A Special Gift

I had a bit of surgery last month. I was blessed with the most incredible, caring surgeon I have ever met. Her name is Toni Storm-Dickerson, but lots of people call her Storm. I made this for her, as a special thank you for caring so much and being so patient with me.

I think these tile creations are a love 'em or hate 'em kinda thing. Definitely kitschy, which normally isn't my style. Yet I had a great time making this (my first) and have already begun work on a second in a ladybug theme. Dr. Storm's nurse told me that the good doctor recently lost her favorite garden gnome. Also that she's a fan of diet Coke with lime. The gnome on the left is holding a little gold angel in his hand. The other pieces were added just because.

My last post-op appointment was scheduled for today. And I overslept - it's been that kind of a week. I no-showed a confirmed appointment, but luckily I am rescheduled for next Tuesday.

I would love to hear what you think of my tile, and if you like it, any ideas for future tiles would be appreciated.

The Fairy Door & The I.R.S.

Here, finally, is a photo of the Halloween/Fairy door I sent to my swap partner. She must have been disappointed, because I never heard from her. I like the spider web and ghosts at the top. I also like the broom and leaves at the bottom. I was trying to create a stacked window effect on the right side.

We were informed today that we owe the I.R.S. in excess of $7000 in regards to property my husband owned prior to our marriage. Our accountant tried to negotiate with them but that was not to be. He said all we can do is pay it, and then go to a tax advocate and try to recoup some of the money. We will have to take a credit card advance. As Tony Soprano would say, "Whatta ya gonna do?"

Tonight my son asked me if we were in danger of losing our home, or not having food to eat. He said he is hearing about the struggling economy everywhere he goes. He gets frustrated because he is too young to get a job. He wants to help the family. I think about what kind of world my son will be living in. How will he survive? And I've already begun to ask him not to put me in a "home."

Then I think, okay, every generation feels it has it the scariest, the most precarious, etc. My mother is 77 and I ask her what era she thinks has been the worst. She says surviving World War II was by far the most difficult time in her life. She remembers the rationing, and the overall tension and fear in the country.

As a Christian, I look at the erosion of morals and values in our society. What began as a tiny flake of snow in the 60's is now an enormous snowball, growing larger every day. I know God is in control and my life is in His hands. He keeps His promises. He has blessed me with far more than I deserve. I should not be anxious, but still, I am.

The Little Things

I just love miniatures! Replicas you can hold in the palm of your hand. These "games" are roughly 2"x3" and I almost squealed in the store when I saw them. Inside are little pieces of candy in the shapes of the actual pieces you see in the regular versions of the games. Hubby said the candies tasted like Sweet Tarts. I thought they tasted like Tums. I listed this set in my Etsy store, to see if anyone else would appreciate these little treasures.

Dogs

My mother sent me an email concerning a Boxer dog in England, who had adopted a Billy goat after the mother abandoned it. These days you never know if these forwarded email photos are genuine, or "photo-shopped" or what. I would like to believe this is genuine because dogs are capable of great and amazing things. We are blessed with two dogs. Both unique and special in their own way.

He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog.

You are his life, his love, his leader.

He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart.

You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion.

Author Unknown

Fairy Door Swap

Here is the adorable door I received in the Fairy Door Swap. It came from the most magical of Autumn Nymphs. It was right on time. I envy people who are on time. Tomorrow I will post the door I sent to my partner. It turned out weird, and it wasn't on time.

Fall is in the air here in Washington. Thank goodness! I love, love, love it. It can never be too cold or rainy or misty or gray for me. Juneau the Snow Dog completely agrees.

I ended up with complications from the breast surgery last month. Still dealing with those. Thank goodness for antibiotics!

Our 5th wedding anniversary came and went on October 3rd. We both forgot it. We remembered a few days before the 3rd, and talked about how we would celebrate. On the 4th I remembered - that we had forgotten. Hubby said his idea was to take our wedding rings in and have them engraved with "we will never part." Then he added, "or maybe it was we will never fart, I'm not sure." Funny guy.

My son has a 91 in math, according to his progress report. And 100 in Discipleship. Haven't heard about the other subjects yet. But I am over the moon with the math grade. He's really working hard this year.

A Georgia Peach

Years and years ago (about eight), I was surfing around eBay and came upon the most incredible seller with the most amazing array of wares I had ever seen, all in one cyber place. I wrote her a fan letter of sorts, telling her I was just getting started and how I admired her inventory. She answered right back, with the sweetest letter. She also poured out her seller's heart to me, giving me lists of the things that sold well for her. She goes by the name of KJ.

We became fast friends and about a year after we "met," my son and I flew to Georgia to meet KJ and her daughter. Her family and mine thought it rather odd for me to visit her, and odd for her to welcome two strangers into her home. Not us though, we were like two peas in a pod. Two single moms trying to make ends meet and raise decent, productive children. We drove from Atlanta to Orlando to visit Disney World. It was mid-October and all the Halloween decorations were up. I think that's when I miss KJ the most, at Halloween time.

All four of us stayed in the same hotel room. We shopped and shopped and shopped. In fact, on the way home her car was so stuffed we had to squeeze our kids into the backseat. The shopping was for things to re-sell, of course. KJ has been to Disney World a million times. This was the first trip for my son and I. It's where we turned off the lights to go to sleep, and my little guy announced, "I can't see a sing." It's where he also grabbed the microphone on the parking tram and began to give instructions to the passengers. I can honestly say, that was the best vacation I've ever had.

Now KJ's daughter is in her second year at Annapolis. How incredible is that? She is smart, independent and grounded. And my son, although he can give me fits, never fails to disappoint in public. He is kind, respectful and helpful. He's growing into a fine young man.

KJ is still single. She works as hard as ever to pay the bills. She has amazing determination and "hustle." To make it in this business requires long, long days. I tell her often that she inspires me, but I don't know if she believes me. So I will say it here. KJ never moans and groans, never whines about her circumstances. She is the most non-complaining person I've ever met. She thanks God for His blessings as she goes about her daily work.

I miss you KJ, and I am honored to have you in my life!

On the Mend

I am healing quickly from last week's surgery. Everyone at the hospital was wonderful. So kind and caring. I had taken four bars of my friend Kay's soap with me, as a little thank you to the nurses. My doctor happened to come in and see them, so she got first pick. Kay's soaps are wonderful and it was so nice for me to see the smiles on the nurses' faces.

I woke up quite alert, none of that usual sleepiness - and was released an hour after the procedure. Good thing, because people in the rooms around me were throwing up (paging Ralph Alfalfa, the Buick salesman) and that's just icky.

Blogs and a Boob

As I travel around Blogland, I am often struck by how diverse the blogging population is. I am drawn to the country-ish type blog, where the author lives on a farm and cans her own veggies. I am also drawn to the altered artist type blog. Those are the genres that hold my interest. Of course I take the occasional side trip to the land of goth, stark reality, and then there is always a recipe blog or two.

I'm old now, so I remember life without the internet, life without cable, even life without cell phones. It wasn't a bad life because I didn't know any better. So....life with internet, cable and cell phones isn't anything new, yet I am constantly amazed by it. Odd things amaze me. Things like a child calling me "Mom," the fact my husband married me, how dogs can smell a bizillion times better than we can - just to name a few.

Tomorrow afternoon I am having a cyst removed from my breast. Totally benign - it has been poked and prodded and ultrasounded and aspirated. It is trauma related, from the accident two years ago. It's moving around, changing shape and is now over four inches long. It has to go. As a woman we are so conditioned to be vigilant about things like this. I am glad it's going. And thankful it's just a cyst. Those who face breast cancer are true heroes in my book.

Same day surgery - another phenomenon of the modern world! I wonder if drive-thru surgery can be far behind?

Question of the Day

Warning: this question is gross, icky, juvenile, sick...and gives you a brief glimpse into my twisted little mind. However, in my defense, I did not write this - I just enjoy passing it along. It's one of those "would you rather" questions. I heard Carla ask it EONS ago during an episode of Cheers.

Okay, ready? Here we go:

Would you rather

Lose your balance in a sewage treatment facility, or

Eat food recovered from an autopsy?

I asked it, so I gotta answer it - I bet I'll be the only one who does. I would rather take a swim, than take a chew. There, I said it.

The First Day of School

Today my "baby" began 8th grade at a small Christian school in our city. He has attended this school since kindergarten. This is his year to be the big man on campus (or so he says). It is my usual custom to spend the first day of school in and out of tears as I reflect back to kindergarten and realize for the millionth time how quickly he is growing up.

I drove him to school. I have not done that in a long time. There is always the fear of oversleeping, even with both of us setting alarms. Never fear, dogs were here and the sun was up and there were squirrels to be chased. So at 6:04 Juneau comes in and lets out one high pitched YIPE. When I didn't get up fast enough, he did the deep in the chest, head back "arr ooo ooo." I told my husband, "I think they must do rock, paper, scissors to decide which one gets to wake me." He agreed and said he could imagine their conversation: "you do it, I did it yesterday."

This evening we were signing receipts for textbooks, acknowledgements of class content and rules, and his application to be part of the Student Council. It was neat to see what he wrote and how he said he had been through "many trials in life" and could help others through the wisdom of his mistakes. He feels called to be a Pastor. Not just "I want to be," but "I feel God is calling me to be."

A little while ago he brought me his cell phone, which is so basic I am surprised it can receive text messages. He said "Mom, you say you are up on street language, what does this mean?" Oh goody thought I - a test!! A chance to prove I'm not a total dolt. The screen read:

K. K. gtg c u 2moro

I said, "It says okay, okay. Got to go, see you tomorrow." His mouth dropped and his eyes got wide. He was totally amazed! I mean seriously, totally amazed that I could translate that message, and on the first try. Then he struck a pose and told me "I look buff when I stand like this." All is right in the World of Testosterone. By the way, I got him to school on time.