PAYDAY PROCESS SUCCESSFULLY COMLETED

The check has been cashed, payday loan has been paid, new undergarment purchased, dollar breakfast eaten, and remaining paycheck monies on husbands desk.

There was a time I couldn't have been counted on to do that. There was a bonus too. While driving I got a new idea for some pen and ink drawings. Hopefully I'll get one done after work and YOU can be the judge, yea or nay.

My pointer is missing now. Oh well. To continue, I get my best ideas while driving because my left brain is driving and my right brain thinks. I admit it's a little scary. This is why I like ROAD TRIPS! It works as a passenger too.

I really do need a ROAD TRIP!

Where is that crazy pointer?  I turned my cordless mouse off and on but it did not return. Maybe something happened when I drifted off for a few seconds. Ya think? I was blaming the dog for using the computer when my back is turned but......I could have jumped to the wrong conclusion.

TWELVE DAYS LEFT IN MY CLEANING COUNTDOWN!

The new schedule at work for the week of Sept 6th shows 40 hours again. I googled letters of resignation and was all set to quit my job yesterday. Hubby said no, you must have a new job before quitting the old one. I told the girls what he said and then told them I'm thinking of divorce. There was silence and then they got it and laughed their heads off.

They all think I'm funny and it's so hard trying to out funny myself. That's not what I need to be thinking about though, it's the "twelve days of cleaning" I need to concentrate on.  Isn't that a song?

Oh good, I'm getting a partridge in a pear tree today. Who would give me that? How about a quail in a tree? I painted one like that yesterday but don't like it.

"First things first" is the thought today again and I'll finish that painting now. I've got 2 days off. I can clean later. Can we spell "procrastinator"?

COUNTDOWN -17 DAYS LEFT TO HOUSECLEAN

I wish I could twirl and whirl around the house to clean it like I did some years ago. Cleaning the house in one day was the normal for me no matter which house it was. We moved a lot in the past providing many cleaning experiences.

Our first house had 5 tiny rooms so that was a breeze to de-clutter, redecorate and clean all in the same day. The most amazing thing about that house was the mortgage payment of $80.00. Alright, now you know I'm ancient.

There was the house we owned for 3 months, our second home. I worked and we had visitors during the 3 months so I know it got cleaned but for some reason the only room I remember is the kitchen. Trust me in knowing I never finished unpacking from the move. I do remember applying for the VA mortgage. Before we could get loan approval I had to write a letter declaring I had no plans to increase our family. What??? Yes, I actually had to do that.

The next house was a sprawling Texas  house with a huge yard that I loved. The living room and dining room were visible to anyone I opened the door to. Delivery men would take one glance and say, "oh, are you moving in or out?" I loved to reply "no" to both choices. The only thing in the living room was the Christmas tree and the dining room came with a chandelier. One year and done for that house. We never did furnish those rooms.

Oh, this is fun to revisit the houses, only 7 more to go I think. It gets confusing because they were mostly cross country moves. What makes it a challenge is the fact we lived in Virginia, the DC area, 5 different times if you count rentals and owned residences.

It doesn't take much to confuse me I guess. There were lengthy shopping mall trips that had me in a daze so when the moment came to picture where the car was parked ....it took a few nano seconds to figure out what city I was in. It's not my fault that all malls look alike.

Time to go clean something. I will continue this look back at my house cleaning history next post.

MORE THINGS THAT ANNOY ME!

I'm really not annoyed today, on this fine day off, but certain things do bother me.  I have finished a painting I'm 50% happy with the way it turned out, changed the counter, and I am on the second cup of coffee. Still....

1. Top of the list....tomorrow is a workday.  The very clever automated staffing system (I'm told) reassessed and they changed my schedule so, no 3 days off this week. They replaced one with 2 half days of work. The ASS needs an overhaul, how funny.

2. My doll puzzle making project is not making progress. I think the crowns and wings are bugging me. My inner voice says to work harder.

3. I hate it when I fall asleep at the computer. Sometimes I write gibberish where I shouldn't.  This morning I had to close several programs I didn't even know I had.

4. The dog takes advantage of me when I'm sleeping at the computer. The dog bone box is half empty. I must hand them out sleepwalking.

5.  I let my garden dysfunction. They tend to do that without enough water in this hot hot hot summer.

6. PPPPPP results. I'll let you figure out what all the "p" words are but that's what today brought. I really wanted to do a little road trip today. BooHoo

Sooo, the sad results are.... be happy you have a job, work harder, go to bed, plan better and hydrate yourself and the plants.

But really. Who could deny this dog a bone?

DID YOU EVER FEEL LIKE A TURKEY WITH IT'S HEAD CUT OFF?

You might be thinking whoa...it's chicken with it's head cut off!  Now I've never seen one of those but I have seen a turkey and it's not pretty. 

My uncle had a turkey farm and he raised them solely for sale at the holidays, fresh to folks in our small town.  On those seasonal weekends I would approach the side of the house where all the pens had been built and in between the 2 structures was a huge tree.

The soil below the tree covered in blood drew my attention but then my eyes moved up to the sight of the noisy turkey hanging by it's feet. My uncle grabbed his head and cut it off.  The turkey jerked and flapped around for a long time it seemed.

One day to experience the whole operation I trailed after my uncle to the basement of the house where huge tubs of steaming water awaited the headless bird and he was immersed into the hot water. After a few minutes all the feathers were plucked out, the little ones singed off and the nude, pale, headless creature was taken upstairs to my aunt who dressed the remains.

Thinking of the whole operation brings all of my senses to attention especially that of my nose because I can recall the smell of the innards taken out but much worse was the wet turkey feather smell. All of a sudden I'm back in the basement.  An odor most fowl.

Today being my day off after three workdays finds me like that turkey hanging from the tree.  I have a great many things I should do today but my mind is jerking from one thing to another and I do need to finish something so I'd better stop flapping my wings and get on with it. Besides, my second cup of coffee is gone and that's my limit.

Wild turkeys, north rim grand Canyon, Oct 2011

KEEPING THINGS ON THE BACK BURNER

Every so often something I keep on the back burner moves forward to the front of my brain and a burden is lifted that has been in storage.  I learned to do this as a child. 

For instance situations would arise and I did not know how to handle them so I'd wait to see if an answer would shine through and the problem would be solved.  I'm patient that way although it's not always the best way. 

This morning a back burner puzzle resurfaced as I changed the counter and perhaps if I review it, rethink it, fresh ideas will follow. It's the disclosure of money.  I've always intended to add up all the money I gambled away and put the total on the blog and begin subtracting money I've restored to the pot. A money counter on the blog would be a super addition.

I'm good at addition but it makes me cringe to actually think how I will retrieve the information. We are talking about years of paycheck dollars from both of us because I handled all the family finances. Plus 2 refinances of our mortgage, a second lien mortgage, two retirement accounts of mine, and my husbands retirement monies. Adding tallies from charge accounts gets complicated if I want to account for the debt we had before my disease started.

I've always known that retrieving all these records is the place to start but why do this if I don't have a windfall of income to begin repayment?  Maybe I'm just scared of facing the final figure.

Well, no burden has been lifted as I haven't solved the problem so I'll have to move this topic to the back burner again. In my world you can do that and it gives me space, frees my mind. First things first is the plan and I need to move on with the morning and finish something, a painting I think.

It was good to revisit this money thing though because it makes me even more determined to plug away with my projects.  I may be in the clouds again, dreaming, but it keeps me motivated.

Earth to Jane. Are you lost in the clouds and mist?

TIDBITS, ORGANIZATION, CHATTER AND NOISES

As I it at my desk area my swivel chair can face the laptop or do a 180 turn and face a 7 foot fifth leg antique dining table of my mother's which is filled with a lot of my projects.  These projects have kept me occupied the last 272 days.  My laptop sits on a 5 foot utility table and there are 2 of these end to end.

This is a lot of space and I am constantly trying to organize the projects I'm working on.  So, here are my rules of the day. First there is coffee and change the counter on the blog.

Secondly, I set the phone alarm if it's a workday as I have been known to get lost in space.  My friend once described me as living up on a cloud somewhere.  Now, I can type a blog post.

Thirdly, I'm trying to live by the rule of finishing one thing for the day before moving on to the normal activities of job, appointments, and daily living.

If I can do these little things I should be a happy camper.  Today I'm mailing a painting I've sold so this completes the rules of the ...morning!

As I've typed this post I've been listening to the faint noises of the day....ticking sounds from somewhere, my mother's TV from her room, the dog door flapping as he tries to follow all the outdoor activities in the neighborhood to guard the house.  I hear school buses go back and forth, neighbors cars leaving, and finally I hear my husband's voice from outside cheerfully chattering hellos and good mornings to neighbors as they take a morning walk or get in their car.

I love how sociable he is and always has been.

FIRST THINGS FIRST

I wrote the post title, it had popped into my head after minutes of deciding on my topic for today. After I typed it I wasn't really sure what it meant. So, of course I googled it and an article I read suggested it means, remember to prioritize what needs to be done.

I think that we automatically do "first things first".  But maybe I forget to apply it all the way down the line of the activity, whatever that may be. In my last post I mentioned the children were coming for a visit and we could do a Christmas project.

When the grandchildren arrived I set aside the thoughts of beginning to get ready for the December holidays.  They needed to get ready for the first day back to school.  Okay, first things first.

I remember how it was for me. My mother took me shopping about a week before school and she purchased 5 dresses for me, one for every day of the week. As a grandparent I wouldn't need to do the whole shebang, only supplement.  What fun we could have.  Their great-grandmother was the most enthusiastic of all.

The middle child, a 9 year old boy, immediately said, "I already have new shirts, I want to stay home." That worked for me because then I'd only be shopping with 2 kids. More importantly, who needs a party pooper anyway?  I'll pick out his shirt for him. See, in my head I was thinking one item for each child.

We started with the seven year old girl. All four of us begin to pull off dresses from the racks for her to try on and it began to occur to me that we did not set a limit of how many dresses, items she could choose. She wanted 4 dresses plus a purse and a headband. At that moment mother and I declared 2 dresses and ... gave in to the purse.

3rd grade dress,

 1 of five for that year.

The 13 year old boy had disappeared when we emerged from the dressing room.  We located him with an armload of brilliantly colored sport shirts for leisure, since he has a set code of apparel he wears at school.  Oh boy, did I mess this up by not doing first things first and set a limit?

To begin, we told him 2 articles of clothing since the girl had chosen 2 dresses. He had 4 shirts he liked. Without pause he says, "Can I price match with my sister? Let's go to the price check gadget."

I never used this method when shopping with his dad and aunt. The rule was each child got what they needed and it wasn't based on money.  But now I'm thinking my grandson's idea will be the thing to do in my present situation.  It will be the answer to fix my unpreparedness. He will have to choose whatever dollar amount of shirts verses her dollar amount of dresses. Great!

Ha! What a clever fellow. He went home with four shirts.  It was a terrific shopping trip and I am so fortunate  to spend time with them.

FINALLY A DAY OFF TO CATCH UP

Yesterday was so stressful at work I was ready to quit. Yes, quit. I held my breath and now it's a day later and I can add the E to the quit word. So, I'm not quite ready to do that---yet.

This is a good day to list all the positive things in my life and I might as well start the list with......

I'm lucky to have a job.

I have a fantastic family who has helped me through the worst life wrecking disease I have yet encountered.

It's so wonderful to type, drive the car, sleep, work, and many other things, without the pain, numbness of the carpel tunnel syndrome .

I shall continue this list tomorrow because I'm a lucky grandmother who's getting a visit from the children very shortly.

Wozzer, it's project time!  It's never too early to get ready for December.