Maywood

In my pursuit to write a month's worth of random things, I almost forgot one of mine from my facebook list. Many people grow up going to summer camps. They could be all kins of camps, but a think a lot of us attended some kind of church camp. For me, I got lucky the summer camp I attended was in my hometown on land that part of family donated. I spent 20 summers and my life was forever changed by Maywood Christian Camp.
At the age of four I began spending a couple of nights at a time with my aunts Teena and Toni. I would then stay with Toni while she was a counselor. Then for over a decade I was there every year for Hamilton's week. I went from being a camper, worker then counselor. As I grew up it was a social thing with all my friends around town then by the end it was a group of people I went to college with. I made a number of connections through Maywood and some friendships that I still have today.
I always spent my week at camp, but never even thought about the fact that camp went on all summer. I guess it was around the fifth grade that a group of my friends started going out to camp for church on Sunday and Wednesday nights. We began to make friends and some weeks we were out there every night. It took a couple of years before I stated going to a second week of camp. We had been going out at night and met some great people during Birmingham's week. .(That is when I met Emily Glass). It is kind of funny because our week was laid back and all about practical jokes, but this week was so different. I became to love it all the same. I kept going that week all through high school. Later when Lindsey became the lifeguard out there we went almost every day...well unless it was Florence week which kind of kicked us out because we took away campers, thanks Jeremy.
I loved being a camper pulling jokes, but some of my greatest memories came while all of us were kitchen and canteen workers. In college I started being a counselor. Those were fun times too, but I also became the responsible one. It was fitting my last year of camp came with Lindsey and I being counselors and Katie coming out to help us. I think everything cam efull circle. I have not been out there in years since I rarely even go to Hamilton. My family still goes the same week and it is lie a new generation. I have so many wonderful memories. I could spend a whole month telling just Maywood memories. I came in contact with so many wonderful people that I will hold in my heart. I know that I will see all those people again one day and we can reminisce and tell our stories all over again.

Goin' Somwhere?

You would not know it right now, because I am a homebody these days, but I love to travel. I have been to over half the states in the Us, parts of Mexico and a few provinces in Canada. I truly desire to travel all over Europe, so I hope that the Lord has that in store for me.
At a young age the Smoky Mountains and Florida's coasts were where I spent my summers. As I grew up I began to travel the Southeast. I had a few trips with school that enabled me to some wonderful historical sites. I have been fortunate to travel with many friends. Some families vacations will forever leave lasting impressions on my life. While my father worked for Woodmen of the World we were able to travel to so many great laces: Seattle, Vegas, New York and California. I truly enjoyed my road trip up the California coast with my parents a couple of years ago. I took some adventurous road trips with friends in college. I also can't forget that long trip to Canada and I even got college credit for it. It was also in college that I learned flying was so much easier than some of those long family road trips.
I have traveled with some great companions, but it is true what they say about not knowing someone until you have traveled with them. Lindsey and I can tell tales of some interesting trips. In recent years, since California, I have not traveled much. I hope t get back to it soon. I miss not having been to New York in a few years. I wish to see some old friends. I do hope to get Europe. I want to see everything form east to west in that continent . I always said I wanted to get married over there..who knows about that one. Laugh all you want but I am totally serious about my previous blog on taking the summer to watch baseball all over the country.
Never miss the chance to travel. Every trip can provide a learning experience.

Cotton Pickin'

One of my favorite memories while in college was the annual trip to Missouri to pick cotton. Now for those of you who do not anything about this might find it a little odd, but let me give you some history. My friend Keisha (Ketchum at the time) lived on farm in the boot hill of Missouri. One of their major crops was cotton. Obviously we didn't really pick cotton because now it is picked by machines. What we really did was get into the big bins where the cotton is dropped off before it goes to the gin. The group usually consisted of a combination of me, Keisha, Emily, Stephanie, and Laura. We would get there on Friday afternoon change into our pickin' clothes and go out and play in the cotton. Sounds childish, but we had the most fun. Mrs. Ketchum always cooked wonderful food. We ate ALL weekend. Sometimes we would go up to the Children's Home (U think it was in central Arkansas) to do some volunteering. We usually took a small road trip to do something. It might be a movie, riding in the carts at Wal-Mart, eating at Lambert's or something else off the wall. We usually did go up to Missouri more than once a year, so sometimes cotton was not involved, but our times in Missouri was always so much fun. I guess one of the funniest things was the night we were going to sleep in the camper. I think the other girls were not very happy with Emily and I. We also always had some good road trips to Knoxville, and Alabama. The five of us could always get into some trouble. I truly miss getting together with them. Hopefully we will all get together again someday.
My hope is to eventually get some pictures scanned for this blog, but my scanner is not working right now.

Creature of Habit

Are people who seem to be creatures of habits looked upon as being OCD or having autistic tendencies? If so, then I then that is me. I think in my case I currently lack spontaneity in my life. I do not mean I am not a spontaneous person, because I can be, but my life as it is now leaves no chance for spontaneity. I believe if I had children or for that matter even a husband then that could be different. I am not saying that you have to have those things for your life to be exciting, but seriously we all know that can make a difference. In this discussion I do not include things that happen at work because their is never a dull moment there, but not because of anything personally that I do.
I am by no means complaining, but some of my life, like a lot of other people's, is monotonous. I get up get ready in the same order, get to work at the same time, leave work, go the YMCA, ,come home, eat dinner, work on the computer, read and go to bed. Yes, some days things are a little different, but overall that is about all a do on an average day. I love my life, but sometimes I wish it were a little more lively.
Also in the discussion of creatures of habit let's think about a few things:
driving the same way to and from work
sitting in the same spot certain places i.e church, restaurants, etc.
eating the same foods
I could go on and on. We all do it. We have certain ways we want things done. Even people who say things like this are dull carry their lives out a certain way too. I like a schedule, so call me autistic..I don't care.
I might seem OCD because I am organized, a germ freak (getting better about it), and I like things to always be where I leave them..exactly. I sometimes count steps, but that is not because I am OCD, it is because I always count them when I am with my students. It is a chance for us to practice counting.
I am not saying there is anything wrong with these quirks, but sometimes I wish I would make the effort to be more open to the chance off spontaneity. This blog has been quite odd..maybe because I am sick and can not think straight who knows. I do know that I committed to blogging the whole month of Feb. and the OCD has kicked in to make me get a blog out today.

That Dumb Old Fat Man

Picture it... my grandparents house, Christmas 1984, me 3 years old. Now let me further explain that back in those days my entire family spent the night at my grandparents house. Back in then there we were small in number, eleven if you count Benson the dog. (I mean now we are 23 without our pets). Also then there were only two grandchildren, so everyone thought we got way too much stuff. All my resents were opened when the tides changed. All of the sudden my family hears "that dumb-old-fat man forgot my ironing board." One of my uncle's could not believe I would act that way since I just got tons of presents, My mother was in shock because she did not actually believe that I wanted an ironing board. Well I guess I got over it for the moment, but not forgotten.
A day or so after Christmas I was out "shopping" with my mom and my grandmother at TG&Y (my aunt Teena worked there) when the 'Hallelujah chorus" moment came. I started running screaming "he left it here, Santa left my ironing board here." There it was on the bottom shelf, pushed to the back and all dented up...my ironing board. Of course they had to buy that five dollar ironing board. I do not remember the whole event, but I do remember ironing on that little board.
Usually when Christmas rolls around we all think of our holiday memories and Christmases past, well I reminisce about that dumb-old-fat man.

Stress Relief

Exercise is one thing that can calm my nerves. I think some days if I did not go work lout then I would need to be on some kind of medications. These days I do most of my exercising at the YMCA. I have always tried to walk, run, ride a bike and occasionally lift weights, but after college I ind of slacked off for a while. During those days I just exercised when I felt fat. Last year I got back into the swing of things when our PE teacher taught aerobics after school. We always had so much fun. At the beginning of 2008 I had the goal of competing in a triathlon, but I began t have some knee problems. It was last Spring when I joined the YMCA. I needed to get an all around workout. I was taking a few classes and working out until summer when I changed to running and swimming. Since this fall I have been trying to keep a particular schedule.
I am not making fun of people who are, but I am by no means Miss Fitness. Sometimes I do not even see a while lot results. I used to work out to try to lose weight, but then I realized how much it calmed my nerves. I try Ito go right after school when the crowd is slim. Sometimes I do not mind working out with someone, but I really enjoy turning up the tunes and exercising. It really makes a difference in my mood most days. I guess the whole endorphins making you happy might actually be true.

Read All About It

I do really enjoy reading. I do not get to read as much as I would like. I do read the newspaper and stuff online everyday, but I only get to read a couple of books a month.
I learned to read at an early age because it insured that I would not have problems in school. Dr. Seuss as my favorite author as a child. Growing up I read mainly at home because I guess I was under the impression that it was not cool to be one of those who people who carried around a book all the time. I always completed my reading assignments in high school, but again I did act as if I did too much of it. All of my friends did their school work, but I usually could totally understand some of the more depth stuff our teachers would talk about. Like I have said before Charlotte was one person who could see through it and pushed me to do more with myself.
While in college I began to read more around campus...probably because we had to read a lot. I also read more for entertainment. The summer between my junior and senior year while living in the house with the girls. was when I became addicted to Harry Potter. It was that summer when the first movie came out on DVD. Emily, Candace, Steph and Liz all wanted to watch, so I of course watched. I actually enjoyed the movies, so Candace let me borrow the books. While on vacation in Seattle I finished off 2 and 3. I eventually finished 4, but I had to wait until the others came out to read them. Each time a new one would come out I would read the previous ones. It was also always fun to go with Liz to the movies. I will never forget having to call back to school to tell them we were going to be late since our Harry Potter movie messed up.
In the last few years I have tried to get back to reading some of my classics. I like to read all kinds of stuff from religious books, novels, and like I have mentioned bocks about special needs children. I have recently started reading the HP books again since a new movie is coming out. Now you can make fun of me all you want, but they are good books. I also like seeing when children get interested them for the first time.
I think reading is so valuable. I wish that parents spent more time reading with your children. I know many do, but so many do not. I love to see small children learning to read and realize how reading will change their lives forever. Books can take you places you have never been as well as help you become creative individuals. Reading can change a person's life. I know it had mine.

Pajama Saturday

When I was college is when I think this started, but I love hanging out in my pajamas on Saturday. I had quit it for a while, but it seems ever since Christmas it has become a habit again. I knew when the weather gets warmer it will all change.
Some Saturdays I stay in my pajamas and work around the house only to shower and change back into another pair of pajamas. Other Saturdays I might change and go for a walk only to shower and get back into a pair of pajamas. I guess when I read Claire's 25 Random Things on Facebook it brought me back to thinking about pajama Saturday.
It is so nice to just hang out and not worry about getting out. Most of the time I catch up on my recorded TV, watch TV Land, catch some of my favorite movies on TV, read, blog, play Mario Kart or just take a nap. I do sometimes to housework, pay bills and balance the checkbook. Now I do not mind getting out, but when it is cold or raining outside I like just staying in and relaxing. When Spring comes I will miss my days of lounging around, but hey there is always my Summer days of laying out in the hammock for hours at a time.

Brrrr!!!!!!

I am a wimp! I hate cold weather. I am terribly cold-natured, so cold to me is anything below say 55. I hate it even more when it has been really warm (like last week) then it turns off cold (Like this week). That just puts me in a bad mood. Why? because it makes my body ache from tensing up and because I have to wear so many layers to keep warm. When it is cold I can not live without my Cuddle Dud (BTW...great product). I love warm clothes and turtle necks, but I guess I get so mad when the sun is shining so bright, but it is so cold you do not even want to open your eyes.
I have spent some time in some really cold places, but I think the dampness of the cold in the South is what makes it so unbearable. You know some places it could even be colder, but it is a dry cold. I guess thank goodness I do not live somewhere too cold and that Spring is almost here.

Snap!

Something I guess not so random about me is that I love to take pictures. I take tons of pics of my kids at school and of course lots of Sam and Eli. I used to love to take pictures when I traveled, but I have not been venturing out too much lately. Either way I love to take them. My biggest problem though is I either leave them on a memory card or I prints the pictures and just put them in a box. Once I was a scrapbooker, but then I became a procrastinator.

T-Shirts

I love tee shirts!! I do not get to wear them a whole lot, but the more worn the better. I mean when I wear one out I do try to wear ones that do not look too bad. It is a different story when I am at home. The more holes and faded the better. I sleep in some that are so tattered I cross my fingers they will not fall apart in the next wash cycle. I have shirts from years back. I even keep a lot in a big Rubbermaid. They are mostly ones especially made for high school or college events. I have lots of pep rally shirts that the girls made on Thursday nights during football season. I also used to collect Hard Rock shirts from everywhere I have been. Now I am real big on Life is Good shirts. I have several of the same shirt in a Rain Forest Cafe style (frog on the fronts with a gorilla on the back..it was a kids shirt). On another note I like them to fit well, I can not stand baggy tee shirts. I am also all about free or cheap tee shirts. I wish I could spend everyday in jeans and a t-shirt.

MLB

Now if you are around me long enough you will find that I absolutely LOVE Major League Baseball. Some people find this a little odd, but my love of baseball goes all the way back to Dale Murphy and the Braves. I used love to watch them on TV with my dad, so my mom wrote the Braves to see if we could get tickets close enough for me to see the game fairly well. Luckily we had great seats and I even got a Dale Murphy uniform (too bad my mom didn't keep it after I out grew it). I loved the Braves when they stunk. I did keep up with them, but I went through a five to ten year period where I really did not watch them much. I still usually attend a game once a year, but I have not been to a game in a while. I really like watching on TV. It was not until I had a suitemate in college who was obsessed with the Braves that I got back into baseball.
Fr three years now I have spent my spring and summer watching the games. I will be honest I did give up n the Braves this past summer, but I still watched some other teams play. I decided to write this blog because some of you may know that Spring Training is under way and that means baseball is right around the corner. Baseball is the only thing that will keep me up late at night and if I have to have to go somewhere then I usually record Braves games.
I was probably one of the most excited people about the new MLB network. I DVR over half the shows. That is one of the few channels I will sit down and watch live too. No do not get me wrng I like going to games, but it is nice to fast forward or rewinding through certain parts. I can have instant replay whenever. In fact, my ideal vacation would be spending a summer going to all the ballparks and watching all the teams play. I just have to find someone who I could stand going with the whole summer.
I do like other teams, but the Braves have always been the team I have pulled for the most. I even enjoy going to see the Huntsville Stars or in college the DiamonsJax. I even like watching younger people play. There is just something about baseball. I do not know what it is, but it is part of America and since I am a patriotic person I guess that is hwy I love it so much.

Class of 1986

In the spring of 1986 I graduated from ABC Preschool while my dearest friend graduated from high school. Now I would hope Tracy would not think I am taking a dig at our age difference. I would, however, like to point out that close friends can transcend age among other things. I do believe the two of us are a lot alike, but we also have our differences. I mean even though she is married and has a family and I am not we still manage to remain, in my eyes, very close. She is the person I rely on the most. If I am going to share something with someone then she is that person. Sometimes I probably ramble on or rant a lot to her, but she still always listens. I do believe my life would not be the same today without her and her family being in it. I am not only close with Tracy, but I care about all of her family.
I first met Tracy when I worked with children in her kindergarten classroom. I was a little anxious about whether or not I could actually work in someones classroom, but when I realized she was almost like a kindred spirit I knew it would all work out. She and I see eye to eye on a lot, but we don't care to give our opinion either. When I first started working at Forest Hills I was still not really happy about living in Florence, bu ti can say Tracy was one of the few people who helped changed all that. Now I could not imagine being anywhere else.
Some of my favorite times are hanging out eating Chick Fil A with her and the boys at school, playing Wii with the boys at the house, hanging out with one another on Christmas Day, watching the boys play soccer (or playing with them), or chatting on the phone with Tracy. I definitely could not imagine my life without them.

Pancakes

I absolutely LOVE pancakes. Now I will go months at a time without eating them, but they are still one of my favorite foods. Funny thing though...I really do not like syrup. If I am home I just eat plain pancakes, even no butter. On the other hand if I am out say at Cracker Barrel (like I was this evening) then I have to have blackberries and whip cream. I also like chocolate chips, blueberries, well anything. I am in some ways glad we do not have an IHOP because I would be as big as a house. I will admit I was a little "j" that my parents went to IHOP in Huntsville last week and didn't even consider how I would feel about that. I may be small and one day it might catch up with me,but I I can put away the food especially pancakes. I doubt I will eat much at all tomorrow though.

That Sam I Am

This blog could be about my favorite childhood book Green Eggs and Ham, but its not. It could also be about my mom's only hope of a grandchild, Sam Sweatt, but its not. It is actually about Sam from school.
Honestly, he's behind the title, but it is about some of the children I work with at school. I love all my kids equally and for different reasons. I have already talked about my job at length, so I a not going to do that again. I have also discussed my fascination with children with autism. Now I want to say something about the majority of the children work with each day. Now I do not want to get into too much for privacy reasons of the children. I would not want their families to think I am exploiting them. I spend my days working with children who mainly have mental retardation that can result from a variety of conditions...for example Down syndrome. Like I mentioned I love all of them, but I do want to say more about Downs. In recent years I have become more interested in the subject. I tend to read more books and I love to watch TV and movies concerning the topic. I think they are precious children. The just like children with autism are different one another.
This year I have been introduced to a new young man. He is a five year old boy with Downs. He does in fact also have the heart conditions associated with Down Syndrome. He will eventually have to have surgery, but he never misses a beat. He is tough as nails and is not afraid of anything. Now honestly I love him just as equally contrary to what others might think. I guess I am a little more attached because I have to help him more with things. I was the same way with other kids when I had to help them with more skills. Now I can love them in different ways.
I wish I could talk more at length and more in depth about all of my children, bu I would never want to intrude on their privacy. Since he is icognito in the sunglasses I will show one pic.

My Car

Okay so I absolutely love me some Mario Kart on the Wii. I could talk about a lot of other things on the Wii, but MK is what I am obsessed with. If I do actually have free time to play then I pick up my wheel and hit the track. I always look forward to the weekend because that is when I can play for hours if I feel like it. I do love to play with other people on the VS. mode, but it seems no one can contend with me very well...okay so Mar-mar does okay. I am not really that big on the battles, so I am sure anyone could beat me on it. I mainly just enjoy doing the Grand Prix. It took me a couple of months to beat the game (since I rarely get to lay during the week). Now I am just trying to get triple stars on each cup. I have also discovered the WFC. This is the Internet version of the game. I like getting to play people around the globe. I cant wait until I set it up so I can play my "friends."
Now when it comes to cars I like a lot of them. I do not necessarily choose the car or motorcycle depending on what track. I just choose what I like. Generally i play with Yoshi and his little blooper car or dolphin dasher, but I love the little card and bikes too. Most of the time i do not play much with the bigger karts. I do admit I have not won all the characters, but it is mainly because I have to keep playing.
I do like playing all kinds of video games and since i am competitive I like to win. I guess maybe I like driving the cars so much because I do not drive , so it gives me a chance to "get behind the wheel." After talking about this so much I think I am off to go see what's going on in Mario Land.

Dirty Nails

Warning if you get grossed out easily then don't read. I have had this pet peeve since I was a child about things being underneath my fingernails. When I was younger I would clean my nails out two to three times a day. Now that I am older I do much better. I do it once a day unless I see something then I clean again. SO this might gross some of you out, but you know consider the other option...having dirt and whatever else under there while you eat, put on makeup, etc. I also do not like to see stuff under other people's nails. I have been known at school to clean my kids' nails. I guess I should have saved this for my OCD tendency blog, but I had to have something to write about today.

Getting the Job Done

Okay so this posting a random thing everyday in the month of February is beginning to get to me, but if I say I am going to to do something then I am going to do everything in my power to do it. Hey there is a random thought I am persistent or ambitious one you decide. I think I am ambitious about a lot of things when it comes to accomplishing things people think I may not can do. I think I am persistent about things that I know are easy to accomplish even if I do not want to them...i.e. posting each day. (You know the only reason I chose Feb. was because it was the shortest month. I do think there is anything wrong with being persistent or ambitious. I think those are qualities we should strive for and teach our children. I guess maybe persistence could get you in trouble sometimes, because you know some persistent people can get on my nerves when they will not back off.

Early to Bed, Early to Rise

I am like an old lady when it comes to going to bed. Honestly, I do stay up when I am not working, but I still get up at the crack of dawn. I even try to stay up later on the weekends, but when six o'clock rolls around I am up with the birds. When school starts back after summer vacation I am the worst. I will come in and go to bed at seven. It reminds me of how my great grandmother used to watch "wheel of Fortune" at 6:30 then go to bed. One day when I have children I will probably be getting less sleep and maybe that is hwy now I sleep so much in preparation for it. I really do not even get irritable when I have had lack of sleep. I do like to get eight hours, but I am okay if I do not. Unless there is something on TV (which is rare) then I am to bed by 8 or nine. I usually read for an hour or so then go to sleep. If I am sick then it is a whole different story. For example, I am not feeling well today and I am exhausted, so I may be in bed by six or seven..no joke.

Secret Hiding Place

I love dark chocolate! I really do not care if it is just a solid piece or filled with caramel, or black currant. Now I do not believe Hershey's special dark is really dark chocolate. I prefer Dove, Ghiradelli, Starbucks and of course Target's Choxie. My new favorite is raspberry filled. The one thing I have a problem with is sharing. I try not to buy much of it on my own, but occasionally I receive it for gits. You know most people might put it out for others to try..not me, mine goes in the closet. If someone really wanted to go get it I guess they could, but I dare you to try it. I mean seriously I share all that milk chocolate stuff they call candy ,so don't you dare go after my dark chocolate.

From Armadillos to Zeta

Okay so this is a weird title, but I am wondering if the person this blog is about has figured it out yet. This is an alphabetical list of my years of friendship with Lindsey (who by the way is probably my most faithful blog reader). Words really can not describe how I have felt about her over the years, but maybe this will bring back some fun memories. Even though we never get to see one another and I am terrible at keeping touch, I know that time really does not matter. Yes our lives have continued without the presence of one another, but if we were ever in close proximity again I feel we would be as close as we were back in the day. I could have come up with several things on many letters and then some letters are just stretching it but at least maybe she will enjoy it, so let's begin:

Armadillos- Once late night in high school we were tightly packed in Lindsey's Mazda 626 (maybe 8 of us). I think we were on our way back to town or back to Lindsey's because we were out near Maywood. Now we were going quite fast, radio up and lots of talking when all of the sudden we see something in the road. Now Lindsey just hits it full speed. The only thing the two of us in the passengers seat can dot is lift up our feet (like it was going to come through the car and touch us), close our eyes and scream Truthfully I think Lindsey did the same thing. We go back to check it out and yes, the loud bump was an armadillo.
Beaches- Lindsey and I spent our fare share of the time at the beach. Sometimes they were road trips with our parents and sometimes they were road trips with friends. Gulf Shores was our home away from home in the summer of 1999. Our lodging ranges from the others Miller's condo, Richard', my parents condo to the best one of all The Lighthouse. Our days were spent laying by the pool, taking pictures in the ocean, eating, or hanging out at the Track. Oh and let me not forget "beach church" and Lindsey's pondering question of Viagra ( i think it was).
Church- From the time I was in seventh grade until my family moved, Lindsey and I went to
the Hamilton Church f Christ together. Church I think was the foundation of our friendship. You see Lindsey was a year older and were were friends at school, but it was the times that we spent at church activities that brought us closer together. We did our regular church activities like weekly services, Bible bowls, youth rallies, VBS, which included everything from painting to acting and finally our devos that included everything from taboo with the elders to yard rolling wars with the baptist church. Our fun times consisted of eating out anywhere and everywhere after services, late night bowling, movies, hockey games, and eating/sleeping our way through Bron's baseball.
Drive In- No day together would be complete without a stop by the drive in for a meal or just a drink during happy hour or while riding "the Loop" Now some days we traded the Aggie burgers, Swiss delights and slushes for Snow-Biz. I think we were their most loyal customers.
Education- We both share the passion to educate children. Fortunately we had each other t turn to in college. I always enjoyed the classes we shared with one another down in the basement of GC. It was helpful to have someone to bounce ideas off of or study with. it was also comforting to have someone to complain with.
Families- Both of us have definitely been blessed by our families, but we were even more blessed to share those families with one another. Grandaddy and Meemaw were just like my own grandparents. Our moms were interchangeable to me, even if it meant telling me like it was. We attended one anothers family events and my aunt's treated Lindsey just like they would have me.
Golden Girls- Those four old women were the highlight of our evenings in college. We loved many other shows. I mean I will never forget how excited we were when the Facts of Life started coming on Nick at Nite. I always really enjoyed Designing Women, but we always got a good laugh out Blanche, Dorothy, Rose and especially Sophia.
Hitchin' a Ride- If you read my previous blog you know I do not drive, so thankfully I had Lindsey. Now some people would say Lindsey is not that great of a driver, but you know she does quite well compared to me. We spent almost every day of summers riding around together. In college Lindsey was always willing to take me home even when I moved to Florence. She never seemed bothered by me tagging along with her.
Inspirational Mail- Campus mail was a big thing in college. I mean I checked my mail like ten times a day. Everyone hoped for packages from home or little notes from friends. Lindsey always knew when I was having a bad day because she would always send me a little card to cheer me up. I still have all my mail.
Jackson- When we had nothing else to do what better way to kill time than to drive to Jackson. Some days we had a purpose like eating or going to Target while others we played around at Wal-Mart, roamed Davis Kidd and walked around the mall. Was there ever a week that we did not go to Jackson?
Knowing the Real Me- Something I can admit about myself is have I am not a trusting person. I really only let those close to in. That may be a bad quality, but I know that my close friends re true friends through and through. I can say only a handful of people know almost everything about me. What I will say is that Lindsey always took the time to know the real me the things that were behind the facade.
Lunches- Lunch was always an important part of all of our days. It started out in high school with our big lunch crowd. You never new what would go down at that table. Summers were spent floating around to grandparents houses or Dinelli's. Even in college we ate together a good part of the time. Since we were not big Gano eaters we usually hung out down in the student center with Lyndsie, Beth, Nick or whoever else was around.
Maywood- I could spend a whole other blog on Maywood, but almost all of my memories included Lindsey. All the late nights, schemes, sneaking out and even the spiritually uplifting moments. I was always at home out there and have more memories that are closest to my heart than almost anywhere else.
Nick- I could say so many things about Nick. A lot of my memories in college of Lindsey included Nick. I was so happy when Lindsey found him. Nick could always make me laugh. He never cared that I was their third wheel sometimes. I became just as close to nick as I was to Lindsey. He definitely always made me laugh. I am sure he could have tired of our craziness but usually he just jumped right in.
Organization- Now I have no idea if she is the same way, but the two of us used to be the most organized people I knew. We were always cleaning and organizing. We would even hang out together to clean out closets. I will admit I am not as bad as I used to be, but a little organization is not a bad thing.
Pool Days- Lindsey was a certified lifeguard, so we spent a lot of time at the pool. On occasion we had to go to the rec, but most summer days were spent at Cara's or Maywood. we had a whole set of Maywood pool memories (Florence week getting us and Jeremy kicked out). We usually let Mackenzie, Kelsi,Marcy and/or Heather tag along for our pool adventures. If the sun was out we were at the pool.
"Quiet" Library Times- If one of us ever came up missing then chances were we were hiding out in the library. We started out upstairs hanging out, but that scene got a little crowded, so by Lindsey's senior year we moved down to the back in the AV section. come to find out that was where the upper classmen did their "studying". Now do get me wrong sometimes during the day we really did have to go study, but at night it was just a social party. Our other study hang out was GC classrooms. We did have some good laughs in Loden Daniel though.
Restaurants- I bet the two of us could review any restaurant in the Jackson, Tupelo or Hamilton areas. I think if we would have had enough money we would have eaten out every meal whether while away at school or at home. We were aways up for trying new ones. This is another one that I could write a while blog about. Some things I will never forget are my mom's cherry pancakes from cracker barrel, Wednesday nights at Louie's, Dumplins, Mcallister's, meeting our parents in Corinth at the Smokin Jack Stack, driving from Hamilton to Tupelo just to eat and all the places in Hamilton to get a "good" meal. I am sure their are other things, but I will just say we never missed a good meal or especially a good dessert like a tall cake from Ruby Tuesday's.
Suitemates- Lindsey and I both lived in Dixon Hall during our tenure at FHU. My first semester I lived on the first floor, but by the spring I moved up to the the third floor. We then had a wall between us. It was my sophomore year that we became suitemates. Strangely enough we were roommate. I think we needed the opportunity to have alone time every so often. Lindsey had a cast of characters for roommates (I do not mean that rude, they just changed every so often) and then of course I had Elizabeth (we'll talk about her another time:) We have all kinds of memories in Dixon whether it was mischief to all sleeping together to keep warm in winter. There was rarely a dull moment in suite 310-312.
Travel- Our ups and downs always came with travel. I have already talked about beach trips and we also went on some fun trips...I think I even talked about Atlanta in another blog. I guess our most memorable trip that really brought our friendship closer was the trip out west. Now I am not getting in to the horrible details..Lindsey and I know everything that happened right down to trying to figure h=out how to fly home. We also had some good times on our 3 day trip to Canada and back. The trips with our moms were also usually quite memorable, even if they hated when we stayed up giggling.
Understanding One Another- We always seemed to understand one another. we knew when we needed a little break or when we needed the other even when we thought we needed to be alone. I think even now Lindsey could still understand me better than a lot of people, but I would let her in quicker than most other people.
Vinegar- I guarantee no one else could have a thing for vinegar related products. Green beans with vinegar (I would have mentioned green beans on G, but I knew it would come up here), cucumbers soaked in vinegar, pickles, salt vinegar or dill pickle chips. Now I will admit I do not get to eat many of those things anymore, but when I do I always think of Lindsey.
Winfield- The two of us worked for a short time at a health center in Winfield. We always found some of our coworkers and their drama interesting. we also always had fun times riding to and from Winfield. My favorite memory was one Saturday morning we had to be there at like six, we had had a late night on Friday, so since no one was actually at the pool or in the child care center we took a nap at the pool.
XBX- For a short time we were both in Chi Beta Chi at FHU. We both bowed out during our upperclass years. We did have some fun times those during Makin Music and especially inermurals (especially trying to tackle in flag football).
Young and the Restless- I mentioned earlier that we both liked certain TV shows, but I had to save this one. In the summer we always had to tune in to this soap. If we were not together we would sit on the phone and talk until it was over...then go to lunch then pool. Now I will admit I still tune in from time. Okay so I record it and watch the parts i want to see.
Zeta- For some strange reason when Lindsey gets tired she seems to forget the names of her close friends. I was Lakey, Katie was Zeta and I can not remember Paige's name. We earned our names at Maywood but they stuck for years. Zeta was also part of some of our greatest memories too. We had some wonderful times in Hamilton Alabama, but our manger scene arrangements one Christmas has to be up there as one of the best.

I am sure some of you have been bored by this, but I hope some of you have enjoyed it. I know I have loved think back to all those wonderful times It definitely makes me wish that I kept in better touch with the Pritchard's. Lindsey was the one who guilted e into the 25 Random Things on Facebook, so it was only natural that I talked about her during my Random Thing in February. Like I said earlier I do believe we have had the kind of friendship that time and space can not contend with. Like Lindsey said to me once before, old friends are the best friends.

On Her Blindness

I have mentioned before that I have a thing for English lit, well strangely enough I kind of like John Milton. Paradise Lost has meaning to me that few people will understand. Perhaps one poem will always come to mind. If you graduated from Hamilton High School after me then when you studied Milton with Rich you heard about me. Charlotte always mentions my relationship with this poem. Now at the time I really didn't realize how much emotion I brought with my recitation of the poem , but now I guess I understand. The poem is as follows:

On His Blindness

When I consider how my light is spent,
Ere half my days in this dark world an wide,
And that one talent which is death to hide
Lodged with me useless, though my soul more bent
To serve therewith my Maker, and present
My true account, lest he returning chide,
"Doth God exact day-labor light denied?"
I fondly ask, But Patience, to prevent
That murmur, soon replies "God doth not need
Either man's work or his own gifts; who best
Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state
Is kingly: thousands at his bidding speed,
And post o'er land and ocean without rest;
They also serve who only stand and wait.

Now you can take from what you want of that poem or if you want an explanation then surf the web. The poem itself has meant a variety of things to me personally over the years. Different lines have come to me in different situations, but I am primarily gong to stick with one in this blog...."When I consider how my light is spent."
For many of you, you may think about this line as referring to what have you done with your life and honestly it kind of does for me, but in the following rambling blog you may come to understand why it has such an impact one me. Almost everyone who reads this will not read this with shock , but I am blind...well legally blind. You can go ahead and assume what you want but you should know by now what assuming gets you. Get ready this is going to be a long one.
As an infant my parents noticed something did not seem right with my vision. I would often gaze at the sun for periods of time, but it was obvious that is was painful, but I continued to do it. By the time I started walking it became more evident that something was not right because I stumbled and would walk into walls. Finally after going through a few doctors and the consideration to travel great distances to figure out the problem, I was diagnosed with Congenital Nystagmus (http://nystagmus.org/aboutn.html) will call CN, and Retinal Cone Dystrophy (http://www.naturaleyecare.com/diseases.asp?d_num=35) which Ill call RCD. I hope these links work. Now there are many sites to check out if you just Google the two diseases and if you are a facebook friend I belong to one group about CN but there are some related to RCD, but I feel like these two sites I linked have some good information. Let me begin by saying everything that you find does not necessarily mean I suffer from it. Also I really do not want to give lengthy descriptions of the diseases or list every little thing I suffer from. Read the sites then ask what you want. I should also say though I can sometimes be sensitive about it, so if we are not close friends do not expect me to to be completely open.
Okay so I will answer the most popular question, no I do not drive. Can I? Yeah I now how to, but I am mature enough to know that it would not be the wisest decision. I have considered using some new technology to drive at certain times of the day. There are people who suffer from CN who drive, but the thing is the two diseases combined is often the key reason why people like me can not drive. I guess RCD would be the primary disease because CN can be a result of it. My cones and rods do not operate correctly. Light really bothers me, but the upside I can see in the dark like a bat. If I have been in bright lights for long periods of time throughout the day then I get a headache. Also RCD causes some types of colorblindness. I can not explain my colorblindness, so please do not ask. I see shades of color but sometimes I can not tell the differences in blues and greens. I am more self conscious about this than any other part of the diseases. I will definitely joke about it to people who are closest to me, but if you are not do not go there because I will get irritated with you. My close family and friends just usually mention a lot of color talk. For example, they might say how do you like that pink shirt, etc. If you do the research you will find CN involves eye movement. Well I can not notice it, but my mom could always tell when I was sick because she said my eyes would move more. I do have a null that helps me focus but it really causes neck problems. Yes I definitely have to hold things up close to see because glasses can only do so much for someone who is legally blind.
Let me give you a little history. As a child i had to wear dark glasses. Of course ignorant people would always make jokes about it (Lesson: Be careful about sarcastically making fun of individuals because you never know if something is wrong with them). People would call me a little movie star or question why I did not take them off inside. (Thankfully my aunt Teena usually had some quick remark to hit them with...I guess I got that from her.) The reason was because I was extremely more light sensitive as a child. I am thankful that I wore them because now my eyes are stronger and most likely my sight will not deteriorate any faster than a normal aging person. I still wear sunglasses most of the time I am outside, but not indoors. I do use transition lenses, but I honestly like my polarized lenses in sunglasses because they are darker. You know I always liked the song " I Wear My Sunglasses at Night."
School was a major issue. At first, many people (okay some educators) felt like I should not go to a regular school, but my grandmother told my mother no way). They knew I was already pretty smart for my age since I could already read and do a lot of other things. My family just began to push me harder. My first teacher (Teena Cantrell) embraced me with no problem. She worked with my parents and did many things for me. Hey I mean she did not worry about me not knowing my colors because I sometimes helped the other children because I was the only one who could read the color name on the side of the crayon. You would thought that would have been enough, but in second graded my teacher seemed to think I needed to go to the "special reading" program, but I showed her. I went and with quickly Mrs. Lawler (glad she took more time to get to now me than my other teacher) realized I was a much better reader than those in my regular class and I did not need her program, but luckily I got to stay in there anyway well until it became evident that I needed to be in the highest level reading class.
I had some teachers who helped me in any way I needed and I had others who I felt just tried to see if I really could not do certain things. Little did they know that just pushed me even harder. I ended up doing quite well in school. For that I want to thank all my family, friends and those special teachers (I would never want to leave anyone out, so I should not try to list them. Of course I have already written about Charlotte).
When it came time to go to college my parents worried about me not being able to drive, but luckily my desire was to go to Freed Hardeman so that was not a problem since the campus was walkable. I did luckily have many friends who took me wherever I needed to go (Just like I did in high school). Lindsey of course always took good care of me. I really did not ever feel like my vision was a problem and really none of my professors ever questioned it. It was also never an issue about getting a job I think Vocational Rehab people had more of an issue than anyone. Do not get me wrong they helped pay for my school, but some of the advisors often were not the most encouraging. Also on a side note some of you may ask why I never considered SSI. Well I had to go through the process before Voc. Rehab give me school money. It was determined that I could do anything a normal teenager could do..apparently the inability to get a driver's license is not that out of the ordinary.
I guess the pessimistic person might say they do not know how I could do certain things in a classroom, but I really have not ever had any trouble, even when it comes to colors. I have worked with so many wonderful people who treat me as if nothing is different about me. I hope to them they do not think I am different because of my eye problems. I am sure anyone I know will tell you I am weird, but not because I can not see lie everyone else.
In conclusion it seems that I will not experience other serious eye problems as I age. I will lose sight just like other people will. As far I driving goes who knows what will happen. I am open to the possibly, but I do not want to put other people in danger. States are beginning to consider ways to allow people with my conditions to drive, so who knows. I know I can go from here to there, but long distances would not be a good idea. I do hope one day to get married and have children. Sometimes it scares me to think I might pass it on, but actually it was never found that I got it genetically, so most likely I will not pass it on. I would never say never.
I try to always explain to people that I might be considered legally blind by medical standards, but I can actually see just not the way everyone else does. In fact I often "see" things that most people miss because they are too busy looking past what is really there.
Sorry this was so long, but I wanted to try to explain a little about me, so when you are around me you are not wondering what seems to be wrong with me.

DVD's'R Me

I reflected on this a little in my You've Got Mail blog, but I must admit I own a few to many DVDs I used to own a lot of VHS tapes, but I have almost re bought them all on DVD. I really try not to spend a lot on them unless it is a movie that I really want then I buy it the day it is released. I do not have a certain genre. I have lots of all kinds except maybe horror movies. I am a girl so of course I have a variety of romantic comedies, but I really like comedies. One thing I really love is sports movies. I have lots of them.
My favorite memory concerning my collection is while in college Elizabeth and I had a really nice collection between the two of us so naturally people wanted to borrow our movies. The thing they did not bargain for was close to the end of the semester we sent out invoices to people who had not returned them.
One final note on my DVD is collection that you might find amusing is that I really do not watch many of the movies. I want to try to get better about it, but most of the time I watch then once and it may take years before I watch again. You might say that is a waste of money and I totally agree except who knows I might really get my mind on watching a certain movie and I want to have it available right then.

Coca Cola

What can say except that my days are much nicer if I have had my fix of Coke. It is funny that I chose to write about this because some of the things may not apply this week because I have not actually had any coke this week (the cold has drawn me closer to my coffee addiction). I guess if you do not know me you are beginning to think I am a caffeine addict...really I am not.
Now over the years I have a had a thing for me kinds of soda and I have even gone without any for long periods of time. If I remember correct I fell hard for Coke in college. I had been a fan of diet, but the vanilla variety later lured me to the classic version. You know it was also in college that I made my first visit to the World of Coke. If you have never been it is a cool trip. Sadly, I have been unable to visit the new one, but I had some good memories with Lindsey, Jessica, Nick and Landon at the last one. I'll never forget the taste testing.
These days I have to have at least 6 ounces a day from a bottle. I try to stay away from the cans, but sometimes I have to have one right then and I will take whatever. I do want to say I am not like my mother or Susan in that I will kill someone if I have not had my coke (in their case diet coke). Like I said I have made it this whole week without one.
What is my attraction to Coke? I can not answer that except I like the taste and I have to have it. Addicted...maybe...in love...yes.

Expect More Pay Less

If you know what that means then you already have a special place in my heart. Try this one "a new day a new place to save" or my favorite "there no place like Target at Christmas (or for that matter anytime) to save. Yeah that's it... I love Target.
Many people have their opinions of target and if they are negative then they were never really target shoppers anyway. I do sometimes have to shop other places because I am too far from a Super Target, but most of the time if it does not come from Target then I do not have it.
My love affair with Target came while in college. Fortunately I moved to a town that had a Target. Now if I ever moved that would be a prerequisite for a town. In fact recently someone said our Target was closing and my only thought was that I was going to have to move. Yes I am that obsessed.
Why do I love Target so? I don't know. I mean sometimes it can be more expensive and they do not sell some things I can;t love without, but on the other hand they have some of the neatest things and generally it is a much nicer atmosphere than that other retail giant.
I could go on for days, but I won't People who are around me regularly know my passion for the red and white. My favorite gift in the world is a Target gift card ( I got excited today when I received a free gift card with a purchase at Target). From allergy medicine to Ziploc bags I buy Target. Too bad I could never work there...red is just not a good color on me.

Dirty Jobs

Yes I did watch the show a lot but it has been a while since I have tuned in. Some of you might be trying to guess my dirty job and your guess would be bathroom detail with some of my kids...but no.
For a short period of time in high school I worked at a recycling plant. Now this is definitely not the dirtiest job I have ever done, but hey I needed a title. I do not know if you many of you know it and for that matter it may not still be open but at one time a family owned a recycling plant in Hamilton out on airport road. I did not work long hours. Honestly I only put in a couple of hours a day. I actually acquired the job through the school work program. The Emerson's who owned the pant had a contract with NTN Bower that gave them the chance to help recycle some of their products or to find ways to use recycled material to store their products. The part I have so far left out that was my fellow coworkers were young men on work release.
Let me explain my job at the plant first. I initially rolled recycled cardboard into small cylinders that would fit inside larger berrings for storage. I finished that job quickly so I began inspecting small berrings. I checked for scratches, buffed and polished them. Now I actually did not work alone. Two other girls helped out...Erica and Penelope. We actually never got talk to the boys, but one time one said a few choice things to one of the girls. I do not think he ever got to come back.
I on occasion got to separate recycled materials if I had time left on my shift. This job did teach me a few things. One everyone needs to do a little hard work. I was glad I learned that at a young age. I also learned that no one is above doing dirty work.
Finally I guess that is where I got my recycling obsession. Now it took me almost ten years after the job, but now I am a recycling machine. Many of you who know me know I am just as obsessive about the sorting as I am the recycling. I am really trying not to waste anything these days and i really try to conserve and recycle. I d believe we as a society have trashed our planet in so many ways and f we do not start doing something then things will only get worse. God gave us this beautiful place to use until the end of time ad we should take care of His planet. Don;t you ever wonder why people are more sick and have all these toxins. It is because we are polluted (in many ways, but I will not get into that). We all should consider taking care of what we have been given..get out and recycle. I was born to push this message. Earth Day is My Birthday after all!

The Pieces That Fit Together

Children with autism fascinate me. I do not want that to sound weird because I love these children , but they are such an interesting group of people. I guess it was in college when I first realized that I wanted to work with these children. I had the privilege of having a professor who had worked with children with autism for a number of yeas. I know I have talked about his somewhat when I discussed my job, but this was a part of my random things.
The title may throw some of you guys off, but Autism Speaks (an autism organization) uses puzzle pieces as their symbol. Why you might ask, well because all of them are different, but their tendencies fit together to make one whole individual person.
I love how they are all on a spectrum and no one is ever the same. You know for people to assume they are odd is a misconception because I mean we are all different aren't we?It is amazing to see how smart some of them are when most people think they are out there. Then I love to see the milestones that some of the more severe ones make.
Honestly I could write about his forever. I could tell stories of children I work with or others I have read about. I do not want to bore some of you, but just know I absolutely love these kids. I think they are some of the most wonderful humans ever created. I am sure some parents might not agree, but find the blessing in the world that these children live in. They are truly special.

A Little Coffee with My Oxygen

SO here I goes I said I would write about randomness the whole month of February and of course the day slipped up on me. I had great intentions of writing a couple of blogs that would be a bit more interesting, but they are not quite ready to publish. For those of you who did not read my last blog I want to explain that the idea for my random thoughts came from the 25 Random Things that has been floating around facebook (I have really enjoyed reading everyone's). Since I am behind already I will just start with my number one from facebook...coffee.
The title is a little lay on a Gilmore Girls dialogue. Needless to say I absolutely love coffee. Now some people prefer certain kinds, not me I drink whatever. I mean I prefer a strong cup or a nice white chocolate frappaccino., but I drink what is available. As I have gotten older I seem to go for more black, but I think it is only because I am too cheap to drink anything else. Also I mean if I am going to drink as much as I do then black is better for me than all the other sugar.
I fell in love with coffee at a young age, but I laid off it until the cappuccino craze of the late 90's. Then in college it became a must have. I almost broke the bank when Starbucks opened in Jackson then Bubba's bagels set up shop in Henderson. I had to have coffee so bad some nights I had to beg Liz or Claire just to walk with me across the street so I could get my fix.
Now some might think it is the caffeine in coffee that I need, but on the contrary I drink coffee in winter to warm me up so I can go to sleep. After college it took a long time to get back to simply black because I fell for all the tempting creamer flavors. I was a good PR person for nearly every flavor. My bunco women can attest to that. Sadly now I have said goodbye to most creamers except at night because I had to lose some weight and the first thing I gave up was sweet creamers.
I can admit that I am not addicted. I know it may seem that way but I bet I could go without it, but I dare anyone to spend the day with me the day I give it up. I do not know what I day without coffee is like. I do want you to understand that I am not someone who drinks it constantly all day because I hate the way it makes my teeth feel. No I am down to one black cup in the morning, one half caff or decaf cup at the Y when I finish working out (the only decaf I ever drink...i do not turn down "free" coffee) and then one cup with creamer at night when it is cold outside. I do not even care if it is scalding hot or cold I take it either way. Now I know I can survive on just one single cup in the morning, but I also know that I can make it on six to eight cups in one day. All the while never being affected by the caffeine. I just like the taste. I mean I will eat coffee flavored anything. I love the smell of it. When I feel sick the coffee smell makes my nausea go away.
I could go without a lot of things, even food but give me a little coffee with my oxygen:)