Crunchy Caveman Fingers

In my family, I am the guardian of the super glue. As such, I am also the fixer of things...aka the inanimate object surgeon. I guess it is fitting because I am the only one here that has fulfilling conversations with objects. Yes. I talk not only to my family, myself, the dogs, the computer screen, and...stuff. (Hrm looking at that last sentence it was a down hill sentence huh? 《---- Haha. Digression. Yes, it is only funny if you get it.)  So yes, super-glue fix-it queen I am.

No one ever said that I did it well. While I fix the things and the rarely come back broken and I don't have to fix them anymore. I have yet to determine if it is because I slathered on the glue or that I really AM a good fixer glue it person. We may have to ask the Miles masses about that.

I frustrate myself when I come out of super glue lady mode. No matter how careful I am, it never fails that 4-6 of my fingers will be crunchy for days. Sure, ill rub them together, try various chemicals to get it off but I only make things worse. What I end up doing is running around the house rubbing my crunchy fingers on everyones arms ticking them all off. Hehehe. Gotta love cheap shots right? Well...now that the secret is out the family will probably run from me the next time I pull ou the super glue. Wow. They already about face when I have a headset on. I wonder how fast disappear happens if I put kn the ole headset and wave super glue at them. **Micaa rubs her jands together evily. Bwahahahaha...tonight...tonight super glue and I will take over the world!**

Super glue. Oh. Yea. When the super glue drues, I imagine when my fingers are rough with dried glue, that this is how caveman hands must be as they never had lotion and such. Crunchy and scrapey. Ya. They didnt need razors to shave. They just rubbed their face once over.

What do YOU think?

Why are you in such a hurry?

I have written about traffic before. I don't drive much, but when I do, what is the point of trying to push someone along the highway if they are going the speed limit?  Maybe they do not care about where YOU have to be and they are certainly NOT trying to get a ticket. For the most part, there is more than one lane and you can go around if you wish. There is just no need to rage and blare the horn and suddenly find the rest of you lead foot. It is not that serious.


The other night, I was coming home from picking up one of these things we made (ya, they are children. We love them but when they get a certain age, their bodies are taken over by some evil alien. Another blog, another post. I digress. WAIT! It just occurred to me I did NOT digress in another post I wrote this morning. ICK! I must really be sick! Anyway...) I was at a stoplight and when the light turned green I accelerated.


I must say that I do NOT drive like a granny but I most certainly did not get up to the posted speed limit by the time I fully crossed the intersection either. This car, it must have been near the size of a smart car or something (who also sat through the light behind me) started beeping and flashing their lights in my rear view mirror like I was hindering their ability to speed through life! Well lady, there is certainly a lane over there ----> and I am NOT going to change lanes in the middle of the dang intersection just to make you happy. I don't know you and your happiness fails to register on my utility meter. Further, I am not going to speed up to assist you in your horrid behavior. She finally went around me after about 3 seconds of her beeping and flashing. Goody. What kills me is that, 2 lights later, guess who I pulled up next to at a RED light?  I love that. I just smile and wave at them. That is what you get for trying to be ugly over something that is not that serious.


Besides, the direction she was heading, there was nothing that way for miles. Guess what else? I will get to where I am going BEFORE you, speedy lady AND I will be safe and without a ticket. So "colon pee" to you! (For you fogies out there, if you type a colon followed by a capital letter P, it is the emoticon for someone sticking their tongue out.)  I usually let stuff like that roll off my back because it is not worth it to get all worked up and have an aneurism over.


Road rage is not on the top of my list of things that I want to do. Not over some goofball like that anyway. Why ARE you in such a hurry anyway? If you are late, you are just that....late. If you rush too much, you will still be late anyway. Leave earlier next time. I know that sometimes it cannot be helped but don't take it out on everyone else when you have messed up timing. It is not their fault and they probably don't care. So, why waste the time getting angry?


Your song is on the radio and you are the ONLY one in that tiny car of yours. SING!!! Jeez.


What do YOU think?

The Scale Lied to Me

I found a scale in the ladies locker room at the rec center and have used it from time to time. Back story to this one is simple. My mother ALWAYS (and still does) had a scale in the house and it was a source of resentment for me because I have never been comfortable in my own skin. However, I will randomly check my weight when I visit mom or they have ones to sample at the store. In this case, it was the one at the recreation center. Now I have had "conversations" with this one because I think the calibration is off. It sticks and if you push it a few times it will stop that. However, I think it lies when it does work properly. This is one of the scales they use at the doctors office. You know, with the sliding weights on the 2 bars.

Ever since our youngest was born, I have hovered around 200. I am miserable with that. We also decided no more kiddos after that last one and I was concerned I would end up like my mother and her sisters if I did make that decision and so far, I have been right.

However, I did try to remedy that and try different things over the past seven or eight years to get below that 200. 8 months as a vegetarian and no change, Sticking with an exercise regimen at least six months with no results on at least three occasions! 1000 calorie diet for 2 months and got nowhere but starving. Counting calories, watching what I eat, Less bread, less sugar, less fat, less processed foods. Removing soda from my diet. More water. All the while, I am creeping up the scale.

Last night that damn scale told me 211.

I think it lied to me because of the fact that it is possibly not calibrated. However, it still makes me feel like shit. I am now seriously considering surgery to fix this behemoth stomach I have because that is the area that I have the most issue with. I also note that the "bigger" I get, the worse I feel. I just want to give up. I am certain that if I do, it will get worse. I have also considered having my thyroid checked and other things because there are family members I have with that issue. I am just scared to death they will find something that will cause me to be on medication that I cannot afford for the rest of my life. You know me, I HATE taking meds. Its like pulling teeth to take an aspirin for a headache.

I don't normally blog about these things but I am looking for some feedback that is outside of my family to see what other options there are to consider. There are things that I am still set against. I don't want to do banding because there are things that I will have to cut out completely that I still would like to enjoy from time to time. Starving myself wont work either and I don't have the time to workout 3 hours a day every single day for the next year.

Be realistic please. I want honest feedback.

What do YOU think?

Will there ever be a reprieve?

This is my attempt to get some variety between my channels. Most of the time, I will just copy and paste a post from WordPress to Blogger to author page. This morning, it just hit me to try something different. Besides, the more I write, the less "inflated" I feel. I am finding this post to be a little more difficult as there is usually a thought process involved before I actually sit down and write something.
This one, in the attempt to be different, is just random chit floating through my head and was intended to be a thing about money and morphed into something else just after I wrote the title. I know, I should always write the content then find a fitting title. Some say it's easier but you know me and shock value. While it is not shocking to anyone else, it is still a writer's eccentric habit and that is shocking to other writers.


I have always written or kept a journal since I was a kid. While my writing has evolved and life circumstances dictate that I write differently, the need is the same. Its like breathing. A writer is not healthy without writing SOMETHING. For me, there are things that I come across during the day that I think "that would be awesome to put out there with my skewed line of thinking." Others never see the light of day either because I forget or it is just not there anymore by the time I get near my computer. Yea, I need to get a laptop again. I avoid my office like the plague when I am not working. Too bad I don't make enough to work ONLY on my writing. I am certain there would be a lot more accomplished there. But that is the digression here and yes, a topic for another day.


The reprieve I am asking for here is because, sometimes, my fingers just are too tired from working or writing other things to type out what I have bouncing around in my head. You see, it starts off as a random thought floating into the room. That thought begins to replicate itself and then bounce around in my head until it is all encompassing and I have to "get it out."

http://favim.com/image/292169/

This is why a writer HAS to write. My curiosity is this: How much CAN a writer write before they are satisfied that they are done? Even if only for one day. I write and get my quarter machine bouncy balls out of my brain. However, once the room is clear...here comes another. Is there a way to shut the door they happily bounce from? If there is, do I WANT to have that door shut?

THAT, my friends, I do not have the answer to.

What do YOU think?



Leadership Posting number 1

I write several blogs among other things. I like to think that I am right up there with my favorite author Stephen King, with the fifty or so pages every day. I am published and am currently working on book number 2. I write for here and WordPress. I write letters to my children (for their own stories) all the time and I have a paper due for Doctorate studies each week. I have social media as well. Finally, I have a blog for work that I have started over the past year.


The following is a new feature in my work blog. Leadership posts. It is based upon the idea that good leaders have specific traits and I want to share these traits with people. Even if the reader is not interested in being a leader and wants to remain amongst the sheeple, that is ok. This will still help make you a better human being. Certainly true if you deal with the public at all.


Here it is:


One of the most redeeming qualities I have found in the leaders that have the most effective teams is that the know how to listen and can listen well. This is something that can roll over into making a customer happy. Sometimes an angry customer just wants to vent and it is most effective at someone who will LISTEN.  While you do not have to agree with them, a  great deal of supervisor calls are resolved by just listening to the frustrations of the customer. Their issue may not get any further than what the agent has already done, but the listening part is key to get them to calm down most of the time. 

(Back story because I always have one....I came across the below information cleaning out my briefcase that I found in the attic last night. For those of you who don't know me, I was a paralegal and have a PhD in Law. Yes, I like to argue. That is why I had this paper in my briefcase because listening was something that was vital when it came to flushing out the real issues in the legal field.) While I scanned it and posted a pic of the document below, I will write it out for you so that you can read it clearly as some of it is fuzzy. Yes, there is a spill. Disregard that, stupid attic weather....

HOW TO BECOME A BETTER LISTENER

1. STOP TALKING: You can't listen while you are talking. 

2. ONE CONVERSATION AT A TIME: Don't try to engage in two conversations at once. You may hear two people at one time, but you can't effectively listen to two conversations at once. 

3. EMPATHIZE WITH THE PERSON SPEAKING: Try to put yourself in their place so that you can see what the speaker is trying to get at...YES, this is not as easy as it sounds but a restatement of what you've heard or an appropriate question will often uncover areas of miscommuncation.

4. ASK QUESTIONS:  That's right, we did just mention asking questions. But it's so important it bears restating. When you don't understand or when you need further clarification, ask questions. Don't ask questions that are a form of a statement about how smart you are on a subject. If you have information to offer, make a statement. 

5. DON'T INTERRUPT: Don't interrupt when someone else is speaking. Give the speaker time to say what they have to say. THEN, and not before, ask you questions or take issue with what the speaker has said. MIND HOW YOU TAKE ISSUE WITH SOMEONE ELSE'S STATEMENTS.

6. SHOW INTEREST: Look at the speaker - Their face, mouth, eyes, and hands. All these things will help the speaker communicate with you, and this effort will help you concentrate. Eye contact is significant. 

7. CONCENTRATE ON WHAT IS BEING SAID: Actively focus your attention on the speaker's words, ideas, and feelings related to the subject. If you are in doubt as to the subject, a question is in order.
 
8. DON'T JUMP TO CONCLUSIONS: When you do, you tune yourself out from the rest of what the speaker has to say. You may tend to think to yourself, "Hurry up and finish because I've got your point." or by rudely interrupting and saying, "Yes, yes. I know what you mean. What else is new?" By doing either, you run the risk of misunderstanding the entire conversation because of a premature conclusion you drew. Yes, there are some people who drone on and on. At the appropriate break or pause, ask if you've got the gist or point by summarizing what you've heard. This is a polite way to test the point. 

9. CONTROL YOUR ANGER: Try not to get angry with what they are saying. Your anger will most likely prevent you from understanding what is really being said. Plus, it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO DEAL WITH YOUR FEELINGS!
10. REACT TO IDEAS, NOT TO THE SPEAKER: Don't allow your reactions to the speaker to influence your interpretation of what is being said. Their ideas may be good even if you don't like them as a person or like the way the look or speak or move. 

11. LISTEN FOR WHAT IS NOT SAID: Sometimes you can learn just as much by determining what the other person leaves out or avoids saying as you can by listening to what is actually being said. Pay attention to how it is being said, also. 

12. SHARE THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR COMMUNICATION: Only part of the responsibility for effective communication rest with the speaker. You as the listener, have an obligation to actively listen to what is being communicated and ask questions when you do not understand. 

If you make note of the above tips and put them into action, your are on your way to becoming an effective leader. Even if leadership is not in your future, it still goes a long way to use some of these to listen to our customers. After all. They ARE the reason we are here!

What do YOU think?

Coffee makes the world better.

For those of you who know me, even minutely, know that me and coffee have to be like peas in a pod or the world is NOT happy.  Sadly, 3 days before payday, I RAN OUT!  I scrambled up enough change to get Mt. Dew for the first day and that was ok. I survived and did not kill anyone and it was a great substitute….for that one day. The second day, I had about an inch left of the Mt. Dew (Yes, I went through almost the whole 1.5 litre the day before!) and I tried to save that until I absolutely needed it. By then it was flat and flat sodas are nasty. I still choked it down.

Enter random daily text messages from dear Hubby.

**Snort** **Growl** **Bite** **Draw Blood** All the while I am at WORK and you know that at work, Micaa has to play nice because she talks on the phone for a living! Yes, it was a near impossible feat but I survived it and no, there are no pending criminal charges.  So, work was ok. People tore my nerves to kingdom come but I didn’t curse anyone out and we were relatively busy so I didn’t have time to contemplate destroying the universe due to lack of caffeine.  This, I tell you, is a great service my job provided to the world!   (Yes, I digressed, here we go.) I was very snappy in my text messages to my love. I had to take a break and go tell him. “Look, sorry I am not being very nice. I have no coffee. No creamer. AND no soda! So yes, I am grouchy.” I did not want to alarm the children so I had walked out of my office and directly to dear Hubby and whispered that in his ear.

Know what he did? He started to belly laugh. The more I tried to explain my terrible attitude, the more he laughed. I gave him that joy. He needed a good laugh and he sure got it. He did tell me “WHY didn’t you tell me!!! I have a coupla bucks!  I could have brought you a soda when I came in from work this morning! You surely didn’t have to suffer like that!” (-.-)  ß THAT was my reply.

When I got off work, we went and purchased coffee and creamer yesterday. J

I got a BIG can so I won’t have this problem EVER EVER again.

Fast forward to 3 a.m. this morning.

Per my usual routine, I go to make my beloved coffee (after brushing my teeth of course…you NEVER want to smell your morning breath before coffee. Blech!) and I got the filter cup….opened the cabinet…pulled the lid off the can… and OH…..MY…..GAWD…..the smell of pure heaven!  I inhaled the scent ever so deeply and announced to the dark kitchen (yes, only the light of the fish tank illuminated my surroundings) “That smells soooo good! I just want to stick my face in it!!!” Happily, I went on about my day. When it was finally done brewing, that first sip was like nothing else! I. feel. So. Much. Better!

Later in the morning, I told our daughter what I said. She looked at me like O.o.  “Did you have your usual little can? You can’t stick your face in the little can mom.”  To which my giddy reply “No my dear, I had the big can so I honestly could have stuck my face in it if I wanted to!”  Here comes the peanut gallery filled with dear Hubbys’ voice “Oh yes! I could see mommy sticking her face into the can eating coffee grounds. Imagine it daughter! Bwahahahaha!”

There you go, everyone got a great laugh at my pain and suffering. However family, you DO sleep when I get up as I get up during the time the rest of the world calls “ungodly.”  Remember that when you go to bed tonight and beware!!!!

You all will sleep sometime…..when you wake…I will be caffeinated and IN YOUR FACE!  You will hate me so much but you think about that when you laugh at my uncaffinated state next time. Mmmmkay?

What do YOU think?

Corutesy Arrest Warrant

I consider myself a "dangerous mind" because I live smack in the middle of the ghetto of my city and do things like read arrest records and search public records indexes and get the "scoop" on people. Don't worrry, I don't do it unless I am asked to investigate someone or I just do random searches of family members names to see how many identical names are in trouble with the law. Crazy hobby, I know. It passes the time. Better than porn, right?

I stumbled upon a new data base this morning and something made me wonder. 

What in the heck is a "courtesy arrest warrant?" 

I should have looked at the charge and it would have made it all crystal clear. However, I was looking for something in particular and was not interested in the charge for a "courtesy arrest warrant" at the time. However, in a list of 7500+ records, I continued to see this over, and over again. I turned to one of my co workers and said:

WTHeck is a courtesy arrest warrant?  Hrmm....."Good morning citizen! As a one time courtesy, I am going to arrest you for your convenience, please hold."  :)  That made for a good laugh. After I said that, I noted that the charge was for larceny/failure to return books. AHHHH. It all makes sense now! LIBRARY BOOKS!!!  Still, courtesy for what? Is it a reminder? (ya, ya, I know it IS a courtesy for the Library. They want their stuff back.)  Is it something where you are "warned" but still fingerprinted, mugshotted, and let go to find and return or paid for said item? (Yes, I said mugshotted. Mugged was simply not appropriate.) 

At any rate, that made me worry and I ended up searching for MY name as I have had a book that has not been returned because I am not done with it yet. Yes, I have done all the renewals I could on it and the library has even emailed me a bill for it. It was due I think in.....March. I just put it down and forgot to finish it. Soooooo. I guess I am reading today and returning the library book before I get my "courtesy" handed to me in the form of silver bracelets. 

**shudders** Scary thought.  However, ironically, to receive shinies over an epic dragon story. Go figure. 

Only Me.

What do YOU think?

Where is my beloved beach?

Most of you know I have been fighting a battle with depression and the jury is still out on which side is going to win. I am vehemently opposed to obtaining medication for this because I believe I can kick its butt on my own. However, sometimes I wonder.

I tried something different yesterday. I made myself get out of the house and go visit an old friend who was in town with her family for the weekend. It was nice to have a grown up conversation with someone who does not live in my home nor is not words on a computer screen. We talked in general about nothing as we watched the beach activity and looked out over the ocean toward the end or the world. While it was horribly hot, it was nice to be outside of my element even if only for a short time. It was great catching up with an old friend. I needed to be at the beach. I love it there. The smell of the ocean air, the sound of the waves and the beauty of the dangerous ocean. It has more power than anyone realizes. I am also trying other things. I am writing via snail mail to my lifelong best friend and it is exciting to wait for the mail and to write back and see how long it takes to get there. That helps too. (Teeny digression there. Yea, you didn’t know that.)

Unfortunately, I cut my visit short because I had hungry children and I knew I had to get home soon. I always have something to do that I will never get done because the inspiration leaves me when I start to see blue. (You know, you see red when you are livid. I see blue when I am down.) I didn’t want Mary to see me like that. So I left. That didn’t help my mood any. Instead of going home the way we came, I decided to give in to the boys request and we walked the beach back toward the house. I am happy to say they had a blast. I just felt worse and worse. I looked out over my beloved ocean and began to think of how the United States and other developed countries constantly send their street run off into the ocean and how dirty that makes the water at the sand’s edge. To watch people freely play in it. Hell, they may as well be playing in ditch water. I also thought about how careless people are in that they don’t take care of my beloved beach. They leave trash everywhere and really do not care that it affects everything. This made me sad because it is yet more evidence of human nature that fails our planet and fails our children. We fail each other as a people.

Then I turn inward and begin to think of personal things. How I used to LOVE the beach more than I do now. How it was a place of solace for me. I could stand at the edge of the tide and feel the waves lapping at my feet. I would look out as far as I could see and imagine falling off the “edge” of the earth and deeply breathe in the salt air and feel at peace. I would feel at home. For a brief moment…I would feel comfortable in my own skin. I would feel comfortable breathing and with Michele. Its almost elation. Once I began to think about how being at the beach used to make me feel. I stopped. I tried to catch that elusive moment of joy.

It eluded me.

The ocean seemed dark. The sky unforgiving. I felt alone.

I had to step back from that. I turned my attention to my boyz who were frolicking in the tied pools and having a blast. No video games, no money being spent for some overinflated attraction that is a disappointment. Just fun with each other and the beach. My beloved beach. That perked me up a little but I was still sad. (OMG did I just break down into tears right now while writing this!?)

We continued our walk down the beach and happened upon a festival that was going on for the day at the board walk. Once we got on the boardwalk, we listened to some music from a concert while we put on our shoes and refilled our water bottle. The band there played “Happy.” Maybe that was the world trying to tell me something. I took that as a sign and put all that mess behind me and we took the street which led to our house. Another sign was that we came across one of our daughter’s friends and he stopped and had a conversation with us. Polite and respectful teenagers always are a breath of better in this horrible world we live in.

Maybe I can beat this. Maybe my beloved beach will come back to me.

What do YOU think?

It will take a lifetime to fix this mess we are in

I was having a thought process before coffee this morning. (I know, dangerous right?) It all started the other day when my daughter and I were discussing an injury she had at one of her million (exaggeration but it might as well be) athletic activities through the local high school. She was telling me how the trainer told her to do this exercise and that and then both hot and cold therapies. All I could do was sit there and listen to her recite the list of things she has to do to get "better." I was amazed at what she was telling me. Not because of what she had to do but because the injury was a twisted ankle. I don't want to negate that it could have been worse because the back-inside of her foot turned purple after about a week and it DID swell the first couple of days.  I am certain it was painful and a legitimate injury. I do believe that some of what the trainer told her helped it heal but lets be realistic here.


I remember being a kid, we fell down, "shook it off" and got back up. When I twisted my ankle as a track athlete in high school, the coach wrapped it up and told me to get back to running. My running may have been a bit slow during the first couple of days, but so long as I stayed off it as much as possible for the next week, I was fine. Mind you, this comes from someone who can fall off of something that is not there and nearly BREAK her ankle.  Anywhoo, the point is, they basically told her to baby the thing. Were it when I was an athlete, it would have turned purple within 24 hours and then began to heal and I would have been back to normal in a week. No hot and cold therapy, not exercises to ease back into using it. That stuff is for when you have surgery or a real break. Personally, I believe it delayed the healing process and it is nearly 2 weeks later and the purple is JUST starting to go away. Hrmm. Shaking it off made it heal faster folks. As Numba Ten would fondly blurt out "Jus Sayin!"


That led me to the next thing. The WHOLE reason the thought process occurred to me, in the kitchen, making coffee, at 5 a.m.  I began thinking about all of the people who have lawsuits against schools recently for the coaches and trainers not being sensitive to medical needs of their athletes. If you think about it, everyone has some sort of medical issue they are fighting these days. Is it all really necessary?  Yea, medical science is taking us into longer lives and such but at what cost?


It all starts with mother nature and this planet we live on. We have poisoned the very planet that is supposed to sustain us. Traditional methods of farming and growing food are not enough to sustain the insatiable (and wasteful) population that controls it. This means we have to grow more, faster, and bigger. Man has found that chemicals can do that. The food we grow is no longer "of the earth" the earth is just a petri dish where we grow the worlds largest squash to feed 100,000 people instead of a whole field of wholesome, flavorful, natural squash. No, we cant do the latter because it takes to long and we need to do this NOW. So, bring out the miracle grow and other chemicals and make it grow overnight. We fill our livestock with steroids and lock it up in tight little prisons so they cannot move and are destined a horrible death. Never mind that their life may be filled with pain and rage due to the chemicals we are forcing into it. This monster we are raising to eat is filled with chemicals that would kill a human being. We wear full body protective suits just to use the chemicals we are putting into our food. What happened to the habanero pepper being the only thing that would burn your skin when it came to food? Finally, let me get started on the water and sugars. We wastefully use so much water that we have to make it a chemical cocktail just so that we can drink it and hydrate our bodies. How much of that chemical remains when we ingest it is questionable at best. Sugar. Let me have the unrefined, nothing else added sugar. All this "high fructose corn syrup" is for the birds and it is FAKE PEOPLE!  If you want that, just eat the plastic container that your milk comes in. Its probably the same thing.


With all these chemicals and fake things we are putting into our bodies every day, (don't get me started on the highly processed stuff) it is no wonder there are so many people fighting illnesses and on medication for this or that every day. In another post, I talked about how the advent of electronics has created a whole generation of ADHD children (yea, small digression there, it was bound to happen.) This leads me to thinking about what it would take to eliminate society's need to rely so heavily on the pharmaceutical industry. A side note-pharmaceuticals are yet another round of chemicals we are putting into our bodies to fight the very chemicals that likely caused the issue in the first place. Ugh. Circular.


It would take a lifetime.


First, we have to get back to basics. Pay attention to the people who say grow your own food. Grow it with love and time. Use that garden to spend time with your family and get off the electronics. Sun is good for you. Work at home people will heartily agree. Use it to learn patience and caring and it will taste sooo good! No chemicals, just unadulterated (albeit a little smaller than the trend) wholesome FLAVORFUL goodness. You can garden year round. This will start something. You will spend less money at the store. The stores will rely less and less on the farmers and the farmers can go back to being what they should be. Farmers. They wont have to have a PHD in chemistry to poison the land with chemicals and sprays and will be able to grow a whole field of the good stuff and not the worlds largest squash. This will also prevent the farmer from feeding his livestock chemical ridden foods that ultimately end up on your table.


Next, livestock producers should raise their livestock the way it should be raised. Because their crops will be better and they wont have to spend so much on chemicals for their crops, they will not have to sell off their land and will be able to sustain their livestock on larger pieces of land and can sell the good stuff like they were supposed to do. Its all about give and take. This puts less chemicals in the meat that ends up on your table and the earth is beginning to heal. It is going to take a lifetime for the poisons we have put into this planet for food purposes to go away. It will reduce the freaks we see...two headed snakes, unusually HUGE bugs. Plants and trees will begin to grow again. Another thing that would help this planet heal is to use the land that already has development on it and relief it. Stop building on the farmers land and clear off that old building further into the city and build the same thing. Leave the farmer to what he should be doing well in the first place.


Another thing that you can do is build your own water filtration system. Honestly you only need 1x1 posts, plastic, buckets, rocks and soil. You filter your own water. So much better than the stuff coming out of your tap water. Getting used to non chemical water can take a couple of weeks of getting used to but with all these chemicals removed from your body, you will likely find that the medicines you are taking are no longer needed. You are eating, drinking and living healthier and due to the fact that you are spending less at the grocery store and less at the water payment center and less at the pharmacy, you find you have money for other things and can create memories instead of less gratifying images or words on a screen. You are LIVING.


So go forth. Live life. Do things the way mother nature has wanted us to do all along. Be tired of seeing "mother sick in bed." Help her heal. Be HUMAN. LIVE!


What do YOU think?


...And yes, my coffee is almost done.....**Micaa walks off to grab that first glorious cup.**

The Zombie Apocalypse is Among Us

As a person who works from home, my exposure to natural sunlight is limited to what I actually allow myself. Sometimes, I can go for days without so much as opening the door to my home because I can do everything from the comfort of my home office. From work to social media, even shopping and paying the bills, I never have to leave my house if I want to. (Remember Reclusivity is Possible?) As a result, I notice my body undergo changes if I do not get some sunlight exposure. I am going to share this observation with you in an effort to curb the Zombie affect.

Since the interwebs have become mainstream in our society, certain things have occurred. Society has become so dependent on electronic devices that even our Supreme Court has so noted that aliens will one day come and observe our culture via archaeology and will come to believe that our cell phones are an appendage to our bodies and not some separate device used for its convenience. I am no UFO or digging expert but I think I will agree with our Supreme Court justices on this one. Also, I am no scientist but (returning to my topic) when I go days without getting some natural sunlight on my skin, I notice that, when I get an itch and I go to scratch it, it feels different.

This can be a passing itch or even one from a mosquito bite. When I go to scratch, it feels like the first layer of my skin is going to tear like it is a thin sheet of bible paper. Seriously! It feels just like that. I go t scratch the itch, ever so gently and I feel like I am digging for china and that my skin will simply rip open and there will be a valley in my arm, leg, neck, whatever, that will be beyond repair.

Those of us who ignore minimal signs like this are the Zombies among us. They end up scratching. Then they get sores and become pale and sickly. When they do decide to become human for a moment, they have become unkempt, smell, and REALLY need to change their fading clothes. Yes folks, the interwebs have made Zombies of us all. It is the few (like me) that occasionally visit the healing rays of the sun (IN moderation!) to allow our skin to repair and strengthen almost like plants do when they photosynthesize.

These are the conclusions as I walk to the store for my soda allotment for the week when I return to my cave to work. Maybe I AM a Zombie too. Should I just submit to the inevitable?

What do YOU think?

Observations about the blues

I have inexplicably been feeling mighty down over the past couple of months. It is the most painful emotion one can experience other than grief over the loss of a loved one. I have been lucid enough to notice some things and I want to share my observations with you.


Everyone has times where they feel blue for whatever reason. Most of the time, when you are sad, there is a reason behind it and there is a solution forthcoming. When you are truly depressed, there seems to be no rhyme or reason for it and you feel like a sloth. Not that you are lazy but it takes great effort and energy just to do ANYTHING other than breathe. If you are lucky enough to talk yourself into doing something, washing the dishes for example, it is an extremely long conversation with yourself that you almost do not win. Reluctantly, you get up to do the task. This can be something that you do every day or something that you have to do (like the dishes) or something that you enjoy doing as part of your routine (I love doing the family laundry.)


Even if you are lucky enough to get started, your follow through has deserted you and you probably wont finish the job. Like I said before, I love to do laundry and usually get it done in one day, amidst the other million things I do around the house. Because I have a big family, it does take about 5-6 loads to do everything and that is when I don't decide to wash the curtains and the beds too. Since I have been depressed, that same 5-6 loads becomes a never ending cycle of load after load after load. I find that I believe myself to have accomplished something when there is a mountain of clothes waiting to be folded (my favorite part) and I just look at it and become overwhelmed and give myself some excuse to walk away. Its. Just. Too. Hard.


So you are inexplicably sad, your follow through is shot all to hell and now the things that you loved to do before are just like....why?  Reading? Out of the question. Writing? You see how much I have done lately. Smiling? THAT hurts too much. Even if it is fake.


No wonder depressed people are so hard to console. Life just sucks and for no reason at all. I mean, my family is fine, job is going great, the bills are paid. My husband is happy. No fighting or arguing. But it hurts to just exist. Ugh.


I do believe, however, I am on the upside of this thing. I have never felt this way for this long before and I am not sure how to approach things. I actually got through 85% of the laundry yesterday before I decided I had done enough. Maybe things are getting better? In the mean time, I sat in my chair and actually cried for no reason. I was getting ready for work and started to bawl like a baby for about 3 minutes. Horrible. Horrible. Horrible. No reason, just seemed like the thing to do at the time.


What kinds of things have you noticed when you or someone you know has the blues.


What do YOU think?

Hair discrimination. The struggle is real!

Recently, I had a discussion with a co worker about the color of our hair. She noted my current profile picture was different than the one I use for communications at work. Yes, she is right. There have been two instances in my life where I was not a blonde or some variation thereof. They were short lived. I am not sure why the first time I dyed my hair a darker color did not last long but I can probably guess that I absolutely hated it.


The second one, of course more recently, was for wholly different reasons.


I dyed my hair black. I had never had black hair before. I always wanted black hair. I bit the bullet and went all out. Immediately, I noticed how people responded to me. For those that knew me well, they were like "WELL! Oh! Um. Ok. You changed your hair?"  Others, even perfect strangers would look at me and begrudgingly go...."Oh, its you." I found it odd that people would respond to me that way. I felt like a sheeple. No, more like those little people you cut out of notebook paper that are holding hands. You know, a never ending chain of the same exact people? I did not like how that made me feel. All my life, people have lit up like sunshine when I came in the room or at least acknowledged that me breathing was at least worth a smile and a hello.


To further make me decide never to do anything so stupid in my life, ever again, I went back to blonde and everyone lit up when I walked into the room. Now unless someone is wholly perturbed by my presence, they at least smile and wish me a hello.


I wonder how people do it. You know, the ones with black or dark brown hair?  They must be miserable. I wonder what life would be like were we all blonde? I am guessing the world would be a happier place. However, in the current state of mind I carry, I find that hard to believe but hey, wishful thinking always helps. Yes?


Back to the discussion with the co worker. She made these very same observations. Then she summed it all up with 2 words that fit appropriately.

HAIR DISCRIMINATION

Think THAT will ever become a protected class of citizens?  "We are an equal opportunity place. No person shall be discriminated against due to age, sex, religion, race, orientation, or HAIR COLOR."  I look for it to be the next civil rights thing after we finally realize that our GLBT friends finally get what they deserve: Equal Treatment under the law. (Ah, but that is a digression that will take MONTHS and YEARS for me to cover. Also, it is a political opinion in this era and you know me......I do not discuss my political opinions.)

What do YOU think?

It is the actions of the few that reflect upon and affect the many

I don’t normally go on a political rant but there have been some local events that caused a stir and made national headlines from my city during the Memorial Day Weekend Holiday. Most of the world now knows about the 3 murders that happened during the Bikefest in Myrtle Beach. The Governor of SC has put her 2 cents worth in along with the City Council and I could not even take my nap yesterday lest I got that RANT out of me. For your reading pleasure (please don’t yawn) Here is my feelings about that topic. Note, I am going against the grain on this one. 

It is the actions of the few that reflect upon and affect the many.

While it is a tragedy that the Bikefest had fatalities this year, it is an event that partially kicks off the beginning of the summer working season for many people in and out of Myrtle Beach.  A great deal of the workers that depend on the summer working season have found the season becoming shorter and shorter. My husband is one such worker and before my current career, I was too. We depended on the income from the summer months to sustain us through the winter season when work was not so plenty and unemployment was not a timely replacement.

We noted that at least one of us had to find work that was not so seasonal in order to provide enough income to pay for a roof over our heads, utilities, and necessities. We also have to provide for our children.  We live INSIDE the city limits of Myrtle Beach and have done so for at least 12 years.  I have noticed that a great deal of the people that attend audience with the city council are not residents within the city limits. While some may work in the city or choose to come through the city to get to the beach, they do have valid complaint about the things that occur during Bikefest. This letter is not disputing that. Further, I note that the city council members are not directly located in the city but in affluent homes around the edges of the city and do not bear 24 hour witness to the activities of Bikefest.

As stated before, this is a tragedy and the actions of the parties involved ruined it for everyone. While there should be more respect of the city as we open our hospitality industry to then on Memorial Day weekend, Governor Nicky Haley said it best:

            “This was not something to be proud of. This was not a good weekend. There was a lot of damage, but more importantly there were deaths. This is no longer a law enforcement issue. Our law enforcement was stellar. We had more than enough people.”

There are multiple truths here. Yes, it is NOT something to be proud of. The events that occurred resulted in loss of life and it did happen in Myrtle Beach. The disrespect for life, the hospitality of the area, and those they hurt in the process was horrid and they should be punished for what they did. However, their actions should not hinder the event itself nor should it be taken away only to make the summer workers of this area suffer more than they already have. Secondly, it was NOT a good weekend due to the deaths. Third, anytime there are a lot of people coming to a place for an event, there will be damage. The more people, the more damage there will be. In speaking of the law enforcement, maybe there were enough and maybe they did to a “stellar” job. I am not writing this to dispute that. In the same press conference, Governor Haley also said the following:

            “There are no revenues worth the bad press that we got this past weekend. There are no revenues worth the lack of companies that will come to this area because of what happened this weekend. There are no revenues worth the lack of tourism that we will lose because of what happened this past weekend. It is time for that Bikefest to come to an end,”

This is where I have issue. She is right in that there are no revenues worth bad press and tourism lost. However, those that depend on this weekend to start their income season will lose out unless something of a similar caliber is set in its place and what will provide that type of revenue?  The hotel workers put in extra hours, the gas station attendants pull extra shifts. Those that work in the restaurants work doubles and come in early and stay late during the Bikefest weekend. These workers keep businesses running during an exorbitantly busy weekend and they depend on that money to pay their bills and to provide for their families. If you take that away, that is another ding in the incomes of these people. Many of these workers live right here in the city limits. Most will not even think about reaching out to City Council or listen to what Governor Haley is saying. They just want to have a job to look forward to during the summer months when they know they can make the money.

A few years ago, there was a big issue in Myrtle Beach about Helmet laws and noise ordinances and such after a similar situation which had occurred during Bikefest. The helmet issue (among others) went all the way to the Supreme Court of South Carolina and was subsequently overturned as being against South Carolina Constitution. Unbeknownst to the ones that set that controversy in motion, it hurt “the poor people.” Or as the cogs of this city are referred to: The Summer workers. Business has never been the same since that has occurred. Bikefest weekend as well as the Harley weekends is not as busy as the hospitality workers would like. Further, local businesses like restaurants and hotels are not hiring as many people because of the “loss of revenue.”

Every single time an incident like this occurs, here comes the Governor demanding something that has a detrimental effect to those of us who are nearly too broke to sustain but make about $3 too much to receive any type of assistance. Further, those of us who are working our fingers to the bone to barely make it are directly  e few make living almost impossible and the City and the Governor wonders why there is a homeless problem in this city.

Finally, Haley mentioned preventative measures:

            “Law enforcement was not a problem this past Memorial weekend. The problem was the lack of a curfew, the lack of a noise ordinance, the lack of any sort of discipline or organization, the lack of any sort of ability to control the environment. That was the problem. But it was not law enforcement.”

I am not proposing any solutions but you need to think about the Utilitarian point of view before you make a demand that an event should be eradicated. Haley said there was lack of a noise ordinance but the Helmet Law issue did put in place a noise ordinance. Why was it not enforced by the stellar law enforcement we had for Bikefest? Further, City code does have curfews in place. Especially for minors. Why were the curfews not enforced? (I find it silly to impose a curfew on a resort area when adults know right from wrong and there is no martial law.) While there was not much discipline on the part of the visitors and a few of the locals, there was certainly no organization present within the city. This can be seen from 2 viewpoints. 1. The organizers of Bikefest did not have any structure in the events of the weekend and everyone came to the beach to just ‘hang out.’ When one goes on vacation, hanging out t is what they do. When they go to the sands of the beach or the pool, that is what they do. When they go to the bars, that is what they do. It is human nature to want to congregate and socialize. 2. The visitors were undisciplined and chaotic. Yes. Yes they are. They came to Myrtle Beach to have a good time and while the stores, clubs, and restaurants were open, what activities were there for them? Absolutely none. So what option did they have but to amuse themselves and hang out?  One can also look at this from the standpoint that while law enforcement believed they were doing their job, they were severely outnumbered and failed to enforce noise ordinances, local nudity laws, and curfews.

When situations like this occur, it is always the blame of the caliber of people attending the event. However, did anyone ever consider that the many outside of the few were not really causing any issue? Further, Bikefest has been going on for quite some time, the people that brought their families should know or should have known what occurs in the Grand Strand during Bike Fest. Choosing a different immediate area would not have been a detriment to them. Further, it would not have affected any incoming revenue for the business owners.

In suggesting that Bikefest must come to an end or to eradicate the event all together disrupts the lives of the cogs of the city. Those of us that work this and live this life 24 hours a day. Those of us that have roots here and not in some affluent neighborhood on the outskirts of the city limits.

For the City Council and Governor Haley, should you see to it that this event comes to an end, are you going to come out of your pocket to replenish the lost wages for those of us who work long hours during this event? A person making $9.00 an hour working in a restaurant will work 8-14 hours a day during the Bikefest weekend. If you take that away and force the summer working season to start later, you are causing businesses to work people like my husband 4-5 hours a day during that weekend and causing a hardship on us. That money goes right back out in the form of Rent, insurance, water, power, and phone bills. (Not to mention gas, and food.) Do you really want to take the rug out from under the citizens you are seeking to help out by “bringing more jobs to the area?” Businesses won’t come because lack of a successful income year round. It has nothing to do with a singular crime that happened during a large event.

I don’t expect anyone to pass this along but I send it in hopes that someone will read it and see it from the point of view of the workers. Were it not for those of us that live paycheck to paycheck, who would work the service industry jobs? Certainly not the affluent ones, certainly not the City Council, and certainly not Governor Haley.

The writer is a property owner inside the City Limits of Myrtle Beach.

When you are in the right.

It is everyone's nightmare. Bad neighbors. I recently had a discussion with a relative who just had some bad neighbors move in just across the street from them. Due to the fact that they live on a dirt road that is basically a driveway, their houses are closer to one another than they would be were it a typical street. This couple has no children but everyone else in the neighborhood does.


It is not very often that my relative and her daughter go outside. They are so busy! However, when they are at home, they both love to be in the front yard a great deal. The daughter is quite popular with the other kids in the neighborhood. When she does come out to play, there are about a handful of children in my relatives yard. They play tag, kickball, and stand around and have typical girlie chatter. This drives the new neighbors absolutely insane. Mind you, it does not bother them when it is other children. Just my relative and her daughter. Every time this neighbor sees my relative outside, she tries to start arguments and yells obscenities at her. At first, the relative was trying to have a conversation with her and even yelling back. This did not work so my relative would sit on her porch and just let it happen. It was fine until the neighbor started calling her inappropriate names in front of the children. It has even gotten tot he point to where the cops had to come out and tell the new neighbors to stop yelling obscenities at people. While the cops advised both parties to get along, my relative does her best to say nothing at all to the new neighbor and keeps her children away from that side of the street at all costs.


Since the relative has been doing everything right, the new neighbor continues her assault of screaming and making rude gestures toward the relative every chance she gets. This is not fair to the relative and when incidents do occur, they are very taxing. The relative is usually thick skinned but is unable to handle such an unhappy human being hurling offensive assaults at her every chance she gets. Everyone on this street either owns the homes or is there for a term of longer than a couple of years. My relative has a beautiful home and she loves it very much but she is considering taking a loss on the home and moving away because of this neighbor.


From my point of view, this is unfair for someone to make a persons life THAT miserable when they are not even part of the home. What right does the new neighbor have to take out her frustrations on my relative when there is no issue at all. My relative has even went so far as to mark off the corners of her property to let her daughter and daughters friends know what the boundaries are when it comes to the neighbors and to eliminate any accidental trespass by her daughter. Why should someone have to go that far. The incidents where the new neighbor does her screaming have become more frequent and occur about every three days now. As a result, the relative is on medication for stress and depression. The Dr advised that she just needs to stay in the house when she sees the neighbor come outside. The only thing is, the neighbor ONLY comes outside when the relative is there.


What would YOU do in this situation?

I give you my Awesomeness!

Alas, it is Mothers’ Day. That special day where we celebrate all that is mom and let her know that, even though we act like we hate everything you say, you are STILL Mom and we love you!


I had to work today. Of course, I  was up before everyone else in the house so no fabled breakfast in bed for me. I think that is why they keep you in the hospital at least overnight when you give birth. This way, you get at least one time in your life that, as a mother, you can have breakfast in bed! For me the best one out of our brood was the last one. I was lucky enough to find a channel that played “Castaway” with Tom Hanks about a million times before I left the hospital. I actually watched it while eating breakfast. Good times. Gooooood times! Ok, well maybe reflecting on giving birth is not the best “good time” that anyone can think of but it is a pretty awesome experience.  Ok, so on to my Mothers Day story for the post…


This morning, my lovely daughter came into my office to wish me a Happy Mothers Day. I asked her “What did you get me?”  Mind you, she IS a teenager and teenagers get up to some persnickety stuff sometimes. She just grinned really big at me, turned her back to me and then said:


“The only thing I got you was my AWESOMENESS.” As if that was well deserved.


Well, guess what? I accept that. She is Awesome. She has more talent in one fingernail than any kid I know for miles around! If Awesomeness is all she has to give me well then, I am going to BATHE in it! She has already been up (going against her character) and soaked the dishes and helped out with her brothers. All without asking and I have not had to mute my headset and scream like a banshee through the wall to get her to tell them to stop fighting.


All in all, good Mothers Day so far.  Now, because I don’t normally take a lunch on Sunday’s, lets see how hard it is for her to come and get the coffee and reheat it. It got cold while I was telling you my story. Ugh. I need a coffee warmer in my office.


/micaa yells….DAUGHTER!!!!!!!!!! I NEED MY COFFEEEEE HEATEDDDDD!!!!!!
Heard through the wall:  UGHHHH!!!!! **Stomp Stomp Stomp..(yes, they are womens 13s!) Typical Day in the Miles household.
What do YOU think?

My name is Michele and I am a flavor hog...or a serial killer?

My name is Micaa and I am a flavor hog.

I had an epiphany yesterday while scraping the bottom of my spinach dip jar. (It was frustrating enough having spinach dip for chips and all I had was crackers.)  I realized that I had sat down and ate the entire jar in one  and a half sittings. O MY GAWD! What a pig! But the stuff tastes SOOOO GOOOODDDD!!!!!

I sat there and thought about that for a minute.  I had to swear off Chocolate Jiff because I could finish a jar of THAT in a day too.  I also have to stay away from making uber creamy mac  and cheese because I will eat the whole box. Hrmm….There is a pattern going on here.

Ok. Ok. I admit it. I LOVE flavor! If it tastes good, I am going to eat it even when I am not hungry. If boredom is hanging with me, I may even eat more. No wonder my vain attempts at meeting the elusive “130” have failed miserably. What do I do? It would be a horrid experience eating all stuff that has NO flavor. Ick. But I bet I can lose a lot of weight that way. I could also get rid of a lot of stress in my life becoming a career serial killer but maybe I wont do that. Wait, if I totally eliminate flavor out of my life, will I become a serial killer? Maybe not. I didn’t when I quit smoking. I know! I should try to eliminate caffeine and see if I can do it. If so, then I will resume caffeine and quit flavor. No….that won’t work. Then I have to fight the urge to blow up the planet. I will have to steal Marvin Martians Q-36 modulator first. Aw dangit! Then I won’t be able to blow up the planet because the house is on a slab and there is no way to move it away. Too expensive anyway. Grrrr. What am I supposed to do!

I certainly do not have the time to jump on tready for three hours every day.  While that may be an option, it would only work if I could study while I am on tready. Yea, not really, I get stressed out on that thing! Really! The kids pick on me and they run behind me making me nervous that I am going to kick them. Not that I would want to kick them but when they poke fun at me an tready having our time together, I would like to but then, that is mean and I am not mean. Not to my family anyway. Well, the close ones.

Too bad mean will not let me lose weight. I would just be mean for a month, lose a butt ton (yes, that is an accurate measurement and it is a real one! Bing it!) of weight and then return to being nice again. Ah, but then that is circular huh? Eliminating flavor from my life would make me mean and I would lose a butt ton of weight (have you looked it up yet?) and then I could just leave flavor out once I know I can live without and just try being nice again. Well, we all know boss is nice when she is work. However, flavor hog aint nice…like boss! (There it is! The digression! Now, go watch the movie Life! Haha.)

What do YOU think?

Using real life to change fiction

It never ceases to amaze me how a messed up situation in real life can change the pace of a fiction story one is composing.


Currently I am in the middle of the lives of Jack and Anastasia and they have now found that they have evil neighbors in their desert. Hrmm. Wonder where that came from? Well, I certainly love my neighbors. Even the evil ones that have no idea how being nice really works.  As a writer, it amazes me how things can take a turn in a story that you are writing and you don't even intend for it to go down that path.


What happens is this:


You are walking along, minding your own business. Listening to your footsteps as you travel down this storybook road ( your footsteps are sounding like your fingers hacking away a the keys-keep your pinkies up while typing!) and you see this little less travelled path along the side of the road. Oh, you note it alright but you keep walking. Only, your stride slows down as you think about that path. You think. You stew. You think and you stew. You think until you come to a stop and look around you. There is nothing but untouched field and warm sunshine all around you and you stand there.


Brooding.


That paths presence simply will not leave the back of your mind. At some point, as if hypnotized, you do an about face and you find yourself standing at the top of the path...wondering. Should you take it? Should you keep going? You know if you keep going in the direction you were, you will always wonder. You wonder this as you stand before said path and turn your face to the setting sun. This is the same direction you were heading in the first place. Hmm. The setting sun. Interesting. Maybe something is trying to give you a message. That path leads to an ending that your mind knows so well. The plan you had laid out for this story to travel. The path that you know how it is going to be. However.


However, you are at this new, unexpected thing. This crossroads and you have to take it. You ask for opinions of others and they all say...go for it! What makes it even more interesting is that you once wrote a small blurb when you were experiencing a writing prompt and you had requests to finish it. While you had no full story to go with that blurb, that one situation that led to this interruption of the field you are waking by and the path that so raptly has your attention now has a place in your story. That blurb and where this path leads go hand in hand and make perfect sense for the direction you know the story could go.


Do you take it? Life is about taking chances. While us writers are not ones to go out and do parkour or ride a skateboard off a ramp some 500 feet in the air, these are the chances we take. Is this the making of a great story? In my mind it may be.


It makes me wonder how many paths are along the stories that I read.  I now understand where "the Wind Through the Keyhole" by Stephen King came from. When I first discovered that story I was in pure bliss to find another book to the whole Gunslinger collection. When I read the intro, I thought it strange for the author to label it as Gunslinger 4.5.  However, it fit right in between books 4 and 5 of that story. Funny how paths are created and how they come into existence.


Have you ever come across a less beaten path? Did you take it? Where did it lead you?


What do YOU think?






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