My Daddy

It's been a rough 10 days. 10 days ago I found out that my daddy had died the night before, at home, alone. Everyone says he didn't suffer, that he went quickly, that he was probably dead before his body hit the floor. I hope they are right. But that mental image of my daddy lying on his face on the floor all night before anyone even knew what had happened is hard to handle.

Saturday morning began so well. Our younger son and his family were here. We had just had a leisurely breakfast together. We were making plans to go down the mountain to town (AJ's words!) when the phone rang. And then came the news. Daddy had gone to be with Jesus.

We had planned to visit him last Sunday. We had a new TV for him to replace the one damaged by lightning a few weeks ago. We were all there on Sunday. But he wasn't.

I have always known I was blessed with a very special Daddy. That has been reaffirmed over and over in the past 10 days as I have heard people share their experiences with him. I've heard from people he led to Christ. I've talked with his childhood friends about how they picked cotton together. I've been blessed over and over to hear what a difference he made in so many lives, just by being who he was.

I know he is with Jesus. I know I will see him again someday. But right now, Daddy, I miss you.

I'm Addicted!!

It's never easy to face up to one's shortcomings. And now I find myself face to face with and having to admit to yet another addiction!!

I've been facing up to and dealing with the food "addiction" for several months now. I joined Weight Watchers (AGAIN!) for the umpteenth time in January and as a result am dealing with and conquering that addiction. So far, 23 pounds lighter than I was when I joined. I hesitate to say I've "lost" 23 pounds because it seems that implies I would like to find them, and that is most definitely NOT the case :)

My computer has recently spent a few days with the Geek Squad folks. With many thanks to them, it is now back at home and running ever so much more efficiently than before. But these few days without it have forced me to face up to yet another addiction......facebook!!! It has been so much fun to reconnect with friends and to know what's going on with them. And since this computer sits on the bar between the kitchen and family room, and since I walk past it umpteen times a day, I was in the habit of taking a quick peek at the status pages nearly every time I walked by. I really missed that over the last few days!

But even more than keeping up with my friends I confess to an absolute addiction to some of the facebook games, particularly Word Hunt. I love word games anyway, but this one has grabbed me like no other. So, after realizing that I could actually get through the day without multiple word hunts, I'm trying to avoid it for a few more days and see if I can break the addiction cycle here as well. Not that I will completely give it up, mind you, but I need to get control here......I really do have other things to do!!

As for the addiction to coffee, well.......that's one addiction I'm holding on to :)

Slaying My Dragons

Some time back I was referred to a blog which had a post titled "Slaying Your Dragons Before Breakfast" or something like that. I don't remember much about the content of the post, but I think it was related to time management and getting started on your day by dealing with the tough things first, getting them out of the way and then moving on. Something like that.

Anyway, today is one of those days when I definitely need help in the time management area. Lots of dragons to be slain today. After a couple of days away with Al, I've come home to discover that nobody did the laundry or dealt with the dust bunnies or took care of the mail or prepared the Bible Study lesson......etc, etc. Probably because nobody was here - LOL!! In any event, there are lots of tasks and projects to be dealt with today, and I'm having a hard time prioritizing them. So far today, I more like a hummingbird or a butterfly (flitting from one thing to the next) than like a dragon slayer!

Maybe I need to sit down with another cup of coffee (always a good idea, if you ask me!) and make a list of everything that needs doing today. Then I can prioritize the list. That seems like a good strategy for slaying a dragon or two.

I'm Excited!

I'm excited! Tomorrow I'm going on a road trip.....to Charleston, West Virginia. What's so exciting about Charleston, West Virginia, you may be asking. Well, I don't know. Maybe a lot. Maybe nothing. I've never been there, so I don't have a definitive answer to the question.

What I am excited about is a six hour road trip. Yes, six hours in the car with my sweet husband. He's going to be working in Charleston, teaching a class there on Wednesday. So we're driving up tomorrow. And so......I'm excited. He's away from home so often that any time we spend together is a special treat. Even a six hour road trip, and the six hour road trip home on Wednesday. Yes, I confess that after almost 37 years of marriage, I still love spending time with him!! So, I'm excited!

As to whether or not there's anything really exciting about Charleston, West Virginia......well, I'll have to let you know when we get back.

The Sisterhood of the Pink Bubble

Almost 13 years ago I took the plunge and became an Independent Beauty Consultant with Mary Kay Cosmetics. I had been using Mary Kay products for many years but had never given any thought to selling them until I was faced with the empty-nest as my youngest was going off to college. Even then, I wasn't looking to be a businesswoman as much as I was looking for something to fill my time, since I would no longer be a home-schooling mom. It's not as if I didn't have plenty to do.....I was teaching a full load of piano students as well as serving my church as Music Minister and teaching Precept Upon Precept Bible Studies in our church. But on June 12, 1996 I began a new career as an Independent Beauty Consultant.

I have loved my Mary Kay years, as a consultant and later as an Independent Sales Director. I've enjoyed the money I made, and I made a good income! I enjoyed the prizes I earned and the prestige of being a Star Consultant and of qualifying for my first car (I took cash compensation instead of the car.) But most of all I have loved the friendships I have made and the camraderie that exists between the women in Mary Kay. There is a real sisterhood in Mary Kay that is unlike any I ever experienced in any other job/career I ever had. It really is the sisterhood of the "pink bubble", and something not really understood by those outside the bubble.

When we moved to the mountains a few years ago and began life in this very isolated area, I put my MK career on hold and then chose to "retire" myself. But oh how I have missed it! I've continued to maintain my consultant status with the company and have continued using MK products - I wouldn't think of using anything else!! But I've been out of the bubble.....away from meetings and skin care parties and seminar and missing my MK girls!! Missing them a lot!! So much, in fact, that I'm coming out of retirement!! Certainly the current economic climate makes going back "to work" a good idea......some additional income will be helpful! But more than the money, I miss the sisterhood!! I miss the pink bubble!!

Whether or not I work my business on as big a scale as I once did remains to be seen......will I become a Sales Director or a car qualifier again? I don't know. What I do know is that I'm taking the first step......I've made the decision. And I am so excited!!!

So check me out at www.marykay.com/sfeaster. Leave me a note and tell me you were there. And if you don't have a personal beauty consultant, I'd love to provide that service for you.

Priorities

Today is such a beautiful day! It's a little cool for this time of year, but the sun is shining and everything is so green from all the rain we've had lately. There was actually a frost advisory last night! Good grief! It's the middle of May and we're still having to think about frost??!! What's up with that? So, like the good gardener I am (and that is a real exaggeration, I assure you), I went out last night and covered our squash and cucumbers and tomatoes with sheets to protect them from the frost.......the frost that didn't come, by the way! Thankfully the wind didn't blow my sheets down the side of the mountain!!

So, on this beautiful day when my to-do list is really quite long, what have I been doing? Well, I've wasted some time on Facebook, mostly playing Word Hunt, my new favorite game. I've watched the birds......lots of goldfinches at the feeders today, and I've been keeping my eye on the phoebe who built a nest in the roof of our carport. She's taking good care of her new babies. A wild turkey strolled through the carport a little while ago (in case that doesn't make sense, the carport is actually open on 3 sides.....it's a drive-through carport!). There are squirrels and chipmunks chasing each other across the bank behind our house. I think they are fighting over the acorns and hickory nuts. There's really no need to fight.....there's more than enough for all the critters to share!

I should be emptying and reloading the dishwasher and catching up with the ironing and straightening the clutter and maybe even trying to make some more progress on the basement clean-up project. That would be the basement clean-up project which seems to be getting worse instead of better! I should be finishing up preparations for tonight's Bible Study. That seems like the priority. So, now that I've finished my lunch, finished this post and wasted entirely too much time this morning, I think it's about time I got my priorities in order!!

I'm Not a Morning Person

I think this whole "morning person" thing is vastly overrated. What's so great about forcing yourself to get up before dawn even shows its face just so you can rush around frantically trying to convince yourself that you are getting lots more done? At least that's how it would be for me. Getting up early is not something that comes naturally to me. I hate alarm clocks. I hate being forced to be up and about before I want to be. I like to sleep until my body decides it has had enough (meaning.....has slept enough) and then to get out of bed. And I think I am a lot more productive when I can get up on my own timetable!!

I like to enter the day gradually. I'm not one of those people who hits the ground running.....who bounds joyfully into the day. I don't want anybody to talk to me until I've had a cup (make that several cups!) of coffee. Fortunately, even though I am married to a "morning person", he figured out a long time ago that I am not one of those and has adjusted admirably!!