Livin', Lovin', she's just a Woman

Sorority Bid Day 2009

2009-08-26T08:01:00.001-07:00

For the uninitiated, this is what sorority bid day looks like at USC! The part where the girls in pink shirts take off their Pi Chi shirts is what they call 'reveal' where the disafilliated women who have served as Pi Chis all week take off the Pi Chi shirt and reveal their sorority shirts underneath to the potential new members.

Then, after the potential new members get their bid card from their Pi Chi, they run to their new sisters on the Horseshoe. I didn't see any of the Kappa's in this video, but you get the general idea of the singing, chanting, screaming, etc. that is a fun end to a very long week!

What really cracks me up about this video is the tube socks the girls are wearing - are these coming back? Scary.

A few years ago, a streaker in a gorilla mask ran down the Horseshoe - and I saw him coming and we just howled. I had never seen a streaker before.

Do you remember seeing this live and thinking - WOW?

2009-06-27T07:43:00.001-07:00

Frozen in time, immortal, sad and tragic in the end.

I love watching the performances of the Jackson 5, and two personal favorites, She's Out of My Life and Off The Wall, both from the Off The Wall album.

It's been a sad week - Ed McMahon, Farrah, and Michael. Time flies, life is short, via con dios.

Memorial Day traditions and the best of the 3rd ID

2009-05-26T05:05:00.000-07:00

I could not continue my yardwork yesterday becasue of the rain that began before 8 am and continued on and off throughout the day. So I made sure to make the most of the traditional Memorial Day offerings on TV. My favorite war movie is To Hell and Back with Audie Murphy. I love this movie - it is just amazing.

I watched as Audie Murphy fought Jerry and rose through the ranks. One of the best scenes has to be at the end with him on the 50 cal gun. And he did all of that before he was 19 years old and had been turned down by the Marines, Air Corps, Navy, and Paratroopers. According to the movie, they wanted to take him out of the combat unit but he wouldn't let them.

One of Jim's proudest possessions is his 3rd ID patch. He keeps it in his wallet. Watching this movie is part of the orientation when you enter the 3rd ID, and Jim is most proud of that service.

I also watched a little bit of (and DVR'd the rest) of the Battle of the Bulge, caught about an hour of Patton (I missed the part where he beats up on the shellshocked soldier), and woke up at the end of Midway. Midway is also one of my favorites.

What is really interesting is watching these movies with Jim because he knows about all the battles and the equipment and the details of stuff that you don't learn from the movies. When we went to see Saving Private Ryan, Jim translated through the whole movie for me since they did not use subtitles with the German. At one point in that movie, something happens and Jim leans over and says "he just called that guy an A$$(silrm". Not only does he know all of the stuff about the German equipment and battles and our equipment, he also knows all of those airplanes and all about the battles in the Pacific and the Japanese equipment. He is a walking history lesson.

So hope you all had a Happy Memorial Day and that it was much drier than mine!

Star Trek Lives…on Hulu.com video galleries!

2009-05-24T07:13:00.000-07:00

This is totally cool. I can watch re-mastered episodes on this amazing site. Not all of them are re-mastered, but I hear we can now buy the re-mastered episodes and if these are any indication I have to have them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Captain, I canna guarantee that she'll hold up

2009-05-09T17:14:00.001-07:00

Let me tell you, that was the coolest movie I have seen in a very long time. I loved it. STAR TREK ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I can't wait to see it again. It was just, fascinating!

Star Trek is here

2009-05-08T05:15:00.001-07:00

Well, today is the day for the much hyped new Star Trek movie. I have plans to go tomorrow and based on the reviews from this morning it sounds like it will be amazing. Actually, I don't care much what happens today - I had the most amazing massage last night and I still feel like major jello. All is good in the world.

I did catch part of Star Trek II TWOK the other day. What is sad is that I know most of those lines by heart and can speak them with the characters. I am pretty sure I saw that movie on July 10th, 1982 and I was forever enthralled wtih Star Trek after that. Two stations, Channel 5 out of Washington and Channel 10 in Columbia showed Star Trek that summer, one came on at 5 and the other came on at 5:30, so I would watch the full one at 5 and then at 6 would switch channels to see the end of the second one. It was great. That fall, Channel 5 showed Star Trek at 8 pm most nights unless there was a basketball game on. I ended up watching a couple episodes of MASH each night as that was shown before Star Trek at 8. It did not take much to make me happy!

Out of the loop, off the curb, and busy as ever

2009-04-22T05:28:00.000-07:00

Ok, I have been missing a bit from everything. I barely check or post on facebook anymore, and have not posted anything on the blog in a while but I do read my friends' blogs to try and stay connected. I'm not twittering (don't really even know what that is) or anything else, I have just been really busy.

We went out of town for Easter weekend and it was wonderful. I don't think I could have squeezed one more thing out of that visit to my sister's. We went up Friday (I took a day off!) and had lunch with Meg, James, and Quincy. After that, we went to Meg's house and dyed Easter Eggs. Meg boiled the eggs and I helped Quincy dye them. It was a lot of fun and she enjoyed it. I also played a lot with Quincy. Friday nite, Meg and I jammed to Guitar Hero. Saturday, we got started early with a 10 am Easter Egg hunt, came home for lunch, and made sugar cookies which I helped Quincy decorate. Then, we went roller skating. Quincy would not skate with me :(. I had paid for us and rented skates for me. I spent the first 10 min getting re-aquianted with being on wheels as I had not skated in 18 years!!!! I was really proud of myself though for not falling.

Quincy would not get on the rink with me, but she said she would with Meg. I said to her "I'm not mama am I?" and she shook her head no and then said, "but I still love you". So I turned in my skates, loaned Meg my socks, and got a bigger size skate so Meg could put them on. Quincy went around the rink with her once and then wanted to play Skee Ball - go figure. Me - I put the skates back on and skated for another 20 minutes or so. It was so much fun and I felt like I was 11 again!!! What a fun time. After skating, we went over to my mom's apartment so that Quincy could swim in the indoor pool. We played Marco Polo, and Quincy jumped in and swam around without the bubble to keep her up. She has turned into quite the little swimmer. She did not want to get out of the pool. By this time, it was time to go back to Meg's for dinner, more playing, and more guitar hero after Quincy went to bed.

Sunday we attempted to go to church, but Meg was not feeling well at all. She had been sick all weekend with fever and allergies, and it peaked on Sunday. So Quincy and I went outside on a beautiful morning to play basketball. It was alot of fun, and it was hard to leave but it was time to go home :(.

Have just been super busy since then, and everything started off well this week except around 7:30 Monday morning I fell while stepping off the curb and crossing the street. I twisted my right foot and landed on my left knee in the middle of College Street. I have this lovely swollen foot and a two inch by one inch abrasion just below my left knee. I had a fight with the street, and the street won. I was so embarrassed. I think I would have done better if I had been on the roller skates! I didn't fall on the skates, but I can't step off a curb without slipping and hurting myself. It was slick as it had been raining, but what a terrible way to start a Monday. Fortunately, I am on the mend, and hopefully the swelling will be gone soon - I'm tired of ice and a very cold foot!

So what is up with the Counter?

2009-04-02T10:08:00.002-07:00

From time to time I look to see how many 'hits' I have on my google profile with the counter. I know there are many of my blogger friends who are linked directly to my blog and bypass my counter, but I seem to have had three or four counts per day for a while. And then all of a sudden, the counter seemed to get stuck and then go a bit berserk. Friday, I had 1,876 'visits', and then nothing for days. Even when I would go on it and the number should go up, it did not change.

Then all of a sudden, it jumped from 1,876 to 1,900. Then it was stuck again, and then the next thing I see it is on 2000, then 2100, and now it is at 2200. Sometime between 1900 and 2200 it stays that even when I hit my profile page and the count should increase - very strange.

So I know you have all noticed this problem - just kidding as you have probably not. Anyway, I just have found it odd since I know when I hit the profile site the count goes up, but I wonder who else is hitting it daily. Now I can't even see the numbers change as they are totally whacked out!

RIP to our Computer

2009-03-31T09:50:00.000-07:00

You know, there are the kinds of phone calls you just don’t want to get. Jim left me a voice mail late yesterday before I left work, and I could tell immediately that something was wrong. I was bracing myself for the worst, but he said that he didn’t know what he did as he was trying to install the new read/write CD drive on the computer, but he fried the motherboard. After I heard the voice mail, I realized that as upset as he was it could have been a lot worse. I thought he had an accident, or something big at home broke (other than the computer), or all kinds of things were racing through my mind. But it was the computer – ok that can be fixed.

I can’t believe it is the end of March. The first quarter of 2009 is gone, and hopefully we are on our way to an economic recovery (of sorts) if cooler heads will prevail and the spending spree that our government seems to be on will end. Of course yesterday, the announcement comes down that the white house has asked the CEO of GM to step down. Now, I know that technically he can’t be fired by the President, but part of me is wondering just who they think they can fire. Do we really think the government is capable of running GM, selling Chrysler to Fiat, or handling anything else when they don’t have their own house in order? I hope we are not witnessing the destruction of capitalism and trading it for socialism. These are scary things to be witnessing. Although, I think the overreaction to the AIG bonuses and a clearly unconstitutional retro tax on things is much worse because it is clearly unconstitutional to pass a law to penalize or tax someone for something that has already happened. If they can pass a tax like that, there would be nothing to stop passage of laws or taxes to be applied retro-actively. This is insanity!

However, I digress. This has been a very busy week, and I was disappointed at the basketball on Sunday as the games were just not that good. Saturday’s games were really good – especially the Villanova/Pitt game. Villanova almost blew it at the end, but managed to score the winning basket at the end of the game (after they left one of the Pitt players standing underneath the basket to make an easy shot to tie). I am looking forward to going to my sister’s house next Friday for Easter weekend. I am taking a day off (wow I am going to get behind even with just one day), so that we can have a long weekend. The only bad part is that Sunday the 12th will be the final round of the Masters and I will want to be watching it all, but we’ll have to drive home. I don’t know who came up with the DVR, but I love that thing and will be DVRing golf so I can make sure not to miss any of the action!

So True – Nine Words

2009-03-25T05:37:00.000-07:00

I just got an email about nine words that women use and their meaning. These definitions are so true. I have used these on many occasions, and the description is very accurate. I think I use these words in this way because I try to express my frustration without really letting the four letter words fly, getting mad, or nagging. I have also been in the kitchen and end up slamming dishes around because I’m frustrated that I don’t have help, but I don’t want to turn into my mother and become a professional nag. So to all you guys out there, if your wife/girlfriend/significant other is using these words, she’s trying not to nag you, pick a fight, or say bad words.

NINE WORDS WOMEN USE

(1) Fine: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.

(2) Five Minutes: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.

(3) Nothing: This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine.

(4) Go Ahead: This is a dare, not permission. Don't Do It!

(5) Loud Sigh: This is actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to # 3 for the meaning of nothing.)

(6) That's Okay: This is one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

(7) Thanks: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or faint. Just say you're welcome. (I want to add in a clause here - This is true, unless she says 'Thanks a lot' - that is PURE sarcasm and she is not thanking you at all. DO NOT say 'you're welcome' . that will bring on a 'whatever').

(8) Whatever: Is a woman's way of saying F-- YOU!

(9) Don't worry about it, I got it: Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking 'What's wrong?' For the woman's response refer to # 3.

* Send this to the men you know, to warn them about arguments they can avoid if they remember the terminology.

* Send this to all the women you know to give them a good laugh, cause they know it's true!!!

Five Points Fun - Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

2009-03-15T09:33:00.001-07:00

So we decided to brave the chilly temps yesterday and go to Columbia as planned for the St. Patty’s Day festival in 5 points. We were fortunate to not have rain, just a little mist at times. Had so much fun, saw several people I knew, drank some Harp draft beer, Jim had Guinness, listened to some cool music, ate some good food, and just blew off some steam. I don’t normally sleep late, but I woke up just before 9 this morning! We stayed at the Inn at USC which was great because we were able to check in around 12:30, park the car, and walk to 5 points.

It is always nostalgic to walk through campus. Went by the College of Business - which was my second home since I worked in that building and most of my classes the last two years were there, and also by Capstone where I lived just across the street. My dorm room my senior year was a corner room on the front of the building on the 3rd floor. I lived on the side facing Columbia Hall my junior year in ‘88 - ‘89, and lived on the 3rd floor my senior year. I can’t believe this time 20 years ago I was finishing my junior year. Scary.

Anyway, had a great time seeing some fun landmarks - Jungle Jim’s, Capstone, the College of Business, the Fountain, Yesterday’s, Goatfeathers, Village Idiot Pizza, Sharky’s, Group, and an assortment of bars whose names have changed over the years. It really makes me miss Columbia when I go for things like that and see all kinds of people I know. I always look forward to the bands, people, and beer trucks too!

March is DVT Awareness Month

2009-03-11T12:55:00.000-07:00

DVT is an important subject for my family. My dad had an unexplained blood clot in his leg at age 51. Fortunately, it was identified quickly and it did not break off and go to his lungs (a Pulmonary Embolism or PE for short).

Unfortunately, my sister developed a blood clot in her leg that went undetected for a few weeks at the age of 34. Her leg was very, very swollen and she was in pain, but not the sharp kind like my dad had (and he had no swelling). Even after she got on the blood thinner, she developed PE’s as she had 6 clots go to her lungs. She had 1 in her jugular vein as well and her neck was very swollen.

After her clot and after they ruled out cancer as a cause, they suspected that my sister had a clotting disorder – a Factor V Leiden mutation. Meg was tested, I was tested, and it turns out that we shared that mutation causing a hypercoagulable state of our blood. This means that we have a predisposition to blood clotting, and if you develop a blood clot you are more likely to develop another one. With the life threatening condition of a PE, Meg is on coumiden every day for the rest of her life.

As for my dad, he takes a baby aspirin every day per his doctor. I take one too even though it has not been prescribed and I had to get off The Pill (which I had taken for almost 20 years at that point – scary as that exponentially increases the risk). I am also cognizant of long trips in cars, sitting for long periods of time at my desk, traveling, and the need to stay hydrated.

Do you remember David Bloom of NBC News? That is how he died while covering the Iraq war – he developed a blood clot in his leg and it broke off and became a PE. His wife Melanie has established The Coalition to Prevent Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT), and March is DVT awareness month. There is some great information on her website, and there is a risk analysis as well to assist you in determining if you are at risk. In this case, prevention is worth 100 pounds of cure.

DVT occurs when a blood clot forms in a deep vein, usually in the lower limbs. A complication of DVT, pulmonary embolism, can occur when a fragment of a blood clot breaks loose from the wall of the vein and migrates to the lungs, where it blocks a pulmonary artery or one of its branches.

• Up to 2 million Americans are affected annually by DVT
• Of those who develop PE, up to 300,000 will die each year
• More people die in the United States from PE than breast cancer and AIDS combined

Who is at Risk?

Certain individuals may be at risk for developing DVT, although DVT can occur in almost anyone. Some risk factors or triggering events to discuss with your doctor include, but are not limited to:

• Cancer
• Certain heart or respiratory diseases
• Prior DVT
• Advanced age
• Acute medical illness with restricted mobility
• Inherited or acquired predisposition to clotting
• Obesity
• Hospitalization
• Patients undergoing major surgery, such as joint replacements, who remain immobile in bed after an operation
• Pregnancy (Miscarriages can also be caused by clots in the umbilical cord)
• Restricted mobility caused by long-distance travel
• Use of birth control pills
• Postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy
• Trauma

Third Time is the Charm

2009-03-02T04:31:00.000-08:00

Well we finally had snow when it was predicted as we had about four inches of snow between 6:30 and 10:00 last night. It was coming down heavy – those big wet fat flakes of snow. Wow, it has been a long time since I’ve seen this much snow and this is the first real snow we’ve had since we’ve lived in the Charlotte area. I am working from home this morning, and I hope to make it in to the office later today. It is supposed to melt today with the sun and above freezing temps, so hopefully the roads will be clear by this afternoon as it is supposed to be something ridiculous tonite like 13 for the low. Not good at all. I am so tired of the cold, but it is supposed to hit 70 this weekend – yeah!

What is missing from Guitar Hero

2009-02-20T04:48:00.000-08:00

I have really enjoyed my Guitar Hero game. Jim finally found a video game I like to play since I’m not interested in the ones he plays. Sorry, World of Warcraft is NOT for me. But Guitar Hero is a blast. What’s even more fun is that after Christmas when we got back home, we got the cables to run from the TV to the stereo receiver so I can totally blast the songs through the stereo speakers.

I have worked up to the “Hard” setting on Beat It, The One I Love, and I don’t play anything under a “Medium” setting on the guitar. I can play the bass part on Rebel Yell on Hard and still score in the 90% range. I am drumming on most songs on “Medium”, except Hot for Teacher. I can do 99% on Easy and my best streak was over 500 notes straight. However, there is a big difference between Easy and Medium as I only got 55% on Medium. It is really intense to drum that on medium.

I really like the Aerosmith Guitar Hero version, except that it is only guitar and no drums. There are some really cool songs on it, like The Cult She Sells Sanctuary, Dream On, and Sweet Emotion (a personal favorite). I have a lot of fun with those songs. Guitar Hero (original) even has More Than a Feelin’ which is a total blast and I love to crank that up as well.

So what is really missing is some serious AC/DC and more than just one Van Halen song. I would love to have the entire Back in Black album as well as Van Halen and Van Halen II for Guitar Hero world tour. I could have so much fun with the guitar and drum parts on all of those songs. I saw yesterday where they are releasing a Metallica Guitar Hero, so where is AC/DC and Van Halen? I wanna rock!

Details, Details, Everywhere – LZL 509, 536-2961, and K1860

2009-02-17T06:58:00.000-08:00

This past weekend we went to see my friend Audrey, her husband Todd, and their son Blake. We had dinner, hung out, and played some guitar hero until about 10:15 Saturday nite. It was so much fun and I tried to not laugh when Jim sang Rebel Yell!

While we were having dinner, I was talking about going out with Audrey one night with one of her friends from high school and a friend of his. Audrey remembered the night out when I told her about it, but she was surprised that I was able to recount the events in such detail (right down to what I wore that night). She then remarked that there were two people that she knew that if they told her the details of an event she would believe them even if she couldn’t remember it because their memory was so good. One of those people she knows is me.

I remember some details that I guess most people just don’t. Like my very first memory was from when I was about 2 ½. I don’t remember that I went to Six Flags in Atlanta that day, but I remember falling down at the motel and hurting my knee. My mother confirmed the event that I remembered and how old I was. I don’t remember my mom being pregnant with Meg, but I remember everything about when she went to the hospital and when I went to see them at the hospital and then when they brought Meg home. I had turned 3 in late January, and Meg was born in early June. So I wasn’t even 3 1/2 but I remember all of these events very clearly. I would say that was the first ‘big’ event in my life and I remember it and pretty much everything after that. I even remember the day that Nixon resigned. I was 5 ½, but the newspaper headline was very large and covered ½ the page – it said NIXON RESIGNS. I didn’t understand what that meant, but I remember the headline!

I remember stupid things too, like my phone number when we lived in Orangeburg was 536-2961 and my address was 377 Adden Street - we left there in 1975 when I was 6 ½. Or my license plate number from my first Toyota LZL 509. I remember the key number too K1860. I remember my phone number when I lived in Charlotte for 17 months – 704-542-2998. I also remember many events over the years and can recount things that were said verbatim from 15 + years ago. I remember dates, places, even the details of what I was wearing at the time. I never considered this kind of memory unusual, but I guess it is based on what my friends tell me. I get it honestly though – my grandmother had the same kind of memory so I guess it is just the way my mind works. Just one more thing to confirm that I am different for sure!

The calendar says February, but the weather says April

2009-02-09T04:57:00.000-08:00

Saturday and Sunday were two of the nicest days we’ve had in a while. With all of the rain and bitter cold we’ve had, it was amazing that it actually smelled like a spring morning the last few mornings when I went outside to get the paper. Yesterday I drove around all afternoon with the windows down and the sunroof back. Imagine my surprise when I saw people with a convertible and the top was not down – what a waste! Yesterday was perfect convertible weather.

I can’t get over how beautiful it was yesterday – it just felt amazing. The days are getting longer too which is especially nice when leaving work at 6 and it’s still light outside! I think the dark and cold were really beginning to wear me down. I’ve been leaving my house before 7 every morning and been getting home around 6:30. Friday afternoon, I actually left the office at 4:50 and got home a decent time. That was great!

We are also supposed to have a mild week which will be really nice for a change. It reminds me of a Valentine’s Day when I was in college – it was 1989 and I had this short sleeve red dress that I wore that day because it was warm enough. I usually dressed every day to go to class as I was working on campus and couldn’t wear jeans to school and then work. So it was a perfect day to wear that red dress. I hope to wear some different clothes this week now that the weather will be more mild. It’s nice to wear something different for a change and especially because it has warmed up!

The Day the Music Died

2009-01-29T10:18:00.001-08:00

It's been almost 50 years since 'The Day the Music Died' - the 50th anniversary of the plane crash that took Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper is February 3rd.

This is my favorite Buddy Holly song. A very close second is Maybe Baby, but these words and the performance by Marshall Crenshaw in the movie LaBamba makes this my favortie.

Steve posted about his #1 songs, and I have been meaning to post a comment because I liked alot of the same ones. One of them on Steve's is Bruce Springsteen "I'm on Fire" - that is a haunting song. Especially the part that goes: 'It's like someone took a knife baby edgy and dull and cut a six inch valley through the middle of my soul'. That line is probably my favorite of all in a song. Classic.

40 was easier than 30 and I'm feelin' good!

2009-01-28T11:09:00.001-08:00

I'm feelin' good - just like Nina Simone. Whenver I think about feelin' good, new dawn's, new day's, etc. I think about this song.

Had a great birthday yesterday - thanks for all of the good wishes. And to quote Chuck/Captain Kirk, it is definitely the "Best of Times" at least in a personal way. I feel like not letting anything slow me down - and that's a good feeling!

The big day is here

2009-01-27T03:33:00.001-08:00

So last night on the way home from work, my car rolled 142,000 miles. And today my odometer rolled too. This is it, I'm officially 40. Actually, I had a very nice surprise waiting for me when I got home yesterday. One of my best friends sent me flowers and I was so surprised! Audrey and I have been friends for 20 years, and I called her and told her how much I appreciated the flowers.

I guess I won't be crawling under a rock today - especially since I have to go to work. I guess I will find out if life begins at 40 - here I go!!! Hope it is a good one.

Forty years ago - gasp!

2009-01-20T12:42:00.000-08:00

Forty years ago today – January 20, 1969, my mother said she was watching the inauguration of Richard Nixon and wondering when I would arrive. This was my original due date, so I guess I got a 7 day reprieve on turning 40 this year! Forty years ago today it was also exactly six months before man first walked on the moon. I witnessed it (I’m told) though I obviously do not remember it. My mom said she woke me from a nap and put me in front of the TV so that I could “watch” it with my parents.

I guess I was stubborn then too in not conforming to the due date that had been assigned. I see that was a harbinger of the way I would turn out.

Well, we only got a light dusting at my house overnight – actually it was more of a heavy frost instead of any real snow. But that is ok with me since I needed to come into the office today and was glad that the road conditions were nothing more than a small rain event. If my Grandmother were alive, she would tell me that today would remind her of the day I was born, cold, cloudy, and with flurries!

I really do miss my Grandma. She would have been 100 last year. That is just so hard to fathom that she lived 98 ½ years. I know that there were a couple of times I think she was just too stubborn to die even though she was very sick. My great-great grandmother even lived to be 73 (she died in 1923), and my great-grandmother lived to be a month shy of 80 and died in 1959. I have a feeling these ladies were stubborn too based on things I learned from my mom and Grandma.

At least it’s a week before my birthday and I’m not crying about it. That's a good sign.

For the low price of $11,995 - this can be yours

2009-01-12T05:27:00.000-08:00

After my last post and Steve’s comments about my VW, I started thinking about my bug and how much I loved it. I did some searching on the internet for pictures, and there is actually one for sale here in Charlotte: a 1974 baby blue Superbeetle for the low price of only $11,995. The main thing that distinguishes a Superbeetle from a regular one is the curved glass on the front windshield vs. a straight down windshield.

My bug was purchased new in 1974 when I was 5. It cost my parents about $1,500 new. It had an AM radio, a heater, a defroster, a back seat that would fold down (my sister and I loved that on trips), and was a 4 speed manual transmission. When they sold it, they got $3,000 in early 1987. Pretty good for a 13 year old car.

I leaned to drive on this car starting when I was about 14. Mom would let me practice on Sundays in the Airport High School parking lot. There was this great hill in the back that connected the old student parking lot (the underclassman dirt lot) to the front of the gym. That hill was the perfect place to stop mid way up the hill and learn to let off the brake and operate the clutch and gas to avoid rolling backwards.

I really did love that car. I drove it from the time I got my license (April 16, 1984) until I got my first Toyota. My second car was a 1984 SR5 Toyota Corolla. It was a 2 door liftback, had pop up headlights, was red, and had these cool black louvers on the back glass. I remember picking that car up after school on December 9, 1985. I’m pretty sure it was a Monday. My parents financed it for 30 months, and the payment was about $230 a month. I ended up helping out with the payments when I was at Carolina and paid $130 a month to my mom and paid for it to be in the garage as well as paid about half the insurance until it was paid for. After that, I took care of all the insurance, maintenance, etc. I was so glad when I paid it off in August of 1988. I even got my mom to sign the title over to me since I had helped pay for it and was responsible for it.

I drove that car until May of 1991. I had been out of school for a year and bought my first new car, a 1991 Toyota Celica. It was red, but was not a liftback. I really missed my liftback, but in that model, the trunk looked better than the liftback. However, it was not nearly as cool as my Corolla liftback even though it had a spoiler on the back. I never fell in love with that car like I did the bug and my SR5, and I ended up trading that Celica in right after I paid it off on my current Celica, the 1996 25th Anniversary edition you see in the post below. I decided to buy my current Celica while I was on a business trip in Texas. I made all the arrangements while home one weekend, and the car actually arrived in late April, but I did not take delivery until mid-May 1996. It was very expensive as the exchange rates were not that favorable at the time, and I bought it for about $21,600. It was still a deal though as I still had all of my connections at Toyota Center and knew the owner personally. So I got a great deal.

So here’s a bit of trivia, do any of my blogger friends know what all 4 cars that I have driven have in common? Good luck!

Baby, Mama loves you

2009-01-04T14:58:00.001-08:00

Well, I washed my car yesterday as it was very dirty so I thought I would post some pictures of my Celica. I still love this car and I have the most fun driving it!

45 + 105 = Therapy

2009-01-03T10:15:00.000-08:00

Last night I got in the hot tub and it was about 45 degrees on the porch and the water temp was 105 - Perfect! It was cool without being very cold outside, and the 105 is perfect. I got in at halftime of the Sugar Bowl. Wow, what a game. I don't think Alabama has been so dominated all year. Utah really came to play last night and it showed. I was impressed. The Kentucy/ECU game was crazy to watch. I don't think I've seen such bad officiating in a bowl game yet. And I'm just going to withhold commentary on the Outback Bowl except to say that I can't figure out what the hell is wrong with our team. We just stunk it up badly.

Well, it looks like we're settling into January now, clouds and all. I'm not sure which is worse, the sun setting at 5:30 and the short days or all of the clouds and fog we've had the past several weeks. Good news is I think we're catching up on the much needed rain. Bad news is that it adds to the dreariness. Speaking of dreariness, I've figured out I can work out every other day or so between now and my birthday and get about 13 more workouts in before the odometer rolls again. At least I have some good motivation to ride 8.5 miles per workout and then do all of the arm, ab, leg, hip, and butt exercises. Nothing like having another birthday to encourage me to continue on the exercise front.

Besides, regular exercise and regular dips in the hot tub should be the right therapy for all that ails me!

Happy New Year!

2008-12-31T05:34:00.000-08:00

Well I can't believe it's New Year's Eve again. It does not seem like a year has passed since my New Year's Eve post from last year. There was a lot of turmoil in the world this year and moreso than usual. However, I find myself happy this New Year's Eve and thankful for my blessings.

Even though I am not happy about turning 40 in a few weeks, something really neat happened yesterday - I got carded at the grocery store!!! I was wearing no makeup, and was getting groceries since we were out of everything after being gone for a week to my sisters. I picked up the traditional new years day foods for dinner tomorrow, along with some champagne and Hornsby's Crisp Apple Cider (yum). And when I went to check out, I got carded! I was so happy! The cashiers thought I was 30. I have two new best friends at Harris Teeter!

My sister and I had one of the best Christmases we've had since I can remember. I got the coolest present as the Guitar Hero World Tour is a blast. Meg and I played for hours. We haven't played and hung out that much in a long while. Who ever thought a Play Station 2 that had been sitting around for over a year could yield such treasures! The best part is at the end of a performance and the words "You Rock" pop up. Meg and I went "You Rock Baby" to each other. Then the really funny thing happened as Quincy had been watching (and learning to sing Beat It) ran up and down the hall saying loudly "You Rock Baby". THe 'baby' was pronounced like 'bebe'. After that, Meg and I would finish the song and say "You Rock Bebe". Bebe is now my 'band' name on the game! Jim has created a monster. He finally found a video game I like to play!

Happy New Year! Best wishes for 2009!!!

Martha's new game

2008-12-26T04:38:00.000-08:00

On Sunday this week, we went to see my pledge sister and close friend Audrey. She and her husband and 9 year old son Blake live in North Charlotte. Blake introduced us to Guitar Hero. I had heard alot about it, but it was a lot of fun to try it out. So Jim ended up getting me Guitar Hero world tour with the guitar, drums, and microphone for vocals. I love it! It is a blast!!! Meg likes the drums the best and is really good on them. We stayed up until after 11 last night playing guitar hero songs and having the best time.

Before we figured out how to unlock the rest of the songs, we played Eye of the Tiger a bunch because it was pretty easy to play (on the easy setting). My brother in law (James) was getting really tired of that song though. Me and Meg just kept saying "eye of the tiger man, eye of the tiger" and channeling Appolo Creed. James said he expected Rocky to show up any minute.

Meg and James went to bed right before we unlocked the songs, but I played Hotel California on the drums and Blondie's One Way or Another right before bed. That Blondie song on "easy" was very hard on the drums. I can't wait to practice more!!!!

Tagged - 8 things post

2008-12-19T07:13:00.000-08:00

So I'm following Rick's post and getting tagged to talk about 8 things as follows:

8 TV Shows I watch

Hannity & Colmes
Bill O'Rielly
Greta VanSustren
Morning Joe
Andy Griffith
South Park

That is the end of the list as I'm not watching a lot of TV these days

8 Favorite Restaurants
Rey Azteca (Mexican in Lake Wylie 1 mile from my house)
Chili's
The Waldhorn (German in Pineville, NC)
Salsaritas (Mexican in my building that I have for lunch alot)
Chick Fil A
Fatz Cafe
McCormick & Schmidts (Seafood in uptown Charlotte)
Showmars (Casual Dining place here in Charlotte)

8 things that happened today/yesterday (I don't think 8 things have happened to me today that are worth listing)

I stared at the clock for 5 minutes this morning before getting out of bed.
Jim peeled me off the couch at 12:10am to come to bed.
I could not see the buildings in Uptown Charlotte from the interstate for the fourth straight day (because of this CRAZY fog).
I got a Christmas present and card from my new manager yesterday afternoon.
I heard O Holy Night on the radio this morning (Josh Grobin).
Jim's Christmas present was delivered yesterday (yeah!).
I learned this morning that Mark Felt (aka Deep Throat) died.
My hair is really wavy today becasue it is time for a cut (on Monday) and because of the humidity.

8 things I look forward to

Santa Clause coming to see Quincy!
Playing with Quincy when I go to Cary on Tuesday.
Giving Quincy her presents from Mafa and Uncle Jim.
Seeing my parent's new apartment in Cary next week.
Taking some time off from work.
Getting my hair done on Monday.
Eating Mexican tonight for dinner and having a Jumbo Margarita on the rocks (with salt).
Wrapping Christmas presents this weekend.

8 things I wish/pray for

I pray for my family and our safety and health.
I thank God for all he has given us/me because he has given us/me so much.
I pray that my friend will find a job.
I pray that God will forgive me for sinful thoughts (now that's a long prayer).
I pray for someone who hurt me because this person is a very sad individual and I pray for this person's family.
I pray that God will keep taking care of us/me just as he has always done.
I thank God for my job and for Jim's job.
I wish that I wasn't turning 40 next year and I wish I was 25 like I feel.

49 days and counting :(

2008-12-09T17:26:00.000-08:00

I had a discussion one day at work, and we were talking about upcoming birthdays. Mine in January is a big one - unfortunately for this very vain and self conscious woman. So someone said - hey Martha, this is a big one you should have a big party - what are you going to do? My first response (which is usually the correct one) was to say that "I think I'll crawl under a rock and die".

Of course, I know I will face January 27, 2009 as I have faced the rest of my life - some excitement, trepidation, a wonder of the unknown, and with strength. I never thought it would come to this. If I'm turning 40, how is it I still feel 25? I guess that is a good thing that I do!

At least the lady at the makeup counter thinks I don't look any older than 35!

Wonderful Thanksgiving Visit

2008-11-30T09:47:00.000-08:00

I really, really enjoyed having my family at my house for Thanksgiving. I played and played with my niece, and Wednesday afternoon, Meg and I took her to the mall to see Santa. She was so cute with him and she had her list all ready. We also played with the garage, and little people house a ton. Quincy is also at the point where she can play some card games too. She can't hold the cards in her hand, but she puts them out and can play Crazy 8. I had to sit by her all weekend too whenever we ate. Her favorite things were Turkey and Pumpkin Pie. I think she could make a meal on those things alone.

She is such a doll. Mom and Meg say that she really loves Mafa to death! I had no idea I was so loved. When we were watching TV Friday morning, she was sitting in my lap. I felt like I had a sweet version of my little sister all over again. It was just so fun to be around her. I am really looking forward to Christmas. I got her some clothes, hello kitty pajamas, and bedroom slippers for her build a bear. I have a feeling I am going to be playing for the entire Christmas vacation. I can't wait!!!

When I used to Two Step

2008-11-18T12:32:00.001-08:00

This was one of my favorites when I used to go out and country dance. There was a great country bar in Columbia - Bubba 'n Bucks and I used to go A LOT in 1994 and 1995. Thursday nite was ladies night, and I would go then and/or on the weekend. I alternated between that and 5 points during that time.

This was a GREAT two steppin' song, and I also learned a lot of other couple dances, the barn dance, some kind of hustle (if you know Brooks and Dunn - Neon Moon that was the beat), and could also do the quick step and waltz.

The two step, barn dance, and that hustle dance were my favorites. I also knew the tush push, cotten eyed joe, boot scoot boogie, and of course electric slide line dances.

I had this Clay Walker CD, and Meg could play the intro on her violin as well!! The only bad thing about this song is that it is too short!

Darius Rucker - Hootie went Country

2008-11-14T11:33:00.001-08:00

I didn't realize Darius Rucker had cut a country album until the other night when the CMAs were on TV and he peformed his song on the show.

I remember this time 20 years ago when Hootie and the Blowfish played our band party that fall of 1988 - I still have my Kappa t-shirt from that party! They were the favorite band on campus and it was so much fun to see them hit the big time in 1994.

When they played a show from the USC Horseshoe in April of 1996, I watched it live on TV from my hotel in Houston wishing I was there in person to see them.

And of course, this is another one of those bittersweet types of country songs that kill me everytime. That Rascal Flatts song about "What hurts the most" with those tight harmonies cuts to the quick even more. Just what I need for a rainy Friday - not.

Football

2008-11-12T07:39:00.000-08:00

Had a GREAT time at the USC game on Saturday as that is the only game I went to this year. I hated to give up the season tickets, but it is very tiring, time consuming, and expensive to go to Columbia every weekend for a tailgate. The good news is that we saw a really good game, and we still managed to get home and see most of the second half of the Alabama/LSU game. That was some great football. Texas Tech is also a very exciting team to watch, we saw the end of the Penn State vs. Iowa game, and it was a great thrill to see Clemson lose yet another one.

This week, we are on the kiss of death game, also known as the SEC game of the week as we play Florida. I didn’t realize we have lost every one of these games we’ve been on at 3:30 on CBS until they made that astute observation at the beginning of this year’s Georgia game. We have much better luck on ESPN or ESPN2 for some reason. I attended the hottest game in 20 years when I went to the USC v. Alabama game in Columbia in September 2005. That was also an SEC game of the week and was a horribly hot day and a horrible game. The only other game where I was hotter was the Georgia game in early September 1988. That was a 1 pm kickoff and people were passing out right and left during the game. The only thing we wanted to do after that game was go back to the dorm and shower. The good thing was that we beat Georgia that day, unlike the Alabama game where we lost badly.

Speaking of football, I enjoy it so much and am so sad when this time of year comes around. It does not seem possible that we are past mid-season and are winding down. The worst thing that happens is when Christmas and New Year’s are upon us as that marks the end of college football. Depressing. I actually watched some pro football this past weekend – more so than I have all year. It’s just not the same, but I watch it in January as it is the only football left. After that, I’m at the mercy of the ESPNU or ESPN classic channel to get my college football fix.

Confirming my total geekness

2008-11-03T15:37:00.001-08:00

I found this on You Tube yesterday - I totally LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this video game and I see that someone else loves it enough to have one and also record what it does on You Tube.

Would love to get my hands on one of these and pretend it is the summer of 1983 all over again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T07:03:00.001-07:00

No Halloween would be complete without this song. I think I saw the movie with the giant spiders once when I was little. We hid the spiders with pillows to keep Meg from getting scared she was so young - either that or took her in the kitchen for a piece of candy.

Don't know why this bothers me but...

2008-10-27T10:15:00.000-07:00

Perhaps my fellow Star Trek geek friends can relate/help with this one. I was sick all weekend, so yesterday I saw bits and pieces of a variety of movies including The Birds, Elizabeth The Golden Age, and came upon Star Trek II and saw the beginning of it.

Besides being my favorite Star Trek movie, I love the beginning - the music, the cool "In the 23rd century", "Botany Bay, Oh No, Keptin' we have to get out of here, Damn", etc. So I decided to watch the beginning of it and I think one of the big questions I have is why the Klingons are already in the neutral zone during the Kobyashi Maru when it is the 'neutral zone' and to enter it is an act of war? Should't it be an act of war if they are there already or is this just a galactic double standard? Should there still be double standards duing the 23rd century?

I know these questions are of galactic importance right now given all that is going on, but you know it just kind of bothered me yesterday. I guess that's what happens when you are sick and watch tv all day and your husband plays computer games ad nauseum.

Quotation

2008-10-16T11:29:00.001-07:00

"When in the future you look back upon your life, will you most regret the times you tried and failed or the times you found excuses and did not try at all?"

I don't remember who said this, but I remember the quote and it is very true for me. There is one thing I need to quit finding excuses for. I will post more later, but the time for excuses is nearing the end!! Happy Thursday to all!

I'm responsible for dinner

2008-10-09T05:05:00.000-07:00

So Tuesday afternoon Jim emails me because he's had a very hectic day and will have to stay late for a staff meeting. He emails me and asks me if I can be responsible for dinner - I email him back to see what he has in mind.

Now, for those of you who don't know I don't do the cooking at my house. That is a husband task because, I don't cook much, Jim likes to, and I just don't. So I wasn't really sure what Jim was expecting when he asked me to be "responsible" for dinner. Turns out, he wanted me to get a pizza from Papa John's ordered - that I can do for sure.

So I called them on the way home, and went by there to pick it up so that it would be home when he got home. It felt kind of nice too, having dinner ready when Jim came home. The last time I cooked dinner was Valentines Day 2006. Sad that I remember this and sad that is the last time I cooked a dinner for Jim. However, Jim knew all of my culinary skills and lack/will thereof waaaayyyy before we got married. When we were dating, I cooked breakfast for him. I was telling my best friend about it and she said "You cooked something? This must be serious." My friends know me well!!!!

Yesterday was a BAD DAY

2008-09-30T09:38:00.001-07:00

I don't usually get political on my blog, however, the failure of the House yesterday to pass the financial legislation was idiocy at its height. Philosophically, I agree that this is socialist type of legislation and the market (in theory) should be allowed to fail at certain points and punish those who took on too much risk. My skin crawls though when this legislation is misunderstood as "bailing out" Wall Street because the effects of not providing liquidity and getting the toxic assets off of bank's books is not something I want to witness and experience.

My stomach was churning yesterday with the failure of the vote and the subsequent 777 point dive to close the exchange yesterday. If that was not bad enough, I had to listen to that drivel that Pelosi spewed just before the vote (save the opining until after you get the damn thing passed) and people reciting their philosophical arguments all of which is akin to fiddling while Rome burns.

What people don't often realize about the Depression is that it was made WORSE by the tightening of credit. Even though the market crashed in October of 1929, the worst year for bank failures was 1932 followed by 1933. This is because of a tightening of credit and liquidity that caused the dominos to fall and a downward spiral to snowball.

I read in the paper the other day that legislators offices were being flooded with opposition to this bailout - until they realized that their loans were being called and their credit lines no longer available. I'm trying to figure out if it is going to take people not getting their paychecks or being able to get a much needed car or home loan for John Q. Public to wake up and smell the coffee. And I will not get started on how poorly this situation has been communicated or not-communicated by Bush, Paulson, Bernanke, etc. as that is another soapbox entirely.

Yesterday when I realized that Wachovia was gone, over, done, etc., and then the vote failed, I couldn't help but think that if congress had acted a few weeks ago on this that Wachovia could have been saved. And they were worth saving if the bad assets could have been removed and the liquidity and credit been available. Overnight borrowings in the markets and short term debt is FROZEN right now. These are key elements of the banking system and the borrowings that occur each day between banks.

Legislators and others are talking about protection for the taxpayer (yes, I agree these should be there), but they are also talking about helping main street. Hello, McFly, if they don't get this thing done main street IS going to be badly affected and you have to have a job if you are going to pay taxes!!

Here is a quote from the Observer today about the loss of Wachovia from Hugh McColl, Jr. that I agree with wholehartedly:

Hugh McColl Jr.

Dismay was the initial reaction for Hugh McColl Jr., who built Bank of America into a coast-to-coast powerhouse before his retirement in 2001.

“I'm deeply disappointed for the city and for the many hard-working people they have,” he said. While calling the situation “very, very bad,” he cautioned against concluding the worst. “I expect we'll keep a lot of people here, so we shouldn't decide we're having a funeral.”

He touted the ease of doing business in Charlotte, including airline service. “It's a very serious and disappointing day for Charlotte, but we'll rally from it,” he said. “That's the nature of this city. It ain't going to be fun, but we'll make it work.”

He said he became concerned about 10 days ago that Wachovia might be in serious trouble, as other institutions toppled and merger speculation swirled. The industry has suffered multiple losses that would have been unthinkable even a few months ago.

“Nothing like this has happened in my lifetime,” McColl said. “I was born in the Depression.” He criticized congressional delays in addressing the historic credit crisis. “For them to be posturing in Washington is just a joke,” he said. “It means they don't understand. That's really frightening.

“The cost to the American public would be staggering if we don't stop the bloodshed.”

Well said. How about Hugh McColl for Secretary of the Treasury, or maybe Jim Cramer, or Buffet? We need someone who can knock some heads together and do what's best for the financial sector that makes the $$ available for the rest of the economy to function.

We now return to our regularly scheduled programming....

Down Memory Lane

2008-09-28T09:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, mom and I drove from my house in Lake Wylie to Boone, NC and Appalachian State to see one of her friends be inducted into the ASU Athletic Hall of Fame. We couldn't get my dad and Jim interested in going and staying for their football game last night, so mom and I went. I had emailed Charlie a month or so ago to let him know and I was originally looking for football tickets in trying to plan a fun weekend (this is Charlie's third year as the Athletic Director there). However, Daddy and Jim pooped out so mom and I went for the day. I only had a few minutes to catch up with Charlie as he had to go to a funeral unexpectedly and could not stay for the banquet and ceremony. But it was great to see him as the last time I saw Charlie it was at an Airport football game in the fall of 1995. I was living in Charlotte at the time, but had come to Columbia for some reason and ended up at the game and ran into Charlie and his wife Lindsay.

I didn't realize Boone was so close as it was right at 97 miles one way from my house. It was an easy trip too. It had been almost 20 years since I went to Boone, and I had never been to the ASU campus. It was really beautiful up there! I hope I can get Jim to go with me sometime to a game as it would be fun to go and visit again.

I pulled out my senior annual last night and started flipping through it. I have the original black and white glossy that Jay Kirk took of me and blew up for that page in the annual. I have all of the prom books and invitations, I have the senior wills, I have this prom picture book with all of the little small black and white pics of the couples (I found Steve and the Pelion monster), and Jim had seen my prom pic with Alan before and so he began to make derogatory comments and called him "chicken chest" and Delta Oops I joined the wrong fraternity (DU was Alan's fraternity and Jim made fun of DU even before he knew that's what Alan was!). I read all of your signatures to me and they were so funny. Russell's was hilarious and he signed it Uncle Willie and wrote that he sure did like my yellow pants! I cracked up as I had not read them in years. I remembered what Charlie's had said even before I read it but I read it again for old times sake.

I read through George's will, Jay's will, Steve's will, Chuck I think you had one in there too. I will check again and post as a comment to let you know who alls is in there. It was fun to read all of that stuff again. I look at those pictures now, and it's funny reading things people wrote. Steve wrote that I was one of the nicest and prettiest girls he know and so did Eric Beckner. Funny, I never thought of myself as pretty and I did not have much confidence in myself at the time. But it was nice to see the pictures again of all of us and be glad that I have caught up with you all again after all of this time.

Unusual early fall means...hot tub time!

2008-09-26T14:50:00.001-07:00

I came home the other day, and Jim had surprised me by filling the hot tub and heating it up. When I got home, it was at 85 degrees and by 9 pm it was ready at a nice 105! It has been unusually cool this week, so he got the hot tub going so we could go ahead and enjoy it.

Now that football season has started and the Gamecocks are off to a dubious start, I'm very happy that we spend $$ on fixing the hot tub instead of on football tickets. Now I can enjoy the hot tub on the weekends in addition to football!

Birthday Party

2008-09-23T12:10:00.000-07:00

Well, today is my niece's 5th birthday and I can't believe she is 5! Even though today is her birthday, we went up this weekend for her party and celebration so that we could all enjoy it and have a family weekend. Quincy was so sweet Friday and she was very happy to see us. She had written us both notes with pictures. Mine had my name on it (just Martha), and Jim's had "Uncle Jim" on it. She told me that for my birthday she was going to get me two presents and wrap them up for me. What a sweetie!

So we had a lot of fun on Saturday. My mom made the cake and Meg iced it with blue icing with pink writing and 5 candles. We went to Chuck E Cheese, and played lots of games. We won as many tickets as we could (especially Jim as I suck at Skee Ball), and then Quincy used her tickets to buy some rubber spiders and frogs. We went back to my parent's apartment for cake and presents. Lots of fun as we got her a 3D Scooby Doo haunted house game and I also got her a Hallmark Princess Aurora Christmas ornament. She also got a book, a small decorative box, and a tea set. After playing a couple of games of Scooby Doo, we went to build a bear as that was the present from her other Grandmother. She picked out a kitty, and they stuffed it before Quincy picked out an outfit. That is the neatest store! Her kitty walked out of there with a disney princess t-shirt and a jean skirt along with pink crocs, a Hello Kitty purse, and a hat. We also saw some Hello Kitty pajamas which were too cute and the pants had a spot for the tail!

All in all, Quincy had a big birthday and we had a lot of fun. Saturday morning, she was sitting outside the guest bedroom, fully dressed, waiting for Mafa to get up. Meg got up and couldn't find her, came downstairs, and there she was waiting for us to get up. She came in the room about 8 o'clock and came over to my side of the bed - "Hey Mafa". Saturday nite, Jim got sick and moved to the couch downstairs at my sisters about 3:15 in the morning. I woke up at 7 and heard some rustling outside of the room, so I wispered "Quincy, is that you?". She said "Yes Mafa". She came in the room, and the first thing she did was say, "Mafa, can I get Santa Claus's phone number?". I asked her why she wanted that, and she said she wanted to ask him for the Hello Kitty pajamas for her Kitty. I told her that we didn't have Santa's number, but that she could ask him at Christmas time for them. If Santa doesn't get them, you can bet Mafa will!

What happens when your husband gets a new game

2008-09-16T13:26:00.000-07:00

This new game called Spore came out and Jim went and got it weekend before last. Needless to say, this has significantly minimized my computer time at home. I don't mind that he goes into the 'man cave' for hours upon end as long as he does some housework and doesn't completely disappear.

Usually, I have some good surf time on a Saturday or Sunday morning because I'm an early riser and Jim usally sleeps way in (after being on a game or on a raid for World of Warcraft). However, this weekend I slept in until 8 both days which is very unusual for me. Jim also got up when I did and went right to the computer. So I have not had much time to blog or post or catch up on stuff over the past couple of weekends. Plus football has started and I'm trying to watch as much as humanly possible on Saturdays now.

Now Jim wants to pre-order the Wrath of the Lich King. When I asked what that was, he said it was the expansion to World of Warcraft. Great, like that friggin' thing needed expanding!

Have Some Joy!

2008-09-10T17:39:00.001-07:00

I have the soundtrack for Boogie Nights and this is on the CD. I found it in my trunk Monday afternoon while putting groceries in there - it has been in there awhile as I had forgotten about it and decided to play it after finding it the other day.

In addition to "Driver's Seat" and "Jessie's Girl", I like this song on it because whenever I play it, it makes me happy inside. I play it over and over in the car (at least 3 times) and can even be happy in traffic in the morning or afternoon!

Hope this puts some joy in your day too!

My Niece - the doctor

2008-09-08T05:00:00.000-07:00

My niece Quincy has weekly homework for Kindergarten, and my mother told me all about her most recent assignment that was turned in last Friday. The children had to complete two sentences and draw a picture at the bottom of the paper depicting the answer.

The questions were: When I grow up, I want to be a _______. So then I will be able to _______.

Her answers were "doctr" and "hlp peple fel betr". She drew a picture of a patient on the bed and herself with a stethescope. She then told my mother that 'girls can be doctors too' and my mother told her that was right and that our friend Miss Deanna is a doctor and she is a girl. Quincy then decided she needed a nurse, so she drew a nurse next to herself and told mom that - 'he's a boy'.

She'll be 5 on September 23rd, and she's got this figured out already. I think Quincy got the same 'Grandma' gene that I did!!!

More Trivia

2008-09-02T10:40:00.000-07:00

So who knows the only actor to play three different aliens in Star Trek? Can you also name the aliens? I'm not looking for all the character's names, just the actor's name, the alien, and bonus points if you know the character's names (there is one character that everyone should know).

New things I don't want to buy

2008-08-31T17:16:00.000-07:00

Last week, we had between 9 and 11 inches of rain because of the remnants of Tropical Storm Faye. Unfortunately, Wednesday morning, we noticed two water stains on the ceiling upstairs :(. After work, Jim went into the attic and found the leaks. This is bad. We got an estimate yesterday and it seems we need to go ahead and put on a new roof. We were hoping it could wait a couple more years, and there are other things we wanted to do to our house first, but this is not a want and falls into the need catagory - big time.

The only thing that makes me feel any better is that our neighbor (who's roof is only 8 yeas old) also had a leak this week from his roof. At least ours is much older as I would be really upset to have a leak from an 8 year old roof!

So the home depot man came out and gave us the estimate and went through all of our options, and at the end he says "Congratulations on your new roof". Swell. Just what I always wanted.

If this is true - Holy Crap Batman!

2008-08-29T08:03:00.001-07:00

Wow - have been watching the speculation for two hours this morning and just saw a confirmation. Total surprise, but just wow, wow.

Steve, you had the wrong gal but you were right in a big way. Wow. Now I won't be tempted to write in Hillary. Actually that was only about a 10% temptation, but wow.

Tonite's the nite!!!

2008-08-28T10:56:00.001-07:00

I am really excited - beginning the weekend tonight with some USC football and will have a whole weekend to enjoy my absolute favorite pastime in the world - College Football!!!!

I feel a Gin and Tonic coming my way :). U.S.C. GOOOOO COCKS!!!!!!!!!

Sweating bullets on a Sunday morning

2008-08-24T06:26:00.000-07:00

The gold medal basketball game was on at 2:30 this morning, so I DVR'd it so I could watch it this morning when I got up. I did not look at the news to see who won so I could watch without knowing the outcome. However, they started off the game with 2 fouls each on LeBron and Kobe, and Spain kept it pretty close the entire game and at one point they were within 2 and Kobe was shooting bricks from the 3 point line. But Kobe had some clutch 3 pointers in the last few minutes that sealed the deal.

I started to feel like the big one was coming - you know "This is the big one - Elizabeth, I'm coming to join you". Good thing that team has more composure and nerve than I do. That was a hard game to watch as I knew Spain would play much better than when I watched them last Sunday morning (and we beat them by 37). I knew it was not going to be a blowout like that but good gosh they scared me.

I don't think I've ever been so nervous watching a basketball game before. Football yes, basketball no. Speaking of football - in just 4 days we kick off with the first game of the year! ESPN here I come. USC - goooo Cocks!

Trivia question

2008-08-17T06:23:00.001-07:00

So who knows the significance of the numbers 16309?

HINT: This is a Star Trek trivia question and this code was used to do something. Anyone? Bueller, Bueller?

Just 14 days left

2008-08-14T10:13:00.000-07:00

Happy days are here again! It is almost the most exciting time of the year. Time for tailgates, ESPN College Gameday, the SEC Game of the Week, and those late night West Coast games because ten hours of football has to be extended because it's Saturday and I still haven't gotten enough.

And don't forget to set your DVR for the 7:30 ESPN College Football show on Sunday mornings that recaps all of the action.

Which brings me to another subject - while watching the US men's basketball game against China the other morning, I saw a play and said that the Chinese player was getting a little too fancy. Ten seconds later, the commentator uses the exact same word to describe what the player was trying to do.

So it will begin again, I will make a comment about the action on the field/court and the professional sportscaster will say virtually the same thing that I just did. And my husband will just look at my and say "I know - you could do that job". He has heard me say it so much that he just acknowledges it now and does not wait for me to point out the obvious anymore.

Swim Relay - Amazing

2008-08-11T05:07:00.001-07:00

Did y'all see the mens 4x100 swim relay last night? That was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. I fell asleep watching the Olympics last night, but the TV woke me up just before the end of the swim relay. I guess it was the announcer getting excited and I woke up to see the end. I then heard Jim yelling downstairs!

He came upstairs and 'rewound' on the DVR so I could see the whole thing. Amazing. Phenominal. That was just incredible to watch especially after that French guy had said they were going to smash the americans.

I am so glad to have so many exciting sports to watch right now. It will be a good bridge between a summer sports drought and the start of college football.

Visit this weekend from my niece

2008-08-04T05:38:00.000-07:00

We had such a good time this weekend! My parents came to visit and brought Quincy with them! It was a lot of fun and she was so sweet. She started Kindergarten a couple of weeks ago, and they began the Friday Treasure Chest for the kids who were good all week. They get to pick something from the Treasure Box as a reward. Well, Quincy had hers with her in the car when they arrived on Friday afternoon. She came in the house, and put it on the counter, and told Jim that she brought that and that it was for Mafa because ‘I love Mafa’. What a sweet thing. I went in and she told me it was for me and I asked her if she was sure that she wanted me to have it that she had just gotten it that day. She said yes because I love you and I’ll get something else next Friday. Awww. I gave her a big hug and said thank you and that I loved her too.

We took her to Carowinds Saturday morning, and she wanted to only ride the fast rides. We rode the Fairly Oddparents Coaster (the old Scooby Doo) three times, rode the kiddie coaster (the caterpillar kind of one) twice, and we rode the phantom fliers (they are really fun). On the way home, she was talking about riding in Grandmommy’s car and she said that she had ridden in everybody elses car but mine could she ride in it. So I took her to ride in my car down to the park in our subdivision. She couldn’t see out the window though even from the front seat, and I would not take her on a road outside of my subdivision in my car without her carseat. She got in my car and went Wow – I like this! So I put the sunroof back and rolled down the windows for her ride.

It was a bit hot at the park on Saturday afternoon, so we went back early Sunday morning and played before I had my shower. That was a good thing as I ran around with her on that playground and went through the tunnels and down the slide several times. After 45 minutes of that I was really tired! I can ride 8 miles on the exercise bike in 30 minutes, but 45 minutes of playing with a 5 year old wears me out!

They left right after an early lunch, and I missed my little sweetie as soon as she was gone. I called my sister last night, and Quincy had talked about coming to my house for three days before hand and told her teacher that she was coming to my house. She loves coming to Mafa’s house is what she told her teacher. And also that she loves her Aunt Mafa. I love her too.

Only 27 more days to go

2008-08-01T09:08:00.000-07:00

It's the most wonderful time of the year.....

Kickoff against NC State is on August 28th. I am already planning the evening's 'tailgate' food even though I will be watching from home on ESPN. I am so excited that it is almost time for football!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Letters to and from Mafa

2008-07-25T11:55:00.000-07:00

Last week my mom called me because Quincy wanted to send a letter to someone and she decided she wanted to send one to me. So she wrote her name a bunch and my name on a piece of paper and mom put it in an envelope. My mom addressed the envelope, and Quincy wrote Martha on the back of it so that she could put something on it too.

It was too cute and went right to on the fridge along with the other letter she mailed me a while back. So Monday morning I had a letter in the mailbox back to her, and I called my mom on Wednesday to see if she had received it. Mom said it came in Tuesday's mail. Quincy checked the mail after school when mom brought her home, and Quincy saw her letter and got all excited - I got a letter, I got a letter! Mom asked her who it was from and she didn't know. So mom showed her the return address to figure it out and when she read my name she said - It's from Mafa!!!

What a cute child. She can be bad though - I know she got that part from Meg. Last week (day 4 of Kindergarten) she wouldn't do what the teacher said and kicked the table leg instead of sitting in a circle. A note went home, and Quincy had to write an apology letter to the teacher. I never did anything remotely bad like that when I was growing up. I guess I saved it all for later on!!!!!!!!!!! Happy Friday!!

Morning Cheese

2008-07-16T05:51:00.000-07:00

I was fiddling around this morning in my car looking for my Zepplin CD with Heartbreaker and Livin' Lovin' Maid when instead I found this 1987 top hits CD I bought some time ago. I believe Zepplin is in the house :( so I couldn't listen to it this morning.

Instead, I put in the '87 CD and had a wistful drive into work while driving down memory lane from my Freshman/Sophmore year in college. I didn't listen to the whole thing, but my breakfast of pure cheese consisted of: Touch Me - Samantha Fox; You Keep Me Hangin' On - Kim Wilde; Tell it to my Heart - Taylor Dayne; Want Me - Jody Watley; I Think We're alone now - Tiffany; and Heaven is a Place on Earth - Belinda Carlisle. That last one took me on the short trip up I-77 from exit 6 to exit 11. Never thought I could be so happy on I-77 north!!!

When I listen to AC/DC in the morning, I feel like a bad ass going into work and this morning I felt lighter than air. Perhaps it was just some leftover air from the can of Easy Cheese I inhaled while listening this morning!

New Name

2008-07-12T06:15:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I finally decided on something I really like for my blog name. All of my friends have something very creative and reflect a personality, but when I started this I couldn't think of anything to best describe me, or my blog, etc. But after posting about Led Zepplin, I decided, that yes, I am livin', lovin', and a Woman so here goes.

Weekend is over and so is Castle Game

2008-07-07T07:03:00.000-07:00

Well, we had a very nice long weekend, but I am happy to be home. I took Wednesday, Thursday, and today off from work and am relaxing at home this morning before I cut the grass.

We went to my sister's and had a really good visit and fun 4th. Jim had bought some fireworks, which mostly consisted of smoke bombs and some cone looking things that made a big showere of sparks with pretty colors and then went snap, crackle, and pop pop pop all over the place at the end. The smoke bombs are stinky and the large ones go off for about 10 minutes. I have a large child for a husband I think. Quincy loved the fireworks. She also loves playing the 'Castle game' as she calls it.

She has a new fangled Fisher Price castle, but she plays with it with three small disney dolls of Princess Aurora, Ariel, and a prince who I'm not sure what his name is. The game consists of her telling me when it's morning time, night time, and of the sweetie (the child figure is Ariel) asking to go outside for a walk. When I tell her it's ok (I'm the mama and the daddy in the game), she goes for a walk and gets captured by the cat creature who takes the sweetie away and hides her. Then, the mama and the daddy have to go find her. After doing this about 1000 times this weekend cutting the grass is looking really fun.

Quincy didn't want to play with anyone but me. Nobody else could play the castle game with her. The best part though was that Meg taught me how to move the game along. I have to kill the cat creature with the dragon slayer thingy with the plastic arrows. If I hit it 3 times, it will disappear and leave sweetie alone - thank the Lord. Then we moved on to taking rides in the carriage and watching a movie. On the way, the carriage gets stuck in the mud so I push and get us moving again.

We had a really nice visit, and Jim is now threatning to get a castle for when Quincy visits as long as I insist on keeping my old fangled Fisher Price garage and cars. Whoops - somehow that castle got thrown into the fireplace!!

Living Loving Maid

2008-06-26T19:08:00.001-07:00

My favorite Led Zeppelin!!! Makes me want to learn to play the drums and rock out.

My second fave is - been a long time since I rock and roll. That is an excellent one as well.

Trying to get motivated to work tonite, but.....

2008-06-26T18:07:00.001-07:00

I thought I would goof on You Tube a bit, and then I thought I would listen to some good music and that would motivate me to work. However, it is 9 pm and I am still goofing on You Tube and enjoying AC/DC.

For those about to rock - we salute you!!! Sex, drugs, and rock n' roll (sans drugs but sub a gin and tonic or a Killian's Irish Red).

Going to bed at 1:30 is not cool

2008-06-23T09:59:00.000-07:00

Came back to Providence, RI yesterday and was supposed to depart Charlotte at 7:50. When we arrived, our delay was expected to be 8:30 and ended up being 8:40. Not too bad on the surface. The bad part was, once we got to the runway, there were bad storms in the area and we could not take off. We sat through a thunderstorm and 3 or 4 deluges of rain before the takeoff window could be opened.

After taxing out about 9 pm, we had to stop as all departures had been closed. I knew we were in real trouble when at 9:45 they rolled out the beverage cart. There was such a backlog, that we ended up taking off at 11 pm and arrived at 12:45 am. By the time we got to the hotel and checked in, I got into bed around 1:30 am.

I have a roaring headache today, and I can't wait to be done for the day and collapse after dinner. I thought it was bad enough when I fell asleep sitting up in the chair Friday night at 9 pm because I was so exhaused. I did manage to doze off after takeoff and woke up about 12:30 this morning. However, it was not terribly restful sleep but I guess it was better than nothing.

Hope your Sunday/Monday was better than mine!

TWIA vs. TWIB

2008-06-17T16:42:00.000-07:00

For many years, I followed the Atlanta Braves. I began watching with my dad when I was 13. It was 1982, and the Braves had won their first 13 or 14 games to start the season. I was hooked. It was more father/daughter sports to add to the golf, football, and basketball that we already watched together. There used to be this show, and it's probably still on cable somewhere, called This Week in Baseball or TWIB for short. It was a 30 min highlight show with all of the great highlights, and I used to watch it on Saturdays. It was a cool show and the narrator was so into it.

So lately I have been attending an hour webcast on Wednesday afternoons called This Week in Accounting. I put it on my outlook calendar this week as TWIA, and it made me think of TWIB. It brings all us pocket protector accounting geek types up on recent changes to accounting. Last week, it was all about how you account for potential losses. Fun geek stuff, and I get one hour of CPE that is free!

I am in Providence, RI again this week and next. At least I get to fly home on Friday for the weekend. Jim is not a happy camper this week. He is already planning Friday night dinner of scallops for me. He does not like them, but he likes cooking for me and fixing stuff I like. He makes the bay scallops (small ones) and puts them in the mushroom caps topped with cheese and bakes in the oven. That is just the appetizer as he grills the larger sea scallops on the grill after marinating them overnight. Yum!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not missing - just swamped

2008-06-11T05:05:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in a week or so and just wanted to say hi since I have been totally swamped. I had a very busy week last week and managed to take Friday off to go to Carowinds with my mom, Quincy, and a good friend's little boy that plays with Quincy when she comes to Columbia. Qbert and Ben came up with mom for the day and we sweltered at Carowinds but had a great time. Fortunately, it was not humid and we could get relief in the shade!

After that, we went to Columbia for the weekend for a family weekend for my sister's birthday. I don't like that she is now 36. That means I am really 39 :(. Guess there is only one alternative and that one is not viable - seriously. We had so much fun. Quincy woke me up twice Sunday morning. The first 7 am wakeup was not successful, so at 7:30, she came back in the room and said Mafa - come play with me! So I got up. 20 minutes later we're having breakfast and she says, "Mafa, are you going to church wif me?" How can I say no to that?

So I somehow managed to get myself presentable for a 9 am service. Meg played before the service, and it was nice to go and hear her play. Mom, Qbert, and I went and I sat with Quincy and parented her during the service. I was "it" all weekend as far as Quincy was concerned. She wanted to play with me the whole time. Meg says she loves me so much. She was really good during the service and wrote her letters and numbers and worked the letter game on the children's bulletin. Then, when the sermon started, sweet thing cuddled up to me and hugged on me for a good 15 minutes. How sweet. That was definitely worth all of the running around I had to do to get ready for church and finishing my makeup in the car to be on time!

We had a great time but it was nice to come home at a decent time on Sunday. I have worked two 10 hour days the past two days and today is shaping up to be the same. I worked out Monday nite to get rid of the stress and it was great. However, last night at 8 pm, I realized I was just too tired and took a break. Will try to be motivated again tonite and spend an hour and fifteen de-stressing!

Dinner and a Movie

2008-06-02T13:19:00.000-07:00

So Friday afternoon, Jim went to the store and got all of the ingrediants to make something I like but don't have often - eggplant parmesean. The recipie he used was really good, but it should have a caution - will make more food than you need warning on it. All of the food network stuff he tries is really good, but makes too much food. Plus, he said the 20 min. preparation time was grossly underestimated.

He made everything from scratch Saturday nite for dinner. I now have enough to have eggplant parmesean every day for a month as it made a ton of food. I think he could do the same thing and just fry up the breaded eggplant and sprinkle cheese on it and cook it in the oven and I would be happy. As it stands now, I have a ton of food to reheat and eat or feel guilty for throwing it away.

After he got the dish ready, we watched a movie that he DVRd the other day - Knocked Up (with Katherine Heigl and some guy I had never seen). It is a comedy, but I just didn't get that much out of it except movie bonding time with Jim after a delicious and lovingly prepared dinner.

I kept waiting for the movie to be uplifting in some way, but I think it lost me at the 50th time they dropped the "F" bomb. I am exaggerating, but it was terribly overused. I told him yesterday I wish the movie had been better, but the company and the dinner were the best. I didn't expect anything morally relevant with the Knocked Up title, but at least if he had won a lot of money during the vegas trip it would have added something more to the so-called plot.

Only three months to go

2008-05-31T05:43:00.001-07:00

Watched this with Jim last night. It was not the first time I had seen it, but it gave Jim chills all over again. He is from Ohio, so this one had special meaning.

However, what I took from it is the most wonderful news in the world. It's the end of May, and there are only 3 more months until college football begins again!!!

Football is the most wonderful sport in the whole world.

Dr. Maddox was right

2008-05-28T10:59:00.000-07:00

Ok, I have decided after lots of thoughfulness and reflection that my friends, my husband, and Dr. Maddox were right about me after all. I am not sure how at 14/15 that Dr. Maddox could have known, but I have decided that yes, I am hot to trot.

I think Steve posted in something about how I said my niece took after me and he said he would believe that if I had said she was fiesty. Well, after much thought and reflection of "my past" (specifically early 1993 - 1997 with a couple of occurances in 1988 and 1990), I have decided that yes, I am fiesty and hot to trot.

I said something to Jim one day not too long ago about I wasn't really fiesty was I and he just laughed loudly and mockingly. He said that yes I was fiesty, brazen, independent, ornery, and some other things I won't type in this forum. But all of that was ok because he liked all those things - plus he admitted when he met me that one of his first thoughts was that I was a hot piece of ___. Well - chalk one up for honesty! Someday I will blog about how we met.

So I thought about it some more and came to the conclusion that Dr. Maddox was right a long time ago about me and at a young age. I didn't do anything in high school to have earned that remark, but I guess he was just an astute observer of overall behavior and knew there must be something lurking under the surface.

Where have all the jingles gone?

2008-05-28T10:54:00.000-07:00

It is really sad that pop songs are being used to sell products now instead of original jingles. I roll my eyes everytime that stupid Chips Ahoy commercial comes on. How can they be selling cookies to Rod Stewart's "Do ya think I'm sexy"? Or a minivan to Heart's "Baracutta"? There is one other really dumb one for French Fries, but I can't remember the song that's used right now.

I guess that's why I get so happy and sing that "Free Credit Report dot com - yehaw I could have seen this coming at me like an atom bomb. They monitor your credit and send you email alerts, so you don't end up selling fish to tourists in t-shirts".

I love when that commercial comes on! I guess because it is original and fun. Unlike trying to figure out how "If you want my body and you think I'm sexy" relates to cookies.

Home to the Disaster area

2008-05-26T10:23:00.000-07:00

Well I made it home fine on Wednesday afternoon and I was so tired I almost fell asleep on the plane (I never sleep on the plane or in a car), so I knew I was tired. While Jim had worked really hard and painted 6 rooms (2 were really big and two were bathrooms), the house was a freakin' disaster when I walked in. The living room was the paint staging area. All of the furniture was pulled away from the walls. All of the hardware was off the walls of the bathrooms (except for our bathroom) and our bathroom was not torn apart but was filthy.

Jim fixed a lot of holes in walls from shelves and things he took down and cracks he fixed. However, there was all of this drywall dust and crap all over the place. I had to vacuum each room twice. We put most of the furniture back (except in our room and the den/LR) Wednesday nite. Thursday, I had to go buy more paint and sponges and stuff, and then came home to finish the downstairs bathroom. I also helped finish up the living room. I had tons of clothes to wash, but I couldn't even really finish cleaning until Friday morning.

I started working at 8 am Friday and got in the shower about 1:00 after working like crazy to put the den back together and clean the house. Jim had to put the bathrooms together for me first thing so I could even get in them to clean. Yuck.

Then, I was going to hop in the hot tub and relax before getting in the shower. Jim got mad and said that I had been sweating and not to get in the hot tub that "He is the one that cleans it". Well, that was not the right thing to say to me. I just walked away instead of picking a fight. If that is the way this household worked, he would not be allowed to walk in any of the bathrooms in our house or walk on the floor that I vacuum.

After my shower, I told him that was why I got mad - not because he didn't want me in the hot tub it was what he said. He apologized. Of course, he got mad again on Saturday when my mom, sister, niece and I were at Carowinds and we were a little late coming back. He hung up on me on the phone because we were calling to tell them not to wait on us for dinner (hamburgers on the grill). He was mad because he had also made a cake. I told him that was no reason to hang up on me. My sister attributed it to the fact that after a couple of days my brother in law was influencing him and that plus her other explanation that he is M-A-L-E was the other problem. He usually only gets mad if I don't call - but I called and he still got mad and then hung up on me - not cool. He said to just 'come home whenever you come home'. I started to stay at Carowinds! I didn't call again to tell them when we were on our way after that episode, but he apologized again for being an A$$$$$$.

Weekend in New England

2008-05-18T20:11:00.000-07:00

Just came back from outside of Boston, MA this evening where I had dinner with my old Audit Director that I worked with at Fleet Mortgage. Peter left Columbia in the fall of '99, and I had not seen him since the winter of 2000 although I had kept in contact with him frequently. Since I am in Rhode Island, I emailed him this week to say hi, and they invited me to dinner at their house tonite. It was only about a 45 minute drive to their house in Massachusetts as they live between Providence, RI and Boston.

We had a great time catching up on old times and it was so much fun to see his family. I really do miss working for Peter. I learned so much from him and enjoyed the challenging times that we worked through. I drove home and on the way traveling I-95 South passed two cars with SC license plates - how funny. I'm also in a rental and am really looking forward to driving my Celica when I get home. The one awesome thing about this rental is the Sirius satellite radio. That thing rocks and I want one!!!

I also miss working with Ed Santos. Ed was the General Auditor at Fleet Financial (the bank that owned the Mortgage Company) and Peter reported directly to Ed. I really respect Ed and Peter both and they are both working together again at a bank up here in New England. Am very wistful for those old days when I was learning tons of really good career building stuff. I can honestly say I have not had the pleasure of working for anyone as talented as Peter and Ed in the past 8 years. It has been a very long time since I had a real mentor and that was Peter. How few and far between it is to find someone you just click with and how depressing it is to think that I am going back to the hum drum world tomorrow instead of the really awesome cool world I was once lucky enough to be a part of.

To think that I almost did not take that job and would have missed out on the opportunity of a lifetime - scary. Here's to New England and to Peter and Ed - cheers!!!

Ramblings for a Saturday morning

2008-05-17T05:04:00.000-07:00

Well here I am in a hotel room in Providence, RI havins Saturday morning coffee and nursing a cold I managed to pick up while here. My sinuses are not happy right now and my head feels like its 3X its real size. My hot coffee feels wonderful and helps finish the job of the decongestant I took late yesterday afternoon.

I have a lot of work to do this weekend, but the mall is just a couple of blocks away so that looks like the right place for a good time killer and a place to find some non hotel food for lunch. The good incentives for working include I planned it this way so that I can go home on Wednesday afternoon. No need to do nothing all weekend when there is no home to clean or husband to hang out with. I am hoping to take Thursday and Friday off and make it a 5 day weekend that I know I will need with all of the family visitors we'll have next weekend.

Wow - Memorial Day weekend almost. I have very, very fond memories of Memorial Day weekend at Myrtle Beach. My best friend (KKG pledge sister and roommate) Audrey was from Conway, and her dad lived in Myrtle Beach not real far from the beach. So we usually went down on Memorial Day weekend for "girls weekend". The first time we went was '92, and we went again in '93, '94, and '95. Audrey and I went to the beach again for a weekend in July of '96, but that was the last time we went together. That time, we stayed in a hotel but I can't remember why we did not stay at her dad's.

Last weekend before leaving, Jim decides that he wants to paint inside the house while I am gone. Poor thing, he told my mother the other day that he was lonesome - he'll tell me that he is lonelified. He doesn't like it when I'm gone - he is a real sweetie. So Saturday and Sunday we had to agree on paint colors for the bedrooms, dining room, den/living room, and bathrooms. Too much pressure in too short a time. Of course, we do not see eye to eye on color selection and one of the disadvantages of having a husband that really cares means that he doesn't just let me pick what I want and go from there. We were able to agree on everything except the shade of blue I want for the dining room. We picked a similar blue to the one I wanted for our bedroom, so i told him to just paint a little bit of that in the dining room for me to look at when I get home.

Some really good news about the paint is that yesterday he had done about 1/2 the living room/den and he told me that he really liked the yellow and how much it really brightened up the room. He was initially opposed to the yellow for those rooms, so I feel like I got a little moral victory. The real one will be when I get the blue that I want for the dining room. I could have been insistant, but considering that it was 4 on a Sunday afternoon and my flight was the next morning, I didn't want to get into another 'toaster' type argument right before I left.

Happy Saturday!!

E is for East (Egypt that is)

2008-05-13T17:54:00.000-07:00

FOr my flight out of Charlotte yesterday morning, I had to trek to the E concourse since my flight was on a small CanadaAir jet (2 seats on one side 2 on the other) and holds maybe 80 - 100 people. I like those jets as they are very comfortable and very easy to board and deplane, but I had forgotten just how far out that E concourse is from the rest of the world.

The last time i visited E concoure, I had flown into Charlotte on a red eye from LAX and had to go out to E to catch my connecting flight home to Columbia. I guess I was just so tired and didn't realize how far it was - or could it be that was 9 years ago almost and is actually something (gasp) I didn't remember.

So I made the very long trek from the main part of the airport out to E concourse and I realized the only thing worse would be to have to go down to the tram in the Atlanta airport and ride that tram to what feels like the edge of the known world. I picked Jim up in Atlanta on new years eve in 1997 when he returned from Germany after being gone almost 6 months. Going out to the international concourse that day was a long ride indeed and I thought I was riding the road to nowhere. I kind of compare it to being on the very lowest level of the USC library and realizing you are 5 floors underground and it's 11 pm and way too quiet and creepy down there.

Leavin' on a Jet Plane

2008-05-11T06:07:00.000-07:00

Well tomorrow morning I'm leaving for ten days to go to the exiting locale of Providence, RI for an exiting tour of Fixed Assets. I hate that I have to be gone so long, but since the bank's earnings were way down any travel for more than a week does not allow the traveler to come home for the weekend :(. I will miss arguing about Toasters!

I really don't want to go at all, but the alternative is not having a job and that would not be good. The good news is that I am leaving tomorrow morning at 9:30 instead of killing a Sunday by leaving in the late afternoon. I hate Sunday afternoon flights. Since I'm having to stay over the weekend, I decided I will just work over the weekend and come home on Wednesday (5/21) since I won't have the opportunity to come home for the weekend. I scheduled my flight for 1 pm instead of the 5 pm flight so that I can arrive back in Charlotte between 3 and 3:30. Jim's office is close to the airport, so it will be easier for him to come pick me up then. I have also decided I'm going to take that Thursday and Friday off before Memorial day, since my mom, dad, Meg, James, and Quincy are coming for Memorial Day weekend. That will be something to look forward to for sure!

Detailed Memory

2008-05-06T16:34:00.000-07:00

I had a friend comment to me the other day on the fact that I have a very good memory. I am often told this and by many people. So I wanted to put it to a little test that I know my blogger friends can help me out with. In less than 5 minutes, I was able to remember the following details about high school.

9th Grade Schedule (in order & teachers)

1 - Algebra I (Nadra Bachman)
2 - PE (Don Richardson)
3 - Latin I (Sara Hempley)
4 - World Geography (Sam Corley)
5 - English (Lumpkin)
6 - Physical Science (Pippa Lambros)

10th Grade Schedule (in order & teachers)

1 - HARP I (Cal Maddox)
2 - Biology (Branham)
3 - Geometry (Davis ?)
4 - Algebra II (John Kilgo)
5 - Latin II (Sara Hempley)
6 - Typing (Pam Smith)

11th Grade Schedule (in order & teachers)

Before School - Latin III (Sanders)
1 - Teacher's Aide (Nadra Bachman)
2 - HARP II (Cal Maddox)
3 - US History (Jennifer Park)
4 - Algebra III/Trig (John Kilgo)
5 - Chemistry (Mike Morris)
6 - Computer Science I (Bunch)

12th Grade Schedule (in order & teachers)

Before School - Latin IV (Sanders)
1 - Physics (Mike McClure)
2 - Calculus (Lynn Harley)
3 - Computer Science II (David Bundrick)
4 - AP English (Melissa Rawl)
5 - Government (Vinning Morrison)/Economics (Joe Yawn)
Dismissal after 5th

I know this blows your mind that I can rattle this off, or maybe not. Maybe you know these details about your classes too and my memory is not that special. I can tell you which hall I had each class in too (not room number).

Would love to know if you all remember your schedules/teachers/etc. or if I am just that weird.

Target, Toasters, and Gas Milage

2008-05-05T16:34:00.000-07:00

Last week while driving our Toyota Highlander to my sister's house, Jim and I were discussing gas milage and I remarked on how good my car was on gas even though it is 12 years old with 134,000+ miles on it. I said that I was probably getting mid to low 30's for sure. He did not believe me.

So today, I drove my car into work and as I was getting off of I-77 the fuel light came on. After work, I decided I had enough for the trip home as long as I left early enough to not have to sit in traffic. I was about on 'E' when I crossed the state line and pulled into the gas station in Lake Wylie just across the lake (SC gas is cheaper than NC gas because of state taxes so I never buy gas in NC unless absolutely necessary). I had 460 miles on that tank of gas, but I still was not sure how many gallons my tank held. I filled it up and put 13 gallons in all excited to come home and divide it out. It ended up being 35.38 or something like that - almost 35 1/2 MPG!! How exciting and was right in line with what I suspected.

Saturday, we were in Target to get a bookcase Jim just had to have (it is still sitting in the box as of 7:39 pm on Monday). While we were there, Jim started bugging me about a 4 slice toaster. We have a perfectly good toaster. Nothing wrong with it except that for his 1 1/2 bagles for breakfast, one slice is a bit cooler than the others since it has to get toasted separately. This is, of course, a great tragedy that is repeated every morning at breakfast time. After about 10 minutes of back and forth, I knew I was not going to get out of the Target unless one of two things happend: 1 - This would be an argument for the rest of the weekend or 2 - Just buy the stupid toaster. I elected to go ahead and get the stupid 4 slice toaster and spend $30 to keep peace in my house.

Chalk it up to the fact that it's the small things that end up mattering in a relationship. Or as Willie Geist says at the top of the hour every morning on his segment of Morning Joe (Scarborough) - News You Can't Use!

Tier 1 to Total Capital Recon and Ratio reporting

2008-05-01T06:53:00.000-07:00

Ok, this has been a crazy week. One of the quarterly disclosures I've been doing for the past three quarters has been the tie out and reconciliation of Tier 1 Capital, Total Capital, and Capital Ratios to the financial statments filed with the SEC. The 10Q tie out is complex, but to do a thorough review, we look at some specific controls and processes to gain confidence in the compilation of financial information for reporting.

So this week, I have looked at the capital for the entire corporation and the related ratios. There is additional scrutiny right now on the bank's capital position since the regulators are really looking at this carefully for all US banks given the current credit crunch and related losses in mortgage loans. Loan loss reserves have increased substantially, and this drives a decrease in available capital. WaMu and Wachovia have recently been raising additional capital, and Citigroup had to raise significant capital (mostly from that Arab group) to stay afloat.

So no pressure there on my tie out of the financials supporting the Tier 1 and Total Capital calculations, the tie out of risk weighted assets and average assets, and the ratio calculations. My deadline for my disclosure work was yesterday and I worked until after 6 to get that one done, my other disclosures done (with pesky international tax problems), nevermind the other audit work I needed to complete.

While I had wonderful intentions of going home and getting rid of my stress through exercise (for the mental wind down the physical exercise would provide), I opted instead for a 20 minute soak in the hot tub after eating some delicious sugar wafer cookies. I know you are all shocked that the hot tub would solve this problem! 105 degrees with massaging jets is an amazing thing after a long day when it was a nice cool 50 degrees outside at 9 pm. It was mighty satisfactual!!

Weekend visit with my niece

2008-04-28T05:20:00.000-07:00

We had a fun weekend visiting my sister, brother in law, and niece. It was a lot of fun and that little Quincy is very sweet although I can't figure out exactly where she gets it from. I guess she got it from her Aunt Mafa because her mom was never that sweet!

I am really impressed with how well she writes her letters. She doesn't even have to ask how to spell our names anymore, she just writes them out on anything she can find. She can name and write the days of the week, and I wrote the letters and the lower case letters on her white board and she proceeded to write the lower case letters down too. I think her printing is about as good as mine was when I was 7. Since I skipped first grade, my writing skills were not good and did not really improve until I was 7 or 8. By the time I was 8, I was learning cursive!

The only bad thing this week was that she was on 'red' at school Thursday and Friday. She told us that she didn't get to go to the treasure chest because she was on red that she threw a fit and didn't do what the teacher said. She was funny as she told us all about it. I told her she'd have to do better next week. She said, yeah I get to start over.

So here's to Monday and starting the week over. Hope you all have a good one. Mine will be busy, but at least I'm beginning it this morning with a Grande Bold!!

Adventures at Best Buy

2008-04-22T10:28:00.001-07:00

Late Saturday, Jim and I went to Best Buy to find this Stargate movie/DVD that he has been waiting on (joy). Apparently, they did not have enough season left to finalize all of the series plots so they released a movie directly to DVD.

While there, I saw the DVD of The Secrets of Isis show from about 1977. I had no idea it was on DVD, but this was a must have. I loved this show and I wanted to BE Isis when I was about 8. Can't wait to see these with my sister. We watched this show religously when we were little. Best Buy is a total geek experience in one store - I love it!

I will refrain from making Jim watch it with me though as then I would have to be tortured with Stargate.

Flat tires and frustrated husbands are not fun

2008-04-18T13:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday on the way to work, I heard this weird noise while driving and noticed it slowed when the car slowed. I wasn't sure what it was and almost as soon as it started it quit and I heard something ping underneath the car. I figured it was a rock. So I got to the car about 5:45 yesterday afternoon in the garage, and I had a very flat front right tire :(.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find anyone to help and was going to call and pay someone when Jim said no he would come to do it. So Jim drove from Lake Wylie to downtown Charlotte (about 20 miles) and got to the garage around 6:30. He was not a happy camper and made me watch while he changed the tire and told me what he was doing and how to do it. Then, the spare probably only had about 10 lbs. of air pressure in it, so Jim followed me to a nearby gas station and pumped up the spare so I could make it home.

The good news is the tire was very fixable as I took it first thing this morning to get repaired and they fixed it for free (more free stuff!). It had a good hole in it but whatever caused it was no longer in the tire as we found when Jim took it off. The other news is that Jim is going to make me learn and practice how to change a tire one weekend here soon. I think I would rather just join AAA to be on the safe side!!!

The only good thing about the afternoon is that by the time we got back home, we went straight to the hot tub and ended the evening on a high note!

Free Starbucks

2008-04-16T05:42:00.001-07:00

Well I ordered my usual this morning - Grande Bold from Starbucks and the guy gave it to me for free. That was a nice surprise and started the day off right. Now I am just waiting for it to kick in and get me going considering that I fell back asleep and started dreaming again after I turned the alarm off this morning - oops!

I enjoyed the Masters this weekend as expected although it was a very interesting back nine with the wind and a surprise double bogey on 16 by Trevor Immelman. It was very nice to see him win and I would have been very happy for Brandt Snedecker to win too as he was fun to watch. I thought he would have a run at it especially after he had an eagle on #2 and his putting was very good early in the round. I also found out that my husband would not hang out with me if I was a guy since I am so much into sports. Crazy huh?

This has been a pretty uneventful week and I am hoping to go up to see my sister next weekend as we have not been there since February. My sister called and talked to Jim yesterday and told him that Quincy wishes that Mafa and Uncle Jim would come to her house. How can I resist that?

Tribute to the Masters - Augusta song and words

2008-04-08T17:07:00.001-07:00

I'm glad I found this - yes I am always jazzed about The Masters. I get it honestly though. My dad is a self taught golfer, and I remember watching with him when I was very little and I watched Jack of course!

The Masters and Jack Nicklaus

2008-04-08T16:49:00.001-07:00

Masters Week

2008-04-06T06:52:00.000-07:00

The amazing thing about the final four this weekend is that it will be followed by an even better weekend coming up with The Masters. When I was in Aiken working for a day during Masters week in 1993, I was listening to the local radio station that had 'oldies' hour at lunchtime. They played this song called "Augusta" and I immediately recognized the music as that used by CBS as the theme on their Masters broadcast. Imagine my surprise after hearing this tune countless times to learn that there are words to this song and they are wonderful. I finally got a music file with the original song a few years ago and will try to figure out how to post the link (if any of my blogger friends can help me with this I would appreciate instructions!).

I will enjoy the tournament although nothing can top my favorite Masters - 1986 when Jack Nicklaus won his 6th green jacket at the age of 46. My dad and I were glued to the tv that afternoon watching the golfer I grew up on, Jack Nicklaus, win with an incredible back 9 on Sunday at the Masters. It was also the springtime just before I graduated high school - wow I can't believe how long it's been as it seems like just yesterday. I have two Master's specials permanently saved on my DVR and they both highlight the 1986 Masters. My husband likes Tiger's amazing play and record breaking, but he will never be the best from where I sit. Jack Nicklaus will always be my #1 favorite and NOBODY beats my man Jack.

Well, it's springtime in the valley on Magnolia Lane;

It's the Augusta National and the master
of the game.

Who'll wear that green coat on Sunday
afternoon?

Who'll walk that 18th fairway singing
this tune?

Augusta, your dogwoods and pines,
they play on my mind like a song.

Augusta, it's you that I love,
it's you that I miss when I'm gone

Well, it's Watson, Byron Nelson,
and Demaret, and Player and Snead,

And it's Amen Corner,
and it's Hogan's perfect swing;

It's Sarazen's double eagle
at the 15th in '35,

And the spirit of Clifford Roberts
that keeps it alive.

Augusta, your dogwoods and pines,
they play on my mind like a song.

Augusta, it's you that I love, it's you that I miss when I'm gone.

It's the legions of Arnie's Army and the Golden Bear's
throng, Wooden-shafted legend, Bobby Jones.

Weekend visit

2008-03-30T18:23:00.000-07:00

Had a wonderful visit this weekend from my mom and my niece. Quincy is on spring vacation with the grandparents, so mom brought her up to our house for the weekend and we went to Carowinds yesterday. It was windy and very cool, but she had a good time. Mom took a picture of us together while waiting for the hot air balloon ride to start. I am also including a picture of her on Easter Sunday before church.

We had a great time putting togther puzzles, playing with Aunt Martha's little people house and garage, and we also played with the bingo game my mom bought. She is a lot of fun, but she will keep you going all day long! As soon as she got out of the car Friday afternoon, she asked for the 'cars'. She loves my little people garage that I bought off of ebay as it is like the one I had as a child. It is the one with the elevator that dings and comes with 4 cars - red, yellow, green, and blue, and has the gas pump to fill up the cars with gas. She loves it and asks for it right away at my house.

I missed the basketball game that Davidson played Friday night as we were preoccupied with bingo and SpongeBob. That is ok though - visit with Quincy was worth ten basketball games. I did watch Davidson get beat today though :(. Watched that alone - it's basketball alone time for me again today. At least Jim likes football. We could not be married if he didn't like football. That would be a deal breaker.

Great Basketball Weekend

2008-03-24T07:33:00.000-07:00

I love March Madness!! The only bad thing is that I am a basketball widow. No matter how hard I try to get Jim interested in basketball, he just does not care. There was an amazing game on yesterday - Davidson and Georgetown. It was so exciting to see Davidson come back from shooting 27% in the first half and behind by 17 early in the second half to win. What a great game, but Jim was just so ho hum about it. How can anybody be so ho hum with that kind of game on?

Miami was also down early yesterday but rallied late before losing to Texas, the Tennesee and Butler game went to OT, West Virginia upsetting Duke on Saturday, and Villanova beating Clemson late Friday night was amazing!

I know I get it honestly. Last weekend at my parents, my Dad was going off on Chapel Hill making mistakes all over the place and trying to lose the ACC Championship game before finally beating Clemson. I know where I get my game commentary skills from. One of my fantasy jobs is to be a football broadcaster. I play this game where I count every time I make a comment on a football play and then the broadcaster says the same exact thing right after me. I know I could do that job! Jim says I would have to be on tape delay though because I use colorful metaphors - but that is only for Carolina games as I get emotionally involved in those games!!! I don't curse at the other football games.

Went to Columbia and experienced bad weather

2008-03-21T09:44:00.000-07:00

St. Patty's day was fun, but abbreviated. We had a good time while we were there, but I only had 1 Killians as draft beer hits me quickly and I had not had much to eat at all before getting it. I did also have 1/2 a Yuengling as we stopped to grab a bite at a restaurant/bar on Harden St.

We left about 3:20 or so as the wind was really picking up and we figured it was probably going to rain soon. Good thing we did as by the time we got to my parents house, all hell started breaking loose with the weather. I heard the first tornado warning for Newberry county just before we got to their house and didn't realize how bad it was going to get for the area on Saturday. Fortunately, we did not have anything but heavy rain at their house as the weather report was rather vivid as to what all was going on as we watched.

I actually did pretty well all things considered as I had a very bad storm phobia that I finally got a grip on about 4 years ago. I had a very bad experience when I was little (about 5 or 6) as we made a beach trip and we were in a very bad storm and it hailed on the car - you know hail on a car makes a horrible sound and scared me very badly. My parents put the tent up in the rain that night as we had finally arrived at the beach and it turned out they had actually evacuated the campground earlier that day because of the severe weather. That phobia got worse with age and fortunately it's not nearly as bad now. I really feel for people that have panic attacks though as it is a miserable feeling.

I didn't feel too bad about having left 5 points when I read in the paper the next morning that they had to shut down the festival around 4pm because of the bad weather in the area. It was bad to see all of the destruction from the 15 or so tornadoes that occured too.

At least I got that one really good Killians and got a great draft beer buzz!!

Killians and St. Patty's Day

2008-03-12T05:46:00.000-07:00

So I am looking forward to Saturday and going to Columbia for the first time since Christmas. of course, the visit is coinciding with the annual St. Patty's Day festivities in 5 points. Can't wait - the Killian's beer truck is calling my name. Last year I was thirsty and found the Yuengling Black and Tan truck first so by the time I finally found the Killian's it was alomost time to go home and I didn't have one. Of course, I am the driver because Jim can and does drink way more beer than me.

Jim always ends up parked at the Guiness truck. He likes the darker beer (it's that German thing) and plus the Guiness is not carbonated and is easier on the tummy. But me, I love that Killian's Irish Red, hanging out, listening to bands, bumping into people I know and just enjoying a good time. My favorite experience in 5 points was in 1993 when I lived in a duplex just off of Harden Street on Wilmot Ave. It was a short walk to 5 points so I hung out all day and didn't have to worry about driving home. I left about 4:30 or so that afternoon - my cue was when I spilled a beer all over my shoe. When I started spilling beer on myself I knew it was time to go home.

Classic Albums

2008-03-10T07:16:00.000-07:00

To wake up on the way to work in the morning I often put in AC/DC Back in Black. That is one of two albums that I know back to front - the other is Boston. Back in Black is just a totally classic album all the way through beginning with Hells Bells and all the way through to Rock and Roll 'Aint Noise Pollution. My favorite tracks are You Shook Me All Night Long and Givin' the Dog a Bone. The only indication that this album is not fresh is the hiss even on the CD since it was released in 1980 and has (gasp) an analog recording vs. digital!

The Boston album is one I bought about 20 years ago (I was in college then - eek) and I played that thing to death. Even though that album was already 12 years old then (released in 1976) it still seemed fresh. It begins with one of my all time favorites - More than a Feelin', and ends on a really high note with Let Me Take You Home Tonight.

Another classic album that I love is Van Halen II. It does not have quite the same appeal as the other two as with Back in Black and Boston I just play it start to finish and know all the words and all the hooks. However, Van Halen II has a few favorites like Dance the Night Away, Somebody Get Me a Doctor, D.O.A (Dead or Alive), and Beautiful Girls. The original Van Halen release is good too, but I prefer Van Halen II as I never ever get tired of Dance the Night Away. I just wish it was longer than 2 1/2 minutes!

On the Bicycle again

2008-03-06T05:29:00.000-08:00

Well I've taken about a week and a half unintentional break from working out and last night I got back on the exercise bike. Wow - it feels good to have worked out again. I usually ride for about 40 minutes and can ride about 10.5 miles in that time. Then, I do about 30 minutes of upper body, abdominal, hip, thigh, and derrier exercises that are difficult but really work.

After that, I enjoy a well deserved shower and relax on my upstairs sofa which usually involves falling asleep watching tv. Last night I DVRd American Idol upstiars so we started watching it about 8:40 while I was on the bike. It was right at 40 minutes without commercials too. When American Idol was over, my timer was winding down. I need to do a better job remembering how good it feels to exercise and how good I sleep as motiviation. Plus, if I exercise like that 3 or 4 times a week I can really tell a difference in how I feel, energy level, tighter stomach, etc. Felt like a million $$ this morning driving to work - endorphines are GREAT!!

It's Official

2008-02-29T10:47:00.000-08:00

Ok, I am now officially addicted to the hot tub. Last Friday after a very long week reviewing the bank's 10 K (annual financial statement and supporting documentation), all I could think of was getting in the hot tub right after work and having a beer while in it. It was total bliss.

Mom and Dad came up to visit last weekend too, and we all had a relaxing dip after dinner was over and before the Tennessee vs. Memphis basketball game came on tv.

I have been in it three times this week already and will make it four after work today. That Yuengling Black and Tan is calling my name again. Or, I may have another Gin and Tonic like I did last night - it hit the spot!

True Love

2008-02-28T08:44:00.001-08:00

For some reason this week, I was thinking about a post from my friend Rick a while back - I can't get the link to work, but it was the "Rethinking My Neighbor" from January.

It occured to me that I wanted to comment on it but couldn't quite frame what I wanted to say. However, I know what I was thinking about and have now found the words.

True love, genuine love, can only be shown to others when we love ourselves. We must accept ourselves and love ourselves before we can love others as we must be able to empathize with others. While we may not understand each others feelings fully, the ability to put ourselves in their shoes as it were and empathize enables us to have compassion and caring for others.

So when God commands us to love our neighbors as ourselves, and do unto others, etc., I think this is a part of it. My niece was telling my sister one time a while back who all she loves: her daddy, her mama, Grandmommy, Papa Jimmy, Mafa, and Uncle Jim, she also paused and said that she loved herself too. What a good thing that she knows that!

This is where true love begins.

DAR and DC

2008-02-27T11:49:00.000-08:00

So I am thinking about what to write about and thought I would share some things I learned shortly after my grandmother died. Grandma had kept her mother's Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) paperwork and also her membership certficate for the Daughters of the Confederacy. This inspired me last year to do some research and learn more about my family and I learned some interesting things. I also have one of Grandma's rings that belonged to my Great-Great-Great Grandfater, Robert Luke Lamkin. He is the one who served at the end of the Civil War for Georgia and I have the documentation that he served - hence the Daughters of the Confederacy eligibility.

There are also two confirmed Patriots (those who served in the American Revolution) in my family and I have found two others that I believe are Patriots but I have not been able to prove those out. Her information is:

The National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution Volume 67
page 344

Mrs. Ethel Lamkin Davenport.
DAR ID Number: 66947
Born in Columbia County, Ga.
Wife of Joseph B. Davenport, Jr.
Descendant of Nathan Benton and of Samuel Magruder.
Daughter of Julian Berry Lamkin (b. 1849) and Mary T. Benton, his wife.
Granddaughter of Nelson M. Benton and Martha A. Wooding, his 2nd wife.
Gr-granddaughter of Nathan Benton and Susannah Crawford, his wife, m. 1796; John Edward Wooding (d. 1844) and Elizabeth Drane, his wife, m. 1811.
Gr-gr-granddaughter of Walter Drane and Alletha Magruder, his wife.
Gr-gr-gr-granddaughter of Ninian Beall Magruder and Rebecca Young, his wife.
Gr-gr-gr-gr-granddaughter of Samuel Magruder and Margaret Jackson, his wife.
Nathan Benton (1764-1826) was a member of the roth regiment, Continental troops of North Carolina, under Captain Jones. He was born in Orange County, N. C.; died in Columbia County, Ga.
Samuel Magruder (1708-86) was a member of the Committee of Observation. He was born in Prince Georges County; died in Montgomery County, Md.

What I also did last spring is go to North Augusta, SC and see where my Great Grandparents and Great-Great Grandparents are buried (top picture). My Grandmother died at the age of 98 1/2, her mother, Grandma Ethel, died one month shy of her 80th birthday in 1959, and her mother, Mary Talullah Benton Lamkin died in the early 1920's (I'll have to check the date and edit this) and she was in her 70's I believe. Grandma Ethel and her husband, Joseph Benjamin Davenport, Jr. (my Great Grandparents), along with two of my grandma's siblings are buried in a section along with my Great-Great Grandparents, Julian Berry Lamkin and Mary Talullah Benton Lamkin.

That day last April, mom and I also went to my Grandmother's childhood home in North Augusta. The original had burned when my Grandma was about 24 or so, but was rebuilt. The people that bought it a number of years ago converted it to a restaurant called "Davenport's" and mom showed me around Grandma Ethel's house. The front room was where my Grandma got married, and the other front room was Grandma Ethel's bedroom. Just a 2 minute drive from the house is the Savannah river and you cross into Augusta, GA. I finally understood why my Grandma loved Augusta, Georgia, and also wanted to go to the University of Georgia (which Grandma Ethel would not allow). Grandma wanted to go to UGA and become a Nurse, but Grandma Ethel would not permit that as it was not an 'appropriate' profession for a lady. Grandma went to Winthrop instead to become a teacher.

After visiting North Augusta, mom and I drove to Elizabeth Johnston's house just across from the Augusta National Golf Course. This is my Grandma's first cousin, and she had even more information on the Lamkin family than I had managed to pull together. We visited and she showed me all the stuff that she had and it was fascinating. She had a pair of glasses and their case framed and hanging on a wall. The glasses blonged to Aurelia Amanda Berry Lamkin - Robert Luke Lamkin's wife and also my Great-Great-Great Grandmother. Mom and I then drove out to Pollard's Corner (a crossroads in Columbia County outside of Augusta). This is where Robert Luke Lamkin and his parents, James M. Lamkin and Elizabeth Frazier Luke Lamkin, are buried in a family cemetary (bottom picture). These are my Great-Great-Great-Great Grandparents. Elizabeth Lamkin was pardoned by then President Andrew Johnson as she had been arrested and convicted for supporting Confederate soldiers during the war. A copy of the pardon is hanging in Elizabeth Johnson's house too detailing the pardon and signed by Andrew Johnson.

Turns out that the Lamkin family owned a large piece of what is now Columbia County, Georgia and Grandma sold her share in the late 1980's as she had to pay taxes on it and the lumber was susceptible to forest fire and thus devaluation of the property.

Grandma used to ride the train from Augusta to spend time at Grandma and Grandpa Lamkin's in the summer. Grandma talked about this on many occasions as she loved the Lamkins.

I also found some information on the Davenports as my Great-Grandfather's family has been in the country since around the 1600's.

How a $30 oil change can equal $200

2008-02-18T09:39:00.000-08:00

So I sent Jim to the dealership today to get the oil changed in his car. He got the tires rotated last week, and was overdue for the oil change. So he calls me after he is done and said it was $213. I said - how could an oil change have cost $213!!?? He said the service man said that it was time for the 45,000 mile service and that included filter changes, belts, fluids, etc.

While I'm sure this will all benefit the car, it could have waited until the 60,000 service when I was planning on this kind of expense. I just don't understand how my husband can get suckered into this kind of thing when I send him for a $30 oil change. Maybe my guyfriends can help me out here. I am very confused as to how this happens. Do I have to supervise his every move? I guess so. Sometimes I think I have a 35 year old child!!!

Weekend visit and Hot Tub is fixed

2008-02-18T05:43:00.001-08:00

We had such a fun time at my sister's this weekend. My neice was so excited that we were coming up, and she was upset that she had to go to bed because we got there late Friday night. She wanted us to stay until Monday :(, and I hated to have to go yesterday but we did wait until after she got up from her nap and I played Chutes and Ladders with her and then a game of Memory before we left.

Meg, James, Jim, and I played Scene It three times. That is a really fun game and I didn't realize how much I do know about movies. I won it one time and should have won a second time. But it was a lot of fun no matter who won. Quincy had fun playing Winnie the Pooh game (I got it for Quincy after she played the one I bought off of ebay at my house), and Qunicy also wrote my name about 50 times as she loves to write everyone's name! She also painted with her watercolors (I LOVED those when I was little) and we went to the park on Saturday for about an hour. I went down the slide with her a bunch and played on the see saw too.

When we got home, the hot tub was ready. When we bought our house (it will be 2 years in May), it had a hot tub built into the deck off of our den and has a screened in porch around it. However, the tub was in good shape but the controls were shot and needed to be replaced. It wouldn't heat or do anything but push the water with the jets. So I let Jim talk me into spending $1,700 to get it fixed last week. He got it done on Friday, so when we came home last night, it was hot and we got in for about 30 minutes. I think I'm going to really enjoy it. Now I need some outside shades (like those bamboo shades) that you can roll down for privacy and we need to get the light fixed on the celing fan out there. There is also a tv stand with a cable, but it would need to be lowered to put a tv on it to really see. I agreed with Jim to quit doing the gamecock club and give up the tickets :( as we can spend the $$ on things we'd like to do around the house. He promised me he'd put a TV outside for football season so I can watch and enjoy the hot tub in the fall and winter!!

After riding in the car for 3 hours yesterday afternoon, the spa really hit the spot! I think that money was definitely better than the $1,600 we spent to put the house under termite bond. The next big thing we want to do is to put one of those woodburning stove inserts into our fireplace. Those things are really nice and they don't even need a blower and can heat almost the whole house with a slow wood burn. Of course, that is kind of pricey when you buy it and then have it installed. Probably close to $3,500 to do it but we are thinking it will be a good addition around October when it starts to get cold. No need to try and do it now as we are almost to spring.

Factor V Leiden

2008-02-11T08:39:00.001-08:00

I had heard of blood clotting disorders before, but always the lack of clotting as in hemophillia. However, we discovered that there are clotting disorders that make you more apt to develop blood clots in an unfortunate way. In September of 2006, Meg had a swollen leg that was very painful. It did not go away and she kept going back to the doctor and finally they did an ultrasound and discovered a blood clot in her leg. Even though she went on the blood thinner injections, the clot embollized and went to her lung. This is very dangerous as 30% of PEs (pulmonary emobolisms are fatal). She was in the hospital for several days and is now on oral cumiden (blood thinner) for the rest of her life since she had a life threatening condition.

Since she was only 34 at the time, they suspected she might have a genetic clotting disorder and she got tested as did I. Turns out, we both have a genetic condition in the Factor V (there are 8 steps in the clotting process) step that causes the blood to be hypercoagulable. One bad thing is that she was on the pill (as I had been for almost 20 years at that point) and for a normal person, that increases the risk of blood clots by 4 times as much. With just the Factor V Leiden condition, this increases your chances of a blood clot by 7 times. Together, the risk is exponential, as my hematologist told me my risk if I continued to take the pill would be 1 in 300 of having a blood clot. Needless to say, I have not taken the pill in 18 months. I also take a baby aspirin every day as this has the effect of thinning the blood and has long lasting effects on platelet development reducing the likelihood that they will 'stick' together.

Turns out that Daddy has this genetic disorder (it is carried on the X chromosome) and since men only have one X, that is the one that Meg and I got. Daddy also had a blood clot at 51 that was unexplained. Interesting thing about this Factor V Leiden defect is that it was only identified in 1993 or 1994. Fortunately, we only have the one bad copy as Meg and I are both heterozygous (meaning one bad gene) instead of homozygous which would mean two bad copies and even higher risk of blood clots.

The other thing is that given my age and this condition, I will have to take a shot of heparin (blood thinner) each day if I decide to get pregnant - and I HATE shots. Even with the heparin shot, I will have about a 10% risk of developing a blood clot while pregnant. The most typcial problem during pregnancy is that it can cause a miscarriage because of clotting in the umbilical cord. And you can't take cumiden since it causes birth defects and the heparain shot goes into the bloodstream and does not cross the placenta barrier.

So I still don't know what I want to do about a baby and now I have this other thing to go along with it as I would have to take a shot a day over a nine month time frame. Jim is cool with it either way no matter what we decide to do, but I know he does not want to do anything to risk my health. The amazing thing is that Meg had a pretty normal pregnancy as the doctors could not beleive she didn't throw a clot while she was pregnant or shortly thereafter. Not only would that be bad, but once you have a clot, you are predisposed to have more.

If I ever have surgery, I'll have to be on blood thinner for a while afterwards as invasive procedures can cause the body to react with a clot. For more info:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Factor_V_Leiden
http://www.med.uiuc.edu/hematology/PtFacV2.htm

Nieces are wonderful

2008-02-10T05:45:00.001-08:00

My sister emailed me this week to see if we could come up next weekend. She told me that Quincy has heard her talking, and wanted to know if Mafa is coming to see her. She told Meg that "I like Mafa, cause Mafa likes me a whole lot".

That was classic. One time she told Meg that "I like Mafa, she's my friend". I love that child!!!! We have so much fun playing with her Barbie dolls and going to the park. She even likes to play music and dance and sing like I did. My sister never did that. I guess Meg always had me to play with, but before Meg came along or could play with me, I would entertain myself by playing records and dancing and singing in the living room.

Quincy takes after her Aunt Mafa. Her favorite color is blue like mine, and she looked at my Kappa shirt one day and asked me what it was (it had the KKG greek letters on it). I told her that when she grew up she could be one too. So I only have 13 years before Quincy will be a Freshman in college (she starts Kindergarten this fall) and I can take her shopping and buy her all of her rush clothes. My sister and brother in law roll their eyes when I start on that kick, but they know that Aunt Mafa will make sure Quincy is ready for rush - in 13 years of course - as it is never too early to start!

Friday Night Discovery

2008-02-09T17:16:00.000-08:00

So last night we went to one of those Japanese Hibachi places for dinner (Jim is Catholic so no meat on Friday during lent). I am not Catholic, but I don't eat meat on Friday's during Lent around him. After dinner while we're waiting on everything to wrap up, get the check, etc. Jim starts talking to the guy next to us about his time in the military as Jim had mentioned something about it. So Jim also talks about his time that he spent in Kuwait and Iraq during the first gulf go round and the mentality of the people over there, not wanting to go into Baghdad and urban warfare, etc.

Then Jim drops the bomb - he tells the guy about his medical discharge as he had stress fractures in each lower leg and that he was medically discharged about a year earlier than planned (in '99 instead of 2000). Jim then proceeds to tell him that right after 9/11, he had called the recruiter in Columbia as he wanted to go over to Afghanistan. However, since he was medically discharged they would not have taken him back in. This part about wanting to go back in and calling the recruiter was news to me.

When Jim was in the Army the first time, he was an 11 Charlie (Infantry) which is the military's fighting machine which has a 60 second life expectancy during combat. He was a mortarman as his test scores were really high and you had to be able to do the complex math in your head. When he got out in '94 (way before I met him) he went back to Ohio, went to school for a year, worked some, and then ended up re-upping in January of '97 and they sent him to Ft. Jackson and we met in Columbia in February of '97. They would not let him go back in as 11 Charlie, so he was a 71 Lima which is a clerk. He hated being a clerk. And you can take the man out of the Infantry, but you can't take the Infantry out of the man.

So here he is after 9/11, and he called the recruiter and wanted to go back in so he could go blow $H*T up and blow up people in Afghanistan. Of course, he didn't tell me that he was trying to go back in! I knew he was very upset and ready to get on a plane to go stick it to the Taliban and Bin Laden, but I didn't know he's busy calling around to try and get back in until last night!

I knew he was really hard to be around for about a month or so, but I had no clue he actually tried to get back in. I can't really blame him or be too upset, but it was just such a surprise that he had tried. I should have known better. I fussed at him half the way home. He knows I would have been really upset if he had found a way to go, but he would have done it anyway no matter what I said. I guess I can't be too upset though as he is very patriotic and has such a sense of duty and love of country.

He also knows how to kill people with his bare hands as that is what they are trained to do if you don't have a weapon or if it jams. There are things that he did in the military that he won't tell me and says that he is not supposed to even though he has been out and is not going back in. His aunt told me one time that he was in Turkey for a while but that she was not supposed to know that. He won't even confirm or deny that. He won't tell me anything much except that he has been in situations where he's had to defend his life before. I think that means he had to kill someone while in combat in Iraq (close to the border with Kuwait right after it was over), but he won't tell me anything specific. And that is what his aunt thinks happened too.

Anyway, it was just a little upsetting to know he tried to go back in although I should have known better.

Best Super Bowl Ever

2008-02-04T05:10:00.000-08:00

Wow - that game was probably the best Super Bowl I've ever seen. I wondered how the rematch would be after seeing the last game of the regular season when the Pats and Giants played. That catch on the last drive of the Giants had me jumping out of my chair when Eli Manning escaped what looked like was going to be a sack and then the receiver catches it with the assistance of his helmet. Incredible!

And that Giant defense had me totally worked up...GRRRRRR. Five sacks on Tom Brady. I LOVE seeing a defense that fired up and getting after the quarterback and the football. Wicked. They opened more whoop ass than I've seen in some time. Just amazing. The NY Giant defense could have been named as the MVP in my opinion.

I am usually dissapointed by Super Bowls when there are two weeks between the championship games and the Super Bowl. The game is usually really good when there is only 1 week between the two, but this year was an exception.

And the halftime show was the best since Sting performed a few years ago. I loved that they opened with American Girl - awesome song!! The only thing I was upset about was that they didn't play Refugee as that is my favorite Tom Petty song.

I usually end up asleep at the end of the Super Bowl since sometimes they end up being boring but not last night - WOW!! Glad I have the end of it DVR'd so I can go back and see that last drive a few more times!

Fun for a Friday or...more useless Star Trek information

2008-02-01T10:52:00.000-08:00

Well it's Friday and I'm a little bored at work, so I thought I would see how long it would take me to remember all 79 Star Trek episode titles. In a testament to my true geekdom and Star Trek affection, it only took about 40 minutes for me to write down the names of all 79 original episodes.

Yes, I know I am a sick individual with an amazing and excellent memory. Happy Friday! :)

Martha is...

2008-01-27T17:31:00.000-08:00

A couple of my blogger friends googled their name and "is", so I decided to google Martha is and see what I got. When I google "Martha is" I end up with a bunch of junk about Martha Stewart. Most of it was very boring so I thought I'd get creative and do a blog entry on Aquarius characteristics. One time I read the characteristics of an Aquarius in the encyclopedia. I think I was about 24 or so and I thought that the only thing that had been left out of that article was that my name was not in there. It might as well have said "Martha Moultrie" because it described me exactly!

Here goes:

Aquarius' best accessory is a time machine (since we are fascinated with the past and time travel).

Aquarius' pain is conservatism, being categorized, emotional outbursts.

Traditional Aquarian Traits: Friendly and humanitarian, Honest and loyal, Original and inventive, Independent and intellectual.

On the dark side.... Intractable and contrary, Perverse and unpredictable, Unemotional and detached.

One type of Aquarius is exuberant, lively and exhibitionist, sometimes hiding the considerable depths of their character under a cloak of frivolity (the other is shy and that is not me). Both types are strong willed and forceful in their different ways and have strong convictions as they seek truth above all things.

Aquarians are unprejudiced and tolerant of other points of view.

Aquarians are humane, frank, serious minded, genial, refined, sometimes ethereal, and idealistic, though this last quality is tempered with a sensible practicality. They are quick, active and persevering without being self-assertive, and express themselves with reason, moderation and sometimes, a dry humor.

They are nearly always intelligent, concise, clear and logical.

Aquarians work best in group projects, provided that they are recognized as having a leading part in them.

Among the faults to which they are liable are fanatical eccentricity, wayward egotism, excessive detachment and an inclination to retreat from life and society, and a tendency to be extremely dogmatic in their opinions.

Some other characteristics:

unconventional
detached
intellectual
objective
individualistic
unique
easygoing
free-spirited
independent
open-minded
progressive
rebellious
stubborn
eccentric
erotic
aloof

Ideal Careers: astronomy, scientist, politics, aviation, admissions, photography, acting, music, social services, psychology.

Likes: friendship, freedom, intellectual stimulation, camaraderie, surprises, companionship, feeling understood, emotional safety,Loyalty.

Dislikes: jealousy, possessiveness, control, ego plays, pointless meetings, narrow-mindedness, being ridiculed, routines, fighting/violence, inequality, being taken for granted.

Got a great phone call today

2008-01-27T14:22:00.000-08:00

My 4 year old neice called today to sing Happy Birthday to me! It was so cute as she is quite the little singer. Meg said she had been practicing this weekend. It was precious. Happy Birfday to Mafa!

Now I can fully appreciate the fact that I am 'only' 39 as most of my friends out there in blogger world are turning (or have already turned) 40 this year. I knew that being a year younger in school from skipping first grade would eventually be a good thing when it never felt that way in school.

Anyway, hope you have all had a wonderful weekend. George, I hope the concert yesterday was great, and I'm sorry I was not in town to see Chuck while he was there and also see George's band. You will have to let me know when the next gig is.

More Movies

2008-01-22T06:22:00.001-08:00

I saw We Are Marshall over the weekend and it was so good - definitely check it out if you haven't seen it yet. It was a really good movie and I seem to find movies that make me cry all the time. I guess that is ok since I want to watch something that moves me and doesn't make me mad or frustrate me (see Legends of the Fall discussion).

I also caught the last hour or so of The Dead Zone last night. If you haven't seen that movie you should check it out. Christopher Walken plays this guy who is in a coma and when he wakes up has psychic visions of future and past events. I saw it a few years ago and it is a way cool movie. Was made in 1983. Has anyone else seen it? Good plot and way cool. South Park also did a parody of it and Cartman has the powers after getting knocked out from a fall.