Gah- Even More Changes!!!

 Well boss(present) called me today asking if I was at a point that I could break free and come have a talk with him. I said sure.

I then proceeded to pack all my personal  belongings into my Backpack because usually when you get called into the manager's office for a little chat- it rarely ends well for the "talkee". I was fully expecting to be told-"We're going to have to let you go today" and then be walked off property without being able to go back and gather my personal possessions from the office...I was fully prepared for that eventuality because I've had to execute that walk with other employees quite a few times in my career.

Well, I got to his office and turns out he just wanted to offer to let me go whenever was best for me- stated he had coverage if I wanted to make either today or next Thursday my last day on schedule instead of working out the whole two weeks notice. I declined today being the last day-, started to decline next Thursday as well just to be ornery- but then I thought to myself- "Self, Do I really want to cut off my nose to spite my face? Take the damn extra week instead of working the full notice, you dumbass."

So I did- and now I only have four days left to work instead of nine days! I contacted my future boss or my boss-in-waiting..lol. and he said that was fine- was actually glad to be getting  me a week ahead of schedule!!

So Good times!!

Changes Afoot!

 So yesterday I turned in my 2 weeks notice  at my job.

My boss was NOT expecting that.

At present I get up at 0445 to get dressed and drive 52 miles to work. Then I drive anywhere from 30-45 miles a day doing my actual job patrolling two different sites about 3 miles from each other. Gas prices plus wear and tear on my car is thru the roof for me.

At my present job, I get ZERO PTO/Vacation. Well saying that we can TAKE vacation days- but we take a hit in the wallet as it's not PAID vacation. We also don't get any help/offers on health and dental or life insurance. We are provided Uniforms, but we have to pay for our special footwear ourselves. Also, we have no help with the protective eyewear we are required to wear on the floor inside the facilities.  

One of the main reasons I'm leaving is my blood pressure has been steadily rising- and I'm ON BP medication and it's not doing a thing for it. That's the stress level I'm dealing with at the moment. Mainly that's because of a damn AI Monitor they have on the company vehicle. It hates me- and the feeling is mutual. I told my boss that it's a horrible idea because it only sees the numbers on incidents- it doesn't take into consideration human factors and it doesn't show rear views of vehicles hauling ass down the road behind you and almost rearending me because I'm slowing down to the seven mile an hour required for "approved cornering".  I told my family if I got killed while making a turn in that damn car that was grounds for a lawsuit. I don't approve of those monitors in vehicles- THEY are more distracting than anything else. heck- when I was wearing my compression glove for my arthritis in my wrist- every time I put my hand near my face the monitor screamed bloody murder that I was "DISTRACTED DRIVING!!!" because the glove was black it was reading it as a phone and phone usage in the company vehicle is a definite no-no and a fireable offense. I swear I get flagged at least a dozen times a week- one day a couple weeks ago I got flagged 6x in one DAY!!! And you get orange flagged for the distracted driving which includes eating, drinking, talking on a phone, seat belt unbuckled, looking at something outside the vehicle for more than two seconds-... I havent been flagged for the eating or drinking yet- I only do that when I'm fully stopped and in park, but the others I get flagged on regularly- even tho I dont do any of them!!!!! When she screams about the seatbelt one(at least twice a week, I just grab it at my shoulder and put it in FRONT of the damn camera so they can see that CLEARLY it IS ON correctly- then I mouth "effing idiot AI..." and look directly into the camera when doing so. 

The powers than send these clips to my boss have told him many times that mine are the most entertaining flags they get to watch. I'm glad someone is getting enjoyment out of them.... 

(Think GomerGober Pyle yelling Citizen's arrest!!! Citizen's Arrest!!! at Barney Fife and you have got how annoying getting flagged is....and when it screams at you in a dead silent car it scares the crap out of me.)

Any who- I'm going off on a tangent again- soz......

The new company is half the distance between where I live and where I WANT to move to soon as we can find affordable housing. It also offers PTO, All the insurances I mentioned (not sure about the footwear and vision stuff tho. But just gas and oil and wear and tear on my auto will more than make up for that.) I'm coming out better in the end. I'm moving from first shift to second shift but that's going to be a plus for reasons I can't explain on here at this time. LOL.... 

I am going to miss most of my peeps at the place I'm working now. There's a handful of special friends I've made too. 

There will be tears when I leave on the 13th. But we can stay in touch thru social media or phone. Right???

I'm actually quite excited about this next phase of my life. Quite Excited Indeed!!!

It's Happening!!!!

 Turned in my 2 weeks notice at work today!!

Changes are afoot...(but no- unfortunately I did NOT win the lottery.) 

Deets soon!!!!

Dedicated to Clay-

 I've been debating posting this life story from my memoirs...

It has to do with one of my sons (Clay)when he was around two and a half or three, and he's passed away almost twenty years ago so no one can rag on him about it. I don't think he would mind anyway as he had a great sense of humor and would always be telling stories to make you howl with laughter.  It's one of those stories that we can laugh about now as adults, but it wasn't a laughing matter in any way shape or form when it happened.... 

His Angelversary is coming up next month and he's been on my mind quite a bit, so Son, this one is dedicated to your uncanny ability to make us all laugh no matter what the situation was...

*****************

Back in the day, when parents decided to have an adult summer get together, we normal people had it at home, in the backyard or in the house after the kiddos were tucked away in bed for the night or conversely, we sent them to le Grandparents house for the night.

Well, Husband #2 and I decided to host one of those parties, and there were three stories from it that became legendary.  Le Grandparents had plans that night, so the kiddos got to stay home and was tucked away in bed for the night as our guests started arriving. There were the usual snacks and dips and such plus a huge cooler of PJ we had made up that morning. It was a simple party- just for gathering our friends together and creating some memories together. 

Now we were all enjoying ourselves, there was much storytelling and a bit of underlying shenanigans going on (that's a story for another time tho) and after darkness started descending, most of us went inside the house for the continuing fun. (Skeeters are HUGE and will try to tote you off into the woods for a feast of their own if you stay outside too long after dark here)...We were all about feeling the effects of the PJ by that time.

I periodically checked on the kiddos every half hour or so and they were always sound asleep, but when we moved inside when I checked on them, it roused Clay up enough that he wanted a drink of juice. I went and got it for him and then got him tucked back in bed.

Now Mind you- we had about 40 people in our home that night- and most of us were inside. So about 10 minutes after tucking him back in bed, I'm sitting on the sofa talking to our guests, and we hear a scream and the pitter patter of little feet running down the hallway heading to the living room with him wailing in pain- it was one of those screams that you KNOW as a parent.

He comes running into the living room, training pants down to the bottom of his butt cheeks and clenching his penis. All the Boy-Moms know immediately what has happened. He immediately spots me and runs over and sobbing and yelling "Mama, it HURTSSSSSS, Kiss it and make it better!!!!" and just keeps repeating it over and over while I'm trying in front of 40 guests to pick him up and comfort him whilst trying to explain to him that this is one Boo-boo Mama can't kiss and make better.

I'm pretty sure I don't have to explain what happened, but just in case, Clay was just over getting potty trained and new to using a regular sized toilet. He had gotten up to pee, raised the seat but not pushed it back all the way and then laid his little man part on the rim of the toilet in totally the WRONG spot. The seat was just far enough "not back all the way" to fall forward at the slightest bump and the little round spacer part that keeps the seat from touching the rim and stabilizes it fell directly ON said man part.  I wince now just thinking about it.

For their part- the guests were all quiet during this exchange- The men understood with sympathetic pain the gravity of the situation for Clay, the women understood my pain as well of having used the age old mama fix for boo-boos and having a child believe it was "mama magic" but not being able to use it on probably the greatest pain he had experienced in his short life. He wouldn't understand for years why mama just wouldn't use mama magic, but yes- he laughed about it a few years later.

So...

Moral of the story is: 

Think Before Starting the "Kissing the Boo-boo to make it all better" magic. Turns out that magic is very site specific.

SMH..... Kids.

(It wasn't too inappropriate, was it?)

Coffeeeeeeeee- In All It's Glory!!!

 Friday is my "treat" day.

If I can afford it, I usually stop at McD's and grab me a large Caramel Coffee-Extra Caramel please. (I want the 62 oz Big Gulp cup but McD's doesnt Supersize that big anymore. No, I dont like Starbucks- to me it tastes....plastic- too artificial. I do like Coyote Coffee but alas- there is not one close to me anywhere along my route- and I'm not paying that kind of money for a coffee anyway at any place. Maybe on a date or something, but seriously, give me McD's anyday. I'm a simple pleasures kinda girl.

Anyway, for the last two Fridays I've stopped at the McD's closest to my job and IDK what the deal is, but they haven't had it. Hot coffee yes- Iced Coffee no. ( I feel shades of ice cream machine coming on there...) So today I was NOT taking the chance. (I get MEAN when I dont have my REWARD for putting up with the Drudgery and Tomfoolery of Monday- Thursday- ask anyone who knows me) I stopped at the one in the little town of Belton and got it there. I may start making that my regular stop on Fridays instead of the one closest to my job because- well- the employees there must have found the secret recipe while other places seem to just throw different amounts in theirs because depending on who makes it- it can be too coffee-ish, (bitter tasting) or not enough creamer in it-(watery and bitter) or weak and sweet- too much ice, very little coffee and creamer- and WAYYYYY too much caramel syrup.

Belton McD's it doesnt matter who makes it- it has the purrrrr-fect amount of everything that blends together to make a large cup of Heaven.  Oh the JOY!!!!!

The only plus to grabbing it closer to work is I don't have time to drink it all before I get started on patrol. It last me all the way thru lunchtime when I finish it off at my desk and pat myself on the back for making it thru the week without ending up in CC Orange. 

If I ever win the lottery- I think I might start handing a $20 tip to the employees who make my iced coffee perfectly- and it will still be a Friday Treat.

LOL- I hope yall have a great weekend!! I hope we ALL do!!!

Are We a Different Breed?

 So speaking of online shenanigans and stuff...

Evan and I were commenting we were glad that we grew up in a world where not everything was recorded online for all and sundry to see. Being young you can make some serious misjudgements that could haunt you for the rest of your life- not that we did anything that horrifying- but it was a different time I guess.

Are we a different breed? Would we have cared more and been less... "rambunctious/mischievous" than we were if we had had every moment/thing put it out there online? I would have cared- and been way more discreet or less "troublesome" than I was. Even now I care what is known about me and how much everyone knows- to a sacred FEW- you know more about me that I would ever let out and you know who you are..... but today's kids - I don't think THEY actually care what is put out there what they do and what they say is beyond belief(in most cases). 

I think most of them these days do attention grabbing stuff just  for that reason- they want to be thought of as extreme or unique- The more extreme the better, that's the way I see them acting.

And so it continues....

 So I need some paperwork that has been sent to my email. Only my email wont let me forward it to another address to be printed out. 

That sux. I got one last day- today- to respond and get this paperwork to the powers that be. 

Wish me luck. I'm going to try taking my phone in with me to get it taken care of- maybe some tech savvy 6 year old can conjure it off the phone and onto paper.

LMBO.

SMDH.....

So- A Bit of Drama...

A bit of drama that may make you chuckle or you may choose not to peruse at all.... I usually don't succumb to drama at the office, it's water on a ducks back to me 99.9% of the time- but this just hit me the wrong way so I'm indulging....

 There's an ongoing battle at work between me and another anonymous officer..... (I honestly don't know (nor care tbh)which officer it is and have a handful to choose from)

Someone on weekend shift  is trying to be bossy about the shared computer. 

They wrote a nasty little passive aggressive note saying 

"DONT TOUCH(arrow to volume icon) ...

The Volume is PERFECT...little hearts all over the perfect part. then in parenthesis  (I will find you.)"

I'm sorry but no- I wrote back- 

"It's a SHARED computer- adjust as you need to. :) "

To which they replied

"This isn't simply a preference. No Passive-Aggressive Smiley Faces, Veda. " ( They can't even spell my name correctly.)

 I wrote back "It's VADA. :) "

I know- childish of me, but it is what it is.

THEN they wrote a whole thing about how it's bad for the computer and it's irritating to have to "fix the system." (For volume adjustment?- if the system is THAT delicate I don't think it needs to be used tbh)

 I just wrote back that 70% is too damn loud for a shared office space on first shift. 

I'm so damn sick of having a battle with these juvenile snowflakes(30+ y/o ones at that.)

It's a moot point tho- 

I'm just going to ride this one out to the end of my stay here which hopefully will end soon.

I'm not going quietly tho- I'm going to choose this battle to die on, so to speak. I've had enough mollycoddling grown ass humans.

A/C or Window?

 I'm taking auto, yall.

My dad used to refuse to use the A/C in our cars because he swore it made them use more fuel.

I think it's the exact opposite- I think having the windows down creates drag and the car is less streamlined, therefore THAT combination makes a car less fuel efficient. 

Or is it equally so for both?

What say Ye? 

(I know I could probably "GIGGLE" the science and get an answer- but I like human interaction.)

Finally!!

 This weekend was just perfect for me... well, 99% anyway.

I didnt do but 2 productive things all weekend. I cooked supper on Saturday and I put up a clothesline in the backyard. And when I say put up a clothesline I mean I got some cording and strung it between two trees. It's a temp fix and because it's nylon cord will have to be tightened up ever so often- but I'm going to have fresh air clean bed linens again if it kills me. 

The rest of the weekend was devoted to sitting and talking with my son, daughter, and granddaughter.

When it was bedtime for granddaughter, I went to my room and played RANCH SIMULATOR with my sister until we got tired enough to go to bed. My son usually went to the basement to work on his go-cart rebuild and chatted with his buddy who is temp staying with us a couple weeks til his new place is ready, and my daughter sometimes watched a few videos or played with me and Sis on the game. We make a hella team!! 

I was tempted a few times to clean my room, but I kept reminding myself I needed a work free weekend.

I honestly didnt realise how hard it would be to NOT do anything productive - especially Friday afternoon and Saturday.

By Sunday I was pretty much into the work free mindset and enjoying the heck out of it!! 

Maybe I need to set one weekend a month as a Production Free Weekend for some good old R & R.... 

Most Heartbreaking Scene...

 For some it's the scene from Bambi. For others the scene where Old Yeller dies. And for others- it's the scene from Grey's Anatomy when they realize who 007 is- or when Derek dies.

For me- it will always be the scene from M.A.S.H. when Radar comes into the operating theatre and reads the telegram about Henry Blake's homebound plane.

"Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake's plane was shot down over the Sea of Japan. It spun in. 

There were no survivors."

I still sob when I even just THINK about that scene. 

Powerful and Heartbreaking.

Road Trips- #4

  Are road-trips a thing of the past? 

And how long must a road  trip be to be classified as a true Road Trip?

I've never been on more than a day long one myself. I don't think the idea of sitting in a car for days on end is something I would particularly enjoy. I do day long ones tho occasionally and four stand out in my memories more than others I might have taken.

Again, me and Paul- this time we invited Frank, my eldest son to go with us.

We took off towards the blue Ridge Parkway, grabbed some snacks and a drink and just had a grand time chatting about everything and nothing specific.  We stopped at some of the lookouts and took photos,  listened to songs and sang along, and just general had a great time together. Once it started getting  up in the elevations, it started getting a bit sketchy as some really weird clouds started rolling in. The sky kept getting darker and darker and the clouds more ominous. By this time we had bought - no PAUL had bought some sort of GPS type thing so he opened it  and was looking at the road. It had gotten horribly foggy all the sudden and there were sheer drop offs on both sides of the road. We literally couldn't see 10 feet in front of us and was having to drive by the device. Needless to say we were only going about 5 miles per hour - if that. We seemed to be the only one out there as well- until we saw flashing hazard lights of a park ranger on the road in front of us.We followed him about 5 miles down until we came out of it- but about two minutes after we found the ranger- it started snowing!!!!  It was middle of MAY yall!!!! That was terrifying.

When we came out of the fog the ranger was just GONE- we was going to thank him for the guidance, but he was nowhere to be found. Just out of the fog and vanished. And we was literally almost bumper to bumper. I was absolutely terrified to be driving, but I would have had a panic attack if I wasnt in control behind the wheel of my car.

there's more to this road trip- but I'll save it for later. Duty Calls- again.... 

Road Trips. #3

  Are road-trips a thing of the past? 

And how long must a road  trip be to be classified as a true Road Trip?

I've never been on more than a day long one myself. I don't think the idea of sitting in a car for days on end is something I would particularly enjoy. I do day long ones tho occasionally and four stand out in my memories more than others I might have taken.

Me and Paul on some random Saturday.

Paul and I were bored so we decided to just go on a drive. We(as usual) headed up towards the mountains, and we got talking so wasnt really watching where we were going. I drove because Paul hated driving at all-and after a few hours it started looking familiar. Hmmm....so we drove about 2 more hours trying to figure out where we was at.

Finally I saw a sign saying WELCOME TO BREVARD!!!

Now my dad is from that area- and we had been there many many times, but then DAD was driving and I tried to zone out when we went because my parents ALWAYS got into the worst arguments when we went to the mountains and I - all us kids- learned to bring something to distract us from the spat so I had an idea where we were- but didnt have a dang CLUE how to get back to home. Good thing I had gas money tho and gas prices weren't nearly as high as todays are.(Also it was just the very beginning of Garmins and GPS services so of course we didnt have either.) So rather than drive around and get worse lost or run out of gas money, I did the best thing I could have possibly done.

I called Dad.  

"Hey Dad... got a quick question for you. Hypothetical, of course..."

Of course he knew me and started chucking...."Of Course, Baby Girl... what's the hypothetical question?"

"Well, say a person was in Brevard- and had been there a hundred times, but really wasnt paying attention...If this person was, say, near the high school, how would they get back to-ohhh... let's say they were from Greenville?"

He actually started laughing and asked if I was joking. 

"Dad- I said hypothetically..."

He, still chuckling, cleared his throat and gave me "hypothetical" directions.

End ot the call he said- "Yall be careful- yall got gas money?" I said "Yes sir- we are fine and will be careful- Thank you Dad."

He said" I love you and if you need me to come get you or lead you home, just call. Hypothetically, of course". 

We made it without having to make that second call, thank goodness.

I never lived that one down tho.- I'd never not been able to find my way back before then.  

We all have our moments.

Road Trip. #2

 Are road-trips a thing of the past? 

And how long must a road  trip be to be classified as a true Road Trip?

I've never been on more than a day long one myself. I don't think the idea of sitting in a car for days on end is something I would particularly enjoy. I do day long ones tho occasionally and four stand out in my memories more than others I might have taken.

So on to #2...

Me and my Daughter Julie. I used to own a lil sports car... you may know what a MGB is. It was little, black and silver convertible. One owner before me and they did diddly squat in maintenance to it so when I bought it off the car lot, just as the warranty ran out on it- it started having issues. It was drive it three days,  something on it needed fixing and then it be down for six weeks because everything on it was special order. Anyway, during one of the drivable times, I picked up my daughter, again for lunch, only we couldn't decide where we wanted to eat. So I said we'd just drive around til we saw something that suited our fancy. We drove and drove and drove- top down, sunglasses on and wind in our hair until the sun went down. Then we stopped for dinner before heading back home.

We talked about anything and nothing- just enjoying the countryside and each other's company Just my precious Baby Girl and Me.

Road Trips. #1

 Are road-trips a thing of the past? 

And how long must a road  trip be to be classified as a true Road Trip?

I've never been on more than a day long one myself. I don't think the idea of sitting in a car for days on end is something I would particularly enjoy. I do day long ones tho occasionally and a handful stand out in my memories more than others I might have taken.

The first one was a road trip with my Bezzie, Rhonnie. I was going out to lunch with her but my car wasnt in the best of shape- and so my youngest son, Clay, offered to let me have his car for the day since he didnt have anything planned but staying in and catching up on sleep. He told me- yall go have lunch and then go do something FUN together!!  So I hopped in his little CRX, picked up Rhonnie who only lived a few blocks away and off we went. I can't for the life of me remember what restaurant we ate at- but it was on Pleasantburg Drive and the food was really good. As we came out of the restaurant, I asked her what we wanted to do since Clay insisted we do something more than lunch. She said she didnt know, so I suggested going to buy a lottery ticket. South Carolina didnt do lottery at the time so we had to drive just over the Georgia State line  in Toccoa to buy them. That was about 45 miles away- so off we toddled!!!We got down there and it was right by the Lake so we dilly-dallied for a few minutes before continuing on. After hopping back in the car, we just drove randomly,  each of us taking  turns choosing which direction to go at each intersection or turn off. We ended up in Brevard, North Carolina somehow.  Beautiful Mountain Area. So we grabbed a snack and sat by the mountain river then we continued on- same as before.... Before we knew it it was 8pm and we was in Pickens City- just a few miles from our homes in Easley. Three States in one day!! 

We still to this day reminisce about that trip and how much fun it was. I hope we can do it again before we get too feeble to do so.

One More Thing...

 I know I already posted once today but I just thought of something....

Have you ever held a belief of something and someone discussed it with you and changed your thoughts on whatever it was? 

I'm just wondering. 

Evan has actually changed my mind on a couple of things I believed to be truth- but then he offered a point of view I hadn't  considered- hadn't even entered my mind- and then I changed my mind after carefully mulling it over a while and doing some research on the matter. His aspect on it was spot on.

That RARELY happens as I try to consider all possibilities before stating my mind.

Well Done Evan. Well Done Indeed.

Worth it... and other things.

 It's been a rough month and I haven't been very consistent with my blogging, but I will try to do better in future.

Went to the lake this weekend. Stayed in the water just long enough to take a quick dip and cool off...then sat in the shade watching my two kids and my youngest granddaughter splash around until they decided to get out. Was there a grand total of about two and a half hours, and I still got crispy fried because my meds I'm on make me super sun-sensitive. Even in the shade as I found out. Even tho I'm in misery right now- it was more than worth it to just be able to create more memories with my loved ones. I'd give anything to have the same opportunity to do the same with all my grandkids before my time comes.  Plus- my daughter now wants to find a place with a pool- or us get a pool when we move to our own property. I'm 100% in agreement.

Silver Lining of the sunburn..... It looks super impressive against my brilliant white uniform shirts!!! Hahahahahaha.....

So, our  house hunt/job hunt continues. So far nothing just right has come along. It will tho. God has a plan- we just have to have patience. In the meantime, my granddaughter will start as a high school Freshman at  the high school in the county we live in now instead of the one we want her to graduate from. (Easley- it's a Family Tradition).... she's excited to be a highschooler no matter where it is. Her ADHD meds are working miracles for her. Thank God for the Blessings.

One of my Blogger friends, Spo , asked in his post today- or maybe yesterday- at what moment did you realise your adulthood? I gave him my response, but thinking on it- do we ever really actually believe we are adults- or are we perpetually children waiting for that moment to go on like a light bulb in our heads and then we have all the adult answers to all our adult problems? I know I'm adult- with adult problems that I have to solve, but in my heart of hearts I probably still be that child faking it until that light bulb goes on....Oh how I would love to go back to being a child- if only there wasnt all my little loved ones that I wouldn't be able to bring back with me.....

And speaking of aging.... 

...I just don't know about this..... So when I first moved back home I lost a load of weight and got a makeover and was told by quite a few ppl that I really looked good for my age. I've always looked younger than my actual age- up until about 10 years ago I still got carded when I would order a drink when I was out to dinner or at the ABC store to buy a bottle of wine or vodka. But in the last year I seem to have aged about 10 years. I'm not even joking. How is that even possible? Is it stress of having all the responsibility on my shoulders? That's the only thing I can think of that has changed for me.... Granted I did move 3x in the past two years, I left the man I thought I would be spending the rest of my life with because ..Reasons..... But you wouldn't think that would cause that kind of radical aging... or would it? It is what it is. I don't suppose it is logical to think staying younger looking would last forever- or until I turned 80 or 90... but I do wish I hadn't gotten looking better to have it ebb away so quickly either. That's a big ole danggggg wtheck in my book. I mean I'm defo not looking for another relationship- I don't think EVER again- but I would like to look decent just for photographs sake. LOL... Vain? Maybe- but I do have a little pride left even tho my ex-partners have tried to grind that confidence of mine down to nothing. Nice Try Guys- I'm stronger than you realise.

I'm still trying to get my schedule worked out so I can finish my books. I want to work on three of them for sure. One of them-Hunter's Revenge- I have to be in a certain state of mind to write, and I seem to have lost the biggest part of my rage for that one. I haven't worked on it for about 5 years. I've mainly been working on the story loosely based on my Daddy and on my Memoirs at this point- and hoping I get that one finished before I leave this world. If it's left unfinished, my family is gonna have a LOT of questions unanswered. LOL And that's why I started it to begin with. I wanted them to see I wasn't just Mama or Sis, I want them to know I have lived a full life, full of happiness and sadness and lots of cherished memories of them all.

I just want a simple life.... and I'm getting there. Slowly but surely.

Podcasts Are the New Novelists?

 So do you think  some of the new podcasters are the new novelists?

Everyone seems to have a podcast these days, are they replacing books in a steady creep? They all tell stories just in a different format.

Well, That's Interesting!!! And a Mystery!!!

 

Well, our family reunion was a few weeks ago and things got very interesting there.

A few of us have been thinking about/ discussing getting our DNA tested for ancestry for a couple of years now. We have a few relatives that are deep into family history/origins. Granny & PaPa had 18 children and of the 11 that survived to adulthood, we got a LOT of family diversity going on. From WAY BACK- It's not a new thing for our Clan.

From a few comments from our PaPa and Granny have given us reason to believe we have some characters in our forefathers- and Foremothers, for that fact. You wouldn't believe some of the things we have discovered......or maybe you would. LOL

So my cousin Stacy actually got hers done and the results came back just before the reunion... and what she found out makes me want to get mine done even more than ever. 

Turns out her dominate origin is African. All the rest (4 other bloodlines)are almost 9% equal parts.

Now if you knew our family, we are certainly a Matriarchal Clan. Our women are headstrong, hardworking, and go about running everything with an iron fist- there isn't a weak or quiet one of the bunch and our men don't usually dare argue with us once our mind is made up and we have laid down the law about how it's going to go. Well, except maybe Odessa- she's the quietest one of us but she can certainly get her dander up in a split second too.

We  totally understand "why" we are all characteristically the same if Stacy's results are the average for us all. And as I said- I want to have mine done more than ever. I think Maybe I'll find out if my sisters want to get ours done at the same time for Sisters Day in August.(August 2nd to be exact.)

There was a point a few years before my Daddy passed, I found a photo of me as a baby- around 1 year old- and it had some faded writing on the back of it. It took me a couple of days to decipher the writing, but what I found made me question my parents and my aunts- one in particular because the writing matched hers specifically. Even tho everyone denied I was adopted, I still to this day have my suspicions. 

But the weirdest part of it was- it was the picture of me my Daddy carried around in his wallet all those years. (No- I wasnt snooping, Daddy got a new wallet for Christmas and he was switching things over to see if it would work and I was there and saw the pic and asked him could I keep it a couple days- and I did & then gave it back to him).

I just have so many unanswered- or answered but still under investigation-questions. The thing is- would a DNA test be of any use to prove or disprove my theory/suspicions since both my mom and dad are passed and my Auntie in question  wouldn't take the DNA test to disprove anything?

Am I going to have to wait til I get to heaven to ask Jesus- or will I know the truth automatically once I get there? 

Oh- speaking of- Y'all Dads have a Very Happy Fathers Day Sunday!!! 

I.T. Guys- Modern Day Heros

 Yeah- came into the office and my computer black screened on me.

Having been married(technically still am) to an I.T. Guy, I know the drill and followed it to the letter.. then I called the company I.T. Guy and went thru the drill with him. 

*Have you turned it off and on again?(Yes sir- twice.)

*Did you check the connections on the back of the monitor? (Yes sir)

* Are you comfortable with unplugging them and plugging them back in one at a time while we are on the phone together? (Sure- no problem) takes about 3 minutes to do them one at a time with a 10 second wait  between each unplug and re connect....

Then  he said he would send a technician out today at some point before 4pm. Less than a minute later he's calling back asking can he connect remotely to try and fix it. I said sure but I have a black screen so not sure how I'm going to be able to accept the request.... somehow he managed to connect so he could see what was on my screen and he walked me thru yet another set of instructions to try and fix it. 

And Lo & Behold- it worked!!! 

I know I complain a lot about things on my blog posts, but one thing I will never complain about is the I.T. Guys from ANYWHERE. 

Those guys put up with some of the stupidest  questions ever. But then if someone knows absolutely nothing about computers, they don't know what to ask or how to troubleshoot an issue. 

I have to say I learned a good bit just listening to my husband talk about the issues he had to deal with on a daily.

His biggest complaint was people who called up thinking it could be fixed in 30 seconds or less- or the ones who thought that their problems were more important than the ones of people who had already raised a ticket for issues and were waiting on them to be fixed. Unless you are a V.I.P. and I mean a VERY HIGH UP V.I.P. you ain't getting bumped up to the top of the que. And rightly so.

After setting up my new laptop and struggling 3 days (it would have taken an I.T. Guy about  an hour and a half or two maybe) I'm quite willing to call my I.T. Guys Modern Day Heros.

Craig, Evan, and Paul.... Kudos!!!!