Happy New Year to all of you!

(Bing)

Well!  Here we are, another year is currently flushing down the sewage pipes, while a new one is climbing up.  Ok, that wasn't very optimistic, was it?  I am looking forward to the new year actually, with hope ~ like most of you, I imagine.  

Romeo and I started off this evening with a bang ~ we got into a shouting match, and now we are both avoiding each other.  I give it another 30 min to an hour.  Not the best way to start a new year.

Unfortunately the weather is about as wonderful as the emotional atmosphere.  It has been alternately sleeting and raining for the past hour.  Ugh.  Glad I am not out in that.  

As I mentioned in a previous post, I am not much of one to make resolutions, but I have a couple that I plan to work on.  The gym today was pretty quiet ~ mostly the "die hard" type that are always there lest a pound or two creeps up on them during the holidays, with a few newbies (mostly women, are you surprised?) trying to get into the hang of improving their fitness, or to lose some weight.  Based on past years I've noticed that about 90% the newbies will hang in for a couple of months, then qietly disappear.  Making time for the gym is not easy when you've spent years avoiding it.  It's tough this time of year when it's so blasted cold outside, along with the rain/snow/sleet that was happening 30 minutes ago, to simply go outside for a walk.  Not fun.  Dog walkers know what I'm talking about, because there's no gym for dogs.....hmmmm, that might be a great idea.  Oh, wait, I think that's called doggy day care, which is riduculously expensive.  I suppose it beats having your couch chewed up when you get home from work though.

Happy New Year & Be Safe Out There!

Love, 365

Friday musings

Castle in Stuttgart, Germany (Bing)

Talk about isolated.....

It's Friday, and I have the day off from work, which is quite welcome after the craziness of the past 3 days.  Everyone wants to use the last of their FSA money, although truth is they have until March (usually) to use up the $ put aside.  And, getting that filling done, or onlay (or whatever) before they have to meet their deductible again.  Not to mention the filling/onlay/crown that came out, and the most memorable ~ a six year old who was chewing on a marble and broke his baby molar to the gumline.  "I really have no idea why he was chewing on a marble"  Yeah, well, kids do crazy stuff and there's usually no real reason why, lol.  He will be in next week to have the rest of the tooth removed and have a space maintainer put in, because teeth have an unsettling habit of moving around when a space opens up.  I'm sort of surprised he isn't having pain with the exposed nerves, but he was a happy little guy, throwing his bouncy ball over the desk at least 4 times.  I surprised him by catching it 3 out of 4 times....what can I say, racquetball really sharpens the reflexes.

My coworker that will be leaving in January was off this week, so it was particularly crazy with one less person.  I'm glad she had the week off, especially after all the crap she experienced regarding PTO (paid time off).  Will our absent OM be surprised (when she gives her notice)?  I doubt it.  In my more cynical moments, I see purposeful manipulation.  I have lost a lot of trust in her over the past month.  

I am still on break from school, which won't start back up again until Jan 17th.  I have two classes this semester, an online class in anthropology "human behavioral ecology" (whatever that means) and a history class "post revolutionary Mexico".  The history class doesn't start until mid March, but when it does, my schedule will ramp up to crazy, as it's a 10 week class, where many classes are 16 weeks.  It sounds like a good idea, but I may hate myself for it once class & homework/study begins.

In a very short 8 weeks I'll be traveling to San Antonio, where most of the immediate family lives.  I don't normally make resolutions, but I have two ~ lose 5 lbs (so cliche, isn't it?) and get a little personal counseling.  I've been having some rather dark thoughts and a bit of self loathing and I need a little bit of help.  It would be nice to find tools to improve my confidence in my dealings with others, as it gets a bit old as a door mat.  

Love, 365

And so this is Christmas......

Our tree...

I was reading Ami's story about Christmas past, which of course made me reminisce of my own past Christmases....when I was a kid, Mom always made sure the my sister and I had lots of presents under the tree.  She didn't discuss it when we were small, but as an adult, she admitted to me that she really never had gifts, other than maybe an orange or some clothes that were handed down from her older sisters.

Wait.

An orange?

I mean, thats storybook type stuff.  My Grandparents were farmers in Pennsylvania.  They had 8 kids.  My Mom was the second to youngest.  From what I gather, my Grandparents were extremely frugal.  One memory that comes to mind ~ Grandma didn't like peppermint, so saved all of it in a jar to give to my sister and I when we came for visits.  It would be mostly stuck together, but dang, there it was. There were a few hand me down toys in a box under the old secretary desk we could play with, which is probably why we did stuff outside.  One summer my Grandmother cleverly sent the two of us to pick wild strawberries so that she could make jam for Grandpa.  Have you ever picked wild strawberries?  They're like the size of the tip of your pinky.  

To have enough to for jam, well, we were out there for hours.  Like I said, clever.  But I digress.

My Mom obviously wanted us to have lots of gifts under the tree.  She said she saved all year long, and probably put things in layaway as well.  Our gifts weren't expensive, but there were plenty.  I have photos of us opening gifts, but my sister has all those slides that we keep talking about having digitized but haven't done yet.  One memorable year we had dolls with cradles, and an ironing board with an iron that actually got a tiny bit warm when you plugged it in.  In that particular photo, my sis is in her pajamas, and she had obviously wet the bed that night, so she'll probably want to can that shot.  Isn't it funny that my parents didn't make her change so that the photos wouldn't show it?  But wow, it's for real, so I recall it fondly ~ although I wasn't the one in pissy pajamas, ha ha.

These days we don't go to far out in gift giving.  My sister and I only exchange birthday gifts.  Next year I may agree to join the gift exchange, but I keep saying no in case I get a name for someone that I have no idea what to get.  I have enough trouble with the family I do buy for!  And now that it's just Romeo and I and other than #2 son who is 33, I really don't want to decorate.  Romeo wants it, so it's there.  This year he said he would put up all the stuff, but as we had to have it, I didn't want it up the week before Christmas, so I ended up doing it again, the weekend after Thanksgiving.  

So, although my family is as dysfunctional as most everyone else's, I have wonderful memories of Christmas as a kid. I hope my kids look back and feel the same....I did pretty much what Mom did, although I wasn't as good about saving all year.  

I hope you have a great Christmas, no matter what traditions you enjoy.

Love, 365

So, it's official..... :-(

Oh, I will miss her....

My coworker *Julie let me know today that she ~finally~ received her offer of another job....at nearly $3 more per hour, benefits, loads of PTO, etc.  I am happy for her....but sad not only for myself, but for the rest of us who will no longer be able to get answers to our questions on the program we use (she knows more than all of us combined), her numbers sense (I've always envied numbers people, cause I ain't one, ha ha), her ability to laugh and seems to usually be in a great mood.  Yeah, there have been a few patients who complained that she was "aggressive", but I never saw that ~ and we sit right next to each other.  The reason she is leaving?  Our OM gave her a really crappy 50 cents more an hour for a raise, and told her "it's because of your attitude".  

Firstly ~ if you have a really smart employee that has the ability to run circles around the rest of us (me included) with her intelligence, you try to resolve the attitude problem, right?  You don't insult them with some stupid pittance of a raise.  

Secondly ~ the attitude problem was between *Julie and the OM.  The OM should have worked it out instead of being threatened by the intelligence and capabilities of a new employee.  Sadly, there is another employee who is likely going to leave over an issue the OM should have fixed before she went on her month long trip to India.  Or, better yet, she should just resign and stick to her real estate business.  She isn't a very capable OM.  I have been in her shoes.  I would never treat people the way she has ~ vacation time was screwed up, she took a month to get back to *Julie on vacation and her raise (that's simply ridiculous, she was "punishing" her for standing her ground).  

So, the result is that around the 3rd week in January, we will be looking yet again for another front desk person and probably a dental assistant as well.  The worst part is that the dental assistant who will probably leave is best friends with the second one, who will probably leave as well.  Leaving a very capable and nice Dr without assistants.  Did you know?  Dentists can't do anything without them.  Rats.
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One more bit of news: Romeo's charter school lost their charter (mostly because they don't have enough students, I guess there's a minimum/maximum and they didn't reach their goal).  So, at the end of May, he will be looking for work again.
Can you believe it?  It's like we can't win for trying.
The city school district also announced that they are looking for substitute teachers to finish the school year, and they plan to hire from new college graduates to fill the over 200 openings they currently have.  

If that isn't the stupidest thing I've ever heard.......fucking idiots.  And they wonder why New Mexico has such low ratings in education.  Romeo's class was being "taught" by a sub who simply gave the kids handouts.  All the kids had A's.  Until Romeo tested them.  Wake up call, anyone?

Well, gotta go and wrap a couple of gifts.  Have a great week!
Love, 365

It's that crazy time of year.....

The month of December is out of hand.....baking needs to be done, gifts purchased-wrapped-boxed-shipped to out of town family, more baking and a few parties.  Even though my class is over for the semester, I don't have much leisure time.  I actually took a 1/2 day off on Thursday so that I could get started on some of my baking, and I woke up this morning and noticed that all of the gingerbread cookies are already gone.  Sheesh.

I am very happy that I have a dishwasher.....

Our racquetball group had a semi-annual party yesterday, and included a birthday party for two of our members...and I had the request for that damn carrot cake again.  I swear I've baked 4 of them this year.  Included in this mess is the goody bags for friends...I hope the gingerbread cookies in the bags are still there by Monday, lol.

Christmas tree in front of the Inn at Loretto in Santa Fe

Romeo and I took a short trip to Santa Fe yesterday morning to do a bit of Christmas shopping.  I ended up with a cool pair of vintage cowgirl boots, and Romeo found a pair of boots as well.  Just to show you that there are still things we don't know about each other ~ even after celebrating our 37th anniversary 11 days ago ~ as a teenager he had a whole wardrobe of cowboy boots, and hardly wore anything else.  When you live in El Paso, you can cross the border and custom order boots for a song back then.  I was really surprised, because in all the time we've known each other, I've never seen him wear them.  

Our work party is on the 22nd, and I'm hoping that my coworker *Jean ("I'm not angry") will have quit the childhood paradigm of "you're invisible/dead/insignificant" to me by then.  We worked together on Friday, and she did her best to ignore me the entire 5 hours.  Which was really OK because I had a lot of things to accomplish on a rather short day.  Our Dr was in a karate class....he is a master black belt (or something more impressive, I don't really understand how they rank your level in karate) so it was just us and two hygienists.....a quiet day.  And also a short day for me, but I used that time to ~ yeah, more baking.  I'm tired of baking already, and not done yet.

I hope all of you have a great Sunday & a marvelous week ~ hopefully you won't have to go to a mall.

Love, 365

Some shopping done, tree up & decorated

I've had most of my ornaments for many years...

Part of the fun is the memories of past Christmas's ~ good and not so good

I notice that past "not so good" Christmas's ~ for me ~ are just as cherished as the really great ones.  Many times I end up feeling thankful that we have made it through those times.  It wasn't that the holiday was bad, it was the circumstances around it.  It feels pretty good to look back and see that we are all still together with love.

Shopping is another matter.  So difficult.  When my kids were young, you always had a finger on what they were enjoying....and many times you could entice them to write a letter to Santa to aid you in what to get.  With my autistic grandson, I always have to think about it, and look at suggestions online.  Last year his Daddy and I bought the same gift.  This year he is a bit older, but not a lot more vocal.  And I don't live nearby so that I can get clues from what he plays with.  Once I bought a big farm tractor for him ~ his Dad loved those ~ he played with it for 5 minutes, and then left it sitting in the corner ~ probably forever ~ which taught me that I need to think harder on what he might enjoy.  My son promises to send me a few ideas, and I do have a few of my own based on pics of him that I get every month...usually involved in something.  One was dancing, which was really adorable, but I promise not to get him a karaoke machine, lol.

Then there is Mom, who is a difficult to buy for in a completely different way.  She no longer sews, reads, or gets out much.  She rarely cooks ~ mostly she guides her caregiver as he cooks.  Buying her clothes is totally out of the question.  Sis and I laugh about it, and talk over options.  I managed to finish shopping for her, and need to mail it off next week.  I am counting on Amazon for my grandson and son who live in Texas.

Enjoy your week!

Love, 365

I sent a letter....but not to Santa.

My coworker is warming up a frozen cake.....she was hungry....and it's cake

What a week.  It started off rather snarky, but morphed into a more "normal" (what ever that is) routine.  Actually it improved after the OM left for her month long trip to India.  (and yes, I agree, that a month in India might be 28 days too long)  

I wrote a letter to the Dean of Students, the Dean of the Arts & Sciences, and the Provost of UNM.  The main point of the letter:

It has been my experience that UNM does not value the working, non-traditional student, which is exclusionary despite a policy of inclusion.    

.....the impetus for the letter?  A history class I registered for the spring.  The following weekend after registration I received an e-mail that "a class you registered for doesn't actually exist", and you will need to re-register for the class which ~ instead of being from 5pm to 7:30 on Tuesdays, it will now be on Tues & Thurs from 11am to 12:15.  This change in the schedule puts the class out of my reach as far as work goes, and this class was basically the cornerstone of my spring schedule.  Frack.  On the plus side, the 8 week course in history, which I was wait-listed on, opened up and I was able to get in.  I am both excited and terrified ~ this is a full 3 credit course, which means I will be extremely busy for 8 weeks.  

     I did receive a response the next day from the Dean of Arts & Sciences ~ who is apparently the head honcho for the history department ~ he simply asked me how many hours I need in history, and a day later I received an e-mail from the head honcho of the history department.  Part of her e-mail included this statement:

     I will also make note that while 4pm is technically the beginning of the EWDP offerings, we must be aware classes after 5pm are better for most students.  According to the registrar, the new on-pattern start times for classes for EWDP are: 4pm, 5:30pm, and 7pm.

Well, that's nice.  I wish I knew what EWDP means.  I tried to google it and came up with nothing.  I think e=evening and w=weekend (although the only weekend classes I've ever seen were exercise classes).  D & P?  Your guess is as good as mine.  And although they have classes that start at 4pm and 5:30pm, I've never seen a class in history that starts at 7:30.  Not sure I would take one, as I would probably nod off about 8.  ha ha  At any rate, I wish I had written this letter two years ago.  Although I still have my doubts how much of a difference it will make in the class schedule in the future.  Call me cynical.  

Someone posted this on FB.....so apt.

Love, 365

The good and the bad.....

So, I spent 2 hours at the gym tonight.....

Then I come home and eat a BLT.

And it was freakin delicious.  

Yep.......and nope......

Have you ever had to write something important, only to discover your head is filled with horrible cliches and banalities, and you couldn't be serious or eloquent if your life depended on it?

Ok, I've managed a bit more than this....but haven't quite managed much meaningful dialogue..

I think I've written before on how hard serious writing (like in, you know, totally serious, right?) is for me.  I struggle.  A sentence is written, rewritten, edited some more, and eventually discarded because I lost my initial focus.  Typical.  Most times, I write a few, go play Candy Crush, or some such game for half an hour, then go back and write a little more.  Sometimes this works well.  Sometimes I shut down the computer and come back to it later.  Other times I just delete the whole thing and decide it's not worth the trouble.  However, this time it's important but won't necessarily be viewed as such by the recipient.  Such is life, eh?

Happy Post Thanksgiving

I hope all of you enjoyed your Thanksgiving holiday!  We enjoyed the meal I spent two days putting together.  Now I have a legit excuse not to cook for at least a day or two.  

Spent part of the day talking to my Mom and Sis.  Mom was doing well despite the Lewy Body dementia.  Since her caregiver wasn't in at the time we spoke, I could tell she was struggling with recalling words and places.  It didn't seem to bother her too much, but it did confirm for me that she depends on him a lot to help when she's having conversations.  My Sis is doing well, she will have her last day at work on 12/23, and then will have some down time until the work from home (insurance underwriter) jobs start up sometime around February or so.  Yesterday I booked a trip to visit my eldest son & grandson, my Mom and Sis as well.  I was able to schedule a round trip flight with a rental car much cheaper on Allegiant than Southwest.  There are some serious limitations to flying with Allegiant though.  I can only travel on Thursday or Sunday.  I can fly to Austin, but not San Antonio.  On the plus side, it's a direct flight, and my son lives in Austin!  I will report on it afterward, but I'm not flying out until February....

So, back to my writing.  I admit, I'm using you as a warm up....

Love, 365

I can handle you, Monday......

Feeling a little squirrelly

I didn't have the greatest of weeks last week, but I'm in luck.....this week I only have to work one day.  The Tuesday before Thanksgiving is one of our annual office cleaning days.  After work, we break out the mops and vacuums, cleaning solutions and rags and clean the office from top to bottom.  In return, we have Wednesday off with pay.  And of course Thanksgiving is one of our paid holidays.  We're off on Friday, but I have to either take a vacation day for pay or not.  I opted to save my vacation days for some other day.  It helps that Romeo is working.  Our financial situation has improved, and I am thankful that I have that option.  

Yesterday I had an e-mail from our professor that he has cancelled classes for this week!  Woo hoo, I don't have to consider my baking schedule around class.  Now I can stay in my pj's all day if I want to, and take my time baking pie and rolls for Thanksgiving.  It's really nice to have the day before free to take care of some of the more time consuming aspects of a foodie holiday.  

Yesterday I made Boston brown bread ~ I hadn't made any in a few years, and spotted the container I purchased over 20 years ago in the cabinet.  It's usually made in a coffee can, but mine is a heart shaped piece of pottery, with the recipes inside for the bread and a fruit pudding (which I never made because it sounded awful).  It is easy to make, but you need to steam it ~ apparently during colonial times not everyone had an oven.  It's a mixture of rye, whole wheat and cornmeal, with buttermilk and molasses.  It's a heavy, dense bread, flavored mostly by the molasses.  Even though I forgot about the pan and it boiled dry, the bread still came out well.  It might be a little overly browned (ha ha, read burned), but I haven't reached the bottom yet.  I'm meeting with Prof. S today at 2, and plan to make another batch & give to him for the Thanksgiving holiday.  If they don't like it, the birds will, lol.

Well, gotta run.  Have a happy Thanksgiving!

Love, 365

I tattled......

Google images

Uh oh.  I did it.  And now I have the shit storm tornado to deal with.

There are four of us that work the front desk.  Each Doctor has two front desk people, of which I am one.  One of my co-workers has been there for a year, and I've been there for almost two.  Of the other two, one has been there for 5 years, the other for much longer than that.  

When I started working there, I asked why we weren't charging the tax on the copayments as we had at my previous workplace.  Which was it's own shitstorm as my coworkers were unhappy that they would have to do so much more work.  I was baffled at their complaints, as figuring out the tax takes approximately 15 seconds or so.  It's a percentage.  Really, what it so difficult?  Well, time marches on, and everyone seemed to figure out the easiest way to do it.  Except, that, over the past few months, I noticed that tax wasn't being added consistently.  Finally, I went to our OM (office manager) and mentioned that I was baffled as to why tax wasn't being added (because that means the Doc has to pay it) in every instance.  Which led to a staff meeting where this was discussed.  I admit the OM handled very well, making sure no one was pointed out.  Until one of the long term front desk people mentioned that she didn't bother when the copay was under $30.  Then the Doc pipes up and says "Oh, so then I'm paying the tax?" and understandably requests that we make sure that we add the tax to every copay, no matter how small, because over time, it really adds up.  

So, she gets really pissed.  And then later asks me if I'm the one who spoke to the OM about it.  And I  said "yes, I did", and that's when the shit hit the fan.  I spoke to the OM that day at lunch time outside of the office as I didn't want to throw gasoline on the flames.  She actually said that I probably shouldn't have admitted it, and that I could have said that the OM noticed while reviewing reports.  Maybe.  Perhaps.  But I'm afraid that's just not me.  If someone says "did you do this" and I did, I admit it, for good or ill.  I guess my mother's lessons on honesty worked, lol.

I won't go into the problems this has caused me with the two longer term coworkers.  However, in a stupid attempt to patch things up I did go to each one and tell them that I regret that I didn't ask them first.  To which the longer term individual was gracious.  The 5 year coworker leaned down and said nastily "Oh, we aren't angry (?), but we will never trust you again".  If she could have shot lasers out of her eyes, I would be cinders by now.  Not angry my ass.  

So, what's really got me up in arms is that I am the one being punished when they were the ones in the wrong.  Perhaps they should have asked themselves why I didn't approach them.  And it's really cold up there now.  I think I'm gonna have to bring a little heater to put under my desk.

Love, 365

Yep, I can bake.....

Triple berry cinnamon bread

I like to bake.  I like to cook too, and have some awesome recipes that I consider signature: Louisiana gumbo (with sausage, chicken and shrimp), beef carbonnade (great fall/winter dish), King Ranch chicken.  But, give me a challenge of a cake, cookies, pie, etc., and that's when I'm at my happiest.  

Ultimate coconut cake

3 layers, creamy custard in between, with torch browned meringue frosting

Chocolate raspberry tartlets

Of course my family loves these creations.  Some I do on a regular basis, some are only once or so a year on a special occasion.  My cookies are sublime.  But there is a price to be paid.  And no, it's not gaining weight (ha ha).  No, the price is that ones reputation gets around.  And the next thing you know, people are asking you to bake something for them.  My racquetball friends have asked that I bake for every ones birthday, you know "since I bake all the time anyway" and I only need to bring a piece for the birthday person.  It's cool, it's not that often....but why does it always seem to happen when I'm at my busiest?  And why do I open my mouth and ask said person what they would like?  Especially when they ask for the carrott cake that takes me 3 hours to do.  Even worse is when I volunteer myself to bake a pie ~ like I am at this very minute ~ for a co-worker who happened to mention she didn't really like cake for her birthday?  I guess I'm just a sucker who loves to bake....and make people happy.  So, if you're like me, I suggest you keep your baking obsession a secret, or embrace the chaos.....

Love, 365

Anatomy of a marriage, by bed size......

Bing images.

     When Romeo and I were first living together, we had a lovely apartment.  I have truly fond memories of the pocket doors that separated the living room and "den", the wonderfully large kitchen with a dutch door (! I know...it really did have one!) and a built in secretary desk.  We were living on very little money.  I think that we brought home a little over $900 for the entire month.  I don't recall how much our rent was probably around $300.  Obviously a long time ago, huh?  Yeah.  Well, we didn't have the money to buy a bed, and all I had was a twin from home.  So, for about a year, we slept on that stupid, tiny twin bed.  Needless to say, sleeping positions were limited to two.  Right or left.  Neither of us could sleep on our backs!  I don't recall hating it, but that was probably because we were just learning about each other, and very much in love.  

     Our next move was to Oregon, where we lived for awhile with Romeo's Dad, but luckily that didn't last more than a few months.  I recall that apartment as well, but not with as much enjoyment.  It was a one bedroom apartment with carpeting in the kitchen, for heaven's sake.  Who puts carpeting in the kitchen?  I ruined it though, by spilling the can that I stored cooking grease all over it.  This time though, we purchased a water bed, which was full size.  Waterbeds were all the rage back then, but the one we had wasn't baffled, so it was annoyingly like sleeping on a small boat in the ocean.  And it was cold.  When we moved to a house we rented, we did take it with us, but didn't put it in the bedroom upstairs, because we were worried it would be too heavy.  Thus began about a three to four month period of sleeping on sleeping bags.  Ugh.  Truthfully, we probably should have just set it up in the huge dining room and slept downstairs, especially considering we didn't have a dining room set anyway.  Then, Romeo's Dad came through with full sized mattress, which we loved.  We put it on the floor.  I really don't recall why we didn't buy a bed frame, considering they were probably pretty cheap.  I guess with age does come some wisdom ~ or common sense.

     When we moved back to Texas, we finally had a regular bed.  You know, with a frame and everything.  Very normal, if still a bit small.  After moving to Albuquerque we purchased a select comfort bed, queen size.  Thought we had reached the pinnacle of sleeping comfort, but some years ago we took a trip to Telluride and slept on a king mattress.  Oh, man.  It was heaven.  I have been wanting one every since.  

     Anyone else do crazy shit like this when they were first together?  

Love, 365

Onward! Through the fog...

Bing Images

Well, this has been an interesting week.  Tuesday night I switched to the news to see how the election was going, and then couldn't sleep.  Literally could not sleep.  I was so in shock, my brain wouldn't stop.  

A few days later, one of my colleagues (a non-traditional college student such as myself) posted on FB that if you voted for Trump, to please unfriend him.  I wasn't really too surprised, but what did surprise me was that one woman who did asked him if he was serious, and he replied that he was.  So, here is a guy who basically severed a friendship over the election.  

I private messaged him, asking him:

Do we really have so many friends that we kick them out of our lives

because we don't agree with their politics? 

How sad. 

If Clinton had won, what then?

Perhaps we are all in shock, making this moment a poor time 

to make rash, knee jerk reactions.

But, no, he replied "No ~ Trump is an abomination and a danger to the world"

I am as disgusted with our two party system as I have ever been.  My son asked if Gary Johnson managed to get 5% of the vote, and was saddened when I told him no.  He shook his head, and said no more.  But these protesters are really irritating.  It's over.  We have to do what we can to move forward.  What else can we do?  

I haven't been to class since last Monday, as our professor was at a conference on Wednesday.  It will be interesting to listen in on the conversation, as most of my class mates are Democrats, and most likely thought Hillary had it in the bag.  

I wonder how many American's will actually move to Canada?  I don't think Canada is amused.  This hilarious article by Mark Hill with Cracked.com gives us an idea.....(here)  I saw this posted on FB, and immediately shared it, although I think most people don't really read articles on FB, but troll through hitting their preferred reactions.

Anyway, it is a relief for the ads and campaigning to be over, because as it always happens every 4 years, we are all sick of it after nearly a year, with the usual frantic push the last 4 to 6 weeks.  

And now I will say no more.

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I need to do some reading today for class, as Carol is presenting tomorrow.  I have high expectations, because she seems very clever and smart.  I haven't read her articles ~ Prof. D asked us to post 3 articles that we used during the research so the rest of us will have some understanding.  Then there is a short question/answer period, which I see as him checking on whether or not we read any of them.  So, I guess I better get going!  

Love, 365

Oh! It's Monday again......

Along with a pap smear, or a colonoscopy, right?  I did go and have my mammogram done today, and was surprised that I was able to skip the ultrasound this time.  The tech said that because it's been 6 (almost 7!) years since my cancer surgery, I can now enjoy (lol) a routine mammogram.  This did not stop me from shedding a few tears (I always freak out when I have to go, understandably) before I left.  Apparently I will receive "a letter in the mail" letting me know all is well.  If I never receive a phone call from them again for the rest of my life, it won't make me unhappy.   

(Bing images)

I have been truly lucky to have a man who truly helps around the house ~ while I'm busy with work and school (which annoyingly keeps me very busy), he has been cooking meals (sans veggies for the most part) and "cleaning house".  I put that in quotations, because his idea of cleaning house is rather slipshod compared to mine.  I vacuum the baseboards (wha???) and move furniture (you're kidding) and vacuum the upholstery (every week?!).  I am convinced that his idea and mine differ mostly because he doesn't want to spend near as much time as I do ..... and who could cast blame?  Housework is boring, dirty and the darn house doesn't stay clean very long.  Before you know it there's a dust bunny the size of a basketball rolling around in the corner.  And spiders?  It was a real massacre this Sunday.  I found at least 6 different areas where I could see their webs the carcasses they leave behind.  

I am convinced that the reason Romeo sucks at dishwashing and house cleaning is because he does these things without his glasses on.  When it comes to dishes, I'm pretty ruthless, setting them aside for re-washing with the announcement "this is still dirty".  He usually harumps and ignores me.  His favorite dishwashing statement?  "This needs to soak" which means it will sit in the sink for 5 to 8 hours, by which time I lose patience and wash it.  Yeah, I see what he did there.  

So, although I sound like a bitch, complaining about his skills as a housekeeper, I truly am grateful for his help.  And I never ever criticize his skills or you might hear this:

"If it's not good enough, I'll happily let you do it all"

So, yeah, it sounds like an ultimatum, because they feel they are going above and beyond, and we should be appreciative not critical.  I made a comment once on "this is how I do it" and I hear the above comment, which made me break out in a cold sweat.  No help, ever?  Nah, I can pick up the dust bunny and put it in the trash and then go on my happy way.  

Love you, Romeo, for all of your support.  Hey, and most weekends, I take care of the trash.

Love, 365

Happy Halloween......I guess

Okaaay, mushrooms and an elf??  

For more spooky (and just downright weird) photos, just type

vintage halloween photos in you search engine.  

I have never been a huge fan of Halloween.  Even as a child, I delighted in the candy, but otherwise could take or leave it.  I don't like scary movies.  I don't like it when someone jumps out from a closet in a scary costume for the sole purpose of making me scream, or pee myself.  Although to be fair, I didn't pee.  However, I did let out an enormous skelloch when one of my co-workers decided to play a prank on a number of us.  When my kids were small, I took them trick-or-treating, but I never enjoyed the experience, which is probably why I have so few photos of them in their costumes.  I have friends that are the opposite of me ~ they have huge Halloween parties....and spend a lot of money for decor, food, drinks and of course ~ costumes.  I was shocked to learn that this year, your fellow Americans will spend approximately $77 per person for the "holiday".  Considering I don't spend a dime, and I'm sure there are many more like me, that's a lot of mulah.

As far as I'm concerned, I prefer to turn off the outdoor lights and hunker down with a movie like "Finding Dori".

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I did present my research on Monday.  It went pretty well, considering I was a blubbery mess on the inside.  My classmates were quite complimentary, which surprised me.  I had huge armpit sweat rings after....so I guess the antipersperant wasn't prepared for the onslaught of standing in front of class and talking for half an hour.

It is a small class of 7 students....only one guy in the group (other than the prof).  At first I thought the guy was ok, seems fairly smart, well traveled, speaks Russian and was in the military.  But, I've since revised my opinion, to include obnoxious.  But, whatever, it has to be somewhat intimidating to be in a class with that much estrogen.  ha ha  The women are really interesting though.  We have the quiet one (besides me, lol) who always seems angry about something.  I don't know what her story is, but whenever she speaks, it's worth listening to.  Perhaps she wants to hit us over the head with her brilliance.  There is also the slightly "goth" student who is in the habit of wearing dark purple or black lipstick.  I've never understood goth, and never saw any attractive qualities of goth makeup.  She's a pretty smart cookie though.  Not very talkative, but smart and insightful.  We have what I see as the typical smart college student, part of a sorority, always smiling, just your all around nice person.  She's extremely likeable. Probably has a 4.5 average.  We also have a student who is tall and beautiful....I think I might have mentioned previously that her mentor was the man who was to teach our honors class but was suspended for sexual harassment (and subsequently fired).  She's a very nice woman, with a charming accent that I can't quite place (South American?  Mexican?).  Her research involved immigration, so perhaps its personal for her.  Dunno.  But I like her, when I originally didn't think I would.  Of all of us, she has missed the most classes.  I don't know what our prof feels about missing class, but I think she's taking a big risk.  Lastly, we have a late comer who I know the least about, except that she works at the coffee shop I meet my professor.  Very quiet.  She is due to present this coming Monday.  I'm sure she'll do well, and I need to read the articles she provided so that I have some clue what she's going to talk about.   ~I wonder if anyone is going to wear a costume to class on Monday, and am betting I will see plenty of costumes on campus~

I have been trying to plan my classes for next semester, even though my adviser said the schedule isn't technically set until Nov. 1.  One class is online !hallelujah! but the other choices will require I obtain "permission" from my co -workers.  There are two classes I'd enjoy that are Tues and Thurs from 11-12, so I'd have to be gone a couple of hours from work on those days.  One is from 5:30 to 8 on Wed.  I would normally jump at the chance to take a class in the evening.  However, the topic is US Policy, which is most likely the most boring topic ever in the history of history.   I truly do not want to take that class, but I might be forced to if my co-workers aren't happy about me being out of the office during the aforementioned times.  I guess we'll see.  I will discuss it with our office manager soon, once the finalized schedule is posted.  I shudder at the prospect that I will have to go through this process three or four more times before I'm done with my degree.  Ugh.

Well, have an enjoyable week!

Love, 365

Making my way to the polls.......

All photos courtesy of Bing Images

Is that an otter?  I suppose they let anyone in!  

I wish I were this cute, though.

Actually I almost did post a selfie on FB with my "I voted" sticker stuck 

to my nose.  

I may take another try at that & do it anyway.

Brilliant.  Sadly true.

Well, I picked my turkey.  We'll see how it all turns out soon.

Personally I will be thankful when I don't have to watch/listen to anymore political ads.

Love, 365

That awkward moment.....

(courtesy of bing images)

A little over a week ago, I was doing a little shopping on my day off.  It was a relaxed day, I was on vacation, classes were over for the week.  I'm in Chico's looking for a top to wear to work, I turn around, and right there!  is a friend that I hadn't seen or spoken to in nearly two years.  Not because I hadn't contacted her ~ I had left a voice mail, and then texted her right after I was hired at my new workplace ~ to let her know, and then never heard from her.  I figured "well, maybe she moved to Boise", where one of her best friends had moved to, and where I knew she had visited several times.   All I could think to do was say hello! and how have you been? and then watch her try to scramble around with some excuse.  She kept rambling on, so when she took a breath, I said it was great to see her, and I really need to finish up here and get going.  She tried to continue talking, but I just walked away.  Ranks pretty high on the 2016 scale of awkward moments.  

I have to "present" my research tomorrow.  I will be spending most of this afternoon tweaking my power point and reviewing the salient points.  I am both anxious and not....I have confidence in my research and not......   I can't wait until it's over.  Ironically I was going to volunteer to go first, but the Prof. beat me to it.  It makes sense, as I have already written a paper, even though the research continues.  

I have decided to drop the Italian Renaissance class.  I didn't do that well on the mid-term, it took forever to receive my grade, and then another couple of weeks for feedback.  The feedback was vague and implied I didn't understand the readings.  I'm willing to admit that perhaps I didn't interpret the material in the way they intended, but in my defense, I was making 100 on all of the quizzes.  So, how am I to know I'm not interpreting the material in the way they intended?  I didn't realize that there would be no feedback at all, and I was horrified to see that all of the papers one has to write are all turned in at the end of the class ~ no chance for feedback there.  So, I figured, why stress myself out trying to finish the class by 10/31, and dropped.  What I learned: I don't enjoy "independent study".  

Well, gotta run!  Have a great week, and don't forget to vote!

Love, 365

Change is both good and bad......

Right???

In my small little circle of the world, there have been so many changes ~ employment changes top the list in the past 20 months.  I was hired to a new dental office in Feb. 2014.  Overall, I am very happy and content ~ of course I would like to earn more...my social security "earnings" statement shows I am earning 5 to 6 thousand less per year.  But you know, it's tough to put a dollar amount on the fact that I no longer work for a micro-manager who would cuss at me and slam his hand on the desk (you know, in case I wasn't paying attention), and a co-worker who is the most toxic back-stabbing bitch alive.  I haven't had hives on my neck since I left.  And, I have more vacation time after one year of working than I ever would have at the previously mentioned house of horrors.  He made no secret of the fact that we would never have more than 2 weeks of vacation time - ever.  Personally, I think he resented that he would be paying us for not being at work, nose to the grindstone.  In February I will have a bit over 3 weeks of PTO.  I can't wait to figure out where Romeo and I will go next summer ~ which takes me to the next change, some of which you might be familiar.

Romeo left the corporate world ~ not by choice, but by layoff ~ and I somehow talked him into going into teaching.  The man can lecture like no ones business, ha ha.  I know because I've been on the receiving end many many times.  He took classes to earn his interim teaching license, and will earn his regular license after presenting his hours spent teaching and taking a few more exams.  He has a position now teaching middle schoolers in a smaller school than his first go-round, and is happy with the new school.  We've always heard how poorly teachers are paid...but it's a wake up call when you see that check!  One surprise is the reluctance of our own Albuquerque Public School system to hire new teachers that didn't obtain their original degree with the intent of teaching.  They prefer "career" teachers, not those that have stumbled into teaching after years doing something else.  Romeo has met lawyers and engineers, etc., that are now teaching.  I suppose from their point of view, taking up teaching as a means of lessening the transition of working full time to retirement doesn't show enough enthusiasm or dedication.  Given the sad state of affairs of our public school system, it kind of looks like they need to shake things up a bit.  Reluctance to hire these teachers when they are short of teachers is, in short ~ stupid. 

My sister had been working in the corporate world as an insurance adjuster - you know, writing policies and quoting premiums for companies that need coverage for their trucks, etc.  Truthfully I am not completely sure of all she does!  But, as she decided to live in a small town in Texas, she had to face quite a commute to get to her high paying corporate job.  Over time, the commute became unbearable, so this year she quit and took a similar position that is much closer to home.  Sadly, from day 1, she really hasn't enjoyed it.  She complains that she is working harder than she ever has (probably because small businesses make the most with the least number of employees by necessity), and recently is really ticked off because the boss hasn't given her the raise she promised after 90 days of employment.  And is using the "I don't have that written down in my paperwork" ~ because it was a verbal agreement.  So, my little sis might take an insurance underwriting job that she can do from home ~ at an even larger cut in pay ~ so that she can have more control over her life.  And I hope she does it, because being miserable at work is really the worst.  

And finally, Ami (whose blog you can see here) has transitioned to a new job, and like the rest of us, is struggling with the change.  A new job can be both a blessing and a curse.  You might earn more, or less.  You might have less stress or more.  Transitioning from hundreds of co-workers to so few you can count them on two hands (or even one) can be an eye opener.  

As the title states: change is usually both good and bad.  

Love, 365

For Richard Dawkins, it's my way or the highway....

Charles Darwin

Origin of Species

In our honors class, we have been studying Darwin's greatest achievement....his narrative Origin of Species.   We've also been reading a book about his life, which is really fascinating, although it is hugely long, and I've only read about 1/12 of it.  Then we were to watch a movie narrated by  Richard Dawkins on the Genius of Darwin.  I thought, ok, sounds interesting.  And it is, up to a point.  There are 3 parts to the movie.  I only watched about 10 minutes of the first one....and he explains right up front that he has no belief in God.  Ok.  He really does do a decent job of explaining how Darwin's theory works.  And then, he interviews Wendy Wright, a conservative christian.  I had to flinch, not because I felt sorry for Wendy, but because Mr. Dawkins (a biologist, although my professor used the term "naturalist") is so completely lacking in tact.

Do I believe?  Well, I admit that it sort of depends.  Having grown up with a deep belief (but not fanatical), it has been difficult to merge those beliefs with the science I'm learning.  I still have moments of belief, but they grow further apart as time goes on.  But this isn't really about me.  It's about my thoughts on Dawkins, who seems to be a caveman who wants to hit every religious person on the head with the "there is no god" club.  

~He says that the theory (and yes, that is what it's called) of evolution is fact.  And I happen to believe in evolution....the evidence is overwhelming.  But in science there very few absolutes.  So that is my first point of contention.  He uses these examples:

"You don't believe the earth is round only if you're an astronaut"

"You don't believe that Napoleon existed only if you're a historian"

"Gravity exists...if you doubt that, go jump off of a building"

The reason he uses these examples is because they are simple and irrefutable.  And "religion is made up".  You can almost see how angry he becomes when a creationist asks "for proof".  To his credit, he does not ask them for proof ~ probably because they would give the "faith" answer.  It's not faith if you require proof, right?

But seriously ~ there are scientists out there that actually believe that the earth is less than 10,000 years old, even though the earth is estimated to be 4.55 billion years old.  Scientific American has an interesting article here if you are interested.

Although Dawkins readily insists that Darwin didn't believe in god, it would appear that this is his belief, but not fully accepted by everyone.  My professor seems to believe that Darwin did believe, but apparently there is controversy surrounding that as well.  In this website, American Thinker, they argue that at best he became an agnostic.  

Dawkins also interviewed a priest, who has a scientific background and asked how he reconciles his understanding of evolution with his faith, where we get this little gem, and is what I first thought of for myself: Evolution is true, and god created it.  

Are we hedging our bets?  I did read one person's theory on why religion still exists, because it doesn't really cost anything to believe, and if it turns out to be true, I'll still go to heaven.  Wow.  That one kind of hit home.  I think this comes from the human desire to have our cake and eat it too.

No matter what you or I believe, we have the freedom to believe in it.  And that's where Dawkin's attitude grates.....he wants to smack you over the head with it.

Love, 365

Has the vacation started yet??

I am sooooo sick of politics.  First there's the Hilary/Trump debate, then the vice-presidential debates, and another go at the presidential debates on Sunday.  We are planning on renting a movie instead.  Really, we won't miss it, as there will be review after nauseating review, with tons of clips from the debates anyway.  Not that I want to hear/watch any of it.  Ugh.

And yes, I realize it's only going to get worse the closer we get to election time.  Double ugh.

Romeo is actually enjoying the new school.  One of his classes has only 4 students in it, and the rest have less than 20.  I am so relieved....although I know it is his habit to be enthusiastic at the beginning, and then pick it apart later.  Hmmmm, come to think of it, that's pretty much how I would say I spoke of my workplace as well.  To be fair, I'm really pretty happy there, with only moments of irritation ~ and I don't think it gets much better than that.

In my honors class we've been discussing the impact of Charles Darwin in science.  His personal story is really fascinating.  Sadly our Professor seems to take the fun out of everything by interpreting the story and his writing of Origin of Species in regards to politics and religion......and a little bit of implication that Darwin was a bit of a coward for not "coming out" with the fact that his theory basically takes God out of the equation.  Admittedly, in that time period, it would have meant that he would be excluded from any kind of high society.....and his family was desperately trying to make themselves part of the upper class in England.  Lots to think about.

Well, I had all kinds of other things I thought about writing, but they've all gone the way of the Dodo bird.  I really need to write them down so that I can recall them when I'm actually at the computer.

Love, 365

Albuquerque's International Balloon Fiesta!

I took these last year......

Notice the finger hanging out of this monster's mouth....ha ha

Up and away....

We were standing right in front of "Airabelle" the cow....she is ENORMOUS!

The end :-)

We didn't go this year.....neither of us felt the need to get up at 3:30, get to the park n ride by 4:30, and then ~ desperate for coffee ~ burn our tongues on the hot brew.  It is a lot of fun to go, the food is similar to the carnival offerings...so good but fattening and delicious.   When we first moved here we went every year for about 4 years, so fun with the exception of how early you have to set the alarm.  I did score a balloon ride one year, and loved it.  It was free, which was why I was able to do it, and although I haven't flown again, I will do it again sometime.  

Romeo starts his new job tomorrow.  He seems so much more relaxed than he did last time.  His class sizes will be much smaller (probably a bit over 15 as opposed to 30), and the school is much smaller as well.  He is concerned that the students will be behind in their studies, since they've had a substitute since the beginning of the school year, but I think this is the type of challenge he will look forward to.  His previous employer still has ads on Craig's List for teachers, and I don't see that changing.  One of the first things I asked was if he had a desk and chair, and with relief, he said yes.  At the previous school they had decided that teachers don't need desks or chairs, so he was on his feet the entire day, and his plantar fasciitis really flared up.  I really don't understand why they believed that teachers would be more effective if they couldn't sit down.  Baffling.  

Well, I finally got my grade for the mid-term.  And it was worse than I thought, at a 76.  The way I see it, I will finish up this class and if the final grade isn't very good, I just won't transfer the class to UNM.  Just one more reason I dislike this program with BYU.  And I didn't get any feedback, but I will be sending the instructor a request for feedback.  We'll see how long that takes.  

Looking forward to vacation time!

Love, 365

Friday wrap up...

Go here if you'd like to read the story behind this "apology cake".  

Funny & not funny all at the same time.

Another of Earth's creatures being hunted to extinction, for their meat and scales, 

used in Chinese medicine.

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There isn't any lack of political news, but I refuse to add to the trash heap.  Unfortunately, I saw Johnson's most latest blunder, where he was unable to name a single world leader that he admired.  Good grief.

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Romeo is set to begin teaching again, starting on Monday. He has been going back and forth from home to the school with the usual plethera of paperwork, insurance information, etc.  During one of those visits, he heard that the substitute that had been teaching the class he was hired for - upon hearing that the school had hired someone, left at lunch ~ and didn't return ~ a few of the kids went to the office and asked where their teacher was.  Isn't that rather like cutting off your nose to spite your face????  I believe that if they need a substitute teacher, they won't be calling him.  

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I am happy to be on vacation now until Oct 11th.  Actually, Sept. 30th wasn't on my request, but a few weeks ago I noticed the day was totally blank.  One Dr is in Italy on vacation, one Dr is in Scottsdale at a conference, and apparently the hygienists decided there wasn't enough going on to make it worthwhile to work.  I asked our office manager about it, and was told that if I wished to be paid for that day I would have to take a vacation day.  I did of course, as I never know from one week to the next if all of us here in the household will be working.....sorry for the dig, Romeo....so happily I am on vacation beginning today.  Wonderful, wonderful.  I don't have anything planned, but will do my best to find something fun to do, probably go hiking at Sandia Peak, taking my camera for photos.  

I still don't have a grade for my mid-term.  Today marks 4 weeks since they've had the test in their possession.  So, Monday I will be raising all kinds of hell.  This is ridiculous.  I really need to finish up this course, which means finishing one paper, and writing another.  So, it's not like I'm going to be sitting around twiddling my thumbs while on vacation.

Saturday is the start of the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta!  So, along with everything else, our city is filled with visitors from all over the world.  And idiots who are attempting to drive and look at the balloons.  Not a good combination.  

Until next time....

Love, 365