To say I haven't been myself lately would be an understatement. Life throws us for more loops than we could ever imagine and I honestly just wasn't in the mood to tell about them. I have probably had every emotion possible in the last few weeks; anger, frustration, disappointment, joy, elation. Sometimes, those kind of swings are too much for a person to take.
So, all the things that has happened since the last time I blogged:
Good news: Robert received his letter on the 9th of March that he had received tuition Scholarships for Band and Chorus at OCC. 16 credit hours a semester, the most you can get. We were definitely elated that day.
Bad news: One of my best friends, the one who is responsible for me going to work for ERBA, the one I spent more time with than I did my guys for five years, the one I have watched her little girls grow into young women as I watched her go from struggling with two full time jobs to getting to have a great life---was diagnosed with cancer, liver cancer. She is 46. To say it pulled the rug out of under me would be another understatement. In the last six months, one of the girls I run around with became a widow, now one has liver cancer. These are things that are supposed to be happening when we are 70, not 40.
Good news, My friend, Patty, mentioned above, got word from MD Anderson yesterday that things are not as hopeless as she had first been told. The doctor has Plan A, which is chemo, but he also has a Plan B and even a Plan C. I missed talking to her last night but did talk to her oldest daughter, who was so very encouraged by the hospital, the staff and the treatment plan. We have a bright side, which made it easier to sleep last night.
Bad news: Of course, all other bad news pales in comparison but they are still aggravating nonetheless. The transmission went out of my van, at least it didn't go all the way and leave me stranded but it did have to be replaced, We bought the van new and have had it about 20 months. I drive alot so it was already over what a regular warranty would cover but we got in on the tailend of having the Lifetime Warranty come with the vehicle, so we were saved. I may NEVER get rid of the van.
Good news: Congress has been throwing around our programs like we are ragdolls. Now that the dust has settled, it looks like we will survive the budget. We don't know by how much, but at least we are still on there. It's always better to take a cut than to be cut. Once you would get cut to zero, it is doubtful that we would see funds ever again.
That's probably the extremes that has been going on. We are working towards the 21st of May, Robert's graduation party. I am spring cleaning and Andrew is getting our bathroom remodel wrapped up.
I am working on a lot of projects at work, which keeps my job very interesting, if not at times, downright entertaining. I am getting to do things that I never imagined this country bumpkin would get to do. One of the them is doing a presentation for the rest of the state about using technology to make our jobs easier. April 1, I am doing a workshop for the Head Start Parent Fair, There I am presenting information on keeping your computer and your identity safe online. I go to Springfield for 3 days next week for another project that I am going to help mentor for our agency. Today I am going to Tuscola to work on computers. I LOVE my job and am so very thankful that I get to keep it.
11 years ago in May, I sent a resume to a PO Box. Two days later, I received an application for ERBA. I filled it our immediately and sent it back. On Friday of that week, Patty called and asked if I would come in for an interview on Monday. I was so excited. Nila, my sister, worked for Community Action and I was thrilled to think about getting to also. When I went to the interview, I was so disappointed. Patty and Brenda (LIHEAP Coordinator and Outreach Office Supervisor) didn't interview me. We visited, talked about our kids, talked about life but as far as wanting to know what kind of skills I had, they didn't even ask. I went home, called my mom and cried. I knew they had already picked someone for the job. The next morning at 10:00, Patty called and said if I wanted the job it was mine. I started on the 15th day of May, 2000. (little did I know at the time, they had already chosen me, as long as Patty and I got along well).I fell in love with helping these people and decided that I wanted to do more than fill out the applications, I wanted to make a difference in these peoples lives. On May 25th, 2005, I started working as Brenda's assistant in the Greenup office. I now get to work with projects on the state level. About a month ago, the business rules came out for a new program we are working on. I questioned two of the paragraphs in the business rules because I didn't think they were fair to our program or our clients. The person who is in charge writing them, wrote me back and said they had went through this at great length and they had to be this way, then she started researching and realized I was right. While we were in Springfield, she sent out revised business rules, with my suggested changes in place. I made a difference. I wanted to cry, that was what I go to work for each day.
I don't ever know what God has in store for us, why he wants us to do what he lays out there, but I do always know he is right. And I thank him for my ups and my downs, without them, my life wouldn't be what it is today.
