Well, today was an interesting end to a good start. I started school on Tuesday. I’m so stoked, my last semester of school. The semester just started and I’m already excited about graduating. I even have a cap and gown already. My mom’s friend Tribbie is letting me borrow her cap and gown from her master’s graduation at A&M this past December. All I have to do is buy a tassel. I tried it on Tuesday night and it’s perfect. That will save me some money. Thanks Trib. We know the graduation will be either May 9th or May 10th. Once the university goes through all the graduation applications they receive by the end of this month, they will know how many students are graduating from each department of each college and will create a schedule to make it all fit into four ceremonies, two on each day.
As for school, my class, Introduction to Biblical Archaeology, so far has been interesting. I’m not as impressed with the professor as I hoped to be. He doesn’t use any of the available resources or technology the university has created to make his life or the students’ life easier, except for electronic course reserves at the library. Those are old hat if you ask me. The class is packed and you have to be in the room at least 15 minutes before to get a decent seat. You know I like to sit in the front and so far I’ve had to sit about half way up. It’s hard to hear him even with a lapel microphone. I’m going to have to start getting there earlier. Even though we got the “this isn’t a Bible study” lecture the first day of class, he mentions specific scripture and stories from the Bible often. He’s even mentioned Jesus a few times. So for me, it is a Bible study because I’m learning things about the Bible I didn’t know previously. For the next four weeks, we are covering the introduction to Biblical archaeology before we get to specific times periods. We will cover 10,000-8,500 BC to the first century AD. So far we’ve been given a 45 page reading assignment. But of course, the textbook for the class isn’t in the bookstore yet, so the prof (actually his teaching assistant) had to scan the pages in for us and post them on the library electronic course reserves. I don’t think it will be in when the bookstore says, (not surprised) so I ordered mine from Amazon.com (saved $7) and it is already on its way to me. I bet I get my book before the bookstore gets them in.
As for swimming, Thursday was my first day to actually swim. It was great. Everything came back to me, breathing, head placement, arm and leg movement, torso twisting, a few strokes. But I’ve decided to take a stroke clinic or two depending on the cost so I can get further instruction and correction. I was tempted to attempt a flip turn on Thursday, but decided to wait a few weeks. I did a workout I found online. It’s part of an eight week program, but I plan to spread it out since it’s been two and a half years since I’ve swam regularly. The pool was set up for 25 meter lanes. I swam for a total of 45 minutes to one hour with a short 15 minute break in between for a fire drill that required the entire rec center to be evacuated. Turns out workers in one area of the rec center smelled gas so the staff decided to be better safe than sorry. I can appreciate that since I was in an area closer to the boilers and natural gas and heat don’t mix well. It was disturbing to my workout and the cold outside didn’t help. We weren’t allowed to go into the locker rooms to grab more clothes or anything, just evacuate.
So there we were soaking wet only in bathing suits and they are telling us we have to go outside where it is 41 degrees. Yeah, we were happy about that. I had one towel already and they gave us as many towels as we needed plus these huge insulated parkas the swim team uses. I was happy to see those. They helped a lot but it was still cold. We finally went back in and I resumed my workout with a short warm-up. I wish I had some kind of abacus or counting frame to keep up with my laps. I swam about 200 meters before we had to evacuate. That was a 9 minute warm-up and the start of a 9 minute skill refresher. Then I did a 22 minute main set plus a 5 minute cool down. I think in total I swam 700 meters which is about 0.44 of a mile, almost half a mile. Not bad for my first swim in two and a half years. I was starving after that and my legs were slow. My right hip hurt a little also, but I have been doing some yoga hip openers to help with that. I’ll be doing yoga everyday to combat the pain I’ll feel from all this swimming. The time of day I swim isn’t busy at all. I plan to continue swimming at that time. It also gets me in a locker room shower before a swimming conditioning kinesiology class gets out filling up the locker room.
As for the title of this post, two weeks ago I started having pain in my left lower jaw. It has progressively gotten worse, but slowly. I have no idea what I did to my jaw. (Here’s where the jokes begin.) There has not been any popping, grinding, ear pain or headache, just pain near the joint when I chew (more jokes), but not any when I talk (even more jokes). Around Tuesday of this week it actually started getting a little stiff and was tough for me to open. So on Wednesday night I decided I better go to the doctor before it gets worse and I can’t open my mouth at all. (Insert more jokes here.) How would I eat? I’d starve! I did some research online about jaw pain because I wasn’t sure if I should go to the dentist or my PCM. The census online was to go to a TMJ specialist, but I am not comfortable with my dentist at all and on Thursday morning I made an appointment with my PCM. By Thursday evening, thank goodness after dinner, the pain started moving up the side of my face and giving me a headache. I did not feel well. I had previously tried Tylenol and Advil but neither helped. At my appointment, my doctor examined the area externally and internally (which wasn't pleasant) and decided to send me for x-rays. She also gave me prescriptions for a muscle relaxer and Tylenol 3 with codeine. I went straight to the lab for the x-rays hoping they’d be able to get the results to her the same day. After a 30 minute wait in the lobby and ten x-rays in different positions, I was informed the results wouldn’t get to her until Monday. So I have to wait to see what’s going on.
I turned in my prescriptions and ran all the rest of my errands before picking them up to go home and take them. I was planning to work when I got home, but that was before I found out I was going to be prescribed those meds. I wanted to get them in my system as soon as possible. I ate a small meal as to not have an empty stomach then took a half pill of the muscle relaxer and one Tylenol 3 with codeine as the pharmacist recommended. I waited a while and felt nothing. So I took the other half of the muscle relaxer and that helped. I was actually able to chew with no pain. I started to feel a little woozy when I stood up from the Tylenol 3 with codeine and decided I better stay down for a while and that I didn't need the second one yet. I think it has worn off a little, hence being able to blog, but I can’t take anymore for a bit. Darn.
My plan for tomorrow was to go for a long walk in the late morning as it warmed up to 52 degrees and cut plywood for the attic in the early afternoon. I’m not sure how I will feel tomorrow when I wake up, but I can’t drive or operate machinery on either medication. So I have two options, go with the pain until after I do those two things or take the meds and not do anything at all. I probably shouldn’t go for too long of a walk on muscle relaxers and Tylenol 3 with codeine. I wonder if I could walk at all. I was really hoping to be done with one side of the attic this weekend. Oh well, they say when you own a home you never run out of things to do. So putting that off a little longer won’t make a big difference. It will also give me time to hit my family up for help. :)
Jan 18, 2008
Jan 14, 2008
Project Gutenburg
I came across this article, "Peruse the world's best public library" and thought I'd share it. It's about Project Gutenburg which you can download 22,000 classic books for free. And they are adding more every day. I recommend reading the article first so you can get an idea of how and why the project began before you jump over to the website. I think it's a really awesome thing they are doing to save great literature, but I also think it's a great way to read books without having to buy them or if you have transportation issues getting to a library to check them out. Also imagine riding the subway and reading a classic on your palm or smartphone or whatever device you have. You wouldn't have to lug a huge book on the subway, save space and stop getting dirty looks from other passengers because you're taking up so much space because you have to turn the pages while you read. Yes, the DC rush hour riders can be that nit-picky. You should see how they act when you're trying to read the Express which is regular newspaper size! I hope many of you partake in this great service.
I had a relaxing but productive weekend. I got a few things done on the house that Roger & I didn't have time to do while he was home. I was able to get all the Christmas decorations down and packed into tubs, hung some decorative metal gates on the front porch, got rid of another box in the garage by putting all our photo albums in a basket under one of the end tables, and started working on the attic flooring by nailing boards across the inside of the exterior walls for the plywood to sit on since the joists are flush with the wall and the plywood doesn't have anything to rest on. It felt good to get those done. Now I start the rest of the list on Wednesday. Wednesday I plan to cut the plywood pieces I need and place them in the attic. I know I will have to cut them in half to get them up there through the attic stairway hole. If I have time, I will also nail them in and move stuff from another area to that area and start working on the flooring in the next area. I borrowed my dad's pneumatic nail gun and man, what a life saver! No pre-drilling or manual hammering. It took me a whole five minutes to get those exterior wall boards put up. Pneumatic tools are a life saver. Thanks dad!
Today is going to be filled with work related tasks and getting ready for school tomorrow. Texas universities officially started today, but my class is on Tuesday/Thursday, so tomorrow will be all about school. I'm also going to start swimming two days a week before class since I'll be there anyway and the Natatorium at A&M is unbelievable. I have to pay the Student Recreation Center fee anyway, so I might as well use it. By the way, my dad helped build the Student Rec Center that holds the Natatorium many, many years ago. I'm hoping to figure out a time when the lap lanes aren't busy so I don't have to circle with anyone. Indoor pools are rare here so they get packed at certain times. Before I moved to Virginia, I used to swim at the downtown Austin YMCA's indoor pool and after work the lap lanes were crazy busy. I usually had to circle with three other people. That's not fun, especially when only one person may be a trained swimmer and the rest of us aren't. Fast swimmers throw my whole workout off. They push me harder, but that tires me out faster. So we'll see how crazy the university pool is and I'll let you know how it goes.
So as you can see, I didn't do a whole lot this weekend, but I am really happy with what I achieved especially all the relaxing. I went to the 5:00 p.m. service at Austin Stone last night since I worked in the morning on the attic. It was a really good message. We're still going through 1 Corinthians and yesterday Pastor Matt covered 1 Corinthians 1:10-17 and his two points were 1) we must remember church leadership does have authority in our lives and we must honor the leaders of the church, but our loyalty is to Jesus Christ and we must never submit to the point that it defames or dishonors Jesus and 2) our hearts need to be in love with the message not the messenger because God moves and works through men. The church in Corinth was doing both of these. His over all point was if there is ever a situation or time where there is a division or argument or quarrel in the church, he hoped we would be the one to stand up for unity. The church was all a buzz because all the new classes, trainings, forums, etc are starting up for this semester. They have a lot of different classes to offer. I read through all of them and there are many I'd like to take, but I've decided to stick with the one day forums this semester. The thought of a 5-10 week study is more than I want to handle right now. But there are some good ones. The message was good and funny, so if you get a chance you should listen to it by clicking on the link above. And of course, the worship was moving, like always.
I had a relaxing but productive weekend. I got a few things done on the house that Roger & I didn't have time to do while he was home. I was able to get all the Christmas decorations down and packed into tubs, hung some decorative metal gates on the front porch, got rid of another box in the garage by putting all our photo albums in a basket under one of the end tables, and started working on the attic flooring by nailing boards across the inside of the exterior walls for the plywood to sit on since the joists are flush with the wall and the plywood doesn't have anything to rest on. It felt good to get those done. Now I start the rest of the list on Wednesday. Wednesday I plan to cut the plywood pieces I need and place them in the attic. I know I will have to cut them in half to get them up there through the attic stairway hole. If I have time, I will also nail them in and move stuff from another area to that area and start working on the flooring in the next area. I borrowed my dad's pneumatic nail gun and man, what a life saver! No pre-drilling or manual hammering. It took me a whole five minutes to get those exterior wall boards put up. Pneumatic tools are a life saver. Thanks dad!
Today is going to be filled with work related tasks and getting ready for school tomorrow. Texas universities officially started today, but my class is on Tuesday/Thursday, so tomorrow will be all about school. I'm also going to start swimming two days a week before class since I'll be there anyway and the Natatorium at A&M is unbelievable. I have to pay the Student Recreation Center fee anyway, so I might as well use it. By the way, my dad helped build the Student Rec Center that holds the Natatorium many, many years ago. I'm hoping to figure out a time when the lap lanes aren't busy so I don't have to circle with anyone. Indoor pools are rare here so they get packed at certain times. Before I moved to Virginia, I used to swim at the downtown Austin YMCA's indoor pool and after work the lap lanes were crazy busy. I usually had to circle with three other people. That's not fun, especially when only one person may be a trained swimmer and the rest of us aren't. Fast swimmers throw my whole workout off. They push me harder, but that tires me out faster. So we'll see how crazy the university pool is and I'll let you know how it goes.
So as you can see, I didn't do a whole lot this weekend, but I am really happy with what I achieved especially all the relaxing. I went to the 5:00 p.m. service at Austin Stone last night since I worked in the morning on the attic. It was a really good message. We're still going through 1 Corinthians and yesterday Pastor Matt covered 1 Corinthians 1:10-17 and his two points were 1) we must remember church leadership does have authority in our lives and we must honor the leaders of the church, but our loyalty is to Jesus Christ and we must never submit to the point that it defames or dishonors Jesus and 2) our hearts need to be in love with the message not the messenger because God moves and works through men. The church in Corinth was doing both of these. His over all point was if there is ever a situation or time where there is a division or argument or quarrel in the church, he hoped we would be the one to stand up for unity. The church was all a buzz because all the new classes, trainings, forums, etc are starting up for this semester. They have a lot of different classes to offer. I read through all of them and there are many I'd like to take, but I've decided to stick with the one day forums this semester. The thought of a 5-10 week study is more than I want to handle right now. But there are some good ones. The message was good and funny, so if you get a chance you should listen to it by clicking on the link above. And of course, the worship was moving, like always.
Jan 11, 2008
Boogie Back To Texas
Well, I boogied my way back to Texas today. Even after taking off late because of an approaching storm and turbulence all along the way, it flew by thankfully because it was a non-stop and I was preoccupied with a great book (Captivating by John & Stasi Eldredge). Roger drove me to BWI for the flight and dropped me off at the curb. I wanted him to come in with me, but I knew if he came in I would cry. I was already feeling it well up inside me as we were driving up the beltway and I didn't want to cry. Plus I didn't use waterproof mascara this morning and knew if I cried I'd feel and look miserable the whole way. And I hate the feeling that I look like something's wrong. I don't want to look like an emotional wreck. I miss Roger a lot already. He was home for two weeks and I got so used to him being here. I guess that's why I avoided going to bed for so long tonight. Even when I started to head to bed, as I passed our bed walking into the bathroom to get ready, my first thought was, "My first night in bed without my husband again." I hope this next two months goes by really fast and he doesn't have to stay longer, again. We had a great additional week together. Although it's tough staying at Walter Reed and I was happy to come home, being there with him through all the things he has to do everyday made me wish I didn't have anything to do and I could stay with him. But we both know me being here is best. I'm finishing school and taking care of our house. I'm glad I was able to drive back with him and spend some additional time together. I'll take any I can get. You know how people take their spouses for granted? Yes, everyone does. I feel like there's no way I could take Roger for granted after all this. But I know, as human as I am, I'm sure I will as time goes by. I hope over the years I'm reminded not to. Maybe we should hang his radiation mask on the wall instead of sitting on a closet shelf. Hopefully how we have both changed through this and what we've learned about our love and God's love for us will remain in our hearts, always.
Jan 5, 2008
We Made It!
Thanks for the prayers. They worked. We made it safely to Walter Reed in DC about 9:30 p.m. We arrived later than expected due to the above. Lovely DC traffic. Can you believe that at 9:30 on a Saturday night there is traffic that bad?! We found out later a car accident was blocking three lanes on the beltway. In that same traffic report we heard something about an airplane down on a roadway. We were like what the heck?! We thought the bad drivers on the interstate was crazy but this takes the cake. After unloading the truck, Roger checked in with the CQ on duty, we ate some dinner while watching the end of the Steelers/Jaguars game, then got ready for bed. So finally after driving 1560 miles I can say, "Good night!"
460mi to DC
Roger
Sent from my AT&T Tilt mobile phone
In Nashville
A few months ago in VA, I stayed at Ryan's house one weekend and met Kyla, who is pictured above. I could tell from my short time around her that was very spirit filled. I knew she was moving to Nashville in the future and we kept in touch. When I knew for sure that we were going to be driving through TN, I contacted her to see if she could help us find a place to stay. Long story short, she hooked us up with a fabulous couple, Justin and Molly, who are taking care of us quite nicely. And I got to see Kyla again! Kyla, thanks for your help.
Tomorrow we make the last push of just over 600 miles to DC. It should take us just over ten hours. Thanks for your prayers!
Sent from my AT&T Tilt mobile phone
Jan 4, 2008
Half way there
We're about to stop for a bite, stretch, visit the facilities and get back on the road. Weather has been great and the drivers not too stupid. More later!
-rog
Sent from my AT&T Tilt mobile phone
Jan 3, 2008
Christmas 2007 Photos
Before we leave for the drive back to DC, I better post all those pictures I've been promising. Because you know if I don't do it now, I'll forget or not do it at all.
And since everyone has already received our Christmas card this year (Joy, your's was returned so it's on its way now.), I'm starting the set with that picture because Wal-Mart over-exposed our Christmas cards and frankly, I don't like the result. So I want everyone to see the real picture and know it is much better than the Christmas card.
So click on the picture below or the Flickr link to the right so see all our adventures while Roger was home on leave for Christmas. Happy New Year!
And since everyone has already received our Christmas card this year (Joy, your's was returned so it's on its way now.), I'm starting the set with that picture because Wal-Mart over-exposed our Christmas cards and frankly, I don't like the result. So I want everyone to see the real picture and know it is much better than the Christmas card.
So click on the picture below or the Flickr link to the right so see all our adventures while Roger was home on leave for Christmas. Happy New Year!
Jan 2, 2008
Roger's Christmas Presents
I mentioned in a post about a month ago that I was working on a personal Christmas present for Roger but I couldn't say what it was because he would find out. Well, it's after Christmas and he knows what it is now, so I'll share it with you all. Since Roger has had many photographs published in the Walter Reed post newspaper, The Stripe, our stack of newspapers was getting quite large. And I started to think about what the heck we were going to do with all of them. He wanted to keep them for memories and proof of his published photos but there had to be a better way to store them. Not to mention every time he wanted to show someone his handy work, they would have to strum through pages of pages of newspapers to find only his photos. So I thought about it for a bit and decided he needed something he could just hand someone kind of like a model's portfolio. Then it struck me, duh, photographer's have portfolios also. So I did some research online for a few weeks then went to our favorite local photography store, Precision Camera to see if they had the supplies I would need. I wanted to also see the items in person before I had to order online. It would give me a better idea of what I wanted or needed to order. But of course, they had exactly what I needed and cheap. As soon as the semester ended, I organized the newspapers in date order and the Sunday before Roger flew home, I printed blank pages with the citation for each article one of Roger's photographs were used in. It took me all night. I didn't realize how many of his photographs were published. Especially since the Stripe doesn't have a photographer on staff at all, Roger's used as much as possible. I almost filled up the entire portfolio which has 24 pages, front and back, so 48 pages total. And some pages have several photos on a page. He had many photos published on the front page. I was quite impressed with his work. I took some pictures of the portfolio to give you an idea of what it looks like and I will post those tomorrow with all the other pictures from Roger's Christmas leave. There are only four pages left in the portfolio and I know it will fill up soon. Now that he's going back for at least another three months, I'm sure the newspaper staff will take full advantage of him. And many of his photos have been published in other periodicals and brochures, so those will go in there as soon as Roger gets a copy of them. Some of his pictures are being published in a USO brochure. I'll probably have to buy another portfolio. That's not a bad thing though.
So his other Christmas present, although he's estatic about it, is for both of us, but really for me. We normally have five remotes to control the TV, cable box, dvd/cd player, stereo receiver, etc. And it drove me crazy. So I got him one of those universal remotes. Not the simple, easy ones. This one is a bad, mamma jamma. Roger had to download software to the computer and program all our devices into it and program all the settings for each possible activity we would do. And no, I did not pay the price shown on that link above. I did my research and found it way cheaper. It controls up to 15 devices and can even control your lights and curtains if you have those wired too. Of course, we don't but it is so nice to push one button on one remote and all the devices you need to turn on and go to a certain setting do it. I definitely don't miss all those other remotes.
So his other Christmas present, although he's estatic about it, is for both of us, but really for me. We normally have five remotes to control the TV, cable box, dvd/cd player, stereo receiver, etc. And it drove me crazy. So I got him one of those universal remotes. Not the simple, easy ones. This one is a bad, mamma jamma. Roger had to download software to the computer and program all our devices into it and program all the settings for each possible activity we would do. And no, I did not pay the price shown on that link above. I did my research and found it way cheaper. It controls up to 15 devices and can even control your lights and curtains if you have those wired too. Of course, we don't but it is so nice to push one button on one remote and all the devices you need to turn on and go to a certain setting do it. I definitely don't miss all those other remotes.
Dec 31, 2007
Time Flies When You're Crazy Busy
I can't believe it's been a week since I last blogged. A lot has happened so I'll keep it as brief as possible. So we bought the Hyundai Santa Fe last Monday, on my birthday. We love it and are very happy with our purchase. Christmas Eve service at Austin Stone was beautiful. Christmas day at Roger's parents was great. We had a lot of fun. We watched a few footballs games over the past week. Happy UT won, sad A&M lost. Too many pro games to talk about, but enjoyed them all. On Wednesday, Roger received the date of his formal hearing for his disability appeal. It is set for February 13, 2008. Not only is that much later than he expected and means he will be there even longer than expected, but it's also his birthday. What a way to spend your birthday plus knowing it's going to suck is worse. So that means he won't be home at the earliest until March 13th. He was quite bummed that day knowing he has to be there so much longer. Tells you how bad it sucks at WRAMC. We've been getting numerous things done around the house since Roger is home to help including organizing the garage. This has taken the most time but we're pretty much done. We are very excited about how the garage make-over has turned out. We can definitely get both vehicles in there again once I get rid of a couple items. So I am spending today freecycling tons of stuff to continue organizing the garage while Roger is taking care of his truck. We are planning to drive him back to DC so he will have a vehicle while he's there so his remaining time won't suck as bad. This will also help him when he comes home for good as he has lots of stuff to bring back since he's been there so long already. We have a bunch more stuff to accomplish before Roger leaves, but only a few things that have to be done. The rest can wait for me to do during the semester or when Roger gets home for good. I'm sure there's more I'm forgetting, but oh well. Tonight we are going to Roger's sister Mirna's home for New Year's Eve celebrations. Hope you all had a great Christmas and will have a happy new year.
Dec 24, 2007
Today Was A First
Roger and I laid down last night after midnight. I knew it was after midnight and it was technically the next day, but it did not dawn on me that it was already my birthday. So as we were snuggling down to sleep, Roger said to me, "I want to be the first person to tell you happy birthday." Oh, he's so sweet. The next thing I know, it's really bright, obviously it's the next morning and I hear a loud, "Good morning!" Roger is walking towards me with a big tray in his hands and a huge smile on his face. He brought me breakfast in bed. I was like, "Huh, what?" I'm a pretty good sleeper when he's home so I had no idea what was going on. That boy got up earlier than me, turned my alarm off, moved our phones far away so no texts or reminders would wake me up. He shut the door to our room and tried to be as quiet as possible. And he pulled it off. I can't believe he did it. I have never had breakfast in bed before so I really had no idea what to do. It was kind of strange. Before he left the room, I thought this is going to be strange sitting here eating all by myself. So I told him I wished he could eat with me. So he ran to the kitchen and cooked his breakfast and joined me. And he was done before I was half way done with my breakfast. Which if you know Roger any bit, that's fast for him. He said he tried very hard not to be perfect and cut corners to be faster. He usually takes forever to do most tasks because everything has to be perfect, the toast to the right browning, the butter at room temperature to it can spread, the jelly spread at the counter before he comes to sit down, his coffee just perfectly mixed with Splenda and creamer by that time my food is cold waiting for him or I'm done eating. So I was quite impressed. He had only gotten up about 30-45 minutes before he brought the food to me. Of course he told me don't look in the kitchen. Don't worry, I didn't. He also gave me a beautiful birthday card on the tray. I love it and can't believe he found it at HEB, our local grocery store. What a great way to start my birthday. Roger always tries to make my birthday special. He's so sweet. I wonder what the rest of the day has in store. Of course, I'll let you know later.
Dec 23, 2007
Weekend Update
Roger and I are sitting here Sunday night watching the Washington Redskins whoop up on the Minnesota Vikings. We had a pretty lazy Sunday. And we deserve it. Friday and Saturday were non-stop so we need a bit of a break. Friday I woke Roger up about 5:30 a.m. because I couldn't sleep. We laid down about 12:30 a.m. and I hadn't been able to sleep yet. So he woke up so we could talk about the 3F's, feelings, fears and frustrations. This is one of many things I miss about Roger not being home. I can tell him anything and he listens well and helps me see things the way I need to see them. We end in prayer and shed tears which always makes me feel better. We talked until 7:00 a.m and I got up and baked those red velvet cupcakes finally. Then we headed to the south steps of the Capitol for Tuba Christmas with Roger's dad and his sister Cindy. It was really nice. We try to go to Tuba Christmas every year. Here in Texas it can be outside, but in DC it has to be inside. After lunch at Waterloo, we ran a few necessary errands before heading back to the house to ice the cupcakes and so Roger could wrap all the gifts he picked up. It takes Roger a while to wrap gifts now so since he didn't want me to see my birthday or Christmas presents, I ran to HEB for some last minute groceries and to top off the gas tank for our two hour drive the next day and then I went to Michael's to exchange my cupcake stand because it was missing parts which made it unable to be put together. Upon my return he was still not done wrapping gifts and I finished icing the cupcakes. Then we ran over to my friend Susan and Tim's house to say hello, drop off some cupcakes and have a glass of wine. It was so nice to hang out with them again. They are definitely our kind of people.
Saturday we went to Smetana for the Wise family Christmas. It was a great day. We'll post the pictures from all these events at the end of Roger's leave and you'll get to see how much fun we had at my parents. Going home to the farm is always interesting and you never know what you'll end up doing. All the kids had fun and us adults too. The food was great. There's nothing like your own parents' holiday cooking. Fried turkey, glazed ham (real ham, not spiral, with homemade glaze), tamales, cornbread dressing, etc. Oh and all the desserts. We took a great group picture in front of one of my dad's tractors and then shot handguns in the front yard. I know, so country. This was the first time Roger fired a weapon in a long, long time and he said it felt good. And he did a good job too. Better than me. We fired a few different handguns, a couple revolvers, a .22, a .45 semi-automatic pistol and another one or two I can't remember what they are. I don't know how exactly it all got started. I was in the driveway hanging out with the youngest kids while they were playing in the sand and saw the gaggle of men, my mom and sister walking to the side yard with pistols and a couple of coffee cans. Of course I had to walk over and see what was going on. None of us had ear protection so we stuck our fingers in our ears except when it was our turn to shoot. I fired a few times before I shot one of the revolvers once and my left ear started ringing and hurting. So I decided I needed to stop. See, you never know what you'll end up doing when you go to the country.
Today we slept in really late. Roger cooked us scrambled eggs and turkey bacon for breakfast at noon. Roger watched football for a bit then we proceeded to trim some bushes, mow the grass in order to mulch all the leaves, fold cardboard, get the trash and recycle out for trash pick-up on Monday and to bring my plants inside from the freeze tonight. But our lawn mower refused to start. It was quite frustrating. I think if Roger could have picked it up and threw it in the street he would have. He finally gave up and we decided we were done with that lawn mower. We've had a lot of problems with it this year and we're not about to spend any more money or time on it. So after getting the trash and recycle bins out to the street we went in to watch more football and eat dinner. While Roger watched football, I decided to do some research on electric lawn mowers on his laptop in the living room with him. I was just interested in finding out about them because I'm sick of gas lawn mowers and wanted to learn about the performance of electric lawn mowers in preparation of maybe getting one in the spring. Roger moved over to join me in my research and we found a really good deal on a highly recommended one at Sears.com. The sale ended tomorrow and we thought about Christmas Eve at the mall and quickly decided to go tonight. So we drove to Sears and bought it. Now, this was pretty impulsive for Roger and I but I am glad we have it so we can mulch the leaves in the yard and I can mow the grass whenever I want to now and much easier than usual. I can't wait to try it out. We already use an electric weed-eater, edger, blower, tiller tool so we're used to using a corded yard tool. And we won't have to worry about mowing the grass early in the morning anymore because it's supposedly as quiet as a vacuum cleaner. And electric lawn mowers don't need any maintenance like tune-ups, etc other than blade sharpening. I'm glad about that because loading that gas mower in the truck by myself over and over again this year was getting very old. Hopefully I won't have to worry about that ever again. And, the best part is the touch of a button start and the fact that electric mowers give off no emissions which is great for the environment. I feel good about that.
So, we didn't buy a car on Friday. Turns out the great deal the area Mazda dealers were having was non-negotiable. So we have decided to get one of our other first choices which is the Hyundai Santa Fe SE. We already test drove it a few times and did some preliminary research but we did more research Friday night and will test drive it again tomorrow. They have some great rebates right now, plus a military discount and Hyundai's come with a 100,000 mile warranty which is unbelievable. I feel very comfortable with the Santa Fe which I didn't feel as comfortable with the CX-7. And in the process of doing all the research on it, Roger found out that Hyundai donates a certain percent from all their sales to pediatric cancer centers across the country. I was already impressed with the vehicle but knowing this made me even more impressed. So maybe we'll buy a new car tomorrow. Maybe.
Saturday we went to Smetana for the Wise family Christmas. It was a great day. We'll post the pictures from all these events at the end of Roger's leave and you'll get to see how much fun we had at my parents. Going home to the farm is always interesting and you never know what you'll end up doing. All the kids had fun and us adults too. The food was great. There's nothing like your own parents' holiday cooking. Fried turkey, glazed ham (real ham, not spiral, with homemade glaze), tamales, cornbread dressing, etc. Oh and all the desserts. We took a great group picture in front of one of my dad's tractors and then shot handguns in the front yard. I know, so country. This was the first time Roger fired a weapon in a long, long time and he said it felt good. And he did a good job too. Better than me. We fired a few different handguns, a couple revolvers, a .22, a .45 semi-automatic pistol and another one or two I can't remember what they are. I don't know how exactly it all got started. I was in the driveway hanging out with the youngest kids while they were playing in the sand and saw the gaggle of men, my mom and sister walking to the side yard with pistols and a couple of coffee cans. Of course I had to walk over and see what was going on. None of us had ear protection so we stuck our fingers in our ears except when it was our turn to shoot. I fired a few times before I shot one of the revolvers once and my left ear started ringing and hurting. So I decided I needed to stop. See, you never know what you'll end up doing when you go to the country.
Today we slept in really late. Roger cooked us scrambled eggs and turkey bacon for breakfast at noon. Roger watched football for a bit then we proceeded to trim some bushes, mow the grass in order to mulch all the leaves, fold cardboard, get the trash and recycle out for trash pick-up on Monday and to bring my plants inside from the freeze tonight. But our lawn mower refused to start. It was quite frustrating. I think if Roger could have picked it up and threw it in the street he would have. He finally gave up and we decided we were done with that lawn mower. We've had a lot of problems with it this year and we're not about to spend any more money or time on it. So after getting the trash and recycle bins out to the street we went in to watch more football and eat dinner. While Roger watched football, I decided to do some research on electric lawn mowers on his laptop in the living room with him. I was just interested in finding out about them because I'm sick of gas lawn mowers and wanted to learn about the performance of electric lawn mowers in preparation of maybe getting one in the spring. Roger moved over to join me in my research and we found a really good deal on a highly recommended one at Sears.com. The sale ended tomorrow and we thought about Christmas Eve at the mall and quickly decided to go tonight. So we drove to Sears and bought it. Now, this was pretty impulsive for Roger and I but I am glad we have it so we can mulch the leaves in the yard and I can mow the grass whenever I want to now and much easier than usual. I can't wait to try it out. We already use an electric weed-eater, edger, blower, tiller tool so we're used to using a corded yard tool. And we won't have to worry about mowing the grass early in the morning anymore because it's supposedly as quiet as a vacuum cleaner. And electric lawn mowers don't need any maintenance like tune-ups, etc other than blade sharpening. I'm glad about that because loading that gas mower in the truck by myself over and over again this year was getting very old. Hopefully I won't have to worry about that ever again. And, the best part is the touch of a button start and the fact that electric mowers give off no emissions which is great for the environment. I feel good about that.
So, we didn't buy a car on Friday. Turns out the great deal the area Mazda dealers were having was non-negotiable. So we have decided to get one of our other first choices which is the Hyundai Santa Fe SE. We already test drove it a few times and did some preliminary research but we did more research Friday night and will test drive it again tomorrow. They have some great rebates right now, plus a military discount and Hyundai's come with a 100,000 mile warranty which is unbelievable. I feel very comfortable with the Santa Fe which I didn't feel as comfortable with the CX-7. And in the process of doing all the research on it, Roger found out that Hyundai donates a certain percent from all their sales to pediatric cancer centers across the country. I was already impressed with the vehicle but knowing this made me even more impressed. So maybe we'll buy a new car tomorrow. Maybe.
Dec 20, 2007
The Latest and Greatest
No new car today. We have narrowed it down to a Mazda CX-7 Sport. We have test driven it several times each and read a ton of reviews about it. We have our numbers calculated and actually spoke to a salesman today about buying one when we were done test driving. But he didn't even want to hear an offer amount from us if it was below theirs so we left. The salesman was a real b.s.-er. That is one of the biggest annoyances to me about salespeople and it's so hard to not call them on it even as they are saying they don't b.s. But I was raised to be respectful towards people especially in their face. So we just told him good night and left. We will be making an offer to another dealership tomorrow morning if they have the one we want via email and/or phone, the way we like it. We'll see what they say.
We spent the day at home and we really enjoyed it. We did have two visitors, a plumber and an electrician. The plumber came to fix the overflow plate in our master bathroom bathtub. He was not able to pull the rusted screws out of the pipe and had to cut a hole through the sheet rock in the wall behind the tub which is in the entry of our house. But he did such a beautiful job cutting it that he was able to put the piece of sheet rock back in the one foot square hole and you can barely tell it was ever cut. He was proud of his handy work as we were impressed. He made it very easy to fix. Our home warranty company will send a contractor out to fix it, but if we had to, it would be a cinch. I tell you, having a home warranty has been great. We have used ours three times this year and it has been completely worth the cost. We pay a $55 "co-pay" and that covers everything. Our disposal stopped working a few weeks ago. And because it couldn't be repaired we not only got a brand new disposal but it was a higher horse power and quieter disposal than we had to begin with. All for only $55. If we would have had to hire a regular plumber for today's work, no telling how much it would have cost. And the guy was good. Our home warranty company, American Home Shield, uses ARS as their contractors. And the ARS technicians that have been sent to our house have been great. I highly recommend home warranties.
Now the electrician came to quote the cost to add an electrical outlet to the front of our house and add on two or three light boxes for security lights on the sides and back of our house. After seeing the numbers, we have decided to wait a while before we do that work since we are about to make a huge investment on a new car plus all the expenses of the holiday season.
And as for Roger's PEB, he made a decision today and faxed it to the powers that be. He has decided to appeal the PEB because after reviewing all the specific regulations, the Disabled American Veterans have advised him that he should be receiving 100% disability through July 2008 and be re-rated after July not just receive 30% for the next 18 months. Here's my take on it: the Army is trying to get him for as little as possible, as usual. Most people don't know their options or just give up and take what they are offered, but Roger is not about to give up and he is well informed. Not surprising if you know Roger well. So he signed and faxed his appeal, requested a formal hearing and designated the pro bono attorney assigned to him as his representative. He will also be scheduling a physical with the VA upon his return to DC to continue with the VA disability process. Keeping all this stuff straight is tricky for me and explaining it is exhausting for Roger. It's not surprising that he doesn't like to talk about it nor his grueling experiences at Walter Reed. It's already depressing to live it so why make it more depressing by talking about it. Poor thing. I hate that he has to endure this longer, but no one said life was easy.
Last night we walked down 37th Street to see the very eclectic Christmas lights with Roger's dad Roger Sr, sister Mirna, brother-in-law Joey, niece Ariana and our friend Denise. Tomorrow we are meeting Roger's dad and his sister Cindy at the Capitol for Tuba Christmas then having dinner with our friends Susan and Tim and maybe their daughter Steph. Depending on the response of the dealership, we might stop in to finalize the sale. Then Saturday we are off to Smetana for a Wise family Christmas.
We spent the day at home and we really enjoyed it. We did have two visitors, a plumber and an electrician. The plumber came to fix the overflow plate in our master bathroom bathtub. He was not able to pull the rusted screws out of the pipe and had to cut a hole through the sheet rock in the wall behind the tub which is in the entry of our house. But he did such a beautiful job cutting it that he was able to put the piece of sheet rock back in the one foot square hole and you can barely tell it was ever cut. He was proud of his handy work as we were impressed. He made it very easy to fix. Our home warranty company will send a contractor out to fix it, but if we had to, it would be a cinch. I tell you, having a home warranty has been great. We have used ours three times this year and it has been completely worth the cost. We pay a $55 "co-pay" and that covers everything. Our disposal stopped working a few weeks ago. And because it couldn't be repaired we not only got a brand new disposal but it was a higher horse power and quieter disposal than we had to begin with. All for only $55. If we would have had to hire a regular plumber for today's work, no telling how much it would have cost. And the guy was good. Our home warranty company, American Home Shield, uses ARS as their contractors. And the ARS technicians that have been sent to our house have been great. I highly recommend home warranties.
Now the electrician came to quote the cost to add an electrical outlet to the front of our house and add on two or three light boxes for security lights on the sides and back of our house. After seeing the numbers, we have decided to wait a while before we do that work since we are about to make a huge investment on a new car plus all the expenses of the holiday season.
And as for Roger's PEB, he made a decision today and faxed it to the powers that be. He has decided to appeal the PEB because after reviewing all the specific regulations, the Disabled American Veterans have advised him that he should be receiving 100% disability through July 2008 and be re-rated after July not just receive 30% for the next 18 months. Here's my take on it: the Army is trying to get him for as little as possible, as usual. Most people don't know their options or just give up and take what they are offered, but Roger is not about to give up and he is well informed. Not surprising if you know Roger well. So he signed and faxed his appeal, requested a formal hearing and designated the pro bono attorney assigned to him as his representative. He will also be scheduling a physical with the VA upon his return to DC to continue with the VA disability process. Keeping all this stuff straight is tricky for me and explaining it is exhausting for Roger. It's not surprising that he doesn't like to talk about it nor his grueling experiences at Walter Reed. It's already depressing to live it so why make it more depressing by talking about it. Poor thing. I hate that he has to endure this longer, but no one said life was easy.
Last night we walked down 37th Street to see the very eclectic Christmas lights with Roger's dad Roger Sr, sister Mirna, brother-in-law Joey, niece Ariana and our friend Denise. Tomorrow we are meeting Roger's dad and his sister Cindy at the Capitol for Tuba Christmas then having dinner with our friends Susan and Tim and maybe their daughter Steph. Depending on the response of the dealership, we might stop in to finalize the sale. Then Saturday we are off to Smetana for a Wise family Christmas.
Dec 19, 2007
It's Official!
Okay, it's official. Here's the proof:
I made a B in my history class. Yeah!! I think I'll celebrate by buying a new car today. Just joking! I'm not that impulsive. Roger and I are going to test drive some vehicles this afternoon to figure out which we prefer the most. He will also hopefully be talking to the legal counsel assigned to him today to get more answers regarding his PEB and eventual medical retirement. There are so many details and scenarios. He wants to make sure fighting the PEB is worth it. Please pray he gets the clarification he needs to make the best decision.
We're having a great time together. I wish every day of his leave could be this laid back and relaxing. Of course, I'll have to work a little and we have holiday family obligations. And you know how much fun family events can end up being. I pray those are fun times too and we all remember and focus on the meaning of the season and how blessed we truly are.
I made a B in my history class. Yeah!! I think I'll celebrate by buying a new car today. Just joking! I'm not that impulsive. Roger and I are going to test drive some vehicles this afternoon to figure out which we prefer the most. He will also hopefully be talking to the legal counsel assigned to him today to get more answers regarding his PEB and eventual medical retirement. There are so many details and scenarios. He wants to make sure fighting the PEB is worth it. Please pray he gets the clarification he needs to make the best decision.
We're having a great time together. I wish every day of his leave could be this laid back and relaxing. Of course, I'll have to work a little and we have holiday family obligations. And you know how much fun family events can end up being. I pray those are fun times too and we all remember and focus on the meaning of the season and how blessed we truly are.
Good News! Praise the Lord!
Okay, before I post about Roger being home, sorry babe, I have to share my grade for my history class. So I went to check my grade online and where the official grades are posted it said, "Grades are currently not available for this term." Aughhhh! It was even a few hours after the official time when grades would be available. You know I was quite nervous about my grade in this class and I was not happy about this. So I thought, let me check my degree audit and see if there's any change from "in progress". And there it was, "HIST 481 SEMINAR IN HISTORY 2007 Fall 3.0 hrs B" I made a B! I am soooo happy!! I was almost shocked, but very elated. I immediately thanked the Lord over and over and over again. If it wasn't after midnight on a Tuesday night, I'd go celebrate. But we're in the house for the evening, so we'll have to celebrate tomorrow. Although this is Austin and there are plenty of places we could have gone even this late. Happy, happy, joy, joy. Wow, what a relief. Now I know for sure that I only have to take one class next semester and I WILL graduate in May, 2008. Oh, I am so happy. Have I told you how happy I am?! :) Now, I don't know how official this is, especially since it's on the degree audit but not in the grade display. You know I will continue to check it because I won't feel completely at ease until I see it in the grade display which is official. This also means that I didn't do so bad (I know, not correct grammar, but I don't care!) on my research paper.
I really don't care what grade I made on the paper as long as I made a grade high enough to count for my major so I don't have to take that class ever again. I don't know if I ever mentioned this before, but this was not my first attempt at this class. I tried it first many, many years ago and didn't make a grade high enough to count. I'm sure it had to do with all the partying I was doing in Northgate. The second attempt I withdrew for some reason I can't remember now. I'm sure it had to do with partying too much and a certain loser in my life that I let influence me negatively. And the third attempt, many, many years later, I dropped because I couldn't handle all the many obligations I took on Roger's first year of deployment. So this was my fourth attempt. Talk about pathetic. I'm almost embarassed I shared that. Oh well, those of you who know me very well, know I'm not the person I used to be. And I'm sure you, and my parents, are all saying under your breath, "Thank goodness."
Okay, now we can talk about Roger. I picked Roger up at the airport about 4:15pm today. It was so nice to see him in the Austin airport again. I love it when he comes home. I really don't enjoy going to Walter Reed to visit him. It's awful there. But we have been laughing since he got home. He's pretty much unpacked and seems like he never left except I have to remind him where things are and go. We went to his favorite bbq place, Rudy's on 360, for dinner then stopped at Scooter's on William Cannon for coffee and dessert. We discussed our schedule while he's home and all the things we would like to accomplish and people we need to see. I told you we'd start a new list when he got home. Of course this schedule is not set in stone but it gives us an idea of what we can try to accomplish.
So as far as Roger's day yesterday trying to get answers to his many questions regarding his PEB, I will let him go into detail in a future blog. But I will share that most of the advice he received was for him to appeal the PEB and go to formal hearing. He also found out it probably won't go to formal hearing until the end of January. Which means he won't be home for good until February at the earliest. Although I've have decided he won't be home until I pick him up from the airport for the last time, he is quite disappointed with the thought of staying longer. Of course, we both know we have to do what we have to do for his future health.
On that note, I'd like to share some scripture I came across Sunday. I can't for the life of me figure out where I came across it, but I know I was led to it for a reason. And I'm still trying to figure out what version it is. I've gone through every English version on http://www.biblegateway.com/, but no luck. So if you know this version, please let me know in a comment below. It's the same concept and meaning, but I'd like to find the version because I like it. I hope it moves you as much as it moved me. And I pray for this kind of joy for you.
I've learned how to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I'm just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I've found the recipe for being happy, whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am. Phillipians 4:12
I really don't care what grade I made on the paper as long as I made a grade high enough to count for my major so I don't have to take that class ever again. I don't know if I ever mentioned this before, but this was not my first attempt at this class. I tried it first many, many years ago and didn't make a grade high enough to count. I'm sure it had to do with all the partying I was doing in Northgate. The second attempt I withdrew for some reason I can't remember now. I'm sure it had to do with partying too much and a certain loser in my life that I let influence me negatively. And the third attempt, many, many years later, I dropped because I couldn't handle all the many obligations I took on Roger's first year of deployment. So this was my fourth attempt. Talk about pathetic. I'm almost embarassed I shared that. Oh well, those of you who know me very well, know I'm not the person I used to be. And I'm sure you, and my parents, are all saying under your breath, "Thank goodness."
Okay, now we can talk about Roger. I picked Roger up at the airport about 4:15pm today. It was so nice to see him in the Austin airport again. I love it when he comes home. I really don't enjoy going to Walter Reed to visit him. It's awful there. But we have been laughing since he got home. He's pretty much unpacked and seems like he never left except I have to remind him where things are and go. We went to his favorite bbq place, Rudy's on 360, for dinner then stopped at Scooter's on William Cannon for coffee and dessert. We discussed our schedule while he's home and all the things we would like to accomplish and people we need to see. I told you we'd start a new list when he got home. Of course this schedule is not set in stone but it gives us an idea of what we can try to accomplish.
So as far as Roger's day yesterday trying to get answers to his many questions regarding his PEB, I will let him go into detail in a future blog. But I will share that most of the advice he received was for him to appeal the PEB and go to formal hearing. He also found out it probably won't go to formal hearing until the end of January. Which means he won't be home for good until February at the earliest. Although I've have decided he won't be home until I pick him up from the airport for the last time, he is quite disappointed with the thought of staying longer. Of course, we both know we have to do what we have to do for his future health.
On that note, I'd like to share some scripture I came across Sunday. I can't for the life of me figure out where I came across it, but I know I was led to it for a reason. And I'm still trying to figure out what version it is. I've gone through every English version on http://www.biblegateway.com/, but no luck. So if you know this version, please let me know in a comment below. It's the same concept and meaning, but I'd like to find the version because I like it. I hope it moves you as much as it moved me. And I pray for this kind of joy for you.
I've learned how to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I'm just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I've found the recipe for being happy, whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am. Phillipians 4:12
Dec 16, 2007
Weekend Update
I intended to post earlier this weekend, but I had such a productive weekend I got distracted. I ended up getting sick and didn't bake those red velvet cupcakes nor help out at the benefit event Thursday night. The volunteer coordinator told me to stay home and get rest since they had plenty of help coming. Did I do that? Well, I stayed home, but I didn't rest. I started working on my to do list but I didn't work super hard so it's okay.
My parents were in Taylor, northeast of Austin, for another funeral Thursday for a farmer and blacksmith friend of theirs, Charlie Stolte. He and my father were a lot alike and related very well to each other although Mr. Stolte was a couple decades older than my dad. They had similar backgrounds and appreciated each other well. My mom and I always said Mr. Stolte was what my dad was going to look like when he gets old. After the funeral and lunch with friends, my parents drove to my house in South Austin and helped me with a bunch of stuff. I bought an air compressor a week or so ago. We will be able to use it to make putting flooring in the attic an easier task by borrowing my dad's pneumatic nail gun. And we'll be able to air up balls, bicycle and automobile tires and blow leaves from under my front door on the front porch. And if you've ever driven to convenience store after convenience store trying to find air for your low tires to have them not work and lose more air, you know how much we will love having this air compressor. I've been wanting one for about five years now. You know I am going to find any excuse to use it.
So my dad helped me set it up, make sure it was ready to go and showed me how to use it and maintain it. I cleaned out a section of the attic which we will tackle first. The previous owners of our house left us lots of great stuff when we bought the house and I didn't realize how much they left in the attic. Of course everything they left was pretty much trash that we have had to dispose of ourselves. Thanks Stewart family! Anyway, my mom consolidated leftover garage sale stuff into fewer boxes while my dad and I messed with the compressor. She helped me load the boxes into my truck to which I took to Goodwill and helped me clean the garage from the trash I threw out of the attic. They also took a bunch of spare wood we had which helped to empty the garage out more. We're not only trying to organize the garage better but make room for another vehicle. We got two in there before I totaled my car in 2003 so I know we can get two in there again. Friday and Saturday were more projects I've been trying to get done for a while and I got almost all of my list completed. All I have left to do is clean the house tomorrow after I work in the morning and complete a personal Christmas gift for Roger which I'm working on now. I'd tell you what it is, but then Roger would find out. He's already been bugging me about his "real" Christmas present. Once Roger gets home, we will start on a new list. I'm sure he's looking forward to it. You never know, he might be happy and feel more normal to be doing things around the house.
Oh, I almost forgot. I got my anthropology final exam grade Thursday afternoon. I made a 91, A! So according to the professor's grading policy that means I made an 88.75 in the class BUT I went to a museum for two extra credit points. Which means I made a 90.75 in the class. That's a A! I'm so happy about that. Now I have to wait until Tuesday after 8:00 p.m. to find out what I made in my history class. When I think about it, I get nervous. So I try not to think about it. But I have to make a C or better in that class. I really don't want to have to take it again. I've had enough of research papers for a while. I don't want to have to do that again until I go to grad school. So I'm begging, please pray for me to make a C or better in that class.
So the museum I went to with my dad was the Brazos Valley Museum of Natural History. I was really impressed. I was quite surprised with the collections they had and he and I really enjoyed it. Our other choice was the Houston Museum of Natural Science, but I couldn't afford to lose a whole day, three hour drive there and three hour drive back, at the time. I'd love to have gone there, but I needed the time to work on my paper. I can still go but I'd like to go soon since they have Lucy, the "missing link" according to evolutionists. I don't really care too much about seeing Lucy, but I've learned from past experience not to miss out on any opportunity that comes across my lap. I wish I wouldn't have listened to everyone else when they said, "Don't waste your money going into the Great Pyramid. It's not worth it." when we were in Egypt with the Army. I could seriously kick myself for not going into the pyramid. Even if there wasn't anything in there, I could still say I've been in it instead of just saying I've been there. Lucy's only going to be in Houston for a short while and only in a few museums in America so I'd like to see her if I can help it.
As you read in Roger's post from Friday, he got his PEB that morning but was unable to get any questions asked and therefore no answers. I still can't believe two offices whose sole jobs are to be there for the soldiers in these moments were completely out of the office on Friday. I worked for state government for six years before I moved to DC and we were never allowed to all go out at the same time. There always had to be a "skeleton crew" as they call it. I guess federal government is a little different. I mean, I basically knew that from my prior Army experience and with the history of what Roger's experienced so far at WRAMC, I'm not really surprised. Disappointed, but not surprised. Roger will probably have a very hectic day tomorrow trying to get answers in order to make the best decision. He's planning to bypass formation at 0730 and go straight to getting those answers before he starts packing to fly home on Tuesday. Please pray for him. I can imagine it becoming frustrating with the Army and WRAMC's history. So please pray for the Lord to be with Roger tomorrow and help him deal with the answers he receives and for him to get great advice.
Thanks all. Sorry this is so long. That's what happens when I wait to post. I'd say I'll try to be better, but you know as well as I this isn't the first time and it surely won't be the last. One more day and a wake up and Roger will be home. I can't wait. I'm very excited. I know he is too.
My parents were in Taylor, northeast of Austin, for another funeral Thursday for a farmer and blacksmith friend of theirs, Charlie Stolte. He and my father were a lot alike and related very well to each other although Mr. Stolte was a couple decades older than my dad. They had similar backgrounds and appreciated each other well. My mom and I always said Mr. Stolte was what my dad was going to look like when he gets old. After the funeral and lunch with friends, my parents drove to my house in South Austin and helped me with a bunch of stuff. I bought an air compressor a week or so ago. We will be able to use it to make putting flooring in the attic an easier task by borrowing my dad's pneumatic nail gun. And we'll be able to air up balls, bicycle and automobile tires and blow leaves from under my front door on the front porch. And if you've ever driven to convenience store after convenience store trying to find air for your low tires to have them not work and lose more air, you know how much we will love having this air compressor. I've been wanting one for about five years now. You know I am going to find any excuse to use it.
So my dad helped me set it up, make sure it was ready to go and showed me how to use it and maintain it. I cleaned out a section of the attic which we will tackle first. The previous owners of our house left us lots of great stuff when we bought the house and I didn't realize how much they left in the attic. Of course everything they left was pretty much trash that we have had to dispose of ourselves. Thanks Stewart family! Anyway, my mom consolidated leftover garage sale stuff into fewer boxes while my dad and I messed with the compressor. She helped me load the boxes into my truck to which I took to Goodwill and helped me clean the garage from the trash I threw out of the attic. They also took a bunch of spare wood we had which helped to empty the garage out more. We're not only trying to organize the garage better but make room for another vehicle. We got two in there before I totaled my car in 2003 so I know we can get two in there again. Friday and Saturday were more projects I've been trying to get done for a while and I got almost all of my list completed. All I have left to do is clean the house tomorrow after I work in the morning and complete a personal Christmas gift for Roger which I'm working on now. I'd tell you what it is, but then Roger would find out. He's already been bugging me about his "real" Christmas present. Once Roger gets home, we will start on a new list. I'm sure he's looking forward to it. You never know, he might be happy and feel more normal to be doing things around the house.
Oh, I almost forgot. I got my anthropology final exam grade Thursday afternoon. I made a 91, A! So according to the professor's grading policy that means I made an 88.75 in the class BUT I went to a museum for two extra credit points. Which means I made a 90.75 in the class. That's a A! I'm so happy about that. Now I have to wait until Tuesday after 8:00 p.m. to find out what I made in my history class. When I think about it, I get nervous. So I try not to think about it. But I have to make a C or better in that class. I really don't want to have to take it again. I've had enough of research papers for a while. I don't want to have to do that again until I go to grad school. So I'm begging, please pray for me to make a C or better in that class.
So the museum I went to with my dad was the Brazos Valley Museum of Natural History. I was really impressed. I was quite surprised with the collections they had and he and I really enjoyed it. Our other choice was the Houston Museum of Natural Science, but I couldn't afford to lose a whole day, three hour drive there and three hour drive back, at the time. I'd love to have gone there, but I needed the time to work on my paper. I can still go but I'd like to go soon since they have Lucy, the "missing link" according to evolutionists. I don't really care too much about seeing Lucy, but I've learned from past experience not to miss out on any opportunity that comes across my lap. I wish I wouldn't have listened to everyone else when they said, "Don't waste your money going into the Great Pyramid. It's not worth it." when we were in Egypt with the Army. I could seriously kick myself for not going into the pyramid. Even if there wasn't anything in there, I could still say I've been in it instead of just saying I've been there. Lucy's only going to be in Houston for a short while and only in a few museums in America so I'd like to see her if I can help it.
As you read in Roger's post from Friday, he got his PEB that morning but was unable to get any questions asked and therefore no answers. I still can't believe two offices whose sole jobs are to be there for the soldiers in these moments were completely out of the office on Friday. I worked for state government for six years before I moved to DC and we were never allowed to all go out at the same time. There always had to be a "skeleton crew" as they call it. I guess federal government is a little different. I mean, I basically knew that from my prior Army experience and with the history of what Roger's experienced so far at WRAMC, I'm not really surprised. Disappointed, but not surprised. Roger will probably have a very hectic day tomorrow trying to get answers in order to make the best decision. He's planning to bypass formation at 0730 and go straight to getting those answers before he starts packing to fly home on Tuesday. Please pray for him. I can imagine it becoming frustrating with the Army and WRAMC's history. So please pray for the Lord to be with Roger tomorrow and help him deal with the answers he receives and for him to get great advice.
Thanks all. Sorry this is so long. That's what happens when I wait to post. I'd say I'll try to be better, but you know as well as I this isn't the first time and it surely won't be the last. One more day and a wake up and Roger will be home. I can't wait. I'm very excited. I know he is too.
Dec 14, 2007
PEB Results Questionable
I got my PEB results back today, but they only rated me at 30% on TDRL. I can’t get into specifics right now, but I am not sure if I should go along with this or contest it. There are two organizations here, the American Legion and the Disabled American Veterans, who help answer questions we have regarding our PEBs. Unfortunately, they’re all out today at a Christmas party at the headquarters office. All day?!? Well, whatever. I left them all voicemails and slid letters asking for help underneath their doors, so I should get my questions answered Monday.
I have a list of questions ready to go and will add to it all weekend. I just want to make sure that I completely understand what is going on here. In the meantime, I have to stew all weekend long. I apparently haven’t learned enough about patience, so the Lord is teaching me another lesson. Please pray that all my questions are answered Monday so that I can make a decision soon. I have until Dec 26th, but I don’t want to have to wait that long. And please just pray for peace for me over the weekend and that this does not drive me crazy. Thanks and have a great weekend.
I have a list of questions ready to go and will add to it all weekend. I just want to make sure that I completely understand what is going on here. In the meantime, I have to stew all weekend long. I apparently haven’t learned enough about patience, so the Lord is teaching me another lesson. Please pray that all my questions are answered Monday so that I can make a decision soon. I have until Dec 26th, but I don’t want to have to wait that long. And please just pray for peace for me over the weekend and that this does not drive me crazy. Thanks and have a great weekend.
Dec 12, 2007
Finals Are Over!!
Finals are done and the semester will be officially over December 18th when grades are available for continuing students. But we should get our grades for the anthropology exam we took today sometime tomorrow to which I can calculate my grade in the class. It was actually a fairly easy exam. There were a few questions I had concerns about but answered with an educated guess. Hopefully they were the right educated guesses. Now I get to start my list of things to do before Roger gets home next Tuesday like putting up Christmas decorations, taking boxes of garage sale leftovers to Goodwill and many other fun, fun chores. I have a list!
The funeral for Mrs. Fore last Friday was nice. It was like a reunion in Smetana. Every one's lives are so busy these days, that it takes a funeral or wedding for all of us to see each other. Father John gave a very endearing homily about Mrs. Fore during the funeral mass. He used 1 Corinthians 13:13 to describe her which was perfect because faith, hope and love epitomized her life. I have to think about it to realize she's really gone. It's obviously going to be hard for many to imagine her not in our lives.
Roger has been extremely busy lately with the usual stuff like physical and occupational therapy but he's also had a lot of MWR trips, meetings with the VA and shoots for the newspaper lately. He's been meaning to blog about all his adventures of late, but has been too busy to do so. He even got all our Christmas cards out last night. (Don't tell him I said so, but I'm so glad he did those this year.) Hopefully soon he will blog and let you know all about the cool things he's been doing and interesting people he's been meeting. And post some pictures too. Only five more days and a wake up until he's home. I can't wait. This is going to be another memorable Christmas for us this year.
Maybe I'll post some pictures of my red velvet cupcakes from tomorrow night. Check out the post below. Until next time, Au revoir.
The funeral for Mrs. Fore last Friday was nice. It was like a reunion in Smetana. Every one's lives are so busy these days, that it takes a funeral or wedding for all of us to see each other. Father John gave a very endearing homily about Mrs. Fore during the funeral mass. He used 1 Corinthians 13:13 to describe her which was perfect because faith, hope and love epitomized her life. I have to think about it to realize she's really gone. It's obviously going to be hard for many to imagine her not in our lives.
Roger has been extremely busy lately with the usual stuff like physical and occupational therapy but he's also had a lot of MWR trips, meetings with the VA and shoots for the newspaper lately. He's been meaning to blog about all his adventures of late, but has been too busy to do so. He even got all our Christmas cards out last night. (Don't tell him I said so, but I'm so glad he did those this year.) Hopefully soon he will blog and let you know all about the cool things he's been doing and interesting people he's been meeting. And post some pictures too. Only five more days and a wake up until he's home. I can't wait. This is going to be another memorable Christmas for us this year.
Maybe I'll post some pictures of my red velvet cupcakes from tomorrow night. Check out the post below. Until next time, Au revoir.
Dec 10, 2007
Studying For Finals
Well, after a weekend in East Texas at my sister's for my niece's 5th birthday party, a small town Christmas parade my nephew's class had a float in, shopping with my mom, sister and her neighbor, witnessing a freshly shot deer being skinned & butchered and eating lots of bbq and cake, I'm home studying for my only final this semester on Wednesday. I'm getting more and more excited about the semester ending. I have a ton of stuff I'd like to do before Roger gets home on the 18th which I can't start until after my final.
To celebrate the end of the semester, Thursday I will be baking an enormous amount of red velvet cupcakes from scratch with homemade cream cheese icing. And you're invited to come taste one, or two, at Ten Thousand Villages in SoCo Thursday night next to Continental Club. I will be there from 5:00 pm-9:00 pm volunteering for VSA Arts of Texas Holiday Benefit. There will be live music, delicious holiday treats and great shopping. 5-15% of the evening's sales will be donated to VSA to support their programs and services. Ten Thousand Villages is a fair trade gift store with colorful, beautiful and unique items from all over the world which provides vital, fair income for artisans in Third World Countries, helping to build sustainability in their communities. VSA Arts of Texas strives to create a society where people with disabilities can learn through, participate in, and enjoy the arts.
So come out if you can. You can see all their beautiful products on their website. Or just listen to the live music and enjoy some yummy treats. I hope to see you there!
Now back to more reading. :(
To celebrate the end of the semester, Thursday I will be baking an enormous amount of red velvet cupcakes from scratch with homemade cream cheese icing. And you're invited to come taste one, or two, at Ten Thousand Villages in SoCo Thursday night next to Continental Club. I will be there from 5:00 pm-9:00 pm volunteering for VSA Arts of Texas Holiday Benefit. There will be live music, delicious holiday treats and great shopping. 5-15% of the evening's sales will be donated to VSA to support their programs and services. Ten Thousand Villages is a fair trade gift store with colorful, beautiful and unique items from all over the world which provides vital, fair income for artisans in Third World Countries, helping to build sustainability in their communities. VSA Arts of Texas strives to create a society where people with disabilities can learn through, participate in, and enjoy the arts.
So come out if you can. You can see all their beautiful products on their website. Or just listen to the live music and enjoy some yummy treats. I hope to see you there!
Now back to more reading. :(
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