Random Thought for the day

Does anyone play the saw anymore?

Random Thought for the day

regarding laundry:

If you have a white shirt with dark blue sleeves, do you wash it with the whites or the darks?

Random Thought for the Day

How do you "draw" a blank?

Random thought for the day

Why do puppies love to play with poop?

I never quite understood it.

Cody not only likes to eat it, but he likes to step in it too.

This is NOT fun.

Why did we get a puppy?

Random thought for the day

Does breaking out in a sweat while struggling to get my sports bra on count as my daily exercise?

A difference

I woke up late this morning. I didn't feel like getting out of bed so I allowed myself to just lie there and wander in and out of random thoughts.

My alarm clock is always faced away from me for two reasons: the light is so damn bright it keeps me awake and if I have a sleepless night (of which there are many) I don't want to keep looking at the clock and see that it has only been 5 minutes since the last time I looked.

M had already headed off to work - more than a bit reluctant to return. Her boss to whom we've affectionately nicknamed "the Troll" has been out on vacation for the past two weeks. M has had that time to actually get some work done and get caught up on misc. things that seemed to get pushed to the side because the Troll has other work for her to do, like print reports and take pictures of every piece of equipment that is about to be thrown away.

I've never met the Troll, but I think we have all seen the type.

Daughter C was home last night. The first time in a while. She and her boyfriend spent the night here instead of at his parents house. We love him - he's a good looking guy and treats my daughter very well.

When I woke up this morning and walked out of my room I could smell his cologne lingering in the air. It was a bit weird.

Wow - it's been a while since the scent of a man has been in this house and perhaps it hit me how things have changed.

You see it happening all around you but on a day to day basis those changes are small. It is when you look back over a few months or a year that you really see the differences that have occurred.

I'm starting to feel the first twinges of an empty nest. My son has made a life for himself in Chicago and I only see him 2-3 times a year and now my daughter has been spending more and more time with the boyfriend aka Rick and it will be 4 or 5 days that I won't see her.

She does call just to check in and let me know she is OK (I worry about that stuff) but now the house has become very quiet in the evenings.

M has her baseball games to watch, I will putz on the computer, watch Keith and Rachel, pay the bills or try to focus on a book to read. (Menopause has really screwed up my ability to concentrate).

I like the changes. It makes me feel proud that my children have turned into responsible adults and learning to work out life's problems on their own.

On Saturday M and I will meet Rick's parents. They are coming over for a bar-b-que. That's a big step and I have to say I'm a bit nervous. Even though I'm fairly certain that his parents are aware that M and I are a couple I just worry about how it's received. Some people don't honestly care, some say that they don't and will keep up appearances but when they get home it's a different story.

I don't know why I care about this so much, but I do. More for the sake of my children than anything else. There is also that "needing to be approved" thing I have going on too.

Does one ever grow out of that?

Hmmmm?

So all of this deep thinking was brought on by a young man's cologne in my house. It's amazing how one little thing will make a difference in your life.

Routine

On the three days I commute into the office I find myself stuck in a routine in which I hardly deviate from.

5:30 - Alarm goes off
5:40 - Take a shower
6:00 - Wake up M, let the dogs out
6:15 - Eat Breakfast
6:30 - Clean up breakfast, make lunch
6:45 - Iron clothes for the day, make my tea and put it in my travel cup
7:00 - Wake up daughter, Drive to work

7:00 - 8:30/8:45 - the brainless commute. Right now I have a book to listen to so it'a a bit brainless than usual.

This is so much of routine that I go through the motions of it without really thinking. It's automatic.

If something throws me off my routine - Alarm doesn't go off for some reason, dogs throw up before I leave the house, the milk went bad and now I have to figure what to eat for breakfast, I get a bit panicky!

Silly isn't it?

I don't punch a clock so if I am 5 or even 10 minutes late no one will yell at me. No one will even notice really - my boss comes in later than I do normally and my office is off the beaten path so most people don't even see me back here.

Still - I don't like to be off my routine. It's unsettling to me.

And it's only on those 3 days that I go into the office. On the days I work from home I'm a lot more relaxed, less structured in my daily routine. Sometimes I wake up later, I don't always take a shower as soon as I get up. Maybe I'll even wait until after breakfast. Maybe I'll go out and get a cup off coffee, maybe I'll make it at home.

The big difference for me between working in the office and working at home is that I will put more hours in and actually feel more productive at home than I do in the office. I start earlier, I take far fewer breaks, I work through lunch or take a quick lunch, I work later. I have distractions at home, but when I'm in the office I want so much to be out of here I go for long walks at lunch time. I stare out my window and get lost in my thoughts.

Occasionally the dogs will bother me, my daughter may come and talk to me or the odd poor telemarketer calls and gets a rather rude and terse response for daring to try and sell me something. (sorry, I know people are trying to make a living, but I do not like telemarketing campaigns - of any kind)

All in all though, I think I get the same amount of work done.

Not sure what the routine part has to do with anything. It was probably designed by my brain so I wouldn't be late for work when I did have a time clock to punch. Or created from years of sharing bathrooms with people with different schedules to make sure I had my "quiet morning time". I'm not really a morning person until after I've showered and have been fed. Before that if you attempt to talk to me you will get a glare and some uncoherent grunts and groans.

One other routine I have when I am here in the office. Lunch time: 1:00 I stop whatever it is I am doing. Prepare my salad and then eat lunch and take time to catch up on my blog reading.

Definitely my favorite part of the day!

Random thought of the day

If wearing crocs is a fashion faux pax, is wearing socks with crocs like a double negative?

Wah, wah

Raise your hands if you feel sorry for the big oil guys who are under scrutiny for gouging us at the pumps!

Anyone?

How about for Mr. J. Stephen Simon at Exxon whose total compensation last year was $12,000,000 (yes...that is 12 million dollars).

Maybe you feel bad for poor Mr. Lowe of ConocoPhillips who wasn't sure about his compensation (bullshit) or Mr. Hofmeister of Shell who only got $2.2 million. (boo hoo)

Still don't feel sorry for them?

Me either!

As prices go over $4 a gallon here in the US (it's about $10 a gallon in the UK, but then again the Pound kicking the dollars ass at the moment) we all worry about how the higher prices of gas will affect us.

I'm thinking - not too much really.

What choice do we have? If you live in the "burbs" you gotta drive to where ever it is you want to go.

Still...I don't feel sorry for these guys...let them sit in the hot seat. It's all political posturing because a big election is coming up and they need to make an example of someone.

After the elections, deals will be made, the microscope will be lifted and once again they can go back and make lots and lots of money so that they can: "pay for investments in the long term when profits will be down." (yeah...their 23rd house on 100 acres in Montana needs a new state of the art pool that does the swimming for you or something equally obscene)

Until we find reliable/clean alternative fuels and reduce or need for oil...this ain't ever gonna change.

:::sigh:::

Random

I am having beautiful day A.D.D.

:::sigh:::

Random Thought of the day

Did I forget to put deodorant on today?

Spam funnies

I just recieved the following notification from the spam filter I have on my work e-mail:

Shazza (not my real name) watch the biggest tits in the world!

I was half tempted to open that one. It's a hell of a lot more intersting to me than the junk mail I get that promises to "enhance my love wand".

Bathroom etiquette

This is one of my worst pet peeves - bathroom etiquette.

Especially when you share a bathroom with co-workers.

I work in an industry where the workforce is about 80% women.

There are about 100 people who currently work in the office, so that is roughly 80 women sharing a bathroom with only 4 stalls.

Men probably don't think too much about this, but if you are a woman reading this, you're probably thinking that isn't really adequate bathroom facilities.

It would be fine if everyone had the same levels of hygiene and cleanliness - but it's very obvious we don't.

Our office manager sent this e-mail around the office today:

"Also, without getting into too many details, I would appreciate it if better hygiene was practiced in the ladies room. There were a few things brought to my attention this morning that just should not be happening in an office consisting of adults."

Today - it was blood on the floor.

BLOOD ON THE FLOOR!

EW!

It just happened to be in the one open stall that I walked into and I needed to GO, so I grabbed a wad of toilet paper enough to clog the plumbing and wiped it up.

This is not the first time she has had to send an e-mail around like this.

There was an issue of a random turd just sitting next to the toilet.

Can someone please explain to me how this happens? How do you miss getting your turd into the toilet?

I know there are hoverer's - people too afraid to sit on the toilet, but still...you have to have some sense that you are over the hole and do your best to get the shit in the bowl!

We've had turd smears too! If a turd is smeared, that means YOU stepped in it and it's on your shoe!

We have those sani-seat covers if people are too afraid to sit on the seat - geez...can't you use one of them?

Do you have to pee, poop and drip blood on the seat, the floor and the walls of the stall and ruin it for the rest of us? There are only 4 stalls and 80 women!

I'm not even going to speculate how "stuff" gets on the walls, but ew, ew, ew. Gross.

This is not even about being a germ-a-phobe...this is about being inconsiderate, unclean and just downright DISGUSTING!

Back in another lifetime - I used to clean the bathrooms of a gas station that my ex-husband owned. The women's room was 10 times more disgusting than the men's room believe it or not. Some of the "things" I saw in that bathroom was just beyond your worst imagination.

I also cleaned the offices for a moving company I worked for to make extra money when I first got divorced. The bathrooms for the warehouse workers and the truck drivers was dirty, but I never, EVER saw shit on the floor.

Why are women so gross in public bathrooms?

I know it's not clean, it's not fun, but come on - show a little consideration for other people?

Remember that old ryhme:

If you sprinkle
When you tinkle
Please be neat
and wipe the seat!

My friend "N" once said: There is a special place in hell for women who sprinkle all over the toilet seats.

I agree.

It's just wrong.

I would imagine they must be getting themselves wet in the process. Think about this - liquids splash. They are probably splashing themselves with urine!

ew.

I just don't understand, if anyone can enlighten me, please do.

:::stepping off my soap box:::

Random thought of the day

Why is it when you are doing something really dirty with your hands - you get an itch on your nose?

Random thought of the day

Why do people feel the need to go at least 5 - 10 mph below the speed limit when they see a cop on the side of the road, thereby slowing down everyone else behind them and causing honking horns and road rage to flare?

:::arg:::

Random Thoughts

I had a hankerin' for a really good turkey sandwich yesterday, so I decided to abandon my usual salad and take a walk to the Reading Terminal to get a sandwich from "The Original Turkey".

The Reading Terminal Market is about a 20 minute walk from where I work. Every time I go, I always try a slightly different route, but this time I just hung a right out of my building and walked up Chestnut Street.

The area in Philly that I work in, is called Olde City. It's the heart of the historic part of Philadelphia. I have all this wonderful history right down the street from me: Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, Carpenter's Hall ...

As I walked past Independence Hall, I was watching a lot of the tourists mulling about and taking pictures. There were a few schools there on field trips, families with kids looking less than thrilled with the "old buildings" that their parents were so excited about.

Random Though #1 - I wonder if anyone ever takes pictures of the people taking pictures?

There was a pack of 4 high school aged looking kids walking directly in front of me. 2 boys, 2 girls. The one young lad was hanging all over his girlfriend. He was skinny and scruffy looking, wearing a baggy t-shirt and baggy shorts. He had black high top sneakers on that were unlaced. (I had hoped this was way out of fashion by now, but apparently not) My eyes were immediately drawn to the top of the sneakers where a strap that would normally go around the ankle to secure the sneaker kept whapping the back of his opposite leg as he walked. He was actually getting a red mark where it was hitting him! Between the clunking of the unlaced shoe and the leather whap, whap, whapping the back of his leg, I kept thinking it had to be really uncomfortable.

It didn't appear that he was wearing socks either...I can imagine what those feet smell like at the end of the day.

Going a bit further down Chestnut you will pass by Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. All these enthusiastic interns wearing lab coats and haggard faces pass you by. There was one gal in scrubs and still wearing the little plastic shower cap thing on her head running and fiddling with money in an obvious rush to grab a bite to eat.

I turned right again on 12th Street to walk towards the Market and was following an elderly gentleman wearing a long sleeved jacket, tan pants with tan shorts over the pants and sneakers. He was very busy scratching off some of those instant lottery tickets and walked directly into oncoming traffic while trying to cross the street. He seemed oblivious to the honking horns...looked up only for a second...more to check that he was walking in the right direction rather than being concerned with almost being hit by a car! He didn't look like he was part of the homeless people you see everywhere, he was very clean. He was just busy with his scratch offs and didn't want to be interrupted.

Random thought #2 - I wonder if he's ever won anything!?!?

The Market itself is a really cool place - if you like open markets! It's always buzzing with activity. You can buy fresh produce, fresh seafood, meats, all kinds of different ethnic foods, coffee, fabulous baked goods, spices...etc. Sometimes they have live music as well and it's chaotic and colorful and exciting. It's definitely one of my favorite places to go to.

I stood behind a very frail, thin old man placing his order for a turkey platter. He knew the women that worked there by name and they knew him. They were asking him how he was, and where his sister was today. "She's not feeling well, I'm going to bring her back some lunch." was his reply. As he walked away, I remarked that he is obviously a regular customer here. The woman behind the counter said..."He usually comes with his sister. He is always looking after her."

How sweet and kind of sad in a way.

I got my sandwich: #1 - turkey with lettuce and tomato and had them add stuffing! Mmmmm, mmmm and headed back to my office.

Some days I like to just sit in the market and people watch while I am eating, but today I just wanted to head back and eat at my desk.

As you walk...I guess in any city, your senses are definitely on overload. The sounds are so different from block to block: traffic noise, conversations coming in and out of your range, music from the different shops/restaurants you pass by or from cars. I walked passed a building that was being power washed - and the sound reverberated across the other buildings so it was really loud and a bit obnoxious. You walk another block and it's quiet.

The smells are another thing that just jumps out at you: street vendors selling Philly cheese steaks and hot soups, french fries...delicious! Coffee places with their doors open, bakeries. Then you'll get a whiff of a sewer drain, or garbage truck. Horse manure from the handsome cabs that take visitors through the historic area. Vomit, urine and body odor are others. Cigarette smoke, cigar smoke - people who feel the need to dunk themselves into their perfume or cologne!!! ACK!!!

I decided to walk back on Walnut street, it's a little quieter than Chestnut and I pass by Washington Square park. I cut through the park, just to see what was going on. Park workers were busy cleaning up the leaves and a few schools were there letting some of the kids run off some energy!

I walked through the park behind Independence Hall. It's a nice quiet area where the trees seem to absorb a lot of the traffic noise. I saw a young couple pulling out a blanket to have a picnic lunch on the grass. A man sitting on a bench with his iPod, hunched over eating a sandwich trying not to get anything on his tie and reading a newspaper.

Squirrels were busy digging up and re-burying nuts. Pigeons were fluttering about as I walked towards them.

Another young couple were sitting on a bench and he was attempting to give his gf a kiss...she looked like she'd rather be somewhere else! LOL

Random thought #3 - I wonder if they just had a fight..she doesn't look too happy.

I passed a co-worker outside enjoying a cigarette and looking at the trees...said Hello and headed back to my office.

I opened up my sandwich and took one BIG bite!!! YUUUUMMMMY! Still the best turkey sandwich ever!!!

Interesting Observations

While I've been struggling with weird things that have been happening to me - both physically and mentally, I have made a choice to significantly cut down on my use of alcohol.

M & I have always enjoyed our "weekend wine." We don't normally drink during the weekdays, and we had a routine that one of us would pick up a few bottles of wine on Friday night on our way home from work.

When I started working from home on Mondays and Fridays, my weekends became "extended". I found myself rationalizing that Thursday was really my "Friday" and Monday was really my "Sunday" and heaven forbid I had any "left over wine" lingering around. I wouldn't want it to "go bad!" So, I found that I was drinking Thursday - Monday!

Funny how that happens!

Hmmmmm.....

Sooooooooooo, I cut out the wine altogether. I just found that it was giving me horrible indigestion, nasty headaches and it was totally interrupting my sleep. (guess what folks...alcohol does NOT make you sleep better!)

My consumption of alcohol nowadays is down to: 1 beer after I've been out working in the yard or if we go out to dinner.

It has been interesting to see the reaction of friends, family and co-workers when I decline the offer of a drink.

"Are you OK?"

"Do you want something else - mixed drink?"

"How come you are not drinking anymore?"

"How long is this going to last?"

"Wow!"

"Well, whatever is wrong with you that is keeping you from drinking, you better get that fixed!"

"Oh, that won't last long." (snicker, snicker)

****

I will have to admit that if any of my own friends told me that they give up drinking, I would probably have the same reaction(s).

What I find really interesting is the difference in the reactions when I tell them it is more of a "personal choice" to stop rather than a "medical choice". They can accept a medical reason.

There are some who are really uncomfortable with this concept.

I wonder why?

I wonder why their discomfort makes me uncomfortable?

Hmmmmmmm again.

Looking back at my drinking habits...I wonder if I was headed towards a serious problem. Every day you can read conflicting opinions about alcohol: "1 glass of wine a day is good for you and may reduce your risk of some kinds of cancer" to " drinking every day can lead to serious health problems".

I know, I know - drinking 1 glass a day is a LOT different than drinking 1 bottle a day and it's all about how much you are consuming.

Anyway - for the moment, this is what I am doing...or not doing - however you want to look at it.

The office Holiday party should be interesting this year! Also - some of the conferences that I attend where the standard practice of "meeting later for drinks" will no doubt raise a few questions offer some interesting challenges.

I tell you what though, I'm saving a lot of money and losing weight because of my abstinence!!! So far I am only seeing benefits!

Super Bug

I was reading today about how they anticipate more deaths will occur from a Superbug than from the AIDS virus.

The Superbug is a drug resistant staph infection. On the average most staph infections won't really do too much harm, but some may actually "enter the bloodstream or destroy flesh and can turn deadly."

Apparently, these little Staphylococcus bugs have caught on to our over use of antibiotics and now doctors and hospitals are going to try to curb the use of them.

I had a conversation about 15 years ago with a co-worker about this very same thing. She was at a dinner party where several of her friends who have PhD.'s in all sorts of different fields were discussing that one day, our overuse of antibiotics will turn against us.

It makes common sense to me actually. Viruses are smart little things...they learn how to survive and adapt...pretty much like people do. If you have ever watched the movie The Matrix, Agent Smith makes the statement : “I’d like to share a revelation that I’ve had, during my time here. It came to me when I tried to classify your species and I realized that you aren’t actually mammals. Every mammal on this planet instinctively develops a natural equilibrium with its surrounding environment, but you humans do not. You move to an area and you multiply, and multiply until every natural resource is consumed. The only way you can survive is to spread to another area. There is another organism on this planet that follows the same pattern. Do you know what it is? A virus. Human beings are a disease, a cancer of this planet. You are a plague, and we... are the cure.”

This is a line from a movie, it's fiction, but it does make you think. Well, it made me think.

M sent me this great article in Slate magazine this week: Why Americans should eat more Crap!
I agree! My generation (I'm at the tail end of the baby boomers), were part of the last group of people who weren't over protected as kids. Consumer advocacy groups where just starting to gain momentum in the late 60's and 70's. We were still eating led paint and eating raw potatoes, and cooking our steaks rare and taking our lunches to school in brown paper bags that did not keep our mayo based sandwich cold at all!

Is this all part of a natural life/death cycle? We, as humans have overcome so many other health issues in the past, I am sure we will learn to overcome this as well.

I found a great card the other day, it said: Jim ate well and exercised regularly, but he died anyway!

It's like Rosanne Rosannadanna used to say: If it's not one thing, it's another!

Odd start to the day

My drive into work takes me approximately 1 1/2 hours. I usually occupy my time with either music or books on CD.

Today for some reason, my brain was occupied by the morning light. Where I live, it was a pretty sunny day, a bit on the humid side, but still cool around 60 degrees. As I was driving along route 195 the sun kept ducking in and out of the fog that I was driving through. (This is not brain fog...this is actually fog as it relates to weather conditions).

The really cool thing was that the sky ahead of me to the west was darker, the sun was rising up behind me and when it did break out of the fog it would illuminate everything in it's beam...kind of like a spotlight. There would be areas where it was still kind of dark and foggy and then "POW" a tree would just LIGHT up like someone turned a switch onto it.

I don't think my describing it is doing it any justice - but I just wanted to write it down and get it out of my head.

Later, as I was crossing the Ben Franklin bridge coming into Philly, I hit a bit of traffic, so it was sloooooow moving across the bridge. Some days this irritates the hell out of me because first the bridge interferes with my iPod and car radio, and after driving for 1 1/2 hours...I gotta pee!!! Today though...I rolled down the windows and got in the far right lane and just followed the traffic in. The strange thing was...it was eerily quiet. There was the normal noise of the cars and trucks moving along, but no horns, no revving engines...it didn't seem like any one was losing their patience. The High Speed line crossed over the bridge...but the sound seemed muted and not overbearing at all.

I got off my exit, there was no traffic on 4th street...very odd.

Just an odd start to the day.

hmmmmmmmmmm

Brain Fog

I called my boss around 3:00 today and told her I was taking the rest of the day off. I am having a horrible case of brain fog today. More so than my usual scatterbrainedness - and it has me a bit concerned.

Called the Doc about my meds, she told me to cut the dosage in half and see how I do and to keep my follow up appointment with her on Monday. By then they should have my blood work back and we'll see how the Lyme disease is doing.

Today - I fluctuated between freezing with chills and sweating bullets, feeling nauseous, fuzzy headed, sleepy, agitated, irritated, buzzing head, achy and downright...blech.

This shit has got to stop.

I literally feel like I'm losing my mind. Maybe I am.

Maybe it's not me really typing this, but someone else?

My neurotic dog isn't making it any easier on me today. He's in a barking mood and when he's in that mood, the only thing that will stop him from barking is for me to make him lay next to me and hold his little mouth closed until he calms himself down.

We both need prozac.

The other dog - he's happy in his own stupidity. He is just simple...and carefree. Just rub his belly, feed him and let him chase the squirrles and he's content.

I wish I was him today.