My Sentiments exactly...

This is a poem that my mother found when going through my older brothers things after his death in July 1985.
I think that he wrote it...
as in it is his original work...

If someone knows otherwise please let me know...
Until then...

This post is for you Mickey...

Written as it was found...

I Was Born To Be Me

I was born... to be me, not a copy of you.
Be you parent, or teacher, or friend
Be you husband or wife, I was given this life
And it’s mine to create till the end.

Many people have tried to diminish my pride
By claiming all pride is a sin
But the fact of my worth was established at birth
At the time I was born to be me?

I was born to be me, but I’ve learned in a lifetime
I never can make it alone
Far too much of myself needs the giving of others
The parts I can’t see till I’m shown.

So, then, come touch me inside
Take the measure of my pride
Set me free from whatever’s unreal.

For there’s a life to be won, and I’ve hardly begun
To insist " I was born to be me"

Michael C. Hanlon     April 1985

Note To Self... Pay Attention, Please!

Good Morning World At Large... 
(Great! Now I have Robin Williams' voice stuck in my head!)

Today's post is brought to you by the letter ... er, no, that's not right...

Let me start again...
(I am a little rusty at this blog writing which serves me right for not making time for it like I should..)

Mama Kat's Writers Workshop

Today's post is brought to you by a prompt from the ever popular and oh so wise and wonderful Mama Kat-------->
and her never ending supply of writing prompts...

The one I chose for this week is...
(drum roll please)

Number 4-  
If you could write a note to your younger self, what would you say in just two words.

And the answer is....

BE YOURSELF

So there you have it folks.
The words of wisdom that I impart to my younger and much less self assured (like my current self is all that much better) self.

And yes, they are only 2 words, but when put together and read in the right context...
and with the right accent, like say, Robin Williams as Genie from Disney's Aladdin...




or in the voice of... OMG! once again Robin Williams as Batty Koda ( the science lab experiment escapee bat with one antennae and only one claw)  from Fern Gully ...

BE. YOURSELF. 

And here I stop to say that quite coincidentally, and without any prior forethought, I have hit upon a subtopic to this post....
Yep, You guessed it...

Robin Williams! 

Who knew that a man who has personal knowledge of the trials and tribulations of pantyhose and brassieres with too many hooks for comfort would have left such profound, yet simplistic advice in my sub-conscience?

Better yet, who would have thunk it? That my sub-conscience would actually send this information back up to my cognitive brain for use?

Well.  Wonders Never Cease ....

I sure hope my younger self appreciates the mental acrobatics required by my older self to find these words of wisdom...
And I sure wish my older self had taken the time to listen to my self a long time ago and done just that...

BE. YOUR. SELF.

Okay... technically, put that way it's 3 words but...
You get the message, right?

RE- union

Wowsers! 

The event to celebrate the 30th year since graduating High School is scheduled to take place next  year...
Er, well, it will be scheduled to take place iffin I ever get around to it ...

Sorry- the voice in my head as I typed that was from the housekeeper in 'It's a Wonderful Life' where at the end when everyone comes to George Bailey's house and is dumping money into a hat to help him out and she say's " I been savin' this money for a divorce iffin I ever get me a husband"...

Back to our originally scheduled train of thought...

Already I have been contacted by all and sundry to inquire as to what I am planning... 

Some how some where along the 15th reunion I became the sole reunion committee of one....

Responsible for making all the decisions, ponying up the deposit fees for caterers, rental halls
and park pavilions... 

And I am apparently the keeper of all the minutiae of every single one of my 400-ish class mates and all of their spouses, siblings and friends from the classes before and after ours.

I am seriously considering not planning one for next year just to see if someone else steps in... and if they do? 

I don't know that I want to go just to see the same faces and be asked the same questions and expected to know everything about everyone... 

Me?
Really? 
I am still surprised that anyone in my class remembers me let alone regards me highly enough to think I have all the answers they are looking for.

Maybe it's because I have raised 6 kids...
Or maybe it's because I had a child while in high school...
Or maybe it's because they're all just so thrilled that someone else is picking up their slack...

The only person I really want to see is my best friend since we were 5. 
Unfortunately...
she does not return my calls or emails for months...
nor does she call or stop by when she comes back to visit her husbands family a couple times a year... 
even though she has to drive right by my house to get there... 

The only friend I had all my life - well since kindergarten at least...
and she's too busy for me and I am tired of always reaching out to keep in touch...
(and I am pretty sure she does NOT read this blog ... but iffin she did at least she would know how I feel and why...)

So, I really don't need a 30th reunion...
I'd really rather stay home... or go to the beach... or move to the beach and then stay home...

Me and  HeMan Hubby can have fun by ourselves, right?

To Every Season There is a Purpose... or something like that

Yes. 
I am still here...
well, at least I am still alive and kicking...
and screaming...
and getting in way over my head entirely too often.

But I digress... ( surprise... not)

The new school year has gotten off to a rousing start...
Football for TeenBoy and SIX
Soccer for BratChild
And of course I volunteered to be the 'Team Mom'...
For the ENTIRE high school football program.

Me and my big mouth...
but I do get some help so...
it's not too bad.
Really! 

I started out last school year with the best of intentions...
I was going to blog on weekends.
I was going to spend afternoons and evenings crafting.
I was going to continue working on my novel.

I did none of these things.

What I did was...

Spend weekends running kids to and from sports practices and events, DeMolay activities and their friends houses so they could "hang out"...

Spend afternoons and evenings (after working an hour late, and not taking lunch, without pay everyday) too tired emotionally and physically to do more than watch TV or fold laundry that someone else must have washed...

Spend not one minute on writing so much as a note to my self , let alone write a measly blog post or even attempt to work on my novel....

And that is not because I am lazy... 
or have nothing to write about... 
because I'm not and I do! 

It's because I have been depressed - creatively speaking- and just could not find any motivation to do anything that I enjoyed...
That made me feel like ME!

So, this year I have dropped the full time under-paid-over-worked school nurse gig...
well, I do that one day a week just cuz I can...
Have gone back to my night time private duty case 3-4 nights a week...
and have started spending time crocheting and finishing furniture and reading...

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose...


That's how it really goes...
And NO it's not a song (Okay it IS a song but it's not JUST a song)...

It is a passage from the bible that has very coincidentally shown up in the last 2 books that I read...
by different authors, from different genres, written in entirely different decades...

So I think that this passage is a sign for me...

A sign to get up off my hiney and ...
Stop procrastinating...
Set my goals and...
GET THINGS DONE! 

So...
I getting things done...
Beginning Now!

eBooks...eReaders...eEverything...

I, like so many other people these days have an e-reader device.
Mine just happens to be a Sony e-Reader.

To be able to read books on such a device one must purchase the reading material in digital form and then download it, either directly to the device or to a computer.

I use the Sony ebook store and Kobo and Amazon...

To purchase books, magazines and newspapers that you can carry with you everywhere you go...
without taking up valuable handbag or briefcase space is awesome.

However...
there is a problem that I have recently encountered...

If I want to purchase crafting or hobby-type books or magazines...

They just do not seem to exist!

Oh...
Don't get me wrong, there are some books out there...
It's just that...
Well, the choices are rather limited...
Or stilted...
Or uninspiring...

To me...

I mean, I am SURE there are those that have found the same titles that I have in my search for digital crafting publications that are thrilled with what is currently being offered...

 like...     Be the Man : The Man Registry Guide for Grooms

 or ...          The Really Useful Little Book of Knots

 or ...          Traditional Blacksmithing : The Fine Art of Horseshoeing and Wagon Making

 or  ...         Cyclops Monster Hat for Teens Crochet Pattern

I, on the other hand, am not.

This has brought me to this conclusion...
The only solution to this problem is to...
Either stop looking or ...
Publish my own, or find books written by others that can be converted into digital format and publish them...
With the permission and cooperation of the a fore mentioned authors certainly.

Which then brought me to the conclusion that...
I don't have time for that...
Unless I forgo ALL sleep...
and hire someone to handle the housework...
Or I put my kids to work and make them do CHORES!
(which is not a bad idea actually)

Or perhaps I'll just ask HeMan Hubby to find a way to make it happen...
I mean he is THE WORLD's MOST AWESOME COMPUTER GURU ...

And I'm sure he has plenty of time for another project...

Thank You Notes... ala BusyMom

I haven't taken the time to do a Writer's Workshop blog in quite a while so I thought I would jump in on this one... uh, yeah... maybe I should have waited for something a little easier to get back into the swing of things... oh, what the heck... how hard could it possibly be? 

The prompts this week were all interesting but this one seemed to call out to me... or perhaps that was the spanish rice I tried to eat for dinner... either way here we go!

5.) Who do you have to thank? Following Jimmy Fallon's famous thank you note writing style, write or vlog a list of 10 thank you cards you'd like to write this week.
 

This week I'd like to give thanks to...

1) Thank You Kimberly Clark for giving us Kleenex... pass me a kleenex sounds so much nicer than pass the paper hanky... especially when you have a stuffy nose... "paff de paypa haadgee" 

2) Thank You Lindsay Lohan... for ruining the name Lindsay for the rest of the girls, and guys, out there who have never done anything daring or risque', like drunk driving, three-peating at rehab, stealing jewelry that you have more than enough money to pay for... and going out in public in a leopard print onesie... Way to Rock On Linds! 

3) Thank You Wal-Mart People... for making me look good, even on a really bad hair day or when I forgot to do the laundry and had to pick something to wear from the 'sort-of' dirty pile on the floor... You know who you are and so does everyone else who has ever gone to this website! 

                                        peopleofwalmart.com

  

          

4) Thank You man who invented Air Conditioning... and it must have been a man because a woman would have come up with a way better name like... Chilled Air system or Frigid- Air or Hot-Flash-BE-Gone!

5) Thank You Jolly Green Giant... knowing you and Santa were related made eating canned vegetables in between the holidays that much easier... HOHOHO Green Giant! 

6) Thank You guy on the road holding the stop/slow sign... for knowing which one to have facing my direction... this time.

7) Thank You Madonna... for making cone bras and bustiers an acceptable wardrobe addition... on the outside... 

                                                                    and for making it OK to have Man-Arms even if you are 

                                                                    a woman!

8) Thank You Greek Yogurt making guy... so glad you finally found a way to make yogurt taste JUST LIKE pudding... almost... well, not really, but I have a really good imagination.

9) Thank You .. Baltimore Orioles who are only 1 game behind... for giving your faithful fans something to keep them going for another 15 years...

10) Thank You Gummi Bears... the TV show, not the candy, although the candy is pretty awesome too... for countless hours of viewing enjoyment you provide my daughter when she is home sick... you know, the 27 year old one...but who can blame her... You Guys Are The Best at what you do!!!

Lou Gehrig.... Words to Remember and Live By

Yes...
I just made a baseball reference.

And being as the Orioles won last night...
and it IS baseball season I figured it was appropriate.

The words to which I am referring are the words now immortalized on film spoken by Lou when he retired from the game of baseball because he had become too ill to continue to play.

He had ALS... a disease that attacks the body and renders one unable to control their own muscles.
This disease is most commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease...
Go figure.

                           Lou Gehrig Speech July 4th,1939 Yankee Stadium


The part of his famous, and heart wrenching, speech that I find so motivating is the part where he says...
" Today I consider myself the Luckiest Man on the Face of the Earth"

I feel like there are not enough people who can say that they have felt that way on any day in their entire lives

This makes me sad...
but TODAY I know that there are moms and dads all over the land who are breathing a sigh of relief as they sit down to their morning cup of joe...

Because today is the 2nd second day of school...
well, it's the 2nd second day because the 1st day was Monday, but it didn't really count since only elementary, 6th and 9th graders went...
Making yesterday the 1st second day of school...
the day that all the kids actually went...

As another long school year begins...
I look back at the trials and tribulations of years gone by...
as I look ahead to those that are sure to be coming and can't help but think...

If Lou Gehrig could meet his fate head one with such a positive attitude...
then surely I can look at this new school year and my new job and the changes in our family's routine and dynamics the same way...

Having a good role model is important...

Lou Gehrig is Mine...

Who is Yours?