AN OBITUARY PRINTED IN THE TIMES

I am usually not big on forwarding jokes, or other e mails but this one struck me as worthy. Thanks Aunt Sondra !


Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, 'Common Sense', who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:

Knowing when to come in out of the rain;
why the early bird gets the worm;
life isn't always fair;
and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge)

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouth wash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children.

It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion..

Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement ...

Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust. His wife, Discretion, his daughter, Responsibility, his son, Reason.

He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers; I Know My Rights; I Want It Now; Someone Else Is To Blame; I'm A Victim.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

Frustrated but Thankful

At Mike's eye appointment on Friday he was given a prescription to get new glasses made. We were happy that he could finally order new glasses after over a month with only one lens in his current ones however, we were quite miffed to find out that the last eye doctor even messed up the prescription for his good eye. Now instead of paying for one lens we had to order two and our insurance will not pay anything since he just got these glasses in February . Not to mention that even though the eye doctor who took care of him knew that there was something wrong ( a cataract) he didn't know what it was, so sent him to a specialist however he just guessed to make him glasses which used up the insurance for the year.
Needless to say I was not in the best of moods walking into the eye place and being told that our insurance would not pay ( even though we knew) It took all I had not to get loud,though I did mention to the man filling out the order ( the same man who ordered our glasses last time)how dissatisfied I was with them even making the glasses,knowing that they didn't have a good script. Not to mention that the doctor missed a cataract in the first place. I mean come on cataracts are common and for an eye doctor to miss one that was completely over the eye, I'd say maybe he needs better glasses himself. Anyway, I mentioned that we were dissatisfied and though I didn't really raise my voice half of their waiting room probably heard. The man did apologise and offered us a 25% discount. This was better than nothing but I was still disgusted, though I remained civil . Finally after they were done, the man looked at us and said, tell you what, we'll do your transitions free too because they are guaranteed and we will just send them back as a redo. This made me a little happier as the transitions tinting is more expensive than the lenses. In the end I ended up paying for the two lenses with no add ons. Which I felt was fair. Now we just have to wait three weeks though it may be sooner as a rush has been put on them. All in all it turned out OK and for that I am thankful !

Back to the old fashioned way

After a super busy day, which I faced with very little sleep the night before,Mike asked for information on our coming July trip. As I was downstairs I went to look up the confirmation on his lap top.It was not there. Slightly annoyed , but not yet in a panic, I moved to my computer. It was not here either.OK now I went into a panic. I had no record at all of flights that were paid for with gift cards ( To get free gas, we buy gift cards from Giant Eagle and then use them to buy the things we need)In a panic I realized that these were on the hard drive of my old computer. Mike said he would locate them. My panic attack wasn't satisfied. I called Southwest airlines to see if they could look them up for me.twenty minutes on hold and the lady said she would e mail them to me. True to her word she did E mail the reservations for one way. Not quite as panicked as before( I figured that if they found one they could find another) I called back and spent another fifteen minutes or so on hold. This lady said no problem and said she would E mail them. I thanked her and hung up. An hour later still no return flight info, I called back, I waited,I was transferred to the same lady.She argued that she sent them. I thanked her but requested that she do so again. She said she did,they were not here. I started to give her my E mail address( after all it seemed that she may not have had the correct one) she informed me that she had it as I waited ten more minutes for an E mail to appear, it didn't. I was losing patience. Mike found the info on the hard drive of my old computer which is now being transitioned as the kids new computer. He called my cell but I was on with the Southwest woman, so he got voice mail. Finally I asked the woman to read my E mail to me, she did. She had it wrong. I gave her the correct one, she made a small joke about how she should have listened to me at the beginning of the first call, I didn't laugh. She sent the info, I got it. I hung up the phone, saved the information in various places then printed off multiple copies which I put in folders marked with trip date and other information. This is how I did things before computers and it worked. I always had one folder per trip with every thing that I needed in it. After I finished , Mike came up to say that he had the information. I said I did too. He said he backed it all up on thumb drives, I showed him my folder. He didn't roll his eyes ( smart man) nor say a word. This is when it dawned on me. All of these modern conveniences designed to make my life easy and I am more stressed than ever.coincidence? I don't think so. perhaps I will think about going back to the old fashioned way of other things too.

More things to do

Paying my final payment for our upcoming cruise felt wonderful. Yes, it is really going to happen was my first thought. I then went over a mental check list; passport...check,dress clothes....though Robby needs a new dress shirt and tie,almost check, doggy reservations... check,before and after plans... again almost, flights.... check. Yep looks like I am moving right along. Just need to book an after hotel ( probably today) and rental car. Yes I am almost there.... or am I ? Yesterday's e mail contained a check list. For the most part I am there except that my E mail receipt contained more things to do now that I am fully paid. These things consist mostly of preregistering our information, Carnival wants our passport info before we even get to the ship, which is good that we will not have to stand in line for an hour to register this information but bad in that then I will be on vacation and have the time. As for now I have a full plate . In itself these preregistration requirements wouldn't be so bad but get this..... Robby will be 13 on the day we get on the plane, this will qualify him for the kids 13-15 group if he chooses to participate. Michael will qualify for the 16-17 group as well. Though Michael does not have to register, Robby does. This is no big deal except that at thirteen,though Robby has to have me register him, he is allowed to sign himself in and out. So my question.... If he is allowed to sign himself in and out of the activity sites, why do I need to fill out a three page form informing ship personnel who has my permission to sign Robby out. Since Robby will always be with Robby ( I don't think there is a way of avoiding this) then wouldn't it just make sense that Robby will always be there to sign himself in and out ? So it really doesn't matter if he meets Michael, Cindy, Mike or me at the kids club door as he will be signed out anyway, right ? So why the three page paper ? Anyway I guess that this is just something that got SNAFUed when it went from a form that was mailed ( where a human could see the ages of children and say " Oh we don't need this form)to a computer form.Oh technology..... How we love thee ! Anyway I have a mountain of forms so that's where I'll be this weekend. Well there and booking an after cruise hotel. I think I have made up my mind finally,

Our Coach store experience

I had been awhile since we were shopping in the mall so when Mike and I went out for a sushi lunch at a mall restaurant, we decided not to leave through the outside entrance but rather take a little walk. Mike also needed to check at the jewelery store about getting his wedding band fixed of the effects that almost twenty years and the effects of him being a tool and die maker had .As we walked along,I seen a store that I hadn't before. It was the Coach purse store. Now though I am not into these expensive purses, I have been known to admire a friends knock off purses and have even scoured E bay for deals while considering owning one someday . My main reason for going in was to see if the original prices quoted on E bay are actual or inflated. As I walked into this tiny store Mike followed. The sales woman was on us in a millisecond asking which purse I wanted to see. I politely responded that I was just looking.She then asked what I liked. I again responded that I didn't know but was just looking. The lady seen that she was getting nowhere with me so she started talking to Mike, I didn't catch her comments but soon heard him say" She can buy whatever she wants" Wow, the girl gasped, I wish my boyfriend felt that way ! At that point I had seen the prices which were true to those published on E bay and was ready to go. I was given a catalogue and told that a new shipment ( possible more to my liking ) would be in on Friday. As I left I had to smile. Yes Mike can leave it up to me to buy what I want but in all fairness, he knows better than to believe that I could pay hundreds of dollars on a bag. Don't get me wrong,I have been known to own a designer bag that came from E bay, was a knock off, and was a Christmas gift but to just go pick out a bag from a line that's mall prices start at just short of $400, yea right. No wonder this girl's boyfriend has to put his foot down if she sees nothing wrong with spending this kind of money on a purse, not even mentioning the matching $300 wallet. Who buys this stuff in our area anyway ?

It's official !

As of this morning our Cruise vacation is Paid in full ! Two days before the due date none the less. I am so excited. This past year has been especially stressful for me.There is no special reason that this past year has been grueling just a lot of little things. I am truly looking forward to four days of just relaxing. We also booked two days beforehand to hang out at the beach ten minutes from the pier. Though I still need to decide on a hotel, we also will stay in Orlando two days after the cruise. We really don't have any special plans and that is pretty much how I want it. If we sleep till noon, so be it,is my plan. Too bad though that the kids may not be on the same page. This morning I had some ads to Orlando attractions in my in box. I tried to explain that this trip would probably not include these things but was told to just look at the ads. In all fairness, I looked but somehow don't feel very enticed. Perhaps after Mike and My anniversary trip my stress level will drop and I will revisit these offers. Stranger things have been known to happen.

Happy Father's day !

Precious Moments entitled "who's gonna fill your shoes" is perfect for Father's day ! Though My Father and the father of my children are both wonderful men neither are a perfect fit for each other's "shoes" and I wouldn't want it any other way !

Never fails

Why is it that every Saturday morning ( the only morning of the week that I can sleep in a couple hours)I have a couple birds land on the open window, right next to my bed's ledge and squawk, causing my Cocker spaniels( Bird dogs by nature, ya know)to jump on top of me ( um my bed) and try to get to them through the screen ?

My secret love.......

platoscloset.com !

Yes school just let out a couple weeks ago, that means it's time for Plato's closet's clearance sale. I love this place to begin with. Where else can I get the Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch apparel that my boys love for as little as $5-$10 a shirt ? I can't even get Wal Mart shirts for this price ! Yes these clothes are gently used, but gently is the key word here. Plato's only buys current styles and everything must be in top condition. With today's distressed styles, one can not tell the difference from new. Even better, the owners let their teenage employees go through everything brought in for sale to judge if it is current fashion or not. Who can argue with a seventeen year old girl, whether Hollister sold a certain style last season or this one? It's just stuff that she knows. These people are genius !
Anyway, now on clearance are long sleeve shirts, hoodies, and even some short sleeve polo styles and some T shirts that have been around for a while, all at 50% off ! There are also jeans on sale, though Michael is a tough size to fit and Robby still wears a boy's size( better see if "Once upon a child" is also having a sale)Either way I just spent the amount that I would normally spend for one mall shirt and walked out with two bags full. Yes most people are not thinking anywhere near back to school, but their lack of interest is my gain !

Free ?

A week ago I was informed of a "free" air show coming in August to our Local Youngstown airport. It made sense to me that though it was free, you needed to secure a ticket due to it being a small airport. Well I went to the site and thought why not. Maybe we will go . I even secured a couple tickets for family members, why not... it's free. Well upon printing my tickets, I find that this "free " show requires us to park in a lot and pay a $10 per person shuttle fee. Now come on. A school bus ( which they will be using for shuttle, holds at least forty adults. That is $400 per trip Somehow that seems less like a shuttle fee ( used to pay the bus driver, gas for the bus, etc.)Furthermore, there are no drop offs allowed. Unless you are a Department of Defense member, you must ride the bus and pay.So in reality, the show has a $10 per person fee. Not that $10 per person for an air show is a bad deal at all, but lets just call a spade a spade here.
Now anybody want to attend the $10 air show ?????????

Happy Birthday Dad

Happy 64th Birthday to My Dad. Hope there are 64 more !

Love always,
Your little girl !

Happy Ninteenth Birthday Cindy

As the picture shows, there have been times.....

But I would do it all again if given the chance ! Dad and I are very proud of you and know that you will do well in life !
Happy nineteen Sweetheart, We love you !

BTW Dear Readers, just because I have a nineteen year old, doesn't mean that I am old. Ok I was twenty one when she was born, but I certainly aint forty now !

Another should I or shouldn't I ?

Well I broke down and booked our August before the cruise accomidations. Though I paid a tad more than the rock bottom rope you in with two beds and a "clean" bathroom rate. I did manage to snag a room that even has enough beds to accomidate our family.( Cindy will be glad not to have to sleep on the floor this time) In the process I also got every anemity that I had punched into the search, which for me never happens . yea me!
Anyway since I did so well I decided to try my luck and see if I could find an after the cruise hotel. ( we want to stay close by the port before the cruise for stress free arival and closer to the air port after for the same reasoning)Unfortunatly there was not a clear cut stand out hotel in this town.There are no shortages of good hotels , many of which are in budget but no "gotta book it now" deals. One superior deal is the Nickelodeon hotel. Though this hotel does not offer a complimentary breakfast ( always a perk )it does offer many other things on our list ( plus many that aren't even necessary but would be fun )and at $50 off the regular price, it squeaks into our budget. So starts my debate. yes it is an awesome deal but their are other nice places that are cheaper and even include breakfast. ( No I won't just book and shut up if someone throws me a bag of bagels and a brick of cream cheese :-) it's just not that simple) Anyway since I couldn't make up my mind, I asked Cindy for an opinion as she was the only one home. She wasn't much help with a comment of "No we're not too old to enjoy it and Robby would probably even like it a lot " well then it sounded like a winner so I was ready to hit the book button when suddenly Cindy stopped and commented " The only problem would be that there are probably tons of misbehaved ( paraphrasing) kids there that would grate on our nerves" Yes I replied, taking my hand from the book button. Oh well, Cindy said, it's your choice !"
So, thank you Cindy , that was helpful ! So now back to square one,should I or shouldn't I ? Now my head hurts, maybe I will look at hotels later !

Time for social occasions

I have been doing a lot of looking at Carnival's site lately. I have even been shopping for appropriate dinner attire for our upcoming cruise. For the first time in a long time, with the exception of when we had funerals to attend, everyone in the family has dress clothing that fits.See for us church clothes consist of a pair of black jeans and a polo shirt for the men folk or a nice blouse with black jeans for us women folk. Since I reached maybe forth grade or so I have not worn dresses much. Of course I have made exceptions for the kids Baptisms, First Communions, and Confirmations. I have however, been known to usually wear a nice pants suite to funerals but for weekly mass, jeans are comfortable and I have several pair so it doesn't look as though I am always wearing the same thing. So far it has worked for us but for some reason ,though Carnival is OK with black jeans on any other night, dress up night is jean free. Of course we could boycott the dining room that night and eat at the burger / pizza place, but my luck this would be my only chance to have lobster, so I am going to be prepared.Anyway, just so all of our friends and family knows, we all have dress clothes so if anyone wants to get married, have a baptism, or any other social dressy occasion that my jeans are not good enough for, how bout doing it relatively soon. Robby will probably be hitting a growth spurt within the next six or so months so . Just something to keep in mind !

Okazaki in the News

Anyone who knows me or has looked at my blog knows of my great respect for Sensei Teruyuki Okazaki. He is the founder of the ISKF ( International ShotoKan karate federation) and teaches a couple clinics in our regeon per year. We try our absolute best to attend each of these clinics and have come to know , admire, and greatly respect Sensei Okazaki. Sensei Okazaki is the Sensei that Michael tested and passed his black belt exam under. Michael takes great pride in being awarded his belt from Sensei Okazaki and hopes to test for his second degree (Nidan) within the next year under Sensei Okazaki
The following was published in the Philadelphia Inquirer on May 26, 2009 . Once found online,It was forwarded to those in our ISKF Mid America region by another member. It paints a picture of the man that we know and greatly respect.

Okazaki teaches Shotokan in Philadelphia
By Dwight Ott
Inquirer Staff Writer


Standing in front of his karate class in West Philadelphia, the gentle grandfather turned warrior as he barked crisp commands.

"Open your mind to your opponent!" ordered Teruyuki Okazaki, his posture as erect as the slender gold staffs of large American and Japanese flags flanking him.

For 48 years, legions of acolytes from around the world have studied at his spartan gym at 45th and Locust Streets, absorbing the lessons of Okazaki, the highest-ranking Shotokan karate master in the world.

At 78, Okazaki, the only living student in the United States of the founder of modern karate, moves with the grace and fluidity of an athlete in his prime. His is a fighting system that wastes no motion: Punches and kicks are delivered with cobra-quick speed and precision; blocks can be used simultaneously for defense or attack.

Except that is not really the point, Okazaki is quick to add.

"The martial arts are about more than physical development, self-defense, and competition. Most important, they are about continually striving to perfect one's character," he is fond of saying.

To that end, in 1977 he founded the International Shotokan Karate Federation, a 50,000-member organization with participants in 30 countries. At its core is a simple tenet: Practiced properly, the discipline is a path to peace.

In the fall, Okazaki will take that message to Guyana, at the invitation of its president, Bharrat Jagdeo.

"They have a lot of violence there," Okazaki said of the South American country. "The president wants to learn how to change people mentally."

As he has done here, Okazaki - who teaches martial arts at the University of Pennsylvania as well as at Temple, Drexel, Thomas Jefferson, and West Chester Universities - plans to set up Shotokan clubs on college campuses throughout Guyana, with course credits offered. This year, he also will instruct in the Philippines, Mexico, and Britain.

Okazaki came to the United States in 1961 to promote the teachings of Gichin Funakoshi, a native of Okinawa who introduced karate - literally, "empty hand" - to Japan in 1921. Funakoshi was a sickly teenager who became the star pupil of two martial-arts masters; they introduced him to classical Chinese and Japanese poetry, and philosophy as well.

Credited with creating the discipline of Shotokan (from his pen name Shoto, or "wind in the pines"), Funakoshi preached that true courage comes from avoiding confrontations, not instigating them. "When two tigers fight," he has been quoted, "one is bound to be hurt. The other will be dead."

Funakoshi, who died in 1957 at 88, laid down the precepts that his students should always follow to handle all manner of life's obstacles, including: Seek perfection, be respectful and faithful, and refrain from violence.

Okazaki, who admits that as a youth he was eager to "kick butt," recalls taking his first test to become a black belt under Funakoshi's eye. Okazaki nailed every physical challenge - and failed.

Funakoshi, he said, offered only one cryptic explanation: Keep training. Finally, after contemplating quitting, he understood.

"A master can read your mind," he said. "My mind was wrong."

That lesson has not been lost on Okazaki's oldest pupil here, Norman Axe, 79, a black belt from Wynnewood. He has studied under the master - Shotokan's single 10th-degree black belt - for 40 years and says he has never been in a scrap, despite several severe provocations.

"It's easy to be hit hard or be aggravated by words, unless you know how to sidestep," Axe said.

Okazaki, who stands about 5-foot-5 and weighs about 150 pounds, drilled that reminder into a recent class reserved only for black belts. "Never power against power," he exhorted.

He demonstrated various advanced techniques that left his proteges panting at the end of their session. His hands and feet were blurs as he flowed from one movement to the next, his stance - like Funakoshi's admonitions for a well-spent life - always based on a stable foundation. He seemed scarcely winded, as serene as a woodland brook.

When the day comes that he can no longer show correct form, he said, he will retire as an instructor.

That day seems a good while off. After the class thanked him, he bounded over to a 220-pound seated onlooker and helped him to his feet.

The irony was not lost, but he did not make mention of it. He bowed.

"I do my best" was all he said.


I didn't care for the scanned quality of the picture that apperaed in the Inquirer so I left it out. Here are a couple from my personal collection


Sensei Okazaki addresses his Mid America students at an advanced training clinic



Sensei OKazaki and Robby bow to each other before a demonstration that Sensei chose Robby for.


Sensei Okazaki poses with Michael and Robby at an advanced training clinic in Columbus.

School's out for the Summer !

Today was my Boy's last day of school . Michael needed a ride home following his finals so we were on a time schedule of sorts as far as early afternoon was concerned. Mike had promised to pick Michael up in his ( Michael's) car so that he could drive home. Hopefully by the end of next week, Michael will have his drivers ed hours in and can think about setting a date to take his test, however with karate and everything else, Michael's availability has been scarce. Mike also had some computer jobs to finish before his lay off week ends so I took a solo trip to the Grocery store.
I always cringe at the first trip to the store of Summer vacation because our needs change so much. During the school year I cook everyone ( or they prepare their own depending)an individual breakfast and a family dinner. I do pack Mike a daily lunch but usually the boys lunches are taken care of by the $2-$3( school lunches go up from middle to high school ya know) that I leave on the table daily for them. Cindy sometimes packs a lunch( at our expense) and sometimes eats out at her own expense. Now Cindy goes to school through the summer and Mike works year round so their routine will remain unchanged but with the boys home , I must either cook daily lunch or stock convenience foods. Though I do cook many lunches, I like to have hot pockets, pepperoni rolls, and the such for when time doesn't permit my cooking a small meal. The trick is to get convenience foods that have some nutritional value without too much sugar and fillers and that don't cost a fortune. I think that i did pretty good today.
For now though I will bask in the glory of no more screaming "Your bus is here!" or "Get up , I called you an hour ago" or other phrases that seem commonplace around here. Though I still have to get Mike and Cindy up Monday through Friday, my load is lightened and for that I am happy !!!

We should have had this talk before I booked

A certain sixteen year old.... Are you serious ? I have to wear a church shirt (collared polo)to dinner ever night on the cruise ? Not just for dress up night ?

A certain Mom.... Yes dress up night will require a button down shirt and tie and every other night will be polo shirts and dress shorts or black or khaki pants

A certain sixteen year old.... I think we should have discussed this before you booked the cruise

Thought for the day....... Giving it to the Lord

A while back I was talking to a friend who many see as one of the happiest women around. Knowing this woman I have been let in on many times in her life that things were not peachy to say the least. One day she told me how she had to get home to change so that she could meet her father for lunch. I didn't think much of it at first but then I remembered how she had previously told me that her mother lived with her. The story started when her father left her Mom with several young children, no job nor employable skills and just never looked back,not even to pay child support. I stood for a minute wondering if I had heard right. My hesitation must have said volumes as my friend replied" yes he left when we were little and it was tough. Mom did all that she could and family helped. I remember the first time my siblings and I seen him a couple years after he left. One of his relatives asked our Mom to let us go to a family event with her. Mom reluctantly agreed . We walked into the relatives house to see Dad on the couch with an unknown woman on his lap. He spoke to us but made no attempt to remove the woman nor even hug us. I will never forget that day as long as I live" I was speechless ! Finally I muttered " when did he come around?" She replied"Well since Mom lives with me he has called my sister about once a year for the last couple and asked us out for lunch. He will not call me for fear of Mom answering the phone" "Wow, I replied, and you go so cheerfully?"
Her only reply was " Oh I gave all that garbage to the Lord years ago" Wow ! Since my friend was rushed, I hugged her good bye and she was on her way. This conversation was not mentioned again, but somehow it laid dormant in my mind.
Until a few days ago, that is. It so happened that I was talking to another friend. I love this friend but truth be told, she is always complaining about this or that. Her aches and pains or who was rude to her, or how someone hurt her feelings twenty years ago always seem to come into every conversation. Again I love her but sometimes she is just too much. Well we were in a conversation about all of her health problems and how she was offended by something or another and My mind flashed back to my friend saying" Oh I gave all that garbage to the Lord years ago" I so wanted to ask this friend to give all her garbage to the Lord, but for some reason I didn't. It wasn't that my friend is not Christian because she is. As am matter of fact she constantly tells everyone that she comes in contact with that she is a Christian, even reminding me quite a bit. Why then ? I guess that mainly I didn't want to seem non caring or rude. The whole thing has me wondering though, Are others biting their tongues where I am concerned ? I mean there are times ........ Maybe all Christians ( and Catholics too)should all take inventory of what we are saying to others. Do any of us set bad examples? I know as much as I hate to say it, I have been guilty. How about you ? Maybe right here and right now we should take inventory. What should you give to the Lord today ?

Just another day in Paradise.... Ummmm I mean Dunkin

It was a stressful day. Cindy had to show up ,at a medical facility over an hour from home, before the sun even rose for her newest round of clinicals. I was up at four AM trying to help get her out of the door on time,making sure she had proper directions , her hair completely up ( as strict HMSN rules dictate), and everything else that a good Mom helps with.We finish her hair just in time for her to leave but her cell phone is missing. We call it but the battery has died and our calls go straight to voice mail.She gets an attitude,I go off on her. Michael volunteers to let her use his cell phone as he is riding the bus to school anyway. Cindy is less than as thankful as I feel she should be, I tell her, she doesn't feel the same, she leaves. I get Mike up. His omelet sticks to the pan. I scrape it into the dog dishes and start over. The coffee pot overflows. Finally Mike is off to work and has a lunch and coffee... Small victory but none the less a victory. Robby's bus is early and we almost miss it. Robby runs out and the bus waits yes everyone is off. Small victory #2. Cindy calls and is at the medical facility for her clinical, yes she is safe. Now time to make some phone calls and pay some bills. As I spend more precious time on hold, my BP rises.The calls are done and I am off to run errands. Three stores later I still don't have what I needed for dinner,the menu changes. Back home, I start dinner and everyone is getting home. Karate is in one hour and I hit speed bake on the oven as I say yet another prayer. Dinner is on the table, we pray. As everyone digs in I get up to grab things that the kids did not put on the table.(nothing special just my drink) Dinner is finished the boys grab their gi s we are off. I come back home to the table still bearing dinner dishes. I call a sleeping Cindy to help clear it.Mike is trying to tweak my new computer's settings as I like them. soon I go get the boys.I'm now home and still in the car Mike joins me and we drive to the gas station. Wow the prices are rising, twenty cents per gallon in one day ! By now it is almost ten PM and I am exhausted but know that sleeping while stressed is unlikely. I pull out of the gas station and see a 24 hour dunkin donuts store. My car pulls in. Mike hesitates on his order. I order first one chocolate frosted cream filled. Not slimy Boston cream ! yes cream filled. Mike decides and orders. We drive through. I pull out of the DD parking lot and see the pond with fountain at the medical park behind DD. My car pulls in and stops. I stare at the lighted fountain as I devour my donut and wash it down with Diet Coke. Mike makes small talk and we have a trivial conversation. I stare at the water. Mike opens his window which allows the cool misty night breeze and the sound of the fountain as well as a slight rain hitting the water to come in. I feel the stress melting away.Our donuts and drinks are gone but we remain.I am lost in relaxation until my cell phone rings. It's Michael. He wonders why getting gas is taking so long.We're on our way, I say and we are.They say that everyone should have a happy place and I think I have found one . I only wish it was a low cal veggie stand instead of donut shop but hey sometimes you just accept these things

June already ?

Where oh where is time going ? The boys are almost out of school and all of my summer projects are needing my attention. I did manage to get everything but the rental car booked for Mike and my mini honeymoon redo coming up and have made small progress on the families August vacation. I still have not booked hotels nor rented a car but the dogs now have a suite at the doggy resort reserved in addition to the cruise and flight being booked so I am chugging along.Things here have been a mix of crazy but sweet,like Monday morning for instance. I found out that I won a table at our town's local Time warp prom, an 80's dinner /dance being held this friday. I was thrilled at winning, but to find eight friends without plans this time of year proved impossible. It all worked out and Mike and I are actually planning to go so that should be fun. I am also in the middle of planning a church Rummage sale for July. Yes, I know that nobody has a rummage sale in July, except for me but hey that's why I'm loved, right ? Anyway, everything is moving right along, just not as fast as it should. To quote an old friend "I'm so far behind, I feel like I'm ahead " yep that pretty much tells it all. Happy June everyone !

New Computer

A couple months ago Mike noticed that my Internet connection on my desktop was crawling. He ran all kinds of virus killing programs as well as other programs to do whatever one does to try to make their computer run faster. In the end I went from a crawl to a walk equivalent to one that would be seen in a nursing home. Though I dealt, Mike was offended that the wife of a Computer extraordinaire ( a name bestowed on him by some coworkers)would put up with such cruel and unusual things. Mike informed me that an upgrade was in order. He asked many questions on what I wanted.Most of which I answered with a Huh? What does that do? or a simple blank stare. He soon decided that he was on his own to pick out what I needed. Parts were ordered and within a couple weeks we had boxes. One by one Mike opened the boxes and attached this to that and ordered more parts and soon I had something resembling a computer in my living room. Mike then asked when I would like the transition. I put it off for a couple weeks but Mike finally grew impatient and told me that he would be taking my old and setting up my new within the week. I braced myself. Praise God, the transition was quick with only minimal pain. However, in the transition some changes that neither Mike nor I anticipated cropped up. One being that I lost a flyer that was supposed to be turned in for the church bulletin soon . No biggie it can be done easy enough.Another fun thing is Mike and my E mail intertwined in one big web box. Not that we keep any secrets anyway, but I have three hundred jokes from guys that Mike works with and not one would I view as funny. Mike also has had to shuffle through fifty or so of clothing sale ads and such. The up side is that even through all of this,we are still getting done faster. Just imagine how much spare time we'll have once we get things straightened out.

My Memorial Day Blessing

I was reluctant to mention Mike and my Memorial Day Blessing for a few reasons. All of which have been taken care of soooooooooo. The big news is that the airline tickets that I purchased for our coming family vacation went down in price significantly. No I am not stupid ( OK now be nice :-)I realize that this should upset me,after all I did spend over two hundred dollars that I didn't have to. But We had a low price guaranteed and though this guarantee would not refund us any money, they credited us with airline credit. Normally this would not make me happy at all but since it was such a big difference and flights were at such good deals, Mike and I had enough credit ( minus security fees and taxes of course which had to be paid in cash anyway)for the two of us to fly to the place of our honeymoon (twenty years ago July) on our anniversary. Due to so many things we are only staying for two days and one night but it sounds wonderful to me. See when Mike and I married, we were both poor college students. The only reason that we had a Honeymoon was because Mike worked for Day's Inn and one of their benefits were that they could stay at any Day's inn anywhere for $10 a night. Our Honeymoon consisted of driving Mike's junker of a car to Disney. It took us two days to get there which caused Mike to develop superficial phlebitis in his leg, which caused him flu like symptoms ( chills, fever, lethargy) Believe it or not this didn't totally ruin our Honeymoon but it did put a damper on a few of our plans. Thankfully Mike's symptoms had lessened and he was able to drive home when our couple days there had ended, though all was not peachy then either. It seemed that Mike's car picked this time to spring a leak and started overheating. Unfortunately there was not much that we could do as we had to be home to go back to work ( to pay the rent) so we filled up water containers, filled the trunk and any available space in the car and were off.As Mike drove despite his painful leg, I sat with my legs( or arm) out the window.When I felt the drops of water( from the leak) we pulled over and added a couple gallons. Praise God we did make it home on time but Mike required medical attention and time off work , and his car required a trip to the junk yard, though it had to settle for some repairs . Mike and I have come to laugh at our rocky start as husband and wife and even joke about how he "Got sick" just to avoid the lobster dinner that he promised me but we couldn't afford. Anyway since God blessed us with the credit for this little trip, we decided that we would fly down , get the lobster dinner that we have waited twenty years for at a lobster /Prime rib buffet, stay the night in a Honeymoon suite with a real jacuzzi tub, spend a little time enjoying Florida, and fly back home. Yes God knows that we have made the best of some not so great times and even though God also knows that it hasn't always been done with a smile,has blessed us with this opportunity ! We couldn't be happier, though we pray for a little less drama this time !

Summer time @ Cedar Point

One sure sign of Summer here in NE Ohio is the opening of Cedar Point . Usually our family is there on the first operating weekend getting season passes. We then never miss a memorial day weekend visit.However this year our schedules ( more like the schedules of our teenagers)did not accommodate opening weekend nor Memorial day. Mike and I even discussed if we even wanted spend the money on passes this year. In the end though, we decided that we only need to go three times for the passes to be worth their cost and figure that surely we will do that so yesterday was the day. Cindy got off working midnight shift and we piled into the car where she slept for the almost three hour( including fast food stop) ride. The weather was a sunny 68 degrees , the park was not overly crowded , and we had a great time. Being there did make it hard for the kids to go back to school this morning ( they still have one more week )but soon enough they will be on three months of vacation so hopefully we will make it back (or to some of the other parks included on the pass) soon