Apples

Yes, tart apples hurt my eyes. When an apple is tart, it makes me squint my eyes tightly, and they hurt. Hence, I don't like tart apples.

Package

Monday evening I heard shuffling at the front door and them a vehicle drove off. This was delivered by UPS. Now if it's as easy to install as it was fast to be delivered!

Quotes

Everyone hears what you say. Friends listen to what you say. Best friends listen to what you don't say.-- Source Unknown

Miscellaneous Ramblings

Blogging has been sporadic lately as things have been a bit busy. I often think of things I'd blog about if it were more convenient to do so. Here are some random things that have occurred:

1. Heard this comment on Saturday. "I've learned that you don't have to be Baptist to go to heaven, but why take a chance." No doubt this us used with whatever church the speaker goes to.

2. I have poison ivy. It is uncomfortable and after itching for six days I'm ready for it to be over and not spread up my neck as it appears to be doing.

3. Sunday morning I played the organ at church--let's just say it was an interesting morning. The worship leader began to say a verse and then seemed to stop and be done so I started the introduction to the first hymn. Let's just say the verse wasn't done so I stopped and then started when I was sure everything was said that was going to be said. After the hymn, I moved the hymnbook from the organ rack to the bench only I missed the bench and it fell apparently quite loudly to the floor. I guess they get what they pay for.

4. I'm not a fan of tart apples. They hurt my eyes. Last week the grocery had 3 lb bags of apples quite cheap, but I didn't recognize the type of apples and I'm afraid to buy a bag if I don't know I'll like the apples. I tried gala apples, and they are good--mostly sweet with a hint of tart.

5. I've been waiting for concord grapes to show up in the grocery stores, and finally on Saturday they showed up!

6. Finished reading Quiet Strength by Tony Dungy. It's a great book, and if you have a football fan this is an excellent choice as there is a lot of emphasis on living out your faith and making faith a priority because football is temporary.

7. Last night I began a biographical novel on Andrew Jackson that my sister shared with me.

8. Wednesday begins my next CU class. It lasts four weeks and then I have a week off before beginning a five-week class.

New Furniture

Several weeks ago I stopped at an estate sale and bought this (picture shows only the bottom) for a very, very nice price. This sat in my garage over night. . .





. . .until I took it to a wonderful furniture refinisher close by, and now it looks like this:



This is the finished piece with the top and the bottom:

Aunt Ruth

Yesterday morning at work my father called with the news that my Aunt Ruth had died the previous evening. These are my rambling thoughts and memories of Auth Ruth.

Aunt Ruth had a unique personality—she was always dressed up and fancy I thought. She hailed back to the days when women dressed up to go shopping.

I vaguely remember visiting Uncle Jay and Aunt Ruth’s home in Chicago as a small child on a family trip to the big city. One Christmas at Uncle Perry’s home she pointed out to me when someone was feeding a baby how the feeder would open and close their mouth as she spooned the food into the baby’s mouth. I still see that.

As a devoted Cornhusker fan, we Alabama relatives and she went back and forth about Nebraska v. Alabama and the New Year’s Day bowl game. I’m pretty sure we had to call her after the game with our tail between our legs admitting defeat.

I interacted more with her in the last few years. In 1998 at the EJK reunion in Alabama I drove her and Uncle Jay to the Helen Keller home (along with Bruce and Elizabeth with little Matthew). We discussed my interest in learning to play golf, and we often talked about my taking clubs to Florida to play a round with Aunt Ruth. I’m quite sure she would have been disappointed in my golf abilities.

After Uncle Jay passed away in May 2004 I tried to call Aunt Ruth a few times a year. She was always excited about the occasional call and always seemed to remember what was going on in my life to ask about it.

In 2005 she visited my home in Michigan with my mother, Aunt Ada, and cousin Gloria for Tulip Time. She always talked about coming back. She was quite interested in Herman Miller and where I worked. The morning we went in to see my office she did was I was most afraid of—she took a picture of me with my co-workers. However, yesterday when I walked over to tell them about my phone call, they all remembered Aunt Ruth.

On that trip we were discussing how we both didn't care for the meet and greet time that many churches have early in their service. She said she didn't like being told to look at a neighbor beside them and say some phrase so she said looked at someone and said, "Howdy."

She had a great love for Uncle Jay, and the grief she had for so many years made me realize what great love a person can have for another. The last time I saw Aunt Ruth at my parents’ 50th anniversary a couple of years ago she sat with tears watching the slide show and was so glad I put in a picture of Uncle Jay.

Last night I sat in a church service looking through a hymnbook and read these lyrics:
When my life work is ended, and I cross the swelling tide,
When the bright and glorious morning I shall see;
I shall know my Redeemer when I reach the other side,
And His smile will be the first to welcome me.

Refrain
I shall know Him, I shall know Him,
And redeemed by His side I shall stand,
I shall know Him, I shall know Him,
By the print of the nails in His hand.

Oh, the soul thrilling rapture when I view His blessèd face,
And the luster of His kindly beaming eye;
How my full heart will praise Him for the mercy, love and grace,
That prepare for me a mansion in the sky.

Refrain

Oh, the dear ones in glory, how they beckon me to come,
And our parting at the river I recall;
To the sweet vales of Eden they will sing my welcome home;
But I long to meet my Savior first of all.

Refrain

Through the gates to the city in a robe of spotless white,
He will lead me where no tears will ever fall;
In the glad song of ages I shall mingle with delight;
But I long to meet my Savior first of all.

Refrain

Of course, I thought about Aunt Ruth who fewer than 24 hours before had experienced these very words.

She was a woman of strong faith, and I believe today she is in heaven in the presence of Jesus Christ, who loved her and gave Himself for her.

Fit Hitch

Recently I’ve been looking for hitches to attach a bike rack. I called local places and on-line. One local business had an on-line presence with one feature allowing the customer to ask for a quote. Three days later I got an e-mail from a generic e-mail address (name@charter.net) with the subject line “Hitch”. This was the message. That hitch would run 168.00 installed

Had I contacted multiple businesses asking for a quote I would have had no idea which business this was nor their contact information to set up a purchase/installation.

Today I ordered a hitch from an on-line business. Within an hour I had three e-mails from them. The first acknowledged my order. The second confirmed the order and shipping. The third said this:
When you placed your order, you selected the standard (5 to 7 business day)shipping. I gave your order special priority today and was able to have it upgraded to the 3 to 5 Day Express Shipping at no additional cost to you! Your order shipped today and will arrive earlier than we promised. I’m probably not going to be buying multiple hitches or more trailer equipment, but if this arrives in 3-5 days and everything works out well, will I recommend this business—you better believe it! And I’ll also tell you where not to look for hitches.

Working for my lunch

This summer several of us worked on scheduling a fishing charter, but each time there was inclement weather. One was a co-worker who said it got her excited about fishing and she and her husband often stop at a lake now and put in a line just to see what they catch. They never keep them.

A couple of weeks ago we talked about going to a local park and fishing during lunch so today we did.

Except for very dirty hands, it was a lot of fun. We both caught a small blue gill so the hour wasn't a washout.

We are going to a bigger lake at lunch one day next week. After all, a bad lunch hour of fishing is better than any good hour at work.

Deja Vu

February of 1989 or 1990 a student approached me before the bell for last hour to begin which would have been about 2:30. “Ms. K., I feel like I have to throw up.” I told her to go to the bathroom if she was going to be sick thinking why is she wasting time telling me and spreading her germs around me.

That evening on the way home from a basketball game my stomach started cramping. Sparing the details of 1:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m., I will just say that it wasn’t pretty. At 5:00 a.m. I thought someone should know I was dying so I called my parents who were only four states away. They talked to me for a few minutes and talking with them calmed me down so that at the end of the conversation I apologized for waking them up so early. My mom replied, “That’s ok. I had to get up to answer the phone anyway.” Thanks, Mom, for making me feel better.

Why tell this story? At 2:30 today a co-worker came to my desk to ask where our work team leader was. She was sweating and I asked if she was ok. “I feel like I’m going to throw up.”

I hope it’s not déjà vu all over again!

Political Statement on a Bumper

Best bumper sticker seen on vacation:

I'll keep my dollars and you can have the change.

Post-Vacation

Lunches after vacation are good, very good. Yesterday was a Chick-Fil-A sandwich and today was a philly cheesesteak from Penn Station. Both were purchased on the drive back and kept in the cooler.

But the very, very best is breakfast: my mom's coffeecake!!!

Thankful Thursday

It's been awhile, but here goes this week's version:

1. Obviously I'm so thankful for getting to see family the last week and a half. I missed only 4 of 18 family members.
2. Obviously safety for almost 2000 miles. I suppose I should have checked the mileage before writing this.
3. Vacation was a good mix of family and touristy things.
4. A job to come back to.
5. Apparently few mistakes to correct from others covering my daily work.
6. Having to go to a different facility twice today for meetings I thought I'd lost my work badge. It could have been in three different parking lots, the gas station, my desk, or oh no, my car (which is not completely unloaded). I don't want to have to buy a new one. Thankfully I dug deeper between the driver's seat and the console, and there it was.
7. I'm thankful Renae and I are still friends after 11 days together.

Thursday

I'm baaaaaaacccccccccckkkkkkk!!!

Thankfully I could get to work later this morning allowing me to sleep longer although it means I'll work later tonight. I've come back to one of the busiest days I've had in awhile--3 meetings plus Thursdays are just busier.

In fact, I have 15 minutes to get to another facility for my next meeting. . .

Vacation Day 9

This is vacation??? Today included 3 trips to Wal-Mart, 2 trips to Lowe's, a trip to Publix (a wwwoooonnnnnddddderful grocery store or so I was told 10 years ago), a trip to Big Bob Gibson's for lunch, a trip to Old Time Pottery, putting up 12 trellises along a fence, deadheading several daisy bushes, and replanting a lily.

Obviously some of those were more pleasant than others, but no wonder I'm tired tonight!!!

Vacation Day Four

Yesterday was a true vacation day except for having to get up at 6:45 to take Renae to work. However, following breakfast at IHOP and dropping her off I went back to the hotel and promptly fell asleep until 10:30!!! I had to get up to get ready for lunch as I was meeting a lady who I work with who is based here. We had a nice time and then I returned to the hotel to sit by the pool and read for the afternoon. Then it was get Renae, shop, eat, and visit with Molly and the three oldest children.

Yesterday at the hotel breakfast room we had to listen to a couple discuss which had more alcoholism, bars, and churches: New Orleans or Nashville. The man loudly described how alcoholic everyone from New Orleans is. Apparently he is from Nashville because his wife insisted that there were way more bars in Nashville than New Orleans.

This morning we listened two ladies discuss someone's diet: "She can have 45 carbs a day, and every protein she eats cuts down on her carbs. You know carbs is sugar."

Please turn up the tv in the breakfast room!

My Anniversary

Today begins my sixth year of work at Herman Miller. It's now officially the second longest employment at one place I've had, and I'm on vacation today!

See You On The Grill

Renae the Chicken Wrangler:

The last chicken in the pen:

The last one wouldn't go down to the end with the door so I lifted the chicken tractor and the chicken had about 8 seconds of freedom:

Last Saturday at the demolition derby I commented that all of the cars being smashed up were one day driven off a car lot as a new car that someone was so proud of and probably took really good care of. Three years ago on August 28 I would never have thought my Honda Fit Sport would be used to haul live chickens to the "poultry processing facility".

We pick them up after 5:00 tonight.

As my co-worker said, "See you on the grill."

The Time Has Come

Just got this message from Renae. It looks as if the day of reckoning for the chickens has come.


I called kapinga's - can you pick up some cages after work from them - probably 4 of them. She said we can bring them tonight and pick them up after 5pm tomorrow or by noon on sat.


It will be easier to take them tonight instead of tomorrow morning. We'll probably weigh at least some of them when we catch them tonight so don't worry--you should get some more pictures!!!

EDIT: And why does everyone ask if I'll cry or if I'll have a hard time eating the meat and no one asks that about Renae???

Teaching Reflection

For some reason I was randomly looking at the obituaries in the newspaper of a town in which I used to teach. I was surprised to see that some former students’ father had died. It was a dysfunctional family—the father was extremely harsh with his boys, but when I disciplined one, the father was immediately in the principal’s office complaining. The boys showed the scars of harsh parenting. While they were rather distant, one came to me when he heard that I wouldn’t be returning to the school, looked at me, started crying, hugged me, and then let go and walked out of the door.

It was very clear he knew the difference between discipline in love and punishing you because I’m a bully and can.

This is me getting ready to walk out the door this morning for work:

And it's not the first time I've done this, but the other time it was at least the same style of shoe just a different color!!!

Special Visitors

Sunday was a special day--my cousins, Dave and Judy, who were vacationing on the west coast of Michigan, spent several hours with me. We went to church and then ate at my house. I thought a central Illinois farmer would like to see the local muck fields with crops of celery, onions, squash, and beets.

This is Judy and me in front of my condo.