Mama told me there would be days like this...

First, I didn't sleep well, possibly anticipating the harrowing day to come. When I got up about 4am there was a visitor - pleurisy. Not an horrific case, but aggravating, nonetheless. (Why do I use that word when I write, but seldom use it in conversation?) Anyway, pleurisy, sniffles and a sinus headache were my morning companions.

Right after morning break my favorite tattler came to tell me about some other employees' work habits. I told her to go back to work. I should have known it wouldn't be that simple. Another employee came to tattle on her and we went downhill from there. I've never had a problem with tattlers until this particular person came to work a little over a year ago. Makes me want to pull my hair out. None of the usual tricks stopped her. Oh, was she ever gonna get her comeuppance today, and all by her own hand.

Not one to take anything with a grain of salt, my problem child burst into my office as I was investigating a charge of harassment, demanding to know what was going on. I told her I was busy and would talk to her later. Well, who am I to put her off? She demanded more loudly to know "what you're going to do to me" and again I told her I would talk to her later. I instructed her to go back to her workstation. "I have a right to know what you're going to do to me right now," she shouted at me. I firmly told her to go back to her workstation. Out she flounced, slamming the door and screaming, "I'm going home." Oh, yeah, please don't anyone stop her. It's called job abandonment and is considered self-termination. She screamed and hollered her way right out the door and I finally breathed a sigh of relief.

I won't even stress over going on vacation in October now that the troublemaker is gone. In my own defense, I went several extra miles to try to save her job; she has some deep-seated issues that I'm not equipped to deal with. Maybe there's someone out there who can help her because I certainly don't wish her ill. I just wish her on someone else. Sorry, potential employer, but she's all yours.

And so it goes in the life of a working girl...

We had a Women’s Ministry brunch at church Saturday. What a wonderful time we all had. After all the games, food & general hilarity, Dr. Leanna Hollis spoke about different women of differing gifts and talents carrying on the work of ministry. It was a very inspiring talk. There were over 60 ladies of all ages bonded together by a love for the Lord and His church and by a love for each other.

As an Icebreaker we all had cards with a question. We were to talk to as many people as possible, write down their names and their answers. Mind you, all of us had different questions. One lady approached me (who was that woman?!?) and asked, “What’s your favorite book of the Bible?” I almost fell out of my chair laughing and my Sunday school members around me thought it was too funny. You see, each quarter we start studying a different book of the Bible, and for as long as I’ve been teaching the class – 7 years – I start each quarter by telling them, “This is my very favorite book in the Bible.” Yes, I have lots of favorites; 66, as a matter of fact.

It rained off and on all weekend and we’ve been thankful for every drop. In this part of the state rain has been scarce this summer. But the rain didn’t stop us. Even when the umbrella turned wrong-side-out we just laughed and trekked on. All of us were sporting that wind-blown look.

And it’s been a calm day at work, strangely enough. I have several projects going on so I only get out of the cubbyhole a few times a day. Never have understood how I’m supposed to “supervise” when I’m tied to a computer. Oh, well. I’m glad to have a job and benefits. I’ll leave the “understanding” to my bosses.

As they gathered 'round to sing Happy Birthday, the young waitress asked, "Are you 29 again this year?" "No," I replied, "I'm 57 and proud of it." They sang anyway. I'm not sure why people are ashamed? embarrassed? to tell their age. And it's not just women; men don't like to tell, either. Of course, the older we are, the closer we are to the grave, but why not be thankful for life and all the years God has graced us with?

I've been celebrating all week. My Sunday school class went to Olive Garden Monday night - our monthly get-together. Thursday night Katey, Andy, Katelee & Tucker took me to Outback. And today I'm going to a brunch at the church. All of these were not birthday celebrations, but I'm enjoying them all nonetheless. I'll see Laurie & Molly today, so you can see that it's been a good week.

Last week I went for my yearly physical. Pami was impressed with my weight loss (at least 39 pounds since last year) and my cholesterol & triglyceride counts. (Except for this week) I'm eating a lot healthier and staying with the treadmill & cardio workouts. My tendency to start well, then backslide is something I battle all the time, but feeling better and the prospect of longer quality of life keeps me grounded.

I've always envied people who can "sleep in". It's a holiday and I didn't have to get up early, but guess who was awake at 4:30? Yep, yours truly. Part of it is my normal routine. I'm usually up by 4:15am so I can be at work by 6:15am. Being a morning person, my brain works better that time of day; it's the best time for me to have my devotions. Since Brad put the NASB on my iPod, I can listen to about 7 chapters and then spend time in prayer. As you might have surmised, getting up this early leads to going to bed really early, too. I used to think my parents were just weird for going to bed at 8pm. Company would have heard my daddy say, "Well, Sue, I think we'd better go to bed so these folks can go home." If the phone rang after 8pm, daddy answered with, "WHAT?" Now I understand why they retired early. And my family completely understands.

It will be a quiet day for me: Terry will be at work and the kids will be at in-laws' homes. It will be a good day to finish Part 2 of Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan. I hadn't realized until a few weeks ago that there is a Part 2. Christian's pilgrimage makes up Part 1 and so far as I can tell from the Prologue, Part 2 is the pilgrimage of Christiana, his wife, and their four children. I read this classic when I was a teen so was surprised at how much I remembered. But I didn't know about Part 2 and I'm excited about starting it today.

I'll have to be very careful about downloading to the iPod. Pilgrim's Progress was a free download, but let me tell you, other books are not cheap. You'd think that since publishers don't have to pay for ink, paper, shipping, etc., these downloads would be less expensive. Not necessarily so. I'm trying to find some trustworthy sites with less expensive products. Cathy, if you see any downloads by some of the Christian authors you know I like - Lucado, Swindoll, Tozer, Blackaby - please let me know.

Have a happy and safe 4th.

Don’t you just love nice surprises? Monday afternoon I was working hard…smile…at my computer when I heard the front door open. I looked up (with my computer glasses on, which prevented my seeing anything except a blur) and saw a wild woman standing at the counter waving big-time. Quick! Change glasses. Oh my stars, it’s Cathy. How great is that?! She had spent a couple of days w/ her grands and was on her way back home. We only got a short visit in, but Friend Cathy, it was wonderful to see you.

This past weekend was a sweet one for our family. Katelee was baptized Sunday morning with lots of family there to share the experience. It turned into a really busy day. Some of us went to lunch after church; then L & I went to a bridal shower. At the house K & kidlettes came by twice and M dropped in for a while. WOW! How often do I get to see all my girls in one day? Not nearly often enough.

I finished my work projects that were stressing me out so much. Of course, there will probably be things to correct but it will come in smaller, more manageable increments.

I fell off the wagon last night. Yesterday was our 37th anniversary so Terry & I went out to supper. Do you know how hard it is to manage portions when you go to a place that is strictly buffet? Oh well, let’s just say it was a reward for making a drastic lifestyle change. I’m back on the healthy eating wagon again today so maybe there wasn’t too much harm. On Monday afternoon I added a cardio workout to my routine. I can tell you, about 10 minutes into the program I could feel every single one of my 57 years. Can you say “the oldies were sweating”? Oh…but I feel so much better.

It’s been an emotional week. I’ve had two large projects with a 6/20 deadline that threatened my sanity. Not one to procrastinate, the tendency on these two projects caught me completely off guard. Mine wasn’t a “drop-dead” timeline, but I was strongly encouraged to get it done. I’ll be sending off a large package Monday & finishing the rest this coming week. In my own defense, the procrastination stemmed from lack of resources – people, information, direction. Oh well, it’s almost over and I’ll find out soon enough what “they” think of my work.

An employee has been very sick – in hospital last week & then again this week. He finally got a diagnosis Wednesday and had surgery Thursday. Ramon is a lovable teddy-bear of a man and we’ve been very worried about him.

Carter & Laurie were going w/ the church group to the Creation Museum in Kentucky and to the Cincinnati Zoo Thu – Sat. Those plans changed slightly when Marlee Kupcake got very sick. She went to the doctor Tue morning and when she wasn’t doing better Wed morning (in fact, worse) doc told Mommy to bring her in and be prepared to go directly to the hospital. Yep, she was admitted. At first it was precautionary, but then tests revealed salmonella and a severe UTI in a 16-mo old. She didn’t like the IV and hated the blood pressure cuff they put on her ankle. The IV was taken out yesterday morning and she was home before lunch. She’s doing much better but still recovering.

Because of her hospital stay, we weren’t sure about Carter going on the trip, but several parents said they would be glad to take care of him as their own. He spent the night w/ us and we got him to the church early Thu morning. Laurie’s talked to him and some of the adults. He’s having a great time and will be home this afternoon.

In the middle of this I took a vacation day on Tuesday. (use it or loose it) MomaG and I went shopping. TA-DA…I’m down another clothing size. The weight is coming off 2-3 pounds per week and I feel so much better. My yearly physical in August will reveal significant weight loss and I’m hoping better cholesterol and triglyceride numbers. Never one to take vitamins, it’s a necessary part of my routine now, along with a fish oil pill.

Since I don’t usually read the Comcast Cable emails I hadn’t realized until last night that onDemand has finally plugged in Exercise TV. Now I can vary my treadmill time w/ some great cardio workouts. I’m excited. Measurable results when I step on the scale serve to keep me on the straight-and-narrow. Salads, fresh fruits and vegetables, Weight Control oatmeal (which I now swear by) and lots of water have this reformed eater living a much healthier lifestyle.

5 THINGS YOU NEVER KNEW YOUR CELL PHONE COULD DO
(Print and put in yourcar glove box)

There are a few things that can be done in times of grave emergencies. Your mobile phone can actually be a life saver or an emergency tool for survival. Check out the things that you can do with it:

FIRST: Emergency
The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112. If you find yourself out of the coverage area of your mobile network and there is an emergency, dial 112 and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you, and interestingly this number 112 can be dialed even if the keypad is locked. Try it out.

SECOND: Have you locked your keys in the car?
Does your car have remote keyless entry? This may come in handy someday. Good reason to own a cell phone: If you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on their cell phone from your cell phone. Hold your cell phone about a foot from your car door and have the person at your home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile phone on their end. Your car will unlock. Saves someone from having to drive your keys to you. Distance is no object. You could be hundreds of miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other 'remote' for your car, you can unlock the doors (or the trunk).
Editor's Note: It works fine! We tried it out and it unlocked our car over a cell phone!'

THIRD: Hidden Battery Power
Imagine your cell battery is very low. To activate, press the keys *3370# Your cell will restart with this reserve and the instrument will show a 50% increase in battery. This reserve will get charged when you charge your cell next time.

FOURTH: How to disable a STOLEN mobile phone?
To check your Mobile phone's serial number, key in the following digits on your phone: * # 0 6 #. A 15 digit code will appear on the screen. This number is unique to your handset. Write it down and keep it somewhere safe. When your phone gets stolen, you can phone your service provider and give them this code. They will then be able to block your handset so even if the thief changes the SIM card, your phone will be totally useless. You probably won't get your phone back, but at least you know that whoever stole it can't use/sell it either. If everybody does this, there would be no point in people
stealing mobile phones.

FIFTH: Free Directory Service for Cells
Cell phone companies are charging us $1.00 to $1.75 or more for 411 information calls when they don't have to. Most of us do not carry a telephone directory in our vehicle, which makes this situation even more of a problem. When you need to use the 411 information option, simply dial (800) FREE 411, or (800) 373-3411 without incurring any charge at all. Program this into your cell phone now.