This Week - May 31 - June 4, 2010

Monday, May 31, 2010


This morning I woke up ahead of the alarm clock and even got up before it went off.  In fact, I shut it off completely so that it wouldn't be sounding off while I was elsewhere.  I think I did remember to turn it back on later; I'll double check that tonight when I get home.  Anyway, I went on to get up and kick off the morning routine - except that instead of putting on dress pants and shoes, I went with jeans and tennis shoes.  I probably could've gotten away with a tee shirt, but I opted for a purple button up blouse with a white camisole underneath it.  


I had already finished eating breakfast and was in the bathroom getting finished up when my housemate got up - sometime after 6:00 AM.  She has the day off - a good thing since her daughter-in-law was expected.  When I left the house to head in to work, she said that she would probably be there about 11:00 AM and she woud stay for 2-3 hours since it's about  a 3-3 1/2 hour drive back to where she lives.


It was a quiet day at work after a couple of hiccups early in the day.  We got those items taken care of and things settled down.


Tuesday, June 1, 2010


Here we are again - at the start of a brand new month!  I left work around 6:50 PM last night and headed on home.  No need to stop at the post office since it was a holiday and there was no mail.  When I arrived at the house, the garage door was down, so I raised it and found my housemate's car was gone.  I pulled in and parked; since I figured she was probably at the fitness club, I left the door up.  


I went on in the house, after gathering my stuff, and back to my bedroom to drop it off.  I prepared supper and ate and was finished up by the time my housemate came back in.  She said that her daughter-in-law had been there for several hours - and she did a lot of work - and got her organized and the clutter cleaned out.  She said that her daughter-in-law left to return home around 4:00 PM.  I know she appreciated her daughter-in-law coming to help because of how cluttered things were and how she was stressing out about it.  


I showed her the printed pictures and she liked the ones I chose.  The poodle driving photos look so real - we both got another laugh out of them.  She was pleased with the rainbow photos.  


I didn't stay up real late last night.  I went on to bed.around 8:30 PM I guess it was.  I had a little trouble with Sukiey settling down.  


This morning the alarm went off before I was ready for it to.  I got up and kicked off the day; I took a shower and got dressed, then went on to have breakfast.  I was at the table eating and checking out the newspaper when my housemate came through the door.  She got Rusty's food and water ready for him and got her coffee made, then got the newspaper and went on back to her bedroom.  


I finished up getting ready and headed out and in to work.  It's been a decent day around here.  A co-worker came over and I showed her the photos and gave her the CDs I had copied for her, and a couple of friends.  She liked the pictures and thanked me for the CDs.


Later....


Wednesday, June 2, 2010


Good morning.....I left work at 3:00 PM and stopped by the post office on the way home.  I started to head to the window area in order to purchase a flat rate stamp; when I got there, I saw that the line was - as usual - backed up with only 2 of the 4 clerks working.  So, I didn't wait to make the purchase.  


I went on home; I raised the garage door and pulled in and parked, then lowered the door back down.  I keep it down when I'm "home alone"  and will be in the back of the house so as to make it more difficult for a "home invasion" to occur from that end - where I can't hear any activity when I'm in my bedroom.  I went on to my bedroom and dropped my gear and sat down on my bed [propped up] and tackled the mail.  


I went on to tend to a few issues, then get freshened up and ready to go out; I was just waiting on my housemate to stop by and pick me up.  I was standing in the kitchen looking out the window when she pulled into the driveway.  I hurried up and grabbed my purse and camera and went out to meet her and locked the door behind me. 


Instead, she parked her car and got out;  I was standing there at the car and she said that she wanted to freshen up and that we had plenty of time.  So, I went back in the house and waited for her.  After about 10 minutes, she reemerged from her bedroom.  She had chosen to change tops, while I had chosen to wear what I had worn to work.  We went back out to her car and headed out.  


We made our way to the Cock of the Walk Restaurant.  The EV2 meeting was due to begin at 6:00 PM.  Upon entering, we were ushered to one of their private rooms.  There was a large turnout; however, not all of the trainees and their family members/friends/prayer partners attended.  I didn't take a "headcount" but I'd guess we may have had 60 people there last night!  


One of the leaders was "emcee" of the proceedings.  He did the blessing of the gathering, then the servers were circulating delivering drink orders that had been taken and taking meal orders.  Drinks were served in tin cups.  At our table, it was my housemate and myself, along with a couple that we both know.  The 3 of them ordered fish; I had to be different and order chicken.  After all, I'm from Louisiana - and we're known for being different, since we had to have parishes, not counties, for example!  


While we were waiting, after the orders were taken, I got up and went around the room and got pictures of the people at each of the tables.  When I was doing that, another leader told me that he was going to get a group picture before leaving. 


It didn't take all that long for the food to arrive - a platter of fish, hush puppies and fries to be shared by the others; a plate of chicken, hush puppies and fries for me.  Our plates were metal - tin - plates.  There were sides - cornbread served in a skillet, turnip greens, onions, coleslaw and I think something else, but I can't remember what it was.  Everyone ate and had fellowship around their tables; then as the bills were arriving, one leader got up and was joined by 2 more guys - they were the leaders of EV2 this semester.  


One of them called out the names of the participants who were to "graduate" - several were not in attendance, including Stan - our Senior Pastor - who is on a vacation trip to Paris and London with his family [his wife, kids, his parents, his brother and his family].  As he called the name of the "graduate" they came forward and stood with the other two for a picture after receiving their certificate and pin.  I took individual photos of them.  Once all of those present had received their certificate, we had them to gather as a group and  I both took a group photo.   


Then that leader asked that all participants this semester come forward so that we could get a group photo.  He, of course, needed to be in the picture.  So, he set his camera for me, then put it down on the barrel in the middle of the room, then went and joined the group for the picture. I took a couple of shots with my camera, then told everyone to hold it, put mine down on the barrel, and picked his camera up and got a couple of shots with his for him.  


At that point, our emcee made an announcement of when the next "Share Your Faith" workshop will be [a Saturday] and that the following Saturday, Stan will be leading the church staff in a SYF workshop and that the staff will be going out on visits with the EV2 crowd when the semester starts.  After this announcement, he dismissed us.  


It was around 7:30 PM.  When we had entered the restaurant, the weather was dry, but it was looking like a thunderstorm was imminent.  Well, for most the 90 minutes that we were there, we had been on the receiving end of a thunderstorm - it was thundering and lightning, then that calmed down and it was just heavy rain.  My housemate and I commented to each other about Rusty and if this was going on at home, he was probably having a conniption fit, although hopefully he realized neither of us were at home and he got in his dog house and rode it out. One of our companions told us about a family member's dog who would go get in the bathtub!  My housemate told him that she puts Rusty in her bathroom when the weather is bad, but she's never seen him get over in the bathtub.  


The thunderstorm ended just in time for us to be leaving; when we exited the restaurant, she asked me if, since I had never been there before, I would like to look around.  I said yes, so we took a quick walk around the soggy grounds and I got some pictures of some of the ducks, including an unusual one - it had a red head and a black and white body!  She said it had been out there for years.


Then we headed for home and when we got there, and raised the garage door, we discovered that the garage had flooded some - though not as bad as we've seen.  We moved our cars out into the driveway and grabbed the brooms and swept the water out.  Then I pulled my car back in and she left to go to CVS to pick up some stuff.  


I had changed clothes and was on the phone with my aunt when she returned.  She was sharing some family news with me.  When I got off of the call, I shared it with my housemate.  


After taking a shower and getting dressed this morning, I went out to the kitchen and started preparing breakfast, then went and retrieved the newspaper.  I was at the table eating and reading when my housemate came through around 6:00 AM.  She had the attitude of "it's morning again already?!" and I shared her sentiment.  


I finished up, cleaned up behind myself, then went to finish readying for work; she got her coffee and headed back to her bedroom.  I got finished up and gathered my stuff, loaded the car and headed in to work.  


A co-worker and I went walking earlier - we went for a substantial walk, then stopped in at a local restaurant and she got a diet lemonade; I didn't have any money on me - I had left my wallet here in the Center on purpose - so I didn't get anything.  I saw where they're on FaceBook, so when I got back, I logged in and found their page and "liked" them!  


I have done a Google search for the digital camera that I have and found that they are available; the camera itself has been discontinued.  I called Radio Shack in DeVille Plaza a few minutes ago and they carry USB cables for cameras; the person I spoke with said that I would need to bring my camera in so that they can match the correct cable to my camera.  I want to purchase a spare cable to carry with me in the future.  


My co-worker and I went walking again this afternoon - we went down and walked about 4 laps in an air conditioned corridor.  Supposedly that means that we walked more than a mile!  I'm trying to get back into the walking habit and am trying to drag her with me. 


Later....


Thursday, June 3, 2010


Good morning!  My SS teacher did have outpatient surgery on his hand yesterday.  She said that he was planning to stay with his parents last night so they could keep an eye on him in case he had any issues to come up.  


She asked me to send out an e-mail to the class to let everyone know that he had undergone outpatient surgery on his hand and asked me to also share about another member's mother having surgery on her leg, which was broken in an accident on Tuesday.  As soon as I got a few quiet minutes, I did exactly that.  


I left work at 7:00 PM and headed out and stopped to see about getting a spare USB cable for my camera.  Well, the guy I dealt with found a cable that was the right size - it fit my camera, that is, but when we connected the camera to one of their store display laptops and I turned the power to the camera on, it wouldn't work - the usual message to begin the upload didn't come up.  We looked at the picture of the cable that I had printed and brought in; it was determined that there's something about the cable that I already have that is different from the one he found for me in the store.  So, it appears that if I want to get a spare USB cable, I'm going to have to order it from Samsung.


I went on home without buying the cable and when I got there, the garage door was up and my housemate's car was inside.  I went on in the house after pulling in, parking and gathering my stuff.  I found that she was in the den watcing TV and Rusty was in the house too.  


She had cooked last night; she had me to fix myself a plate.  I had a couple of pieces of chicken breast and veggies plus toast.  After eating and cleaning up behind myself, I went and changed to shorts and soon after got ready for bed, but before going on to bed, I sat down at the computer and connected the camera and uploaded the photos from Cock of the Walk on Tuesday.  I uploaded them to a folder on my flash drive [I had retrieved it from my purse] and saved them.  There were 27 photos in all.


Once this was done, I disconnected the flash drive and put it back in my purse.  Then I went on to start a backup through my Norton Security Suite.  I went on to bed with the backup running.  


Around 12:45 AM I woke up with a massive headache; I got up and went to the bathroom and got Ibuprofen [the only thing that works for me once I actually have the headache; if I can catch it as it's coming on, Tylenol will work] and took 3 [I've been told by a doctor that this is okay] and then went back to bed.  Not long after, I went back to sleep and when I woke up again, about 4:50 AM, the headache was gone.


I got up before the alarm went off and turned it off so that it wouldn't sound.  Then I kicked off my workday routine.  After taking a shower and getting dressed, I headed for the kitchen.  My housemate wasn't up yet, so I tried to be quiet.  Rusty didn't bark when I raised the garage door, retrieved the newspaper and then lowered the door back down.  I was surprised.  I was already eating breakfast and checking out the newspaper when she came through.  She asked how I was doing and I told her better than I was earlier and told her about the headache issue.  


I went on to finish up breakfast and clean up behind myself.  She made her coffee and went to her bedroom to start getting ready for work.  I went on and finished up getting ready, gathered my stuff and headed out and in to work


I'll have to continue later....


Friday, June 4, 2010


Good morning!   Yesterday I left work in the mid-afternoon since it was my "short day".  I went on to stop at the post office and pick up the mail when I left, en route home. When I got here, of course the garage door was down.  I raised it and pulled in and parked.  As I was approaching the driveway I had seen that both garbage cans and the recycle bin were on the curb.  I intended to take the garbage out before I left, but I wasn't sure what stuff my housemate wanted hauled out and decided that since she was in her bedroom getting ready, I should just leave it alone so that I didn't take the wrong stuff out.  She had some bags and a box in the garage that I thought were garbage, but I wanted to make sure before throwing them out!


When I parked the car, I went on out to the curb and retrieved a garbage can and the recycle bin and brought them back in the garage and put them where they go, then went and got the other garbage can and brought it in.  I lowered the garage door and came on in the house after that.  I put my stuff in my bedroom and went back and had lunch.  Then I changed to a pair of shorts and went and laid down for awhile and took a nap.  I turned the TV on to watch the news after I woke up.  


She came in, changed and left again without me seeing her.  I went on to go have supper and then returned to my bedroom and was watching an ESPNU replay of the 2009 College World Series Championship - LSU v. Texas - which I already knew LSU had won by a final of 11-4 when she returned.  She had been to the fitness club and then had gone to do some grocery shopping.  


When we both "shut down" for the night, I climbed into bed and grabbed Rove's book and did some reading till I was sleepy, then got myself ready and went on to bed and to sleep.  


I woke up about 7:45 AM and padded out to the kitchen just before she was leaving for work.  She left and I went on to have breakfast and read the newspaper; by then it was around 9:00 AM.  I hit the shower and got dressed.  I had decided that I wouldn't make a special trip Downtown to pick up my Mediflex check - instead I'll get it on Monday and then at lunch I'll go to the bank with it.  


I left the house and headed to Wal*Mart.  I decided to go grocery shopping there instead of at Kroger.  My logic was that I needed some things that Kroger doesn't carry, so if I would have to make a trip to Wal*Mart to get those, I might as well do all of my shopping while I was there.  I know you're not a big fan of Wal*Mart; I don't shop there a whole lot myself.  


In Wal*Mart I got my exercise - taking my time going around the store after the items I needed.  I wanted some tank tops and wound up having to settle for a pack of them out of the men's department because I couldn't find any from the women's area.  I prefer the tank tops to camisoles as I like to wear my blouses unbuttoned - I'm more comfortable that way - and the camisoles don't cover what they need to for my liking.  I got a pack of 3 in different shades of blue [Fruit of the Loom].  


I also solved the issue of the camera cable.  No - I didn't find a cable that will work with my camera.  Instead, I found they had memory card readers that will plug into the USB port with no cable needed.  These were $8.00 and they are compatible with my memory card [SDHC].  I got one of those.  


Then I went on to do some grocery shopping and got what I needed.  When I finally checked out, after using a couple of coupons, believe it or not, I spent exactly $77.00!  I was like "how did that happen?!" - meaning to wind up spending an even dollar amount [no cents].  


When I left the store and started heading to the car, it was starting to rain some.  I had taken the precaution of bringing my LSU umbrella with me when I headed in to the store earlier.  So, I put it up and made my way to the car and unloaded the buggy.  Then, I made my way on home and got the car unloaded and the groceries put away.  


It did rain somewhat heavy on me on the way home, but I knew that I had the garage to unload in once I got here.  It seemed to slack up, though, by the time I got here.  I'm going to pause for now and go fix myself something for lunch.


Later.....