Random Musings

Today we had the cutest little Asian girl prancing around the ballot table while her Dad was patiently waiting. A worker decided to ask her a few questions to help keep her still, and here's there conversation: Worker: What are you going to be for Halloween? Child: in a whisper, Tinkerbell. Worker: Tinkerbell? Girls nods. Worker: Not (and she names two other names I'd never heard of but which made the girl grin and shake her head no.)? Girl: I've already told you. Tinkerbell. Worker: Because she's pretty. Girl: rolling her eyes and saying in an exasperated tone , Because she's GRE-en and has WIIings. We were still laughing about that later. Green and Wings. What more could a girl want?

I've been reminded this week of our ladies' study from a few years ago where we focused on "whatever is true".  This last week I've been continously amazed at the number of people who hear or think something (about a wide variety of things) and decide it is true without investigating or thinking or studying the matter at all. And of course, with election season upon us, I deal with people on a daily basis who like to rant and be heard. Thankfully of the 800+ voters we handled yesterday, there were only 2 or 3 that way. And when you stop and think about it, that's not too many. What I am seeing more of, and has taken me by surprise, is helicopter Moms. It's not uncommon for a Mom to say "This is my child's first time to vote, and he's unsure or has some questions, etc"  But it is uncommon, and strange to me, that a parent will say "I can't....because I have to help my child vote." or "Can we share a voting booth? It...

chocolate chip cookies Facebook choir practice laughter freedom a crazy dog friends the internet my husband running water clean water indoor plumbing sunshine vehicles abundantly stocked grocery stores hugs smiles the end of this round in the incubator only 2 chicks

There have been some nights when I absolutely could not sleep and I could actually hear the clock in our bedroom ticking out the seconds. THAT is annoying. Thankfully, that was not the case this last week, nor do I expect it to be the case anytime during the next six weeks (unless I forget and drink caffeine after 4pm again). Yesterday during the kids choir practice time, a child raised her hand and wanted to know why anyone would want to be a star. (The play is about a boy who wants to be a star in a play, and he ends up getting a role as understudy and at the last minute is in the play and actually points the way to the Star of Bethlehem). She only knew the term as in "twinkle, twinkle, little star". I'm not sure I adequately explained it to her. Yes, I am certainly used to working with older kids. I feel unorganized this year. We chose this play because it could easily incroporate all age groups under 6th grade, should hopefully take less practice time, and yet I...

I started to title this post my Monday thankful list, but then I realized today wasn't Monday. :/ But here we go: 1. anticipation of holidays & fellow family members (on both sides!) who like to work puzzles 2. cookies, specifically chocolate chip 3. sweet tea 4. a supportive husband 5. electricity 6. laying hens 7. friends who like to read 8. belonging to a church of compassionate people 9. being an American citizen where everyone has the right to an opinion 10. checklists

I have my Thanksgiving decorations out. :) My husband was a bit disconcerted by that. I didn't tell him that I had briefly contemplated pulling out Christmas stuff so I won't be rushed later. But in my mind, I know once Tuesday of next week comes, I have no more free time before Thanksgiving. That scares me more than a little. So my grandma's little ceramic turkey is on the dining room table, along with a fall flower arrangement.  I don't think I'm going to mess with a pumpkin this year (although I'm sure the dog would love it). And today I remove the egg turner from the incubator and have the pleasure of cleaning up two bad eggs, one of which has cracked, while returning the others for three more days of resting in the heat before hatch time begins. Could someone please remind me why I didn't just toss them? I tell myself I'm not a hoarder, but I do hate for things to go to waste. We watched our first episode of Hoarders a few weeks ago and on one o...

Someone in my family gave me a request for Christmas a while back that I thought would be very easy.  My family meets for Thanksgiving this year, so that means all my Christmas stuff for that side of the family needs to be completed by then (although I'm hoping we can take a trip in either right before or right after Christmas). So I thought I could go online, fill out all the information, upload a few photos, and boom! The personalized calendar is done. But no. It can't be that simple. I'm missing a few photos, as well as a few birthdates since that person decided it wasn't enough to do our extended family, but aunts and uncles and all their descendants should be included as well. And of course, they have a list of all that stuff SOMEWHERE, but has no clue where. This "easy" project has taken me all day and I'm still not finished. I have to remind myself that quilting takes weeks, if not months, so I should be enjoying this process. My brain's not...

For 6th-8th grade, I was in a one room classroom at Victory Christian Academy. We called it "The Learning Center".  Using an ACE curriculum, 6th-12th grade used an old sanctuary of the church where we had desks with dividers along every wall and in the middle of the room. It was an interesting experience that came with many life lessons. I'm guessing we had 30 students in the whole room. Of course, being in middle school, we watched the high schoolers like crazy, and took note of everything they said and did. One of the high school boys that all the girls were crazy about was very quiet. He interacted with everyone equally; he didn't treat us middle schoolers as stupid; he lived his faith. I had the utmost respect for him and hoped when I grew up I'd find someone similar to him to marry (and I did! :) This week his 20 year old son Trent died. I've never met his wife Lorna, but they have been SO heavy on my heart ever since I heard the news. I find myself ut...

This past Saturday we took advantage of the wonderful weather and did a little yardwork, in between visits from great nephews. And I'm happy to report that A) I finished thinning out the irises by the back ramp and B) the older nephew seems to have lost interest in chasing my chickens. :) The new game is "goose huntin'".  Grab a toy gun.  Aim at the geese on the other side of the pond. (and or course, you get them all)  Move to another location, and hope younger brother doesn't throw his gun in the pond. Isn't that what you do with stick things? Oh wait. This one clicks.   I like this game much better. And it's even okay if they decide to "shoot the fish" at feeding time. That game works even better, for when the fish take their food out of sight for moment, Trey really thinks he's succeeded. :) 

What happens when you try to stay relatively dry while getting the dog in the car before you head to the vet: Buster's appointment is now rescheduled for Thursday. I guess I'll spend my afternoon sewing and cleaning after all.

Tonight we meet with someone in hopes of providing some encouragement as they learn to deal with a new normal. Changes are hard to deal with, regardless of what area of your life they impact. The challenge for me is reminding myself that it really doesn't matter how my life compares to anyone else's situation. We deal with our life; we're happy. When we start throwing other people's view of normal into the mix, things get choppy. And even in the disability world, normals vary from person to person. Sometimes I head to the forums to find out what others are doing or how they're handling certain problems, and I always come away shaking my head at some of the staunch opinions. For example: wheelchair cushions. These air/foam cushions are the first line of defense against pressure sores in the worst places, yet every person has a different need in a cushion because of body types, wheelchair use, and mobility amount. The other day I read at least two postings ranting a...

It's here. Well, it will be here as of 9am tomorrow. Election training. Tomorrow is hurdle one. Monday is hurdle two. Tuesday is hurdle three. Then I have 10 days to totally familiarize myself with the manuals. On October 24, the insanity begins. 10am-8pm days (except for weekends which are slightly better) until November third when early voting ends. November 4th I pick up supplies for the regular election. November 5th I'm on call. November 6th my phone starts chirping at 6am and I gladly turn the phone off and return it to the Board of Elections at 9pm. Perhaps I'll have time in my ten days off to schedule several blogs to upload. I'm sure I'll have tons of stories that I'll desperately want to tell you but can't, but know this: Nothing aggravates me more than to hear someone criticize the Wake County Board of Elections. People who do show how little they actually know about what's involved and how much work takes place behind the scenes....

Yes, I know this is my second post for today. Yes, I can do that. :) One of the crazy things about life with a disability is the difficulty in finding shoes. It throws a whole new kink in things. I think I've shared in the past how I hated shoe-shopping as a child because stores never carried extra-wide widths, or they'd have two options out of the 30+ shoes in my size. But that is a blessing when I compare it to trying to find shoes for my husband. When you sit in a wheelchair all day long, your feet swell. Yes, he does boost to shift his upper body and he can twist and turn in his seat, but his feet basically stay planted in the same spot (unless something bumps them or he uses his wheelchair feetplates as a bulldozer, which happens fairly often). And if your feet swell and your shoes are fitted, it not only cuts out the circulation in your feet but leaves horrid marks and sores. So shoes have to be soft and expandable. That's issue #1. Side note: 32 years ago, at ...

Egg production is one of those things you have no control over. One day your chickens lay 8 eggs; tomorrow it may be 4.  Though usually, when that happens, it means they are laying somewhere else. And we have searched for that elusive nest, and finally found it, but only because a hen emerged at the "wrong time." She wasn't too hapy to see me when she came out.     And this is the view from standing up...just a few eggs.    This was the view when I got down on my hands and knees...um...quite a few more.   It was 21, to be exact. Green, blue, brown, cream... in other words...almost ALL of our birds have laid an egg there at some point in the last month.   They are now in an incubator. This was not a chore I anticpated on having this fall. Is it evil to hope none of them hatch?