And the winner is…

What goes like this:

$$ Cha-ching $$ We got our settlement checks from our car accident!

Wa-hoo!!! Wa-hoo!!!  No translation needed.

<insert happy dance> Let’s do the Snoopy dance :)

Rrrrrrrrrr….. <nothing> Heading to the bank to deposit the checks and the car says “Rrrrrrrrrr…..” and nothing happens.

Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!! ….. <nothing> Really?  Let’s try that again…..

#&$*@^#$!! Still no translation needed.

$ Cha-ching $ Let’s send the hubby to the auto parts store on his bike and have him spend a bunch of money on car parts.

Waa-waa :(  Not happy spending money on the truck.

I would like to add that my hubby was successful in replacing the fuel pump and filter in record time.  And while it was extremely frustrating there were certainly blessing to be found.  I am grateful that we had the money to buy the replacement parts, that my hubby had the day off, that the kids I normally babysit didn’t need me that morning, that not only did I not need to babysit but that their dad was available to help my hubby manuver the gas tank on the ‘burb.  I am grateful my hubby has the skills to do the necesary work and we didn’t have to take it into an expesive repair shop.

Riddle me this….

What goes like this:

$$ Cha-ching $$

Wa-hoo!!!

<insert happy dance>

Rrrrrrrrrr….. <nothing>

Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!! ….. <nothing>

#&$*@^#$!!

$ Cha-ching $

Waa-waa :(

What Not to Wear

I have to get this out of my head before my brain explodes.  Does it really matter what you wear to church?

Is it a lack of respect to wear jeans?  Is a suit and tie the appropriate attire?  Should you wear the best that you have?  Is it something that should even take up 5 minutes of your time deciding?  Are you dressing for God or for people?  Do you dress indigenously - dress like the culture in which your church resides?  Or is it a personal choice between you and God?

I’m having a struggle with this.  I never really gave much thought about how I dress for church.  I came from a very relaxed church that welcomes people for who they are - not what they wear.  I am now attending - and work for - a conservative southern baptist church.  I have stepped up my wardrobe a bit to put on khakis or capris.  I’ve even been known to don the occassional dress or skirt.  (I know all you Phoenix people are laughing at the thought of me in a dress.  shush.) 

This evening I attended a vision and strategy meeting where the topic of dress code was brought up.  For reasons of privacy I’m not going to get into exactly what was said but suffice it to say that I left the meeting feeling very judged because of what I choose to wear (or not wear).

Which brings me back to my original questions.  I’m not looking for answers as to what I should do… only I can figure that out.  But I would like to hear your own personal thoughts and choices on what you wear (or will not wear) to church and why.  Do you judge people, staff or pastors based on their Sunday morning wardrobe?

Wishing I had a motorcycle

I don’t know about your neck of the woods but here in Roanoke the gas prices just shot up about $2.00 a gallon.  We were somewhere in the 3 dollars and change area when Ike came along and caused everyone and their mother to run to the gas station and suck up all the gas in town.  My hubby is trying to find out who has gas left and so far the only place left is charging upwards of $5.00 a gallon.  Um, hello?  Price gouging much?!  I think I will be walking places for awhile.

Grumpystilskin

Dude. 

I love that the kids are back in school.  I felt almost naked today without having to haul three kids all over the city.  In fact, I caught myself a couple of times today thinking I was missing something.  I’m not complaining.  I’m sure I can overcome this - even if it means becoming Lady Godiva!

Being honest though means I have to admit that I have been rather grumpy lately.  The early, early mornings coupled with a new schedule and perhaps a bit of pre-PMS = a nasty case of the grumpies.  There’s also work stuff going on plus my hubby’s erratic schedule to deal with.  And a leaky basement and leaking roof and forecasted rain for Friday.  The aforementioned leaks accompanied by yucky mildew smells. 

Yeah, I was serious about that “Dude.” up there.  I need a girls’ night.  Not much of a hen party with only one chicken.

Calling all creative parents

I need help!!  I am just about out of ideas to help my 9 year old Chickie…

She is so much like me.  At times that can make it very difficult to parent her.  I see her struggle with many of the same things I struggled with as a child.  It gives me compassion and understanding but it comes with a load of frustration as well. 

See, Chickie and I suffer from PackRatitis.  It’s all in good intention… let’s save that because we’ll need it again someday.  But clutter drives me insane.  I get stressed and overwhelmed by piles of stuff everywhere.  I cannot work in a messy environment.  My desk and my half of the office is just about spotless.  Unfortunately that “Office OCD” doesn’t translate well to homelife.  I share my home with three kids, a hubby, two dogs and two cats.  And none of them have OCD.  In fact, my hubby has Obliviousitis - a trait that he has passed to Chickie.  So not only is she a packrat - she oblivious to it.

I was raised in a home where my room had to be clean 24/7.  If things got out of control then my mother would clean it up and give away my clothes or toys.  Or if I was lucky she would box it up for a year and I’d eventually get it back.  I don’t want that for Chickie.  I want her to respect herself, her room, her sister (who shares her room), our home and her belongings.  

So far that isn’t going so well.  At 9 years of age she is expected to do her own laundry (which by the way she loves to do at other people’s houses).  Failing that she’s out of clean clothes.  I’ve gone so far as to ”take away” her clothes and allow her one outfit until she earned back more clothes.  No lesson learned.  

The kids have a huge playroom in the basement where most of their toys are supposed to stay.  I’m not a huge stickler about having toys in their rooms but when there’s more toys shoved under her bed than in the playroom….  I also feel it isn’t fair to Beans to have to share a room with Chickie.  Our home has three bedrooms.  The Boy has his own room - which he keeps very clean.  Beans and Chickie share the larger bedroom.  I don’t want to reward Chickie by giving her her own room and making The Boy share his room with Beans.

Any ideas for helping Chickie learn about respecting her living environment?  It’s more of a two-fold request… She needs to learn and I need to teach.  And.  There needs to be a stiff consequence when/if she doesn’t maintain some level of cleanliness in her room.

Death to hackers!

If you’re smart enough to write malicious software then GO GET A JOB that helps out humanity.  When hackers are caught they should be forced to do hard, manual labor… like whatever the dirtiest job is that Mike Rowe has had to do.  And they should have to do it with one hand while blindfolded and taunted by victims of their abuse.  Yes.  That would be a good start.

Bitter much?  No, not me.  I was merely digitally scrapbooking when I decided that I need a good quote about love to add to my project.  I googled “love poems” and a site called poetry (dot) come came back with some good bits.  I was doomed the moment I clicked over.  BAM! BAM! BAM AGAIN!  I instantly had trojans all over my computer despite my anti-virus protection software.  The trojans hijacked my screensaver, my desktop, my desktop properties and a number of other annoying things. 

It took two additional anti-virus products to find everything.  Plus I found two excellent step-by-step sites that walked me through finding and removing the last of it myself.  After two days of hair pulling and cursing I finally have my smiling babies back on my desktop and no more crawling black bugs and blue screen announcing “You have a virus!  Install an anti-virus program now!”

It really upset me how easily these three trojans slipped in.  I am very careful about not downloading anything from random sites.  I don’t visit sketchy sites and I made sure I had (what I thought was adequate) protection software. 

I had no idea that poetry could be so dangerous.  No wonder why I’m not a huge fan!

Riddle me this

What goes “Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrt, CRUNCH!!!” ?

Here’s your sign.

I heard the most insane story today.  After thinking about it for a bit it actually made me kind of mad.  It’s one thing to pay for your own stupid mistakes but to pay (literally pay) for another’s mistakes??

Where is this lamb you speak of?

Never have I experienced a season as volatile as Spring.  It’s a violent struggle between Summer asserting her dominance over Winter while he desperately holds on with his slipping icy grasp.  Think about it.  Summer is monotonous in its relentless heat.  Fall emerges when Summer dies out and Winter quietly takes over.  Winter is peaceful - occassionaly broken by the fury of snow.  But Spring.  Ah, Spring has a temper.  Winter is not yet ready to let go of his frozen tundra as Summer sees what she wants and declares it for herself.  It is a battle that is drawn out day after day.  Once, what was belonging to Winter, now becomes slave to Summer only to return to Winter the next day.  Beautiful flowers glow in the sunshine and die overnight in the frost.  Huddled in the trees songbirds and mischievous squirrels hide from the cold rain until Summer brings a short lived reprieve.  Back and forth the days toss from the memory of Winter to the new reign of Summer.  Until, finally, one day Winter loses his tenuous grasp and Summer, in full glory, takes what is rightfully hers.