Sooner or later, someone is going to ask, so as a preemptive strike, here is the answer. My icon is a tomato with a 63-cent price tag because of a family story about my mother and grandmother that took place when I was growing up. My grandmother, known as Mammaw to all us kids, was born in 1910, and brought up on a different work ethic than most people in my generation. She believed you worked, period. That was it. No ifs, ands, buts, maybes, or excuses. She was quite old, and still planting a garden every year, still tilling it with a roto-tiller, still chopping wood for the fire, and washing clothes in an old-timey washing machine. My mother, her middle child, would try to get Mammaw to take it easy, to not work so hard. Mom was afraid she would have some kind of collapse. Every year, Mom would ask Mammaw to NOT plant a garden THIS year. But Mammaw kept working. Kept planting gardens.
One day, Mom stopped by the store on her way home from work, just to pick up a single tomato. She was outraged at what was then a high price for one tomato- sixty-three cents. She came to Mammaw's house fussing about inflation, and told Mammaw, "I'll never fuss at you again for having a garden!"
The story became a family joke, and made its way frequently into the cartoons I used to draw about all the inside jokes that only my family would ever understand. Often my mother could be seen in those cartoons, holding (among other representations of other family jokes that were on her) a tomato with a 63-cent price tag.
Mammaw is long gone now, and my Mom recently celebrated her own 75th birthday. We had a huge celebration for her, and we had 4 cakes made. We had the cakes made with those photos that you can have the bakers put on top of the cakes. I used the 63-cent tomato photo you see as my icon, and three other photos representing family inside jokes, as the photos for the cake decorations.
And that is where that photo came from. An old family joke. I'll probably be sharing more of my old family jokes with my blog friends in the future, so ... stay tuned. The others will be funnier. :D
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Sunday, February 24, 2013
There's One in Every Crowd
The other day, in leadership class, the instructor told us to write something at the upper left hand corner of the page, and I wrote it in the upper right. I may have been not paying attention, or it may have been because I never have learned to tell my left hand from my right very well (I must've been absent the day they covered that in kindergarten). Seriously, I have to check my hands to see which one has a wedding ring on it. But anyway, for whatever reason, I wrote it in the wrong place. I found out what I had done when the instructor told us to write something else in the exact same place I'd just written something. I knew then that I had goofed, and I raised my hand and stopped the instructor, told her what I'd done, and asked her to repeat the instructions. This was the third or fourth time I had caused the poor woman trouble, but she handled it with aplomb, of course, telling me to just draw arrows. But then she said something that kind of made me feel good. She said to the rest of the class, "There's one in every crowd!"
Now, I have heard that expression lots of times, but not usually about me. It actually made me feel kind of good to be the cut-up, the trouble-maker, the fun one. When she said that about me, it made me wonder, "Does this mean I am coming out of my shell, or does it mean that I should go back in?"
I don't know. What do you think? :)
Now, I have heard that expression lots of times, but not usually about me. It actually made me feel kind of good to be the cut-up, the trouble-maker, the fun one. When she said that about me, it made me wonder, "Does this mean I am coming out of my shell, or does it mean that I should go back in?"
I don't know. What do you think? :)
Going From Unemployed to Being a Mover and Shaker
I am unemployed. Well, I’m kind of employed, but … oh, I’ll explain that in a minute.
I was a receptionist for five years at a job I loved. I left my employer because I took voluntary layoff due to a permanent reduction in force. Due to the rapid decline of our industry, during 2012, that (global) company in my facility alone laid off over 1/3 of their workforce. In 2013, they have already laid off enough more to where they are now operating with less than 1/2 of their original force. Last year, they were planning to eliminate the position of receptionist entirely, handling phones with an automated menu, and replacing my data entry with a scanned bar code. Therefore, when they offered voluntary layoff to the salaried employees, I took it.
They gave me a really nice severance package, which included free access to online classes in how to find a job, resumes, interviews, etc. I have spent my time since being laid off on the following activities (not necessarily in this priority order):
All of this is stuff I normally wouldn’t have time to do if I were working full time. As far as my job search, I am older now, and I don't want to have to experience a lot of "stops and starts." I am not looking for a "stepping-stone" job, nor one to just pay the bills until I can get "something better." I am seeking to find a full time permanent job to stay in until I retire. So I am being selective about where I apply. I want to find something that I will LOVE to do for the next 20 plus years. Another thing about me: I WANT to work as a receptionist or clerical worker. I don't want to advance in the company. I LIKE being a receptionist. I like serving people who have more education and/or qualifications than I do, doing the mundane things for them so as to free up their time so that they can have more time to devote to the things that only they can handle. I don't aspire to have their job; I am happy to simply help them have time to do it.
Anyway, I said all that basically to explain why I took this leadership class (item 10 on the list). In the second meeting of this class, I was asked what were my reasons for taking it. My first impulse was to write down that I got snookered into it. The person who suggested it to me (who shall remain nameless, but you know who you are), kind of talked me into it. I already have a quite a few time commitments for someone who is unemployed; I didn’t want another one. But instead of putting down about the snookering, I put down the reasons I made the decision to take it. No one held a gun to my head. I made the decision by myself, like a grownup. And here are my reasons:
I was a receptionist for five years at a job I loved. I left my employer because I took voluntary layoff due to a permanent reduction in force. Due to the rapid decline of our industry, during 2012, that (global) company in my facility alone laid off over 1/3 of their workforce. In 2013, they have already laid off enough more to where they are now operating with less than 1/2 of their original force. Last year, they were planning to eliminate the position of receptionist entirely, handling phones with an automated menu, and replacing my data entry with a scanned bar code. Therefore, when they offered voluntary layoff to the salaried employees, I took it.
They gave me a really nice severance package, which included free access to online classes in how to find a job, resumes, interviews, etc. I have spent my time since being laid off on the following activities (not necessarily in this priority order):
- taking those online job search classes
- working on my novel
- avidly looking for a job
- doing other freelance writing besides my novel
- taking other online courses about writing
- selling items on eBay to make some extra money
- starting this blog
- doing volunteer work at a local public library (and later getting hired by them as a substitute- which is what I meant when I said I was kind of employed. I have an employer, but I hardly ever get called in.)
- doing volunteer book reviews for the bookblog of a different public library
- taking a 9-week leadership class
- I am also planning to open up an etsy store, selling handmade crafts online.
All of this is stuff I normally wouldn’t have time to do if I were working full time. As far as my job search, I am older now, and I don't want to have to experience a lot of "stops and starts." I am not looking for a "stepping-stone" job, nor one to just pay the bills until I can get "something better." I am seeking to find a full time permanent job to stay in until I retire. So I am being selective about where I apply. I want to find something that I will LOVE to do for the next 20 plus years. Another thing about me: I WANT to work as a receptionist or clerical worker. I don't want to advance in the company. I LIKE being a receptionist. I like serving people who have more education and/or qualifications than I do, doing the mundane things for them so as to free up their time so that they can have more time to devote to the things that only they can handle. I don't aspire to have their job; I am happy to simply help them have time to do it.
Anyway, I said all that basically to explain why I took this leadership class (item 10 on the list). In the second meeting of this class, I was asked what were my reasons for taking it. My first impulse was to write down that I got snookered into it. The person who suggested it to me (who shall remain nameless, but you know who you are), kind of talked me into it. I already have a quite a few time commitments for someone who is unemployed; I didn’t want another one. But instead of putting down about the snookering, I put down the reasons I made the decision to take it. No one held a gun to my head. I made the decision by myself, like a grownup. And here are my reasons:
- It will look good on my resume. Okay, I am not going to lie, I want my resume to impress people, so I can find a good job. I don’t think that is a bad thing.
- I also took the class in the hopes that as I learn how to be a leader, I will get to meet some of the movers and shakers in my area who might be good job contacts for me. Again, totally selfish reasons, but, hey, I’m human. (And yes, a fellow student in the class has already made it her personal project to help me find a job- a big thank-you to you if you are reading this!)
- It sounded interesting, getting to learn about the history of my area, and how the movers and shakers get things done, etc. Yes, another selfish reason, but I think now we are getting closer to a more honorable reason.
- I would like to learn how to be one of those movers and shakers myself. I think I have the potential to BE a leader, but I tend to follow rather than lead. Because I’m lazy? Partially. Because I’m too busy? Partially. But also maybe I just never quite got the nudge.
Monday, February 18, 2013
How I Met My Husband Eric
I figure if you are going to be reading my blog, you should know a few fundemental things about me. I was born (being very young at the time) in 1969, and grew up in a small town as an only child of a single mom. (I occasionally saw my dad and stepfamily, including my half-sister Misty, but not often). I dropped out of college and got married to Sam at age 20. He used to joke that he got a bachelor's degree, and I got a bachelor. LOL We stayed married for 20 years, and although we divorced in 2008, we remain close friends. Sam is a good man, but he and I just do better as friends than we did as husband and wife. We had a beautiful daughter named Debbie, now all grown up herself, who is the one who encouraged me to start this blog. And I married again in 2011, to a man named Eric, who keeps me laughing all the time. And the following is the story of how he and I met. You have to understand ahead of time that he and I are both what I like to call redneck geeks, which is a strange combination, and might I add difficult to find in a potential mate. It is easy where we live to find lots of "good ol' boy" rednecks, but most of them are not what you would strictly call geeks. In other words, they may know who Yoda is, but not necessarily who Admiral Ackbar is. Anyway, without further ado, here is the story ...
On October 31, 2009 I got dressed for the Halloween costume party of a Christian Singles’ Group. I decided to go as Luke Skywalker, and chose a costume based on what he was wearing when he faced Jabba the Hutt in Return of the Jedi. Not having much extra money to put into a costume, I asked my mother to sew an old brown sheet into a cape and wore a black shirt, black pants, and black shoes. I made sure that I wore a black glove on my right hand like the one Luke was wearing at the time, to cover his mechanical hand. And finally, to make sure that the uninitiated could tell what I was supposed to be, I carried a $9 plastic light saber from Wal-mart. However, this was actually a flaw in my costume, because Luke was not actually carrying his light saber in that scene; R2D2 had it at that time. But I knew that if I didn’t have the light saber, most people wouldn’t "get" what I was supposed to be (it proved true; one guy thought I was a hobbit until I pulled out the light saber). I remember joking to my best friend Eli that if I met someone who could call me on that costume flaw, I’d ask him to marry me right then.
One of the first people I noticed at the party was this swashbuckler, who was wearing a ruffled shirt and an eye patch, and carried a sword and dagger. I was interested, but various bad experiences with past guys had taught me to wait for him to make the first move. If he hadn’t talked to me first, we probably would not be married today! But he did speak to me, and the first thing he ever said to me, was, "I dressed as a Jedi last year!"
As we got to talking, it was like we were the only two people in the room. He said that not many people were "getting" his costume, because people were saying he was a pirate, but he was more of an Erroll Flynn type of swashbuckling hero. I said, "Yeah, your boots remind me a bit of that guy in The Princess Bride." And he said, "Oh yeah, ‘as you wish.’" For those of you who don’t know, in The Princess Bride, whenever the main character said the phrase "as you wish," what he really meant was "I love you." So I always joke with Eric that he told me I love you the first day we met.
I did not wait to see if he called me on the "flaw" in my costume of carrying the light saber, but pointed it out myself. But he did call me on another flaw. He said that Luke Skywalker in that scene was wearing a black glove. I pulled it out of my pocket to show to him; I had taken it off to eat my hot dog. But I joked, "But I don’t think Luke Skywalker’s glove said "Harley Davidson" on it in pink letters!"
Needless to say, we clicked immediately, and not just on things having to do with Star Wars. I found out that night that we were into the same kind of music and had other interests in common. But the most important thing was that we felt the same way about God, and put our relationship with Him first. He had ridden to the party with friends from church, and they came to tell him it was time to go. He asked for my number, and I wrote it on the first thing I found- a paper plate. (He still has the paper plate to this day, framed on the wall).
And so began a relationship that lasted almost two years before we got married (a year, 6 months, and 6 days ago as of this writing- I know that because we just celebrated our year-and-a-half anniversary, the day before Valentine’s Day). And as the wedding day approached, people kept asking me if I was getting nervous, and I would say, "No, not when it’s Eric!" Because every day, every moment that I spend with him makes me more certain that I want to spend all the rest of my days and moments with him. And over a year and a half of marriage has only confirmed that.
P.S. On the inside of his wedding ring, the engraving says, "As you wish."
On October 31, 2009 I got dressed for the Halloween costume party of a Christian Singles’ Group. I decided to go as Luke Skywalker, and chose a costume based on what he was wearing when he faced Jabba the Hutt in Return of the Jedi. Not having much extra money to put into a costume, I asked my mother to sew an old brown sheet into a cape and wore a black shirt, black pants, and black shoes. I made sure that I wore a black glove on my right hand like the one Luke was wearing at the time, to cover his mechanical hand. And finally, to make sure that the uninitiated could tell what I was supposed to be, I carried a $9 plastic light saber from Wal-mart. However, this was actually a flaw in my costume, because Luke was not actually carrying his light saber in that scene; R2D2 had it at that time. But I knew that if I didn’t have the light saber, most people wouldn’t "get" what I was supposed to be (it proved true; one guy thought I was a hobbit until I pulled out the light saber). I remember joking to my best friend Eli that if I met someone who could call me on that costume flaw, I’d ask him to marry me right then.
One of the first people I noticed at the party was this swashbuckler, who was wearing a ruffled shirt and an eye patch, and carried a sword and dagger. I was interested, but various bad experiences with past guys had taught me to wait for him to make the first move. If he hadn’t talked to me first, we probably would not be married today! But he did speak to me, and the first thing he ever said to me, was, "I dressed as a Jedi last year!"
As we got to talking, it was like we were the only two people in the room. He said that not many people were "getting" his costume, because people were saying he was a pirate, but he was more of an Erroll Flynn type of swashbuckling hero. I said, "Yeah, your boots remind me a bit of that guy in The Princess Bride." And he said, "Oh yeah, ‘as you wish.’" For those of you who don’t know, in The Princess Bride, whenever the main character said the phrase "as you wish," what he really meant was "I love you." So I always joke with Eric that he told me I love you the first day we met.
I did not wait to see if he called me on the "flaw" in my costume of carrying the light saber, but pointed it out myself. But he did call me on another flaw. He said that Luke Skywalker in that scene was wearing a black glove. I pulled it out of my pocket to show to him; I had taken it off to eat my hot dog. But I joked, "But I don’t think Luke Skywalker’s glove said "Harley Davidson" on it in pink letters!"
Needless to say, we clicked immediately, and not just on things having to do with Star Wars. I found out that night that we were into the same kind of music and had other interests in common. But the most important thing was that we felt the same way about God, and put our relationship with Him first. He had ridden to the party with friends from church, and they came to tell him it was time to go. He asked for my number, and I wrote it on the first thing I found- a paper plate. (He still has the paper plate to this day, framed on the wall).
And so began a relationship that lasted almost two years before we got married (a year, 6 months, and 6 days ago as of this writing- I know that because we just celebrated our year-and-a-half anniversary, the day before Valentine’s Day). And as the wedding day approached, people kept asking me if I was getting nervous, and I would say, "No, not when it’s Eric!" Because every day, every moment that I spend with him makes me more certain that I want to spend all the rest of my days and moments with him. And over a year and a half of marriage has only confirmed that.
P.S. On the inside of his wedding ring, the engraving says, "As you wish."
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Valentine's Day, aka Singles' Awareness Day
Well, at last. At the advice of my daughter, I have decided to do something I have been meaning to do for a long time, i.e., start a blog. I'm kind of nervous about it, so if you judge me, please be gentle. I'm new at this. I posted this on facebook this morning, and it caused my daughter to suggest (or actually, to re-suggest, as she has advised me many times to do this) that I start a blog. So I thought, "Why not start with this? What better day to start one than on Saint Valentine's Day, and what better message to post for my first blog than one about universal love? So here goes; this is what I posted on facebook today:
"For those of you who are feeling lonely today, & hating "singles awareness day …" I was doing some research just for fun on the origins of Valentine’s Day, which is named for a saint we actually know very little about, except that he was once alive, & that he died on February 14. Popular legend says that the Roman Emperor in AD 270 believed that married men did not make good soldiers, so he forbade them to get married. The emperor was a pagan, & refused to allow the sacraments, one of which was marriage, to his soldiers. The legend says that Saint Valentine performed marriage ceremonies for these soldiers anyway. Legend also says that Valentine cut out paper hearts & handed them out to those soldiers & other persecuted Christians to remind them of God’s love, which may be the origin of the distribution of paper hearts on Valentine’s Day. The Roman emperor planned to execute Valentine for these infractions. During his imprisonment prior to his execution, Valentine healed a girl named Julia, who was the blind daughter of his jailer. On the day before Valentine was to be executed, he sent the now-sighted Julia a farewell letter, signing it, "From your Valentine." Valentine was killed on February 14. Julia planted a pink-blossomed almond tree near Valentine’s grave, & today the almond tree remains a symbol of love & friendship. Now, although this story is just a legend, the implication is clear that Valentine’s Day was primarily a celebration of Christian love for mankind, & next, a celebration of love as friendship. In fact, Valentine’s Day was never attached to romantic love until the 14th century, when courtly love was becoming popular in Europe, which was when the day began to symbolize romantic love. My conclusion: at the roots of Valentine’s Day, it’s not a day to make single or lonely people feel left out, it’s a day for celebrating God’s love, & all kinds of love, for all kinds of relationships. So to ALL my facebook friends & family, Happy Valentine’s Day! May God bless you richly today! You are loved!"
"For those of you who are feeling lonely today, & hating "singles awareness day …" I was doing some research just for fun on the origins of Valentine’s Day, which is named for a saint we actually know very little about, except that he was once alive, & that he died on February 14. Popular legend says that the Roman Emperor in AD 270 believed that married men did not make good soldiers, so he forbade them to get married. The emperor was a pagan, & refused to allow the sacraments, one of which was marriage, to his soldiers. The legend says that Saint Valentine performed marriage ceremonies for these soldiers anyway. Legend also says that Valentine cut out paper hearts & handed them out to those soldiers & other persecuted Christians to remind them of God’s love, which may be the origin of the distribution of paper hearts on Valentine’s Day. The Roman emperor planned to execute Valentine for these infractions. During his imprisonment prior to his execution, Valentine healed a girl named Julia, who was the blind daughter of his jailer. On the day before Valentine was to be executed, he sent the now-sighted Julia a farewell letter, signing it, "From your Valentine." Valentine was killed on February 14. Julia planted a pink-blossomed almond tree near Valentine’s grave, & today the almond tree remains a symbol of love & friendship. Now, although this story is just a legend, the implication is clear that Valentine’s Day was primarily a celebration of Christian love for mankind, & next, a celebration of love as friendship. In fact, Valentine’s Day was never attached to romantic love until the 14th century, when courtly love was becoming popular in Europe, which was when the day began to symbolize romantic love. My conclusion: at the roots of Valentine’s Day, it’s not a day to make single or lonely people feel left out, it’s a day for celebrating God’s love, & all kinds of love, for all kinds of relationships. So to ALL my facebook friends & family, Happy Valentine’s Day! May God bless you richly today! You are loved!"
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