THANKS CARISSA!

Carissa just saved me almost a hundred bucks! I went by Verizon yesterday, got a new plan effective the beginning of this current cycle and now have 14 minutes until Tuesday night instead of 234 minutes of overage fees!

How do I find myself in sticky situations?

I seem to find myself in these types of situations often, and I'm not sure I know how to stop getting into them.

For example, last week I get an email from a former co-worker. This is the gist of our email conversation (over several days.)

Her: A new co-worker of mine needs some supplies...can you help with that?

Me: Let me check around the school and talk to my principal...but probably.
(I email my principal and receive a "let me check with someone else and see" response.)

Her (several days later): So what's the word?

Me: Not sure, still waiting to hear. I'll ask again.
(I email my principal again. She says she hadn't heard from the person she was trying to contact, but 'sure, go ahead.')

Me: I can bring 'em!

Principal: Please fill out paperwork before you leave with them.

Me: Okay

Assistant Principal: Has former coworker talked with her principal. We don't want to step on toes when our assistance is not wanted.

Me: Ummmmm... I don't know.

AP: Oh.

Me: They're not even for her...they're for another grade level.

AP: Rolls eyes..."great!" This is not about the supplies. Take them. We want to be helpful. However, we don't want to hurt the development of her relationship with her principal.

Her: Awesome! Let me check and see what their procedures are and see if they still want them!

Are you confused yet? ME TOO! How does one little email turn into a mass CC convention that includes more people with more opinions and thoughts on a subject when it doesn't even affect the two initial emailers!?

UGH! The really tricky part is going to be if they don't want them and I have to go to my AP and principal and say "nevermind."

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HOUSTON

Today is Houston's birthday! Did you know that? We're 150 years old today. The Allen brothers founded us....I didn't know that either....I'd never heard of the Allen brothers (and I'm a Texas History teacher!) I just thought I'd give Houston a little airtime on my blog.

It's my friend Mark's birthday too, and I'll tell him Happy Birthday on the phone since he never reads my blog. ;)

Randomosities

I like the fact that white haired men collect the offering in the church service commonly thought of as only for the younguns.


It took me over an hour to drive from U of H to my apartment last night. I'm glad I didn't go through downtown, or it would have been worse...much worse!


I was originally overwhelmed with the fact that I was taking two grad classes this semester, but after having the second class for the first time yesterday I think it's going to be A-okay!


I'm more than 200 minutes over my cell phone plan this month, so I won't be answering the phone between now and Tuesday when my month renews. Which kind of stinks since I currently don't have a computer at home either. :(


It's raining and my umbrella is in the car.


I always forget how much the beginning of the school year exhausts me. I go into it thinking "I'm going to be tired. They're not going to know anything." So I'm cognitively aware, but "MAN! I'm really tired!" and "They really don't know anything!"


I just found out a couple days ago that HEB stands for "Here Everything's Better"...did you know that?

Fantastic First Day!

Whew! Yesterday was a whirlwind with sore feet at the end of the day, but it was FANTASTIC! I've got a talkative bunch and a few overzealous parents, but all in all I'm very pleased!

Yay for back to school!

Time with Married Friends

I had dinner with some married friends of mine last night. It included a lot of laughter and catching up. I so enjoy when I can hang out with people in a slightly different phase of life than I am in!

The United States Map

A father wanted to read a magazine but was being bothered by his little girl, Shelby. She wanted to know what the United States looked like.

Finally, he tore a sheet out of his new magazine on which was printed the map of the country. Tearing it into small pieces, he gave it to Shelby and said, "Go into the other room and see if you can put this together. This will show you our whole country."

After a few minutes, Shelby returned and handed him the map, correctly fitted and taped together. The father was surprised and asked how she had finished so quickly. "Oh," she said, "on the other side of the paper is a picture of Jesus. When I got all of Jesus back where He belonged, then our country just came together."


Out of the mouths of babes, right?

Schedule changes sleeping patterns

Earlier, I posted about not sleeping very well. I would just lay there staring at nothing or be exhausted but not sleepy. Well now that I'm back to work, that is certainly not a problem any more! I fall into bed and conk out almost immediately and then stare, bleary eyed, at the alarm clock that, seemingly, goes off only an hour later! I bought a new alarm clock. My old one was keeping time just fine, but the alarm aspect of it was sadly lacking. The new one is one of those old-fashioned ones with a hammer in between two bells at the top. Man! It sure is loud!

There is no snooze on my new "wake up, now!" contraption, so hopefully I will break the habit of going back to sleep after turning off the incessant ringing!

He answers!

A couple weeks ago Afshin had us get with our tables and share prayer requests. One of mine was a very specific request regarding my co-workers at school. He is faithful! He has answered that prayer with a resounding "YES!" multiple times this week!

God is good!

Ugh!

Why does buying a new car have to be such a headache?

Random yellow smears

On Sunday afternoon, I noticed a thick, almost pasty, yellow smear on my hand. The kind that doesn't just rub off. I had no idea where it had come from. I went for soap and water and eventually got it off. I noticed some on my left eyebrow. Thinking I'd touched my face at some point, I began to clean that off as well. I had to get a q-tip! An hour or so later, I see a small smidgen on my left knee. I begin to wonder what I've touched, and where else is it going to show up? I had already glanced at my clothes and furniture, but start to really look for something. Have I smeared this in other places? Am I going to have a big mess to clean up?

Eventually I wander into the kitchen and see the dying lilies in the trash can that a friend gave me over a week ago.

Doh...

Purpose vs. Pathway

There is a difference. I know my purpose in life. I'm not always sure of the pathway. Sometimes, I'm okay with that. Other times, I don't like that at all. This is one of those times.

A New Skin?

Dr. Dunlop used to bring Katy to visit us in elementary school. We would hold her, play with her and ask a bunch of questions about her care, temperament, lifespan, etc. Everyone loved Dr. Dunlop. He loved kids and didn't treat us as "one more thing on his list to mark off" or anything else like that. Because we loved Dr. Dunlop, and trusted him, we all loved Katy. Katy is a boa constrictor.

I had a dream about Dr. Dunlop and Katy last night. Dreams are odd that way. People I haven't thought of in years, resurrect in my dreams. Katy was quite a bit rounder than I remember. She was in a really big cage, which was odd because I don't ever remember her being in a cage. Dr. Dunlop would walk into class carrying her. And in my dream, I was offered her skin. Another very odd thing. Katy never shed her skin outside of her "normal" habitat. If she was shedding, then Dr. Dunlop didn't bring her out. Katy had grown up with Dr. Dunlop. Literally. So she wouldn't have ever hurt him, but it still wasn't safe to bring her out amongst people when she was shedding. However, the skin I was offered wasn't in a "just shed" state, but a pashmina for me to wear. Weird, right?

I woke up disoriented from my dream. It was like I was watching it all happen on video, instead of actually being in the dream. Yet, I still had the impression that I had a new skin. It took several moments for me to figure out why I would think that and remember it was all only a dream.

One more day...

It is late afternoon Thursday, and I am contemplating the end of my summer. I have only one more day of no responsibilities. Well, at least no responsibilities when it comes to my work environment. It's amazing to me how many things I have been able to do this summer. It is equally, if not more, amazing to me how many things I feel I still have left to complete.

I've been trying to find a dentist. Lots of friends have given me the names of their dentists, but only one (out of MANY!) of those names was on my insurance plan and he is not currently accepting new patients. I still don't have a dentist. I was hoping to have a typical "supposed to happen every 6 month and I haven't been in over 2 years" checkup before going back to work. Ah, well.

I'm also trying to get registered for fall classes. I'm planning on taking two. I qualify for financial aid, but have some questions before I choose to accept the loan being offered to me. I was on hold with the financial aid office at my graduate institution for over an hour. I'm listening to all sorts of advertisements and informational monologue while driving up to school, chatting with the office staff, and sorting through letters for a new bulletin board. Finally, the phone starts to ring. I think I might be about to talk to a human being! and my cell phone battery dies. NOOOOOO! But what do you do?

I've been working on a family tree off and on this summer. If you've ever done any work on a family tree of your own, you realize what a monster this can turn into. I'm having fun, but it is a monumental task. The more information you know, the more information you still need to find. (If you're interested in pursuing your own, I'm using www.ancestry.com and really like the tools it can provide.) I've talked with several family members this summer. Some I'd never met before, others I hadn't talked to in a long time or only kept up with them through my parents. I have almost as much information as I'm going to have before going the next step, which would be visiting official places for paperwork, etc. That won't be happening for awhile, and I'm totally okay with that. I am pleased with the amount of information I have. I'd like to get my family back across the ocean. I know that's going to take some time. Right now, I've got it back to the early 1800s. If you're into history or geneology at all...it's really interesting!

So as I'm thinking about all I have accomplished this summer, and some of the things still on my to do list, I start thinking about beginnings. The beginning of a new year. The beginning of a new season in life. A new chance to show Christ's love to 48 9 year olds. I ask God to shine through me. To use me as He sees and not necessarily as I see. Most importantly I ask God to help me keep my eyes on Him. Not the TAKS test or my list of weaknesses, but Christ alone.

Just a helpful hint...

When asking someone out:

Do it verbally, not over text message.

You'll have a much better chance of getting a 'yes.'

Taking a moment...

I'm having some friends over for dinner tonight. I'm excited they're coming! I haven't seen two of them in months, so it's going to be great to catch up! I've been to the grocery store twice today. On the second trip, I intended to get a couple of items that I need for an event tomorrow and totally forgot...so I'll be going again (but not today!)

I've got the fruit, for the tart I'm making, sliced with sugar sprinkled over the top in preparation to go on the pastry puff that is thawing (I know, it's cheating to use pre-prepared, but that's what I'm doing.) I've got the créme fraîche standing on the counter...it needs a couple more hours before I can use it. The salmon is in the fridge and the shrimp is in a sinkful of water so I can take the skin and tails off. The napkins are in the dryer. My bed is made and my shoes are picked up off the floor. I haven't dusted yet and the table isn't set either. There are a several other miscellaneous things I need to do before 7:00. However, I'm confidant I'll be ready by the time everyone arrives.

I'm just sitting for a moment to try to allow the air conditioner to catch up with the heat and take a breather. I feel like I've been running non-stop since I got up this morning!

I just remembered something else I need from the grocery store for tonight...so it looks like I'll be going again today after all. Groan.

Will you accept this rose?

Saturday night, after an absolutely wonderful homemade meal of salad, tilapia, salmon, asparagus, baked potato and french bread completed with a slice of key lime pie, all in which I wasn't allowed to lift a finger, I was handed a gorgeous white rose. An originally written poem was read for me and scripture read over me.

It was a beautiful evening!

Sleep (y) (less)

I haven't been sleeping very well lately. The past month or so has been kind of "off," for lack of a better description. For awhile, I was sleeping late, then staying up late and got into kind of a pattern. Then when I needed to get up early, I couldn't go to sleep early, because I had slept late.... You get the picture.

I go back to work in one week. This past week, I've been trying to go to bed at more of a decent hour and setting an alarm to wake up at a decent hour. Certainly not as early as I will when I do go back to work, but still earlier than I'd been getting up. When I go to bed, my body is physically tired, but not sleepy. This means I can't fall asleep at all...and so just lay there. Extremely frustrating! Last night is a perfect example. I go to bed. I lay there with my mind running sometimes and blank others. My body is tired. My legs ache with the "you haven't slept enough lately" feeling. After 45 minutes, I get up and move to the couch. I stick in a movie thinking, "I'll get sleepy and turn it off in a bit. I'll just sleep on the couch." No such luck. I watch the entire movie, the deleted scenes and the bloopers! At 3:15 I finally go to bed and still lay there for a few minutes before blissfully falling into slumber. Of course, I was not so blissful when my alarm went off at 8:00 o'clock this morning.

So now, I'm dragging and want to take a nap. But if I do that, I'll be in the exact same boat tonight! Argh!

Doomed to have bad neighbors?

I have lived in my apartment for 2 years. In that period of time, I've had three downstairs neighbors.

The first guy that lived there was a drunk who was not nice to his girlfriend. She finally had the guts to leave him for good. That same weekend I had a busted sideview mirror waiting for me when I walked out to my car Sunday morning. I'm pretty sure he was venting his not-so-happy feelings at her decision.

The next people to live there was a couple and their 16 month old son. I was introduced to these people on January 1 (definition: morning after a very late night) at 6am when she was screaming over the phone at the police to come and remove her mother. This went on for an hour. Little did I know, it would become a regular occurence for their entire 6 month stay. Their son was adorable and never a problem. However, 2-3 times a week the man and woman would have screaming and slamming fights. They always started about 2 in the morning.

The most recent neighbor must have moved in this past weekend. I saw her for the first time today while we were both doing laundry. She looks nice enough. However, as I'm typing this post at 10:37pm, the bass on her stereo is so loud that if I was trying to sleep, well....it wouldn't be happening.