Ramblings

I guess I have been doing a lot of "Ramblings" lately. Seems like life is kinda coming at me in a blur. I made the statement about a month ago that I felt like I was on a bicycle peddling as hard as I could into a 90 mph wind; then I went to a conference and attended a workshop on stress. When we went through the things in life that are supposed to cause you stress, I basically had no stress....in other words, no reasons to complain.....and deep down inside I know it. I have had a very blue week-it has been a week of reminiscing and it has made me both sad and happy at the same time, how that happens, I will never understand--but it has.

Tuesday, a staple in my life went away--forever. Nita Wellbaum died Tuesday morning, this is someone that, except for the few years we were away, I saw at least three times a week. On Sunday night, she was sitting in her spot in choir, eventhough she didn't feel good she was there. What would any of us said to her, had we known it was the last time we would ever talk. Yes, there were days she would drive me nuts, she hadn't heard so well the last few years and didn't like to wear her hearing aid, she could also be a little eccentric but most of the time, it was just funny little things. Let me tell you things I remember; I remember being a little girl and watching Lowell and Nita skate around a skating rink like they were right out of a Norman Rockwell painting, they could do the same thing on Teddy Marrs' pond at Christmas. They were two peas in a pod and they made skating look effortless. I remember them taking me to Springfield when my mom was in the hospital. I also remember (in 1981) while we were there, visiting Kurt who showed us his office and then showed us this amazing thing--he could type something on his computer at work, then we went to his apartment, where he could pull up what he typed--it was straight out of star trek for this little freshman girl. I remember after my dad died, spending tons of Saturday nights at their house, playing pennies, a good game that Nita taught us (I to this day remember the night I got everyone out by saying I had never had an "L" in my name--I still could say that!). Oh I remember---right to two months ago, the last time Lowell and Nita and I all got to go to Simple Blessings at Casey on Sunday afternoon, Robert and I rode with them. We talked about those times, and about Todd. I told Robert about Todd hanging on the poles in the basement, tonight I told Todd he would have to show Robert how to do that, I never imagined it would be the weekend of Nita's funeral--just never imagined.

I also had a chat with Tom Matson this week, seems Miss D is failing considerably and to just hear about it kills me. So much of who I am today is because of her. Because she believed in me and told me that constantly--I told Mom this morning, when everything was going wrong at home, Miss D would sit and listen, she would invite herself to listen--she wouldn't just say "How are you?" She would ask specific questions that made that freshman girl whose life felt like it was all bent out of shape know she cared--don't get me wrong, I have an entire church family who, had it not been for them, I am sure I would be some deep dark place in the same situation as the ones I help on a daily basis, but I almost classify my church family just like I do my Mom, they are family, they have to love you (most of the time anyway, after all they all helped raise me). Miss D just did because she did. She didn't have any family outside of us kids, we were her family.

The other half of Miss D for me of course was Mrs. Nichols. I loved her too. She is watching her grandson go through a horrible ordeal right now and it pains me also. She had wrote on Ben's Caringbridge about the kids she knew and who they have grown into and who they have changed into. There is a short list of people in the world who I would always want to know I was doing what was right in their eyes. She is one of them and just like when I was in high school. The way she has kept her faith in the Lord through all of this has been an inspiration for me to be the best person I can be.

I have bawled more this week than I have in a long time. Tomorrow, the choir is singing for Nita's funeral, I always think I have the easiest part in the choir when we sing at funerals because I have my back to everyone. Tomorrow though, I will be facing a gap where Nita would have been, where she was just 6 days ago. Tomorrow evening I get to go to the wedding of a little girl that I got to watch grow up much as Nita did me. When Lowell asked for the choir to sing, the first songs that popped in my head was "The Old Rugged Cross" and "In the Garden", know why? Because they were the songs Nita played on the organ at my dad's funeral.

I think I could ramble forever, but there are things that need to be prepared for tomorrow and it is time I do that. I truly hope Sunday starts the beginning of a much brighter week.

Happy Memorial Day!

This is one of those weeks that I am very glad it's Saturday! Then I am even happier its a long weekend! Our week has been filled with good and bad, basically that thing called life but, somehow, you can't pick and choose what happens.

The kid broke up with his girlfriend this week, this was the first major relationship so no matter what the causes was, there is still a lot of hurt there. He seemed to be doing better yesterday and last night he went running around Effingham with a buddy so I believe he will survive. Tonight he is going out with his momma, we haven't done that in ages! We are going to see the 2nd Night at the Museum movie, I am looking very forward to having something to do myself on a weekend. With Andrew working weekends, that is few and far between.

Andrew replaced my garage door this week, seems like we have had one thing after another with that thing. First the opener broke, he fixed that, then the door broke because the opener was working right. When we got the new door and he was reading all the instructions; he realized our old door had never had the proper reinforcement put on it to handle a garage door opener. Now, ever since we moved here, there has been a sticker in our garage that says the door and opener was installed by Sears. I don't know, I'm just sayin'.......sure would have been nice if they had put the first door on correctly. Oh well, I always hated the fiberglass door, it didn't go with the feel of our house, the new one is much prettier and Andrew will get it hooked up to the opener on his days off next week.

The neat thing about it is he used the pulleys off the old door to build himself a sophisticated little lift for the jeep top. He bought a hand wench when we were in MO to do just this, now he had it all hooked up in the carport. My husband is such a pack rat but I would say he saved us a couple hundred dollars and it makes getting to take the top off the jeep so much easier!

I really got to get into the guts of my IT job this week, I feel like I earned my keep--and I loved every minute of it--especially figuring out something the big boys couldn't do! I took the final for my first Networking class yesterday--I got a perfect score, I got a certificate of completion that says I have spent 24 class hours studying networking. I sign up for my second class next week, it will begin on the 17th of June--I have 4 more classes I want to take before the year is out, I just can't decide which one to take next. I never really thought I would pick up on the networking as easily as I did but I get it, I really do and that is a great feeling.

The next two weeks are going to be crazy ones too. This coming week is the last week for LIHEAP. We have spent an unreal amount of money this winter and are hearing about more places closing everyday. A husband of one of our fieldworkers just got laid off, they closed the place down. They have a little girl, Alicen, who has Cerebral Palsy, their insurance was through him. I can't imagine what they are going through right now- we are praying constantly for that situation, if you have a moment, please pray too.

My computer class takes their final this week, they also have mock interviews with Andrew, this has been a messed up class--of course, I was in the hospital during one week and sick the week before so it just never seemed to have the same pizazz as my other classes. I start another set of classes in August, hopefully, they will be better.

Next Saturday is Amy and Rylan's wedding, can't wait, these are two kids I couldn't be happier for. I have watched Amy grow up and got to see Rylan since High School, I have watched both of them do amazing things and look forward to seeing their lives together.

Monday the 1st starts our VBS, I am in charge of the Dockside Drive-in, along with Andrew when he can be there. Robert is in charge of games. I was really hoping he would get a summer job but I am glad he gets to be around for VBS. I know he is just between his sophomore and junior year so it wouldn't be imperative that he get a job. Maybe he can help out some of his farmer friends (he was supposed to help his girlfriend's dad, but I think that is done too). I just don't want it to be a wasted summer. I may have to hire him as a housekeeper! There is part of the house that needs painted and he is so close to getting his truck done, he can taste it. so if he gets all that done, I would be happy.

I guess I am going to cave and buy tickets to Rent. It is at the Fox on the 6th, it would be a good "welcome to summer" trip for me and the kid.

We also have to get busy working on fair stuff, Andrew and I are the chairpersons for the concessions (for Band Boosters). When I said we would do it, it all made perfect sense, now I'm a little nervous. I am sure it will be fine, just got to stay organized.

I have also got to get busy on the Band Uniform Sale. I am chairing it and Tom Matson is helping me. We are going to be selling the uniforms the kids just got done with (1/2 profit going to the district uniform fund and 1/2 going to the band boosters) as well as OUR uniforms (profits to the boosters). I think we are looking at media night, fall festival and homecoming.

Today we are going to hopefully, work in the yard, a friend of mine is giving me some of her iris bulbs, we are going to go dig those up, then we need to run a table to my uncle, basically just get things neatened up outside, it's starting to not look too promising though, we may have to flip today's plans and Monday's plans.

Oh well, life is good.

I did it, I did it, I did it!

It is WAY past my bedtime this time but I just had to tell the world what happened today! The new IT job seems to be "JIT" (sorry, that is Walmartspeak for "Just In Time")--lots of problems and today LOTS of solutions. I have everyones problems solved--for the moment anyway.

The big accomplishment though was the brand new laptop that we just purchased a month ago for one of the new girls. We had a program that I put it on, one of the main things she will be working with. It has never worked right since I first downloaded it, or second downloaded it, or third, well, you get the picture. Anyway, last Friday morning, we did a remote with our IT guy from Springfield, he couldn't figure out the problem, so he called the IT guy in California--we let him get on remote and HE couldn't figure out the problem. Today, I called our own guys at MASS, who said "I think you need to call the people from the company" (i.e. the guy from California). Jim, my dear wonderful friend in Springfield (who yes, has probably found my blog by now) told me it was a "Mindy problem" and when I figured it out to let him know.

Today, at 11:45 a.m. I FIXED IT!! REALLY!! TRULY!!! and it didn't even involve throwing the thing......Now I have to go to bed, my arm is so sore from patting myself on the back , I may not be able to work tomorrow. But hey, in the eyes of our new girl, I am her hero, at least for the day.

Yea ME!!

Oh the adventures of life....

Bullet style ramblings:

• My new position of IT person at work about did me in today. Worked on the same computer from 8:30 unti 3:45- at which time, it finally worked (and I don't for the life of me know why).

• Finally got home at 8:30 tonight, what a crazy day, I was actually home for 10 minutes between going to Effingham and getting to a band booster meeting. Long enough to say hi and bye to Andrew.

• Andrew informed me as I said "at least I get to see you tomorrow night" that he has to work again tomorrow night.

• I have class tomorrow night which = I MIGHT see my husband on Wednesday night.

• I once again left my laptop at work which means I once again can't load my pictures. (And my lunch hours are spent reading a book by Columbus Copeland, who I met at our last conference.)

• I am becoming as big an addict to facebook as I feared. I can't believe you can go twenty years without seeing or hearing from someone and then "poof" they are there.

• It's officially 32 minutes past my bedtime, which means I better get there.

One of these days, I will have my house perfect, my yard perfect, everything scrapbooked, and everything exactly the way I want it--and it would probably be the worst day of my life!

I Tried

Last night, I got in a downright panic because I went to post the rest of our trip pictures and realized that they were not in my computer (I also realized how badly my computer needs cleaned out!). It finally dawned on me that last week while I was in Springfield, my memory card filled up and I dumped it into my laptop so I would have more room in my camera. So, still no new pictures from the trip. Life goes on, and I am getting behind just waiting on getting the pictures up. I had already posted how great the trip was...one of these days, I will get some more pictures up, especially of the Steamboat Arabia Museum.

I think this is the first week I have felt absolutely 100% since I was in the hospital. Saturday I did my spring cleaning, I mopped and buffed all the wood floors, that night I was sore, I was even more sore Sunday, that was pretty well telling me it was time to start exercising everyday again. My floors sure are beautiful though.

Robert has 11 days left of school, he is looking for a job, so far no luck. We went and got applications and then he waited for me to get home from Springfield before he turned them back in, we are kinda thinking "You snooze, you loose". Surely something will come along for him. He keeps trying, bless his heart. If the El Camino was finished, he could look in Olney and Effingham. Unfortunately, they put new brake line on and now the Master Cylinder seems to have a problem. That one will be costly. I think they plan to work on that tonight and find the final verdict, if they get that fixed, then we are talking needing a new harness for the back lights, and a windshield, if the master cylinder comes loose, he could be ready to go by the middle of June.

I have three more classes to teach, tonight we do Excel, I love teaching Excel, there are so many bells and whistles that you can do really impressive stuff and not have to put a lot of thought into it. Everyone is always surprised and that's a neat feeling. Next week is "interview night" where Andrew comes and does mock interviews, that is a good night too. I get to do another set of classes in August and since the guidelines have raised, I have a lot of people who had wanted to take the class but were just a little over the income guidelines.

I am also 2/3rds of the way through my first class on networking, I know more about TCP/IP and DNS than I ever thought I would and I am still learning. I have already used some of my new found knowledge in my IT position at work. The classes are really worth it.

My new assistant, Carrie, is great! She has the same "go get it" attitude that I do, it's amazing how much we can get done and she is learning quick. Get this, her last name is Browning, no relation. When we did the interviews I asked her if she was prepared to spend the rest of her working days having people ask if we are relation, she said, "We'll just really throw them off and tell them we are sisters"-Yep, she's a keeper.

Okay, I know...I'm bad

I know, I am way, way behind on blogging. It's not such a big deal for those of my friends who actually see us all the time, I am feeling guilty, mostly because family members who would like to see whats going on in our lives are kinda left in the cold--and even though I like facebook, you just don't put the same things on. So, I PROMISE tonight, I will post the rest of our trip to Grandma's and some things about my last trip to Springfield.

Stay tuned..... (and sorry!)

Pictures--slowly but surely

First Stop-Hermann. What a great little place. You just can't beat these hole-in-the-wall diners and delis. The three women that worked here seemed to get along really well, I wondered if they were sisters and now am kicking myself just a little for not asking.

On Saturday, we picked Grandma up and drove to Kansas City. First stop-Hallmark visitors center. This is in part of the Crown Center and I could have stayed all day there. It was an incredible mall. Our plans were just to see the visitor's center though. It was really interesting. Do you know when you buy a Hallmark card, if there is anything glued on it, a picture of a bow or such, that a human really put it on? One of the guys working told us "we just can't find a machine that can do certain things better than a human" How neat!