final
Sunday - Work

And then one more final on the 13th....and Diabetic training.....I'm learning to be diabetic. LOL ! Actually, on my last Dr.'s visit the results of my blood work showed that I am borderline diabetic - so now I am on yet more meds and I have to go see a nutritionist so she can help me get my blood sugar under control. Another step in my plan for next year to be the year I get my health back on track.

Well, there's an update from me for the next week. Ciao for now !

Don't like the weather ?

In Texas they say if you don't like the weather, then just wait a minute. That saying couldn't have been more true than 2 days ago. On Wednesday, we topped out at a balmy 80 degrees - it was sunshine and shorts all day. I went to the movie that night, around 5:00p, when I came out of the theatre 2 hours later the temp had dropped 35 degrees.....and it was raining.

By the next morning it was VERY cold.....around 30 degrees when I woke up and it actually got colder throughout the morning. From about 10:00a - 3:00p - it was rain, sleet and snow.....yes, snow. The weather person called it a "winter-mix" and it was a mess. Luckily I had no work and no school yesterday so I just stayed in and snuggled up.

Here are some pics from the day :

[the ledge on my balcony]

[a close-up of the ledge]

[my patio chairs]

[my footsteps on the balcony]

[my poor car]

Calling in sick.....

...those of you that know me, know that this is something I rarely do , in fact I have very STRONG opinions about missing work and tend to be judgemental in that regard even though I try not to. Anyway, I found a recent article about it today and this is an excerpt from the article [because if I listed the whole thing, I would be getting up on my soapbox]....when you comment, tell me which one of these made you laugh out loud.

Workers who are chronic offenders may be running out of ideas. Forty-one percent of hiring managers said they have received unusual or suspicious sick day alibis. Sixty-two percent did not believe them, according to the survey. When asked to share the most unusual excuses employees gave for missing work, hiring managers offered the following examples:

1) Employee was poisoned by his mother-in-law.
2) A buffalo escaped from the game reserve and kept charging the employee every time she tried to go to her car from her house.
3) Employee was feeling all the symptoms of his expecting wife.
4) Employee called from his cell phone, said he was accidentally locked in a restroom stall and no one was around to let him out.
5) Employee broke his leg snowboarding off his roof while drunk.
6) Employee's wife said he couldn't come into work because he had a lot of chores to do around the house.
7) One of the walls in the employee's home fell off the night before.
8) Employee's mother was in jail.
9) A skunk got into the employee's house and sprayed all of his uniforms.
10) Employee had bad hiccups.
11) Employee blew his nose so hard, his back went out.
12) Employee's horses got loose and were running down the
highway.
13) Employee was hit by a bus while walking.
14) Employee's dog swallowed her bus pass.
15) Employee was sad.

It was number 11 for me......ha ha !!

Belated Thanksgiving greetings

Sorry, no posts for the last few days, but I have been in Abilene for the last three days on a much needed vacation from work and getting on the computer was the last thing on my mind. Apparently, pulling my camera out of my purse was not on my mind either because I have no pictures to show for my time away.

HAPPY belated THANKSGIVING !!

I did enjoy my time in Abilene and always love spending time with my sister and her family. We did some shopping, had some great meals at home and out. Played school, Monopoly, Life and Phase 10 and had a wonderful Thanksgiving meal over at my sister's in-laws house. We did some craft "chores" that have been building up and then just hung out. The weather was amazing....in the mid to upper 70s the entire time I was there and I slept good most nights even though my brother-in-law had the heat on in the house. Of course, I got my sister in trouble for making a comment about it. Oh, well. The bottom line, a grand time was had by all.

Back to work today and for the weekend and then next week on my days off I am planning a movie marathon.....stay tuned for more info on that as the days get closer. Have a great weekend.

To Abilene and back......

OK - so yesterday was spent on a 24 hour road trip to Abilene, Texas to see my niece, Morgan, in The Nutcracker. She has been taking ballet for several years and each year she participates in this holiday production. This year, as indicated by the picture below, she is a white mouse.

There is no flash photography allowed during the performance so these pictures are as Morgan calls it......"behind the scenes" :

First, getting the white leotard and body suit on......the front,


And the back,

Next comes the hair, mommy works hard getting that ballet bun just right.....

And then the hairspray.....tons of it,


Next is the make-up - I think this is Morgan's favorite part,

And the finished make-up,


Lastly, the rest of the white mouse costume,


And, after all that work, mommy and her little white mouse,

I joined, Mason, Sam and Memaw in the theatre to get ready for the performance and here is a picture of Mason reading his program before all the fun began.

Now, it is back to Abilene for me tomorrow night to spend a couple of days for Thanksgiving.

The Merchant Chronicles

As most of you already know, I work as a tech support/customer service rep for a credit card processing company. Basically, merchants (business owner's) that have credit card machines in their business call me when they have technical issues or customer service related issues. They each have what is called a Merchant ID Number.....it is a unique identifier for them and it is the first thing I ask for when answering a call. Here are some excerpts from real calls.....

Tracy : Can I get the last six digits of your Merchant #?
Merchant : 0594561
- - - - - -
Tracy : Can I get the last six digits of your Merchant #?
Merchant : How many ?
Tracy : The last 6
Merchant : 291000000436519
- - - - - -
Tracy : Can I get the last six digits of your Merchant #?
Merchant : The last 4 ?
Tracy : The last 6
Merchant : 0401001

You gotta love 'em.

Off tonight for a quick turn-around to Abilene to see my niece, Morgan in The Nutcracker. Be back tomorrow night with pictures. Ciao

Fingernails, weather and camping.....

...just a few updates and comments. I am still NOT biting my fingernails....and they are getting longer. However, I am realizing they are not very strong. So, I broke THREE on my left hand last week - which is very annoying because now those three are short again. Not as short as when I bit them but still.....grrrrrr. I'm going to buy some nail strengthener this weekend.

As you may have noticed, I added a little weather module over on the right side. I like having current weather on my blog. And there is a cute one a lot of people have that is a girl wearing weather appropriate outfits, etc. and it displays the weather.....but they don't really have a girl that represents a 40-year old chunky white chick so I decided to go with the generic weather channel version.

Lastly, camping.....not the traditional kind - the dorky kind. Oddly, now that I have said I am not going to put a picture on every blog, I now have pictures for practically every blog. LOL ! Here are some from yesterday :

[This one is at WalMart and this guy is about to start throwing a football with his buddy.]

[These two are, obviously, at Best Buy...looking at the bottom one, notice
that the tent on the far right has a hanging plant out front.]

Yep, you guessed it. Dorks, camping out at a WalMart and Best Buy waiting for the Playstation 3 to come out. I guess I missed the profiteering bandwagon though - they are selling on eBay today for anywhere from $1500 - to $5000+ - oh well, I'll remember that for the Playstation 4.

More updates tomorrow.....

Well, I was wrong......

... awhile back, I had a post that said "Bring two scantrons." was the worst three words you can hear from a professor. Well, that may be the worst three words but now a new sentence with eight words may be headed to the top of the list of things you don't want to hear from your professor, and those eight words are : "The test will take place over two days." Yep, my trigonometry teacher informed us this week that our third test [and it's not the final] will take place over two days. Great ! She also said some of us will come in and be done with each part in 30 minutes and then there will be some of us that she will have to "pry the test out of our hands" when the hour is up. I'd like to happily be somewhere in the middle please.

Resolution, Fesolution and New Blogger.....

The picture on every blog resolution is out. It's too restrictive. So, I will revise it to say, I will be trying to put MORE pictures on my blog, but not necessarily on every one.

OK, so today I switched to the "new" blogger...not really sure what that did but when I logged in there was a message from blogger telling me it was time to switch so I did. We'll see if anything changes.

Since my last post......I got a 94 on a trig test, I went to the doctor and my niece and sister came for a visit. School is going well. I have only 4 weeks left of this semester and one of them is Thanksgiving week so basically I have 3 weeks left. I registered for Spring classes last Friday, I am taking 3 - all at UTA and I think they will be okay. One is another math class and two are basic science classes....NOT Biology. I've put that one on hold for the time being. I have to be done with all but 15 hours of my pre-education classes in order to start the program in the fall so taking 3 classes in the spring and 2 in the summer will put me right on track.

Went to see Dr. Jennings the other day - just the first check-up since I got insurance again. My blood pressure was good and he took blood to check everything else so I should be hearing from him on those results this week. My weight is still an issue - he didn't say it but I know it and working from home is not helping. So, I'm going to work on getting in that "mode" over the next six weeks and then in 2007 I am finally going to get my act together and do something about it. Stay tuned for that because I will probably use this blog [or create an additional one] to keep track of that little project.

Speaking of watching what I eat......JoLynn and Morgan came in last weekend for a visit and I think all we did was eat. They got here Friday night and we hung out deciding on our plans for Saturday. Saturday we got up, went to McDonald's for breakfast - went to the mall, specifically the Build A Bear store and got Morgan some new clothes for her cat, Sydney. Morgan's birthday is the 17th so she had $50 from her parents and $30 from my parents to spend. So, it was a shopping spree to say the least. I think she spent $50 in the bear store and the other $30 in Claire's buying earrings and lip gloss [the only "make-up" she can wear] and when it was done we were tired. We went to On The Border for lunch and here is a picture from that - some serious coloring going on here :



After than it was off to Old Navy, Recollections, Michael's, JoAnn Fabrics and a few more of our favorite places. I wanted to go see a movie and get out of my apartment for the evening since I am there all the time working but Morgan had other plans so we came home for a brief rest and then headed to Chili's so Morgan could have some baby-back ribs. On the way home we stopped for a movie - Chicken Little and that was it for the night. I needed a nap and about a 10-mile walk to get rid of all the food we had eaten that day. Overall the weekend was a blast, and even though the first words out of Morgan's mouth Friday night had been "We're here without Mason !" - her first words when waking up Sunday morning were "I'm ready to go home and see my daddy and my bubba." So, off they went at about 7:45a to head back to Abilene.

More life updates tomorrow.......

Hmmm, not doing good with the new resolution.

OK - so the November resolution to post a pic in every blog is slowing my blogging down and it seems I am only posting when someone sends me a picture. I need to work on my picture taking.

Well, so here is a blog about my parents new travel trailer. Growing up I have very fond memories of going camping A LOT. We had a travel trailer, well, several different ones actually and we would go on weekend trips mainly to go swimming in the summer. But, camping itself was a blast. I've been places like Turkey Run, Indiana, Disney World, Jekyll Island, GA, etc. all camping. Fun, fun, fun !! As we got older and we had an in-ground pool built into our backyard, camping kind of went by the wayside, as did the travel trailer.

So, it was no real surprise that yesterday, my father emailed me pictures of a new travel trailer he and my mom bought last week. They have been wanting another one for years. I am really excited for them because they love to go camping and love to camp when travelling. Here are the pictures that my dad calls optional equipment for his car. Ha ha !

Resolutions

So, I know that January is typically the month of resolutions but I say why wait ?? If you have a resolution to make, make it. So, for the month of November, I resolve the following :

1. Never get the "best" full service car wash. I went to the full serve car wash today because my car is filthy and I needed an oil change. I get the oil change and a transmission fluid flush and as I pull up to the car wash I decided to get the daily special - the "best" wash. $ 24.99 What a ripoff ! My car doesn't look any better than it would have if I had got the normal Basica Wash which is $10.00. And, when I buy the best, I want to get the best. I don't want to need to walk around the car and tell the guy all the places he missed.....and trust me there were plenty. So, no more "best" car washes for me.

2. As I mentioned last month, every blog starting today will contain a picture. What better way to start that resolution than by posting a picture of my world's best dad - dressed in his Halloween costume. I love it !! Love you, Dad !!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN !!

Enjoy your tricks and treats !!

Flip-flops.....

OK, so it is evident on the college campus, the flip-flop is the footwear choice of many. I think this choice will prevail through rain, sleet, snow and all seasons. This is fine with me. If people want to wear flip-flops year round - more power to them. Certainly, their choice.

But alas, a word to the flip-flop wearing population ... and at first, I thought this might apply only to men but now I know it applies to ALL that choose this footwear. PLEASE, do not wear flip-flops if your toes/toenails look like they have recently been thru a wood-chipper. Trust me, no one wants to see that.

If you are going to put your feet on display - then by all means make the effort to make them presentable. A pedicure by you, your mate or even a professional is well worth it. Some lotion and some polish [ladies] even if it is clear or non-discript is much appreciated by those around you. And, why, you may ask am I looking this closely ?? I can't help it when you work in my group or prop your feet up in front if me in class or in the library.

Please.

Masonisms

A Masonism is basically something Mason does that is so darn cute you have to write about it. Sometimes it is just his interpretation of something. Here is an instant message conversation with my sister about one.

JoLynn says: I have a masonism for you to blog
Tracy says: ok
JoLynn says: we were at target and he was looking at computer games for his christmas list and he found a game he wanted
JoLynn says: it was one where you design houses and then you get to look at them in 3-D
Tracy says: ok
JoLynn says: do you not get it?
JoLynn says: it was software for people to design their homes - like architectural software for adults to use
JoLynn says: he thought it was a game
Tracy says: Oh, LOL ! I guess I didn't get it. Since you said it was a game, I thought it was too. LOL ! Now, we have a Tracyism.
JoLynn says: right
JoLynn says: LOL

Love that kid.

VW Beetle

For those of you that don't know me that well....I feel certain, if I can swing it, that my next car will be a VW beetle. Hopefully, I can get one before they quit making them but I don't see a new car on the horizon for me anytime soon. I've always thought that if I got one, I would get a custom paint job at some point too. I've kept these two pictures on my computer for years to give to the paint place if I ever get one.

However, today I found a new picture of a custom paint job that is making me reconsider. What do you think about this one ?? Is it me, or what ??

It's official.....

.....I'm PINK ! As I mentioned, last night I went to the No Frills Grill where I play a game they have called NTN trivia. You can become a Player's Plus [PP] member for free and when you do then you rack up points for every game you play...and more if you win the game among the others playing. So, if you are a PP member then you have a little colored plus [+] sign next to your name and the color represents how many PP points you have. So, last night, my plus sign turned pink because I passed the.......drum roll please......750,000 PP points mark. Yes, it is official, I am a dork.

"Bring two scantrons."

These are the three most dreaded words from a professor to any college student before a test because this means there will be MORE THAN 100 questions on the test. Ugh. Well, in my case, it may not matter....after another dismal showing in my most recent Biology test [sorry, Tom] - I am about 95% sure I will be dropping the class this week. The thing is, I got my associates degree with a 3.87 grade-point average and I really don't want this class to mess that up. I mean, if I have to re-take it, fine, but no sense lowering my GPA in the process. It was probably too much to take on with my other two classes. Lesson learned.

I printed out the schedules for Spring and I am in the process of trying to put together my schedule so I can get something together for a work schedule starting in January too. I had one-midterm test today in my Applied Mathematics class and I think I did good. It was a little "more" than I expected but I felt good about it. I won't know my grade on it until the end of next week because there was a take-home part too that I turn in on Monday.

Weekend plans .... well, No Frills Grill tonight. Oh, and I found a website for the them - click HERE to see my favorite place, I go to the Eastchase location. Also on the list for the weekend, buy a new printer, do a WalMart BIG run and clean the apartment. I got some new shelves for my office that I also need to put together. Big fun.

So, that's it - I'll probably blog some more this weekend. Ciao.

Heidi, my jeweler....

First, hurray, JoLynn - starting her new job today. She hasn't been working for 6 weeks and I know she is thrilled to be getting back into the swing of it. And, I can already tell she is super happy with the new experience and opportunities.

So, the holidays are fast approaching, and with a new job, I have no idea what days I am going to be off and which days I am going to work. It would be nice to have some time off from both work and school but one never knows. I'm going to send a message to my bosses today so that they can start working on my schedule. I am kinda unique because I work the weekend so we'll see what they come up with. My preference would be to work more days around Thanksgiving and less days around Christmas because my mom and dad will be here.

Of course, we all want my brother to come down too but he is holding out saying he needs to stay and work, etc. Last night I was talking to him on the phone and he wanted to know the next time I was going to go to Abilene [my sister's] - he wanted us to go to this silver store near my sister and get him some rings. He said "I'm going to have Heidi, my jeweler, measure all of my fingers so you guys can look at rings for me." His jeweler ?? I laughed my head off at that and said, "That is so going to be my blog title tomorrow." At which point he laughed. Yet, here it is. Anyway, I hear my mom in the background informing him that my sister told her the place was closed. He said "What? Well, there goes your 1% chance of getting me down there for Christmas." So, if anyone else knows a good place to buy silver by the ounce in pre-made jewelry items, please let me know. I'm hanging on to the 1%.

November Resolution

So, my parents and my brother bought me this awesome digital camera and printer for Christmas last year but it seems lately I have not been using it much. So, I am making a November resolution to include a picture in EVERY entry I post in my blog.

I think with my busy schedule and my lack of trips to Abilene the picture taking has come to standstill but that is about to change. There are still some pretty random things I see on a daily basis while going from home to school to home and back again. I'll probably start adding some pictures this month to get into the habit.....but next month, there will be one on EVERY post.

Stay tuned.

Way to go .... Morgan Le !!

So, my niece, Morgan entered a contest among 2nd graders to create a poster for National Fire Prevention Month. No one even knew she was doing it and the next thing you know she won for the whole 2nd grade at her school. Here is a picture of her with her poster and another picture of just the poster.

She went to an award ceremony last night where all of the other winning posters from other 2nd grades at other schools came together for an overall contest. She didn't finish in the top 3 but she got to ride in the basket of the firetruck - you can see her peeking out here :

She also won a bicycle and all the protective gear - and here it is in a picture with Morgan and her teacher Mrs. Phillips.

Way to go, Morgan Le !!

The Library

No, not the bar in downtown Ft. Worth....the REAL library. I need to read, read, read on my biology so I think when I get off of work tonight at 5:00p, I am going to go to the library. I could read at home but I always get distracted by something. Normally I would have biology class tonight, but we don't due to some personal thing my prof had to do tonight for his daughter. So, I think I will go read, at the library.

Nothing else going on this week......just more school and more work. If anything notable happens, I'll let ya know.

Where to begin.....

...this is what happens when I don't post regularly.

So, in school news......my trigonometry teacher has shingles, but she is managing to teach on. I had shingles many years ago, and basically I can tell you it is a re-emergence of the chicken-pox virus that manifests itself as a rash and ALOT of needle-piercing pain. Ouch.

Still dissecting the fetal pig in biology lab.....I was going to post some pictures of our pig which we have named 'Wilbur' from Charlotte's web, but I decided you guys probably wouldn't want that much information from my biology class. No tests this coming week, but probably the next week.

On Wednesday, I stopped by the new class of Cynergy Data's remote agents. Several of my friends from old jobs were in the class and I hung out with them for a couple of hours after delivering a batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies. After class, I took the two instructors out to Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall for some shopping.

Thursday morning I had a weird phone call with someone asking for "JoLynn" - which oddly is my sister's name. I told them that and they told me they were looking for a JoLynn Jennings which is not, nor has it ever been, my sister's name. It was very weird considering I had only had this number for a month and someone calls asking for a JoLynn, which is obviously an unusual name, and they get me, someone with a sister named JoLynn. Freaky.

Friday, class and work and trivia at No Frills Grill.

Yesterday, I had to meet up with the Cynergy Data instructors again for some training on some new stuff I am going to be doing at my job. The training was in the morning and then we had lunch. I had the rest of the day off which was nice.

Today, I am reading biology and doing some spot cleaning and organizing in between calls. I'll try to be more diligent with my postings this week.

Ciao.

Hurray !!

I made a 97 on my Trigonometry test.

School Update.....

....I've been avoiding this public update on school because I know my cousin is going to go ballistic.....but he is in Florida right now, so even if he reads this [which I am sure he will] - he won't be able to throw anything at me.

Everything at UTA is going well, my two math classes there have so far been a breeze. I've taken 2 quizzes in Trigonometry - got a 95 and a 100 on them. My other math class is mainly just in class work - our first test is October 20th but everything in there is also going well.

Now.....Biology. I'm really working hard at it and I will not give up, but, so far we have had one lecture test and one lab test.....I've made a 73 and 70 respectively. Now, that is a C average....which I am not happy with but it is not failing which for me in a science class is a good thing. The average score for all of my professor's classes on the lecture test was 64 and on the lab test was 54....so I am above average. But, I am still not happy about it. I have been spending more hours reading and studying since these tests and I am incorporating some new techniques into my studying so we will see how it goes. Yesterday in lab, we dissected a fetal pig which was pretty interesting and I felt like I understood it all. Next lecture test will probably be a week from Tuesday and I'm not sure when the next lab test is.....but I already know it will have over 150 questions. Sheesh !!

HMMMMM : Teacher Fighting For Job

FRISCO, Texas -- An award-winning teacher in Frisco is fighting for her job after an approved field trip to a Dallas museum has upset parents.

Fisher Elementary school art teacher Sydney McGee came under fire last April when she took 89 fifth graders on a field trip to the Dallas Museum of Art. Parents raised concerns over the field trip after their children reported seeing a nude sculpture at the art museum.
The parents had signed permission slips allowing their children to take part in the field trip.

Now, McGee, who was honored with a Star Teacher Award two years ago, is on paid administrative leave until her contact with the school district expires in March.

Other parents are worried about the future of the art program at the school, which they cite as a reason for moving into the neighborhood.

"Our main concern right now is what's going to happen to the children and what's going to happen to the art program at Fisher Elementary. It is the best art program. That's the reason we moved to this neighborhood. It's because of the teachers," said Shannon Allen, parent. "It was a principal approved trip. What's the big deal."

Officials with the Frisco school district declined to comment on the matter.

I just think this is ALL kinds of wrong. This award-winning teacher took her students on a field-trip that was approved by the school and she was granted permission from each individual student's parent. It is an art museum. There might be nude paintings, sculptures, etc. If you didn't want your kid to go or had concerns, that was your choice.....but she should not be losing her job over this when everyone approved.

Am I wrong ?

Pictures

First : HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TOM !!!!! LOVE YOU !!!!!!

I must start carrying my camera with me everywhere. I need to find a winter purse that has some kind of pocket for it. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday I have class from 8:00a - 10:00a - due to parking, I try to get to campus at 7:00a. I bring some milk and a granola bar with me for breakfast and I listen to news radio and eat breakfast until class time. Today I left my car at about 7:30a to walk into the building and as I walked thru the parking lot I must have passed at least 3 cars with people sleeping in them. And I don't mean, leaning back in the seat resting their eyes....I mean SLEEPING. One girl was in the back seat of her car with a blanket and pillow. One was in the passenger seat fully reclined back with a blanket. What does this mean ?? Do they live in their cars ?? Are they getting a good parking space for a 10:00a class or an afternoon class and they are just sleeping until then ?? Wednesday I am taking my camera and then you can be the judge.

Celebrities.....

First of all, I went Friday and got yet ANOTHER cable box and all seems to be working OK now. I am fianlly able to see the guide and record two shows at once. Hurray !

I just wanted to make this short post....I was watching Jay Leno the other night, Friday I think, and Calista Flockhart was on. You may or may not know her, she was on Ally McBeal and she is dating/married to Harrison Ford AKA Indiana Jones. Anyway......Jay was asking her what her 5-year old son Liam liked to play with, etc. He asked her if he liked Legos to which she replied "What are Legos?" - this is why no celebrity child can have a 'normal' childhood.

And the conspiracy continues......

...so, yesterday I went to the TIME-WARNER store to trade in my single-tuner DVR for a double-tuner DVR. This change is so that I can tape one show while watching another, just FYI. I come home with the new tuner and plug it all in. It plugs in a little different than the old one so I call the cable company to make sure I have it right. I do.

Now, the way it hooks up, my TV has to be on VIDEO1 in order to watch cable....which means everytime I turn the TV off and back on I have to change the TV to VIDEO1.....I don't like that.

Secondly, I turn it all on and the on-screen guide is BLANK. Everything says TO BE ANNOUNCED and the time on the screen says 12:00m. I think nothing of this and am sure that it just needs some time to update after being hooked up. I wait one hour. Same thing. I call the cable people, again, they ask me to turn it all off and they are going to send a signal, wait 15 minutes. I wait 20 minutes. Same thing. I call again, now they are sending a stronger signal, wait 30 minutes. I wait an hour. Same thing. I leave everything off and go to school. I get home, same thing. I call again. They have me do a 'cold boot up'. Same thing. They talk to a level 2 technician. He asks if it still says 12:00m. I say yes. He says, the box is defective, you'll have to get a new one.

And the conspiracy continues......

Cable conspiracy.......

.....I swear if it is not one thing it is another with this new cable company. So, for those of you that don't know.....I did not get DISH Network at my new apartment because my apartment complex charges an additional $300.00 for a deposit if you have a satellite. Which to me is just flat out wrong. First of all, they require you to have like $50,000.00 of renters insurance before you can get it. So, why a deposit ?? If anything happens, that is why I have insurance.....and you can't tell me that a couple of screw holes in the balcony railing requires a $300.00 deposit, come on. Well, I have yet to give in.....but, I am getting close.

So, I have TIME-WARNER cable....which means, I can only have cable in my living room, not my bedroom because there is no cable outlet in there. It also means I have no SoapNet which I'm not happy about. And, then there is yesterday.....yesterday at some early hour, TIME-WARNER decided to change it's cable channel line-up ... so basically what was on channel 15 is now on channel 5, etc. So, everything I had set to record yesterday, recorded something else. Not to mention, all future recordings I had set up were now all jacked-up.

Then, while looking on their website, I see that their DVRs [digital-video records] of which I have one....are supposed to be what they call dual tuners, meaning you can record one show while watching another.....or record two shows at once. Well, guess what, mine isn't !!! So, I call customer service about it and they apologize and really have no explanation as to why I got a single tuner. So, now I either have to wait for 2 weeks for them to come swap it out or I can take mine to one of their centers to swap it out.

Enough already.......feel free to mail me donations to the 'TRACY WANTS DISH NETWORK FUND' to help defray the costs of the $300.00 deposit.

I'm back.....

First of all, I must say :

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU !!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU !!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR JOEY !!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU !!

Also,

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, JOLYNN AND SAM !!!!

So, my week......busy. School and work keep me very busy every day. I am always running from here to there and back again. I manage to get in at least one trip each week to the No Frills Grill thank goodness, where would I be without my trivia. Ha ha !! I finally unpacked the last box in my apartment which seemed to take forever. You never have the same kind of place to put something that you had in your old place. The extra storage on the patio has been a blessing and I am finally organized. I'm happy because living out of boxes and having a busy schedule were tiring.

My company just hired a bunch more people to be home based employees. I am looking forward to working with some of my former co-workers from First American Payment Systems and Encore Payment Systems. After a great review last week, everything is going well on the job front which is very nice.

Lastly, just a comment.....I was walking out of a CVS pharmacy the other day and a man was walking in. He had this white t-shirt on with a BIG picture of Mickey Mouse - so you know it caught my eye - and then in the upper right corner it said "Las Vegas". Now, what on earth does Las Vegas have to do with Mickey Mouse and vice-versa !!?? Nothing. Do not put pictures of Mickey Mouse on shirts from states/cities that have nothing to do with Disney ! Please.

That is all.

I REMEMBER - RAYMOND R YORK

2996 is a coalition of bloggers brought together by D.Challener Roe to pay tribute to the lives of the victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. You can find a list of participants and tributes here.

I am remembering forty-five year old Raymond R. York who was a 20-year veteran of the New York Fire Department. He is survived by his wife - Joan and their four children.

From the New York Times :

"He Always Was My Hero"

Raymond R. York spent nearly two decades fighting blazes and loving the New York Fire Department when a shoulder injury 18 months ago forced him into light duty. But he found a second calling, teaching children about fire safety at the Fire Zone at Rockefeller Center. There, he was "Fireman Ray" to the youngsters whom he captivated.

But on Tuesday, he learned of the World Trade Center attack from a television crew that was doing a story on the Fire Zone, jumped onto a nearby fire truck and headed downtown. After traffic held him up, he hitched a ride on an ambulance and reached the Fire Department's command post at the trade center.

"We're so proud and we just want everybody to know what a great guy Ray was," his wife, Joan, said. "Everybody's saying, 'He's a hero, he's a hero.' He always was my hero. Now the world knows he's a hero."

She described her husband as a man in love with life, a man who insisted on flying the flag. "He was a Little League coach, he was a scout leader — when it came to his kids, he was there for everything," she said. That included building an ice skating rink in the backyard of their Valley Stream, N.Y., home when his son, one of four children, wanted to learn how to skate.

---Profile published in THE NEW YORK TIMES on September 17, 2001.


From the Chicago Tribune :

"Raymond R. York"

Raymond York, a 20-year veteran of the New York Fire Department, had every reason not to be in harm's way Tuesday. The 45-year-old husband and father of four had been placed on light duty with a shoulder injury and was giving a TV interview at Rockefeller Center when he saw the first airliner strike the World Trade Center on the camera crew's television. York headed for the scene, hopping on an ambulance. He had just reached the fire command post when Tower Two collapsed. York is presumed dead. "He saw that this had happened and he couldn't sit still," said York's mother-in-law, Rosemary Abruzzino.Abruzzino said her son-in-law had a passion for life, his family and his job. "I know people say only good things about people after they die, but in his case, we don't have to embellish anything," she said. "He was a great man and a tremendous father to his children." Among York's interests was kayaking, and he had planned a trip Wednesday. He had started a kayaking club for firefighters and dubbed it "Blazing Paddles."

- Liam Ford (The Chicago Tribune)

( picture courtesy of RaymondYork.i8.com)

A Fireman's Prayer

When I am called to duty, God, whenever flames may rage;
Give me strength to save some life, whatever be its age.

Help me embrace a little child before it is too late
Or save an older person from the horror of that fate.

Enable me to be alert and hear the weakest shout,
And quickly and efficiently to put the fire out.

I want to fill my calling and to give the best in me.
To guard my every neighbor and protect his property.

And if, according to my fate, I am to lose my life;
Please bless with your protecting hand, my children and my wife.

Additional Tributes to Raymond R York

http://raymondyork.i8.com/

http://www.legacy.com/GB/GuestbookView.aspx?PersonId=93194
(great comments and thoughts by family and friends)

Saturday night and some memories.....

Last night Charles and I went to the first home game of the TCU football season in Fort Worth. It was alot of fun. They played UC-Davis and TCU won 43-16. We stayed for the whole game and it was a super nice evening out weather-wise. The entire place was a sea of purple and if we go again, I think I am going to have to get a purple shirt to wear....as if I don't already have a million. Here are a couple of pictures from my seat of the game and the half-time band performance [taken with my camera phone] :

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Tomorrow is the anniversary of 09/11 and I, along with thousands of other bloggers, will be posting a memorial post to a specific victim of that day and as part of my tribute I will leave it as my headline post all next week. So, no updates until next weekend.

I wanted to take a minute today to post my own remembrance of that day. I had been in NY the day before it happened, at LaGuardia airport on my way back from Providence, RI with my brother. We had been visiting Johnson and Wales Culinary school trying to decide if Joey wanted to go there or to the one in South Carolina. We had arrived back in Texas on the evening of September 10th.

The morning of September 11th, I got up, earlier than normal, to take my brother to the airport because he was flying home, from Texas back to Florida....Tampa to be exact. I dropped him off at the airport early and watched until his flight took off.....and then I went to work.....at American Airlines. I remember sitting in my office when one of my co-workers came in and asked me if I had any pliers [I worked in tech support] - he needed them to try and change the channel on the TV in the conference room because he had heard that a commuter plane had crashed into a building in NY. I didn't have any.

You all know the events that unfolded after that, so there is no need to recap. But, in addition to the events we all went through, I can remember waiting and waiting so that I could call and talk to my brother. Watching the clock as his landing time in Tampa approached and being scared to death. Even now, tears come to my eyes just thinking about it. It was one of the happiest moments of my life when I finally talked to him as he made his way in the Tampa airport to get his luggage. He still has his boarding pass from that flight.

Everyone has a memory of that day, what they were doing and where they were and I hope everyone takes a few moments of silence tomorrow to remember. And, if you've bought a new car in the last 5 years or your American flag sticker on your car is faded, buy a new one and remember that no matter how horrible that day was, it was also a day when a nation united as one, the way we always do and always will.

God Bless America !

My car does trigonometry

Who knew ? Today in trig we were doing story problems - yuk ! - and we learned that there is actually something you learn in trig that is used in real life. It has to do with the rotation of your tires and the size of your tires which determine how far you go in miles. And, did you know that all odometers are based on standard 24" tires ... so if you change your tires out to something larger, then your odometer is never accurate going forward. Your car may think you've gone 1.0 mile when you've actually gone 1.2 miles......CRAZY !

Everyone have a great weekend !

Rest In Peace - Steve Irwin

For the last 24 hours, my thoughts have been on the untimely death of Steve Irwin. It's weird, actually. I don't really watch his show with any regularity and I never saw his movie. But, if you even saw him once, any human being would feel the loss. He was so alive.

So, my heartfelt sympathies go out to his wife and children, to his endless number of fans and to the animals he loved and protected every day. His absence will be felt by the planet.

Rest in peace, Steve Irwin.

Steve Irwin with his wife Terri and children, Bob and Bindi, on stage at his Australia Zoo at Beerwah, Queensland, in 2004

School Update

So, apparently, everyone needs a school update. Week one is over. Hurray !

It's gonna be tough.

The two classes I have on M, W & F mornings are going to be OK.....one is Trigonometry and one is Applied Mathematics....both are my favorite subject and I think with a little work here and there, they will be a breeze.

Now, Biology is another story. HARD. First of all, it is for science MAJORS, which I am not, technically. Lecture, two nights a week.....lab [3 hours] once a week. Lots of reading, lots of studying......5 tests in lecture, 3 in lab......HARD. My lab instructor says that the average lab scores are 65 on every test and only once has someone scored higher than a 92 on a lab test and that was someone taking the class for the 3rd time......YIKES ! Also, she says the professor that writes the tests [my lecture professor] tries to give all possible mistake answer choices on the test...in other words, he figures out how you might mis-calculate and puts that answer as a choice.

Bottom line.....I have finished getting out of the old apartment....and after tomorrow [crossing fingers] I will be totally un-packed in the new apartment. I have 2 work related things on Wednesday and Thursday this week - my days off - grrrrrrrrr. And then, I'm all work and school, nothing else.

I think I can. I think I can. I know I can.

P.S. Tom, I decided I needed a seperate folder/notebook for lab/lecture in biology....so you'll be pleased to know that the notebook/folder for lecture is now green and the lab is yellow.

Things you may not know about me......

You don't have to reply and give me your "four things" but you can if you want.

Four jobs I have had:
1. Revco Drug Store
2. McDonald'se
3. Allen's Ace Hardware
4. American Airlines, Inc.
Four Movies I have watched over and over:
1. Legally Blonde
2. You've Got Mail
3. While You Were Sleeping
4. Two Weeks Notice
Four places I have lived:
1. Long Beach, CA
2. Germantown, TN
3. Charleston, SC
4. Commerce, TX
Four TV shows I love to watch:
1. Law and Order : SVU
2. 24
3. The Closer
4. Psych
Four places I have been on vacation:
1 Disney World, FL
2 Las Vegas, NV
3 Toronto, CN
4 Branson, MO
Four of my favorite foods:
1. Crawfish Etouffee
2. French Fries
3. Pizza
4. Mexican Food
Four places I would rather be right now:
1. With my mom, dad and brother
2. With my sister and her family
3. Disney World
4. At the movies

Now, you know a little more about me.

Check it....

....check out my new profile pic over to the right. LOL !!!

HMMMMM : Teaching the dog to drive

A woman in Hohhot, the capital of north China's Inner Mongolia region, crashed her car while giving her dog a driving lesson, the official Xinhua News Agency said Monday.

No injuries were reported although both vehicles were slightly damaged, it said.

The woman, identified only be her surname, Li, said her dog "was fond of crouching on the steering wheel and often watched her drive," according to Xinhua.

"She thought she would let the dog 'have a try' while she operated the accelerator and brake," the report said. "They did not make it far before crashing into an oncoming car."

Xinhua did not say what kind of dog or vehicles were involved but Li paid for repairs.

OMG !

2:05p - It's raining !

2:12p - It stopped and now it's sunny and muggier than hell.

Drat !

All moved in !

Well, the move is over and thanks to JoLynn, Sam, Lewis and Eddie, I am now surrounded in my home-office, living room and kitchen by about 50 boxes that all need unpacking. Hurray !

I slept pretty good last night.....had a hard time going to sleep.....new place and all. But, now I am up and at work. Today should be slow at work so I am going to try and get as much done as possible today....because the next time I will have time to work on un-packing is Wednesday. I don't have cable over here yet so no Emmy's for me tonight. I was going to go somewhere to watch them but now I have decided to just stay home and work on the apartment instead. I can find out who won on the internet tomorrow.

School starts tomorrow and life gets busy....I'll try to give you the scoop on teachers later this week once I've met everyone.

I'm just saying.......

So I am talking to my sister about the move tomorrow and the guys that are helping me move, God bless them......

Tracy says:
i am going to get some gatorade and water to have for them
JoLynn says:
good idea
JoLynn says:
and styrofoam cups for spitting
Tracy says:
gross
Tracy says:
I am totally blogging that request
JoLynn says:
yes - but styrofoam the bottom won't wear out
JoLynn says:
like it does in paper cups
Tracy says:
double-gross
JoLynn says:
and they won't stain your regular cups
Tracy says:
triple-gross

HMMMMM : Iguana Boom

A Southwestern Florida community facing a reptile overpopulation problem is taking drastic measures.

Residents in Lee County said they are being overrun with iguanas.

There are so many of them that the County Commission has decided not to protect the lizards so people can get rid of them.

Commissioners voted Tuesday night to allow Lee County residents to use any means necessary to reduce the iguana population.

Officials said iguanas outnumber people on Gasparilla Island 10 to 1.

The best part about this is that I actually witnessed this while I was on my vacation in Florida back in May.....we went to Gasparilla Island and there were a BUNCH of Iguanas and we talked about the whole issue. Now it's national news......crazy.

School days, school days......

......good 'ole golden rule days. Oooops, that's my dad's song. By the way, dad, if you want to call and sing to me on Monday, you need to do it around 7:30a your time.

So - what is the school plan......here is the schedule :

This probably looks pretty daunting, but the thing is, I'm really trying to get this done. As of a couple of weeks ago, I was only taking 6 hours...basically, M, W, F 8:00a -10:00a and to be honest it just didn't seem like enough. So, now I have added a class on T, TH nights from 6:00p - 7:30p - it is a Biology class and it has a lab on Thursday afternoon. Now, I have 10 hours, which seems like maybe a lot, but I decided that I need to just COWBOY UP and get on with it. I can still get a Saturday off if I need to but my visiting with the Abilene gang will be limited over the next 3 1/2 months and we're just going to have to deal with that.

Oh, and I'm sure some of you have been dying to know what colors [folders, notebooks, etc.] I am using for this semester so here is the rundown :

Trigonometry : Red
Applied Mathematics : Hot Pink
Biology : Yellow

Wish me luck !!

What is wrong with me.....

.....I haven't blogged in FOREVER. My apologies to the faithful readers, you know who you are. ::wink:: Let's see, what's going on with me.....?? This may be a long one.

So, I did move my office over to the new apartment with much appreciated help from my friend Charles....it was proof positive that I need to lose weight and that I am old. Hmpf. But, with one phone call to AT&T, my DSL was up and running and the office was ready to go.

Basically, the rest of my days off were spent with errands. I did move some more stuff over to the apartment but not as much as I had planned. It is just so HOT here that it wears me out walking up and down stairs in the middle of the day. I think we are on day 15 of over 100 degree temps. Yikes.

So, I worked Friday thru yesterday and each day I brought something over to my apartment. Yesterday was pantry food and refrigerator food, so all of that is over here now. I'll probably move my microwave over here tomorrow....but most of tomorrow will be spent packing everything that is left so that everything I own is IN A BOX by the end of the day Friday.

As I've mentioned before, the big move is Saturday, probably starting around 11:30a and hopefully ending quickly since I have LOTS of awesome help. I'm fortunate that I have so much support so that I didn't have to hire someone to move me. The financial changes of living on my own are going to be a struggle at first so every little bit helps.

So, today is my normal day off but I am working for a co-worker who is then going to work for me on Saturday so I can supervise the move but I am off tomorrow as usual.

I'm going to try and log on tomorrow some time to give you a school update which starts on Monday.....some changes to what some of you know about so look for that too.

Until then .... ciao !

By the way.....

....I am still not biting my fingernails. Yay me !!

HMMMMM : New Blog Feature

While working, I frequently search the news sites for news and current events. It never fails that I run into something as ridiculous as this in my daily trek thru the news sites. From now on when I see one of these I will be headlining it in my blog under HMMMMM :

A woman is suing the J.C. Penney Co. after an alleged run-in with a store mannequin that she says left her with a cracked tooth, a bloodied head and recurring shoulder pain.

Diana Newton, 51, of Westminster sued the Texas-based retailer last month in Orange County Superior Court, claiming she was cracked in the head by a legless female dummy at its Westminster Mall store.

Newton said the incident happened nearly a year ago in the women's department, as she was shopping for a blouse. The only one in her size was on the mannequin. As a salesclerk was removing the garment, the dummy's arm flew off and struck Newton's head, according to her lawsuit.

"I felt a burning sensation," she recalled.

Paramedics treated her bleeding scalp at the scene. Newton drove herself home, then had someone take her to a hospital for further treatment.

The blow also cracked a molar, which led to a root canal, she said.

The suit seeks unspecified damages.

A spokeswoman for J.C. Penney said the company doesn't comment on pending litigation.

My "weekend" plans......

So, my two days off start tomorrow.....I started my laundry on Sunday and finally got it finished yesterday morning so no laundry to do. Basically, I will be finalizing installations of services at my new apartment and will probably actually move some stuff over there tomorrow. Fragile stuff like plants, pictures, etc. Also, in the afternoon tomorrow, I am moving my OFFICE over there. I have my DSL modem from SBC and my phone over there is now on, so I figured it would be good to move my office over on my days off before the real move and get everything up and running. And, then starting Friday, I will go over to the new apartment to work and come back to the current apartment for sleeping, etc.

Of course, there will be a WalMart run sometime in the next two days also. I don't really need much stuff, milk, butter, some lunch meat.....but I will be getting a few things for the apartment like a new shower curtain, ice trays, etc. And, I do plan to have a lunch with my friend Eric on Thursday.

All in all, a good two days off. Probably won't be on the computer much other than when I set it up tomorrow so have a good Wednesday/Thursday and I'll be back at the end of the week.

All about me, Monday !

So, my sister put this on her blog to see what her friends knew about her and I thought I'd try it on my blog....now, if you want to answer, you'll have to figure out how to comment on my blog. Go on, try it....the blog won't bite. Hi-light the questions below, select EDIT, COPY .. then click on comments.... select EDIT, PASTE and then answer the questions....you can do it !! And, let's see how well you know me.

Your name:
Where did we meet:
Take a stab at my middle name:
Do I believe in God:
How long have you known me:
Do I smoke:
What was your first impression of me upon meeting:
Color of my eyes:
Do I have any siblings:
What's one of my favorite things to do:
Do you remember one of the first things I said to you:
What's my favorite type of music:
What is the best feature about me:
Am I shy or outgoing:
Am I a rebel or do I follow the rules:
What's your favorite memory of me:
Do I have any special talents?:
Would you consider me a friend:
If there was one good nickname for me, what would it be:
If you and I were stranded on a desert island, what one thing would I bring?

OK - answer away and don't cheat by reading other people's answers !

Have fun !

Belated birthday greeting, days off, new apartment....

Lots to talk about....this is a long one.

First of all, HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY to my friend Curtis. His birthday was yesterday and I didn't get on my computer at all yesterday so I didn't give his day the attention it deserved. Click on the GRAND MASTER CURTIS link to the right to send him a belated greeting.

So, days off happenings.......Wednesday, I got the keys to my new apartment so I went over there to check things out. Turns out I do have a fireplace [yuck] but I can deal with it. I just don't think when the temperature daily is 105 degrees, I can appreciate the need for a fireplace in Texas....even in the winter it is not that cold. Everything else looks great. It is smaller, no doubt about it, my place now is very big, but it will be nice and cozy once I get settled in. Ran some more errands on Wednesday and then met my friend Charles for a movie, MIAMI VICE. It was OK. I guess I tend to compare movies like that to Bad Boys or Die Hard or something action packed like that and this one was good but not as action packed as I would have liked. I am experiencing some kind of random insomnia lately so when I got home, try as I might, my uncooperative blue eyes would not close until 4:15am. Grrrrr.

Thursday, I got up [after about 4 1/2 hours of sleep] and went to Half Price Books to sell back some more books that I had come across in my random packing efforts. While I was there I was wandering around and came across what I thought was the textbook for one of my classes. I was thrilled. I asked them to hold it for me so I could confirm. After I got my money for my books, I went to meet my friend Alberto for lunch, it was great to see him. I haven't seen him in like 3 1/2 months. We had a talkative and yummy lunch and promised to make it a habit in the future. Then, off to the UTA bookstore and sure enough, it was the book. Woo hoo ! Went back to Half Price Books and bought it.....so, the book was $65.00 at the UTA bookstore and $5.98 at Half Price Books, what a bargain. Yeah me !! Home again, and then to color the hair, Loreal Preference Dark Golden Brown.....and of course, last night, we hit No Frills for dinner and trivia and then came home.

It was a busy and fun two days off. Another insomniac night put me to bed at 4:00am but I was up and ready to go when I got a call from my brother, Joey, at 8:20a. I have missed him soooo much, I can't even express it. I was trying to remember how long I have ever gone without talking to him and I can guarantee you that it was not anywhere near 28 days. So, I am thrilled to have him back at my beck and call......ha ha !

Whew.....a long one. Well, I was going to post some apartment pics, but the blogger picture uploader is not working [frown] so I will try again tomorrow. I am outta here, everyone have a great weekend.

Maria Rodriguez Update......

My cousin, Tom, posted a message back on the old Maria Rodriguez post I did in May....and it made me think it was time for the update I had promised you back then. As I predicted, the space below the stairs has changed......here are the original pictures I posted :

Well, here are two updated pictures from today :

So, this could be like a game - can you spot the changes. Let's see how many you can come up with......

Good Luck !

Arrgggh, matey !

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me .......


Well, FINALLY, I went and saw Pirates of the Caribbean : Dead Man's Chest the other night and it was awesome. As most of you know, I have been to Disney World in Florida more than 50 times and I can assure you, I have ridden the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at lease 100 times so I always enjoy the movie because believe it or not, there are many things in the movie that come directly from the ride. Most of them were in the first movie but I saw many in this one too, which is fun.

I'm on day 3 of my work week and I must say, again, working on the weekends is really not that bad. The call volume is lower [it's 9:00a on Sunday and I haven't taken a single call yet] and to be honest, I don't really do anything during the day anyway - too hot !

Three weeks until my big move to the new apartment. I'll be sending out new address info, etc. soon. I am looking forward to being a grown-up again and living on my own. If anyone wants to help with the move, it all happens on Saturday, August 26th around 12:00n. Bring your muscles or your truck or your dolly or whatever you've got and we'll get it done in no time. FREE burgers and beverages when we're done.

I'm working on a Maria Rodriguez update which should be up tomorrow....so stay tuned for that. Until then, ciao.

Thursday, ooops, I mean Monday.

I'm so confused....this is the 4th day of my work week, so I call it Thursday, but really it is Monday. Ummmm.....right. Anyway, the normal people's weekend is over and I work today and tomorrow and then start mine.

Well, as I mentioned before, JoLynn and I, mainly JoLynn, got about 75% of the apartment packed this weekend. And, now, I am done for a week or so until it gets closer. I probably wouldn't have packed this early since the move is a month away but when you have free labor you have to take advantage. ::wink::

Nothing exciting for this week. That's it......my boring life.

Back at work....and packing. Blech !

So, I kinda dig the two weekdays off thing. I was able to have lunch with a friend on Wednesday. Got some errands run, made a hair appointment for weekday in a couple of weeks, etc. It was nice. I'm sure when I am working all day tomorrow and Sunday I might think differently.....but I'm not sure. I don't really do anything that significant during the day on Saturday and Sunday.....and I am off at 5:00p in case I want to do anything in the evening. So, we'll see.

My sister came in yesterday, so she is here helping me pack my apartment. Of course, there are some things that have to stay unpacked until I actually move but there is plenty to be gone through and packed or tossed before the big day. And, yes, dad, we are tossing a lot. We have actually finished in the living room and have done about 3/4 of the kitchen. This afternoon and tomorrow will be entirely focused on my bedroom, bathroom and closet.....which is where 75% of my stuff is housed. Of course, I am working so I can only direct her and help a little in between calls but it seems to be going OK so far.

Mom and dad are doing well. They have been to see Joey twice, once on "visiting" day and then the other night for group therapy. I think the group thing will benefit all of them ... sounds like they had some good feedback from both sides . Everyone was emotional and honest...which is good. I'm looking forward to hearing more updates from them each time they see him. He wants mail, mail, mail.....so JoLynn and I went and bought a bunch of cards for him yesterday and will start sending them more often.

That's all I know for now.

New schedule

So, I haven't blogged in a few days. Nothing much really going on. I finally found an apartment so I have that all lined up. I know, I know, I waited until the last minute but I just didn't want to settle for something too quickly when there are so many choices out there. I ended up getting a really good deal that will help me transition from paying half of everything to paying everything so that is good. Plus, I am on the 2nd floor and in the back of the complex.....which meets all of my safety concerns. Of course, you can't have any certainty in this day and age that something won't happen to your car or your belongings but every little precaution helps. JoLynn and the kids are coming over this weekend to help me with going thru some of my stuff and slimming down my belongings before the move.

I started a new work schedule this week in preparation of school starting. So now I am working this crazy schedule :

Mon, Fri : 11:00a - 8:00p
Tue, Sat, Sun : 8:00a - 5:00p
Wed, Thu : days off

It's seems all over the place but it does accommodate my school schedule and that was the important thing. I would have like to have one weekend day off but I guess having two days in a row is good too.

Dad is doing good and finally got the OK to go back to work part-time which makes him happy. Mom and Dad went and saw Joey on Sunday and said he was looking well and wanted mail....ha ha ! I am still not biting my nails.....it is getting easier.

So for now, all is good.