Goals

Well, here it is the end of January. By now, I was going to have lost 8 pounds. Nope. 2.

By now, I was going to have my basement completely cleaned out. Nope. Not close. I did get my Christmas decorations put away and sorted, and three drawers are cleaned. But there's still so much to do.

By now, my bedroom was going to be completely organized. Nope. Not touched.

By now, I was going to have shed myself of the Starbucks habit. Nope. Still happily drinking my Chai Tea Lattes.

By now, PattySue Finds a Home and A School Like No Other were going to be selling like crazy. Nope. Some sales, yes. Like crazy? Nope.

I guess that means I need to set more goals for February . . . and work harder at achieving them. Starting tomorrow . . .

The Lord Giveth and the Lord Taketh Away

It seems the older I get, the more "roller-coasterish" life seems. It used to be that for every bad thing that happened (death of someone close to me, serious illness, and the like), there were usually four or five very happy events to compensate . . . weddings, babies, travels.

As I have aged, however, I have noticed that I hear much more about those who are struggling, and less about the weddings and births. I know they are going on, but among my age group, many of our friends' children have already gotten married or had their own children. It isn't like when we were all 30 and having our own families.

Our family has recently experienced several deaths, and several people about whom I have known via Facebook have passed on. As much as logic tells me it is the circle of life, it is still heart wrenching when a young life is cut short or a close relative passes on. I have also been watching as several friends or friends of friends are battling serious illnesses. I try not to dwell on it, but the prayer list is getting lengthy.

On Saturday night, Don and I had the opportunity to meet Owen Graham (who was born in November), and several of his parents' friends had their little ones there. The children were so much fun to watch. Then today we read PattySue to preschool and kindergarten children at Collegiate School. I need those fixes to remind me that the Lord Giveth, and the Lord Taketh Away. And to be grateful for both.

Cleaning Out Drawers

I always delay cleaning out drawers because I pretend to have something more important to do. But today I decided I had to start someplace, so I picked three desk drawers to work on.

The first one, filled with financial information, was pretty boring . . . and relatively easy. Not a lot of fun papers to review, and although I found a lot to shred, it wasn't very exciting.

The second drawer, however, has been very fun. Saved cards, letters, and papers are always interesting and take me back to earlier times. Some of them were cards from when mom and dad died . . . not fun but heartwarming. Some were cards from Don and the kids that made me laugh.

One favorite was a card from a nephew. We had sent him a singing trout for a birthday, but he couldn't spell trout. The note said:

Thank you for the book and the tr (xxx) tor (xxx) singing fish.

Another was a school assignment about wanting to be like an older cousin, complete with picture. Then there was the poem from Diana, the thank you notes from many at school, the newspaper articles about various events.

I even had, for some reason, Graham Johnson's senior paper about Thrill King Johnson. I laughed and laughed!

I get frustrated with my pack-rat habits, but then on days like this, I am very happy I saved some of this stuff. And no . . . I didn't throw it away!

Songs in my Head!

Why is it that no matter what someone says, I can usually come up with a song to fit the occasion? Or I can take the occasion and fit the words into a song?

It drives me crazy!

For example, just sitting here I was thinking about dinner. I am roasting some turnips, and within about 2 seconds, I began to hum, to the tune of Waltzing Matilda, "Roasting some turnips, roasting some turnips, you'll come a roasting some turnips with me . . . "

Yep. I do it all the time.

Headed to the store for sandwich fixings? "Going out for some bread, for you. . . " (Going out of my head, over you . . . "

Not a day goes by that I come up with some corny lyrics to a song. And it doesn't just drive me crazy. It drives my friends crazy, too. I don't think they believe me when I tell them I try to keep a lid on it . . . but I do.

So, sorry. But I guess those are the fleas that come with dog . . . F, l, e,a,s that come with the dog (GLORIA Gloria).

Babs

Well, it has been more than a month since Sepia passed away. I miss him a lot, and perhaps Babs does, too. But you wouldn't know it. She is a different dog.

Take this morning for instance. When we woke up, she knew she was going for a walk and you would have thought she was 2 years old instead of 14. She wagged her little stubby tail, leapt down the hallway, and ran ahead of us, excited by the prospect. Sepia would get so excited that he overpowered her, I guess. She may have always done this, but we didn't notice. Now we do.

I also notice that she is much more attentive to me. She tries to always be in the same room with me. Perhaps she always did that, too . . . but it seems as if she was a little more aloof when Sepia was around. And she even sleeps on the bed now . . . before she would stay on the floor.

When I go to get in the car, she is there ready to go with me. She just goes to the back seat and sleeps, so I am not exactly sure why she likes to go . . . but she does. I wish she would sit on the console like Sepia used to do, but that's not Babs. On occasion she comes to the front seat, but usually she is happy in the rear.

Her eating habits are what I am not used to now. She has become a very picky eater. Once I started buying really good tasting stuff to entice Sepia to eat, rather than that hard food she used to eat, she WILL NOT go back to the old kind. When I was testing foods, I had tried some dried food for them. Although Sepia didn't like it (he didn't like anything by then,) the first time Babs tried it she loved it. So I bought a whole, pricey box for her. Won't touch it. So I mix in some of the good tasting stuff, some gravy, sometimes tuna juice with the rehydrated food. She is going to eat the stuff until the box is gone . . . I will win this battle . . . but it is hard. She finally eats it when I add enough to it . . . (kind of like when Don ate broccoli for the first time in college. . . add enough cheese to it, and it tastes just fine.) We have a long ways to go. I don't know where she got this picky streak . . . but it's ok. I like the new Babs just fine . . . even though I miss having Sepia around.

Axiom Brass

One of the most rewarding parts of my former position at The Independent School is seeing what our students do in their adult lives. TIS alums are in medical school and law school; several are in the process of getting their PhD's; many have good jobs and are already contributing to my social security :).

Friday night I had the opportunity to watch one of our alums practice his craft in very impressive fashion. Brett Johnson (06) majored in music performance at Northwestern University, and during his time there, he auditioned for a brass quintet called Axiom Brass. After a vigorous audition process, he was chosen to be the trombonist in the quintet. Besides being a performance group, they also provide workshops and learning opportunities for various groups, including colleges. Last week, they came to Wichita State University to run workshops for music students, culminating in their final event, a concert.

Although I have been to numerous concerts and symphonies, I had never listened to an entire concert with just brass instruments. It was most enjoyable. The group did an excellent job of varying the music, providing both classical and modern pieces. They commented on each piece, explaining the significance of the composer or why they thought they should include it in their repertoire. They even had a very catchy way to explain what a fugue is . . . I thought I knew, but now I know I know because I can explain it.

Over the years, Don and I have attended what appear to be random speeches, concerts or events because we knew someone involved. That's how we learned about Hal Dick and his voyages across the ocean in dirigibles, for example. Similarly, I doubt that we would have attended Axiom Brass if we had not known Brett was playing. Don and I agree we would have missed something very special if we had not been in attendance.

Enjoying Haywire

It was so fun seeing someplace I know open a movie. I even got teary-eyed! My grandmother's former cabin was in it . . . the store I love was in it . . .the silver truss bridge, the river, the hill across from the store . . . it was so fun to see what a movie-maker would do.

And the movie was a fun one to boot. Not my normal "go-to" movie, I was a little nervous. I tend to get antsy and scared at big action movies, so I didn't know how I would do. But since I knew the girl was going to make it out all right, I sat back and enjoyed the action. The plot was intriguing enough that we never knew what was going to happen next. And the ending is a surprise . . . a big surprise. Interwoven in the movie are a few humorous quotes, some beautiful scenery, and a lot of fighting!

And . . . it is a short movie. They don't belabor their point . . . they get to the point and get it over with. We thoroughly enjoyed the flick, and although it likely won't be an Oscar winner, it will be a winner with us!