Dragging today

I couldn't sleep again last night so I took half a sleeping pill. It did the trick, but I still feel tired. I dragged myself out of bed around 10-something. (keep in mind I didn't get to sleep until shortly before 1 a.m.) I decided I needed some caffeine but I ran out of cokes. I headed to Sonic at 11:00 and got lunch and a large coke. It has helped a bit, but I'm still not focusing well. I worked on my Sunday lesson a bit, but I needed a break. I've got to find a better way to get sleep that doesn't make me feel loopy the next day. Maybe I should try some lavender. I heard that is supposed to help induce sleep. Does anyone have any other ideas?

My Friday

I got up a little after 9:00 I think. I woke up around 7-something but went back to sleep. I left around 11:00 and headed to Amarillo. I went to my favorite fast food place and got a meat burrito grande. Then I went to Hobby Lobby in search of beads to make a rosary for my friend's daughter that is in the hospital. I didn't find anything that struck me, but I did get some other beads to go with some I already had. I also got some materials to make bookmarks for my Sunday school class. Since we're discussing love on Sunday I made bookmarks with different quotations about love that relate to some of the teachings. After Hobby Lobby, I went to the hospital to visit my friend Pam. Kami (her daughter) was sleeping. I stayed a couple of hours there and then went to Michaels in search of beads again. I finally found what I was looking for. I got the beads and then headed home. I started the bookmarks which was pretty simple, but a bit sticky. I cut colored card stock paper to size, then I cut a fancy paper a little smaller to glue on top. I printed out the quotations on vellum paper, cut them out and placed a verse on top of the fancy paper. I used adhesive spray which tends to get messy. For the most part, they turned out pretty well, I think (See above picture). Not too fancy, but hopefully they'll be appreciated. After the bookmarks, I made dinner, then I worked on rosaries. I made the one for Kami and then made a couple of others since I finally got some beads I had been needing. I will post pictures in a few days hopefully. Josh's camera doesn't take a very good picture and the scanner doesn't scan the colors correctly. I've finally ordered a charger for my camera battery and hopefully it will be here next week. And that was my day today. Tomorrow I'll be spending most of the day working on finalizing my lesson. Today I printed out 25 pages of extra material and I've got to weed it down. Now it's time for bed. Hope y'all are having a good evening.

In the scheme of things

I did write a post yesterday, but I took it down. I realized I was being a bit whiny and I shouldn't have been. I saved it and may post it another time, but shortly after I posted it I checked my voice mail and found out that my friend's daughter is going into the hospital again. I realized that while I'm sitting here whining about furniture, they are dealing with much bigger issues and I really need to look at the big picture. My friend's name is Pam and her daughter is Kami. Kami has cystic fibrosis and has spent time in and out of hospitals most of her life and she is only 19. Between hospital stays she does breathing treatments and takes a lot of medicine to keep her symptoms under control. Pam and I became friends when we both taught at the same junior high. We discovered that we had much in common as single parents. Not only has she had to struggle with all the things that plague us single parents (loneliness, financial worries, depression, etc.) but add on top of that caring for a daughter that is sick most of the time and only has a life expectancy of 37 years. It's been a hard-knock life for both of them.
So today instead of whining, I'm going to appreciate what I do have. Pam and Kami came over on the 4th and Kami asked me to make her something religious for the next time she went into the hospital. I guess they didn't plan on it being so soon. I haven't decided if I'm going to make her a new rosary or give her one that she said she liked. I want to have it blessed, but today doesn't seem to be a good day to catch a priest or deacon. I guess it can wait a bit and that way I might be able to find the perfect beads instead. I'm going to head up to Amarillo shortly and do some shopping and then go to the hospital. If you're inclined to pray, I'm sure they wouldn't mind a few prayers.

Fireworks and Goosebumps

We had a very nice show this year. Some years are better than others. It seemed most of the fireworks were pretty big. Here's a little lesson for you. The big booming fireworks are called "Bill Fred" and the little ones are called "Pooters." It's a long story how those were named, but it happened back in high school and the names have stuck. I have been watching the show in Canyon almost all of my life. There are a few years that were exceptions like the year I drove to Austin/San Marcos to surprise my now ex-husband when we were dating. I ended up watching the show in Austin at Lake Travis which was incredible. The next day I went to go find Richard and it turned out that he left early and came home to surprise me.

Ever since I was a kid I've watched the works from this house, however. Many years ago, our backyard offered the perfect viewing site because the park where the fireworks are shot from is only two blocks away. Unfortunately many of the trees in the area have grown so much that you can't get a good view from the back yard any more. But I remember jumping on the trampoline and eating fudgecicles and anxiously awaiting the show to start. There used to be a patio area in the backyard where we would shoot a few of our own fireworks like the little tanks, fountains and such. We always had sparklers and we would write our names in the dark with them. I remember that I got a burn on my arm one year from something that we shot off and one of the sparks landed on it. We still have a prime viewing spot despite the trees. Now we just go across the street to the church parking lot and sit in lawn chairs. The view is just perfect. The show is almost always the same. They play the same music beginning with the Star Spangled Banner and ending with Battle Hymn of the Republic. In between there are Sousa marches and other patriotic songs. I always get goosebumps when they play "God Bless the U.S.A." I know it's not a favorite of some people, but I really like the song. Tonight was no different, I still got the goosebumps. I sat there thinking that we do live in a pretty good place. We can complain about the president, taxes and certain laws we may not like, but I think we have it pretty good. Sometimes I think we have too much freedom, but there are a lot of freedoms that I do appreciate. I don't participate in politics and I don't give much thought to voting, but I appreciate that I do have the right to take part in the democratic process. It's good to have freedom of religion despite the fact that unfortunately there are quite a few odd denominations out there. I think that as a country we do have a lot of pride and we have those moments that we do come together. It's sad, though, that often times it takes a tragedy like 911 or Katrina to pull people together. I think we all need to practice loving our neighbors around us despite our differences. Well, enough rambling for tonight. I hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July.

Happy 4th of July

I have things to do, but lacking in energy right now. I got up around 9-something this morning. I over-exerted myself by moving branches that my brother cut down from a tree to the alley. He cut them down a while back but I discovered that the city won't pick them up unless they're in the alley. They have been sitting on the side of fence in the front. That was my exercise for today. Josh got the lawn mowed finally. I went to the store to get some of the food for today. And most of the day I've just been watching the Monk marathon. I'm having a couple of friends come over today. I need to get a few more things done before the arrive. Maybe I'll go take a vitamin and see if that helps get me going. So what are your holiday plans for the day?

Another relaxing day

I had good intentions. Does that count? I didn't get to bed until around 2:30 a.m. I was reading an interview with J.K. Rowling, the author of Harry Potter. Josh and I were also discussing possibilities about the 7th book. I did get up around 8:45 this morning but once again decided against going to camp. I planned to go to Hereford today as well, but just didn't make it. It wasn't a completely unproductive day, however. I spent some time working on my lesson for Sunday school. I'm teaching the class this weekend. The topic is love. This afternoon Josh and I ran some errands. First we went to Hastings (a local bookstore) to pre-order the 7th Harry Potter book. Then we went to Best Buy and I got ink cartridges for my printer and my old one that I'm going to put in Josh's room. I also got Josh a new bench to use with his keyboard. It was a good deal. It was a package that had a bench, keyboard cover and headphones that was originally $49.99 but was on sale for $19.99. After that we went to Walmart where I spent way too much money, but most of it was on Josh. He needed new shorts, a dress shirt for camp, a new belt, socks, underwear and a new tie. (He actually likes dressing up now.) I got some things for our 4th of July celebration. I decided to keep it simple this year. I'm making Philly Cheesesteak Sandwhiches and chips with queso. I also got cheesecake for dessert. We came home, put up groceries and I made a quick dinner. I also am enjoying a beer. I'm not usually a beer drinker, but I do have one particular beer that I like. It's called ZiegenBock and it's only made and distributed in Texas. And that's it for now. I am going to try to put up some pictures of some of the rosaries I've made but it will take a little time. I'm not getting great pics with Josh's camera (mine is dead and I can't charge the battery) and I'm not sure I like the image of it being scanned. I'm going to work on it a bit and I'll try to post some pictures soon.

Abbagirl's Tag

Abbagirl tagged me for a meme that I've already done so I'm going to post the link for you. You can also check the updated 100 things below. I'm not sure if I can come up with any new facts/habits that aren't listed in those memes. If I do, I'll post it.

Instead, I will open this blog up to anyone to ask me any question they want and I promise to answer truthfully to the best of my ability. So ask away! Anything you want to know?

100 things (updated)

I've done this before, but am posting again with some updates.

1. I am 37
2. I am divorced
3. I was married for five years
4. I had the marriage annulled by the Catholic Church.
5. I have a tattoo
6. I love to ride rollercoasters
7. I'm a member of American Coaster Enthusiasts
8. My favorite coaster is Poltergeist at Fiesta Texas
9. I've ridden 124 rollercoasters
10. I collect Marvin the Martian items
11. I broke my neck when I was 4 yrs old
12. I was hit by a car
13. I've had a total of 104 stitches in my life
14. I've been to a taping of The Price Is Right
15. I wasn't called to "Come on Down"
16. You can see me in the audience at least 4 times
17. I have 2 cats
18. I have 3 dogs
19. I play the clarinet
20. I was flag captain in high school and college
21. I went to band camp for 7 summers
22. I'm fascinated by the Titanic
23. I have a 16 yr old son
24. My son was born on my 21st birthday
25. I dream about tornadoes
26. But I like watching shows about tornadoes
27. I'm a native Texan
28. My favorite color is purple
29. I hate scary movies.
30. I hate most vegetables
31. I really hate beans
32. My favorite food is spaghetti
33. I like 80's music
34. My favorite singer is Olivia Newton John
35. My sign is Scorpio
36. I am a teacher
37. I teach high school speech
38. I used to sell yearbooks
39. But I hated selling
40. I've never been stung by a flying insect
41. I don't want to ever be stung
42. I have an older sister
43. I have an older brother
44. I am the baby of the family
45. I was in two musicals
46. But I can't sing
47. I like to read
48. My favorite authors are Janet Evanovich, Sue Grafton, and J.K. Rowling
49. When I was a kid I read the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew.
50. I used to go to the Baptist church
51. I've been to the Episcopalian church
52. I've been Baptized twice and "saved" on three occasions
53. I converted to the Catholic Church.
54. I believe in God
55. I love watching C.S.I. Vegas
56. And I love watching Monk
57. I graduated 16th in my high school class of 332
58. I graduated from West Texas A&M University in 1995
59. My GPA was a 3.82 (Magna Cum Laude)
60. I started out as a music major
61. I switched to Speech Education
62. I am shy
63. I've been to Vegas 4 times
64. I like going to museums
65. I like to do crossword puzzles
66. Nobody will play Scrabble with me
67. I've lost 25 pounds (and gained 10 back)
68. I want to lose at least 25 more
69. I flew to Michigan for a blind date
70. I wear contacts most of the time
71. I hate wearing panty hose
72. I am right handed
73. I believe in ghosts
74. I painted my kitchen Lime green
75. And I like it
76. I want to be on Trading Spaces and have my living room done
77. I like to dance
78. I wanted to be a choreographer when I grew up
79. My dream job is to be a music librarian
80. My dog, Roo, snores and it's annoying
81. I can be hypnotized
82. I've been hypnotized on stage
83. I can remember all my phone numbers from 2nd grade to the present
84. I have a "thing" about memorizing numbers
85. I also memorize birthdays
86. I want to go on a cruise some day
87. I won first place in poetry at my first speech tournament
88. I performed “Casey at the Bat” and still have it memorized
89. I have been to half of the states in the U.S.
90. I've been to the Caribbean
91. And Mexico
92. I know how to crochet.
93. I will be free of debt in 2 years.
94. I drive a Nissan Maxima
95. I hate doing laundry
96. And the dishes
97. I like to cook
98. I have neat handwriting
99. I like to sleep in
100. This was really hard

Relaxing day with a little bit of guilt

I couldn't sleep again last night. I finally gave up around midnight and continued to read. I finally felt sleepy around 1:30 a.m. The alarm went off around 8:00 this morning and again at 8:10. I turned them both off. I finally got up around 8:40 and took a shower. And then I decided I still didn't want to go to camp. So I didn't. I laid back down for a while. Eventually I got up and for the most part had a relaxing day. The only work I did was emptying the dishwasher. The rest of the day was spent reading (I finished the 6th book), watching t.v., reading blogs, and generally doing nothing. I didn't even cook dinner. I picked up Wendy's and enjoyed my big bacon classic and fries. After dinner I started working on rosaries. I finished two of them and have a third that I'm going to re-string because I think it needs more space between the Hail Mary beads. And that's what I've been doing. I felt guilty for not going to camp, but I figure that I'm simply volunteering and I really should enjoy my summer the way I want to. Overall it was a pretty nice day.

Just another Sunday

I got up to go to early Mass at 8:30. Went to Sunday school at 9:45 and was home a little after 11:00. I rushed to get everything done. Made the cake first, cut the chicken, started the rice and then cooked the chicken before I had to go pick my students at camp. I had to go get more rice as the stuff I made didn't cook right for some reason, so I just did instant, which I generally do not like, but didn't have the time to cook regular rice again. I finished the cashew chicken once we arrived home and made a glaze for the cake. The students seemed to enjoy it. They stayed about an hour.

After lunch I did the dishes (can you believe it?), started some laundry, and then continued reading my book. I've now finished the 5th Harry Potter book and will start the 6th this evening. I probably should have timed it better, but I'm just a fast reader. Oh well.

Tonight I'm making baked ziti for dinner. It's easy and fairly quick. I don't have anything else planned other than reading. I should fold some laundry, but I think I'll avoid that for now.

Summer blogged a nice thank you for the rosary I sent her. I'm very glad she liked it. I have several more to make now... I might get started on that this evening. As I've cleaned I found several sacks of beads that I've bought and for the most part forgotten about. Now I have everything in one place with a place to work. Well, dinner is almost ready so I'm going to close for now.