Thoughts on on Rainy Day

Today has lent itself to a pensiveness that I haven't had for awhile. It's Memorial Day and the sky is gray and it's raining. It almost demands that the human race sit down and reflect on life. Take a look around, think about the past, and ponder on what has been learned. Or just ponder about life and where we are. It's not a time for guilt, just reflection.

Today, that's how I feel. I realized that I have been so busy running around pleasing people, that I left myself and my needs out. I haven't taken the time to make sure that I am living how I want to live. I always have a project or something that my mind dwells on and perceived pressure from outside forces. Fortunately this holiday break has given me a much needed extra day. A day free from typical housework and the cares of the job. Some down time to sit and think about something or nothing, just a chance to let my brain and mind relax and go where it will.

It feels good. I feel at peace. I may not have all of my ducks in a row right now, but who cares. Does anyone really? And more importantly, is it really that big of a deal if you do? Does having everything in order make one happier? Or does it just leave less clutter to walk around on your way to a nervous breakdown? Something to think about. I believe that I am the one who puts the most pressure on myself. I learned a long time ago that as long as I'm right with the Lord, then nothing else really matters. Yes, I still have to go on living, I have to hold down a job and make sure there is a roof over my head, but no one else's opinion really matters if I'm square with the Lord. That's the lesson that I seem to forget and have to relearn, or at least remember.

We are all divine creatures. We are children of God. If we are on His side, what have we to fear? Is the world going to come crashing down if you miss a few dishes in the sink or don't get a project done quite on time? Hardly.

A Shout Out

I would like to take this moment and give a shout out to all my people in St. Louis. David and I have been here for the last week and have done a bit of catching up with people. For those of you who don't know, St. Louis is where I served my mission many moons ago. So, here it goes:

To Lisa for putting up with us that first night and for being you! It was so fun to chat, I really had no idea that Dale could talk that much! Loved it!

To Pennylu for being you! Congratulations on your marriage and being as wonderful as ever! David now knows why I think the world of you.

To Laura and family, so dang fun!! Thanks for dinner, the laughs, the dogs, the kids, and an all around good time. IHOP will never be the same!

You are all in my prayers and I'm so blessed to have you as part of my life! Thank you and God Bless!

Speaking of taking your breath away

Okay, so I think I have figured out why David and I haven't been blessed with children yet. I think it's me. I think that deep down inside, my body knows that should I become "with child", that means I would be required to have my blood drawn periodically.

"Big deal" you say! And I return with a hearty, "You bet your booty it's a big deal!" And here's why.

K, so I had to go into the women's center to have my blood sugar levels tested among other things. Having my blood drawn is quite the ordeal for me. It's not that I'm queasy about getting poked and watching that tube fill up with my blood, it's the number of times that I get poked. Here's how it goes.

First they try the right arm, the vein disappears and they say "that's odd" and then try the left arm. Same thing happens and they go for the vein on the backside of my right hand, followed by my left hand. And it's not as if they are gentle with me either. David actually came with me for moral support (and as it turns out physical support as well) and he said it looked like they were having a mini sword fight with something underneath my skin as they tried to find and keep a hold of my vein.

Really it was the 5th time that got me. They asked if I was okay, I told them before we started the ordeal that when I start to sweat that means I would pass out. I started to sweat with the 3rd poke but they kept on going. (I now have 3 nurses surrounding me considering whether or not to tackle me from both sides at once, perhaps they can sneak up on the vein and suck the blood out before it gets away). At the 5th poke I went out like a light (that's where David came in for physical support).

"Tragic!" you say, not really, when I pass out the pain stops. I really find it quite pleasant and relaxing... until they wake me up. I really hate it when they do that, it just makes me upset. The real tragedy is that they don't know if they were able to get enough blood to run the test!

That's the end of my story. As a reward for survival, I got a Jamba Juice... Raspberry.

My Dad

There are many many reasons why I love my Dad. One of them is his love for Harley's. For as long as I can remember, he has always wanted a Harley, but I've always wanted a million dollars, that doesn't mean I'm going to get it.

Well my Dad's dream finally came true and he now owns two Harleys. Not because he can afford them, but because he and mom figured that if they waited until they were completely out of debt to get one, Dad would be 80 and wouldn't be able to enjoy it. So, he got one.

The first one was sensible and fairly small. He was being frugal and paid for it all up front with mom's blessing. After a short time, it became obvious that my dad is a bit bigger and that the small bike just wasn't doing it for him. So, he went shopping again, this time without my mom's knowledge. (those are always fun to find out about.) Hence we have the Harley tour bike complete with cd player, cruise control and an oh-so-comfy passenger seat and back rest. Mother was livid until she went for a ride, she feels much better now. They may not have a vehicle that was born in this century, but they have two Harley's to pass the time.

Gotta love family... and the open road.

Thinking out loud

So, today I was thinking about life as the snow was coming down this first day of May. One of the many thoughts that came to my mind was, "Tell me again why I live here, it's not supposed to be snowing right now." That got me thinking about other things too. Like how small a problem snow is when compared to the other things in life we have to deal with.

My mom called me at work this morning, since that seems to be the only place she can get ahold of me, and told me all the happenings of Grace. I didn' t know this, but there have been two deaths in the last couple of weeks there. One was a suicide, one of the teachers, the other a teenager with what they thought was only a cold, turns out it was something more. She was in my little brother's class. That's the second classmate they have lost this year. In a town where the graduating class is 40 people or so, that's quite the impact. It makes you think about life and how short it is. It helps to put things into perspective.

At the beginning of the day I really wanted to do a "blog of complaints" about how crappy life can be sometimes, but really I have it good. The snow means that we have more water to help us out of the drought, the fact that I have something to complain about means that I'm still living. Even in our trials there is a lot to be thankful for.

A Need for a Good Read

I have recently come to understand that I need books. I've always suspected it was so, but not so much as now. For as long as I can remember I have always had a book to read. Whether it was for college of for personal pleasure, I've always been involved in one story or another until recently.

A few weeks ago I finished the third book in the Twilight series which I loved. It really is a chick book with a silly little romance between a teenage girl and a vampire, but I couldn't put the dang thing down. Actually I am anxiously awaiting the 4th book in the series due to come out this Fall. I feel a little silly with this confession, but I can't seem to help it.

Meanwhile, I have been without a good book to sink my teeth into. My old standbys of World War II stories, journals, and other stuff have even failed me. I have looked at the volumes on my shelves and found no interest. It has been quite discouraging. It's worse when you go to the library because there are shelves and shelves of books and one hardly knows where to start! I'm sure we've all had the this-looked-good-on-the-shelf-but-now-that-I've-read-it-I-feel-I've-wasted-a-good-portion-of-my-life-on-something-stupid experience at some point in life. If you haven't consider yourself lucky. It's a drag. I really don't want to repeat it.

So, I've been on my third week of no good books and I just couldn't take it anymore. So, today I braved the vast amounts of shelving in the Logan Library (okay, that's vast compared to some libraries I've been acquainted with in my day, remember I come from Grace Idaho) and picked out a sure to be good book.

In all my days of reading I have yet to read a Jane Austen book. I've seen the movies and heard other people gasp many a time at my lack of "literary experience" so I have capitulated. I picked up a copy of "Persuasion" today. I'll let you know how it is. Just in case, I also picked up a copy of "Going Postal" as well as "Carpe Jugulum" by Terry Pratchett. At least somewhere in this I'm sure to get a good laugh.

Black Socks

Father Ted: That's right, Dougal. You see, ordinary shops sell what look like black socks, but if you look closely, you'll see that they're very, very, very, very, very, very, very dark blue.

Father Dougal: That's true. I thought my Uncle Tommy was wearing black socks, but when I looked at them closely, they were just very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very dark blue.

Father Ted: Never buy black socks from a normal shop. They shaft you every time!

This is a little episode from "Father Ted", a BBC comedy of sorts. This was particularly poignant to me because I recently bought a pair of black socks, well, until I wore them with black pants and low and behold, they were just very very very very dark blue. I thought it humorous enough to share.

I Love People!

I just want to take a moment and express how much I love people! Whether it is people to look at, watch, talk to, talk about, laugh with, cry with, sing with, walk with, breathe with, hang out with, watch movies with, play games with, or eat with. Really just people. Especially those of you who are my friends. I don't know what I would do without some of you. If I had pictures of you all I would photoshop your faces into this picture, since I don't, this will have to do. Or you can all meet at my house Thursday evening and we'll make a picture of our own... unless it snows at which time I have promised myself that I will put myself on the first plane to a sunfilled beach... Perhaps it should snow on Thursday... hmm...