Remember Me?

Wow, it's been a looong time since I've written anything here. Fear not, I have not been turning all my attentions to the facebook page I have either. That page is almost as barren as this one. I've just been absolutely speechless most of the summer. Work has been crazy-busy this summer and I've had little energy to devote to writing it all down. Not that you would have seen it here though since I try to leave work out of this page unless it's something special. I am looking forward to my week of vacation coming up. I will have the week of Squee's birthday off. She will be 13 and she is almost taller than me. I figure by Christmas she will tower over me. This was to be expected though given that her father is 6' 3". Luck for me, this year she has decided to be a black cat for Halloween. A black cat with pink hair to give it an anime flair I should add. Nothing normal in this household by any stretch of the imagination and that's the way I like it. I also like the fact that I won't have to break out the sewing machine this year or spend hours working on the costume as I have in years past. All I need is a black turtleneck shirt and we will be good to go. In the event we don't get to the store to get her one I do have one or two of my own for the cause to pick from. So, all I have to do is brush out her wig from last year and we will be good to go. It will probably come as no surprise that I already own ears and a cat tail from one of my previous costumes. I usually dress for Halloween when I'm at work. The little one's that will be missing Halloween because they are sick really like it when the pharmacy staff are all dressed up. It's like they didn't miss all of the fun. I'm not sure if I will be dressing up this year, I haven't given it much thought. It's on Saturday this year which is a short day for me so I most likely will. I'll probably just use my gypsy fortune teller costume from last year. If I could wear it for 14 hours last year I can certainly wear it for 10 hours this year. Well, I'll try to keep you posted on that one. Time to go. I have a Squee child to annoy since she's home from school now. Take care!!

Why?!

Why is it that I can get onto the internet from anywhere in the house except from 6 feet away from the router on the love seat? I can move 5 more feet away to the far side of the couch and it works fine. I can go to other rooms and it works fine. I just can't use it unless I put it within point blank range if I want to sit in my favorite computing spot. I can't even blame it on interference from other electronic equipment because I'm usually all by myself when I get online so the TV is off and nothing else is running. I just don't get it.

Goodbye Specialsgurl you will be missed

I try not to write about work here but today is different. My lead technician, whom I have been graced with for many years has finally gotten a greatly deserved promotion. She arrived at my store, as several have over the years, coming from a difficult situation in the store they had been hired at. She was labeled as a troublesome employee that they had neither the hours nor the desire to train. Funny how I end up with these girls and the only thing I see is an intelligent young woman that is trying to do the best that they can in my store. In all cases where this has happened I have had no problem training these girls. In fact most have far exceeded any expectations myself or the company could ever had. The only thing I can figure is that with these girls you have to explain why certain things have to be done in a certain way. In other words, they don't just do what they are told because a higher up says it needs to be done. Once they learn the why's about a task, they are more than willing and able to get the job done the correct way.

When Specialsgurl came to me she was still very much a diamond in the rough. I could tell she was very strong willed, but she was very intelligent as well and I can work with that. She was still in her teens (around 18 years old) when I transferred her to my store and still had a bit of growing up to do, but who doesn't at that age. She was "just a technician" when she arrived, which was the top rank among non-pharmacist staff at the time. Shortly thereafter the role of "lead technician" started to be thrown around at our company. A new National certification exam had become available to technicians that gave them letters after their name and something to put on a resume. Our company had been trying to promote all technicians taking the exam so they came up with this new lead technician position. My partner and I finally got Specialsgurl into the exam and she passed it without a hitch, as we knew she would. That is really where she began to shine. She started to blossom into the person she is today. Giving her that little bit of responsibility made all the difference in the world. It didn't stop there. Many of the ideas she and other member of the staff had were tried out in our store and if they panned out she submitted the ideas to the tech trainers and district managers depending on what the idea was. Anytime we had an issue that arrose that needed fixing even if I had my own ideas I sought out hers or would tell her mine and we would brainstorm on will this work, how will it work, and can we make it better. She also worked as my bridge between my partners. She was there monday
through friday. Pharmacists rarely work on the same day in a two man store so they never see each other. Specialsgurl passed messages between myself and my partners making our store run smoother. She also kept a tight reign on the other technicians so I didn't have to worry about it. This last part was very handy during the times I had less than stable partners (and I've had a few of those).

So, we come to today. A new tech training program is being launched within the company. They have basically dissolved the current tech trainer (our area has 3 I believe or I should say had) positions and replaced it with one tech trainer. The few current trainer that applied from our region and the other nearby regions have been rejected. The District Managers were sent out to their stores to recruit likely candidates to apply for the job. Guess where they came looking. It's my own fault they came to our store. I had made sure that Specialsgurl got all the credit for her hard work and ideas over the years so that she was a known name at the regional office. Not sure I knew at the time that this would happen, but I knew my tech could make a career out of the company and wanted her options to be open. Well, they are wide open now. She went to the interview and got the job. Truthfully, if they hadn't given it to her I would have questioned their sanity on the issue. Her words to me when she told me were that I had never doubted that she would get the job, eventhough she had many doubts herself. I have worked in many of the surrounding stores of my area (a day here and there) there are only a handful that would have what it takes for this new position. Of those people I couldn't think of more than one or two that might actually go to the open interviews (and they didn't have me going over check lists of things to bring, what to wear, and what questions to expect).

I will really miss Specialsgurl. I will miss the morning "meetings" when I've been off the last few days to catch up on what's been going on in the store (and more to the point, life in general). I will miss the laughter, the banter back and forth, the powwows on how to get our store number back up when the fall, the including of the customers in our conversations, and of course the coffee (she brings me coffee every morning...probably to keep my mood up). In fact she asked me (and sounded rather disturbed about this) who was going to bring me coffee when she's gone. I assured her that after they get a load of me in the morning without coffee for a few weeks, someone will figure it out. Besides, the one who brings the coffee usually gets their lunch paid for by me. In case you are wondering why I don't get my own coffee in the morning. I work a 14 hour day most days. D&D is either a left turn in a really bad intersection or I have to go out of my way to get there. Add to that that half of those days are back to back 14 hour days, it's just not an option to start my day earlier just so the techs may live.

So, I am very pleased and happy that Specialsgurl has sprouted wings and left the nest (and a bit proud to boot). I'd like to think that I had something to do with it, although this girl would have gone far in almost any environment. I keep telling myself that this is really not goodbye, that we will still be in the loop with each other. Over the years she has transformed from the diamond in the rough into a sparkling gem. Part of me feels the joy of a mother. Part of me feels the pride as her supervisor. Most of me is beaming at how far she has come and where she is going and the fact that I can call her my friend. Goodbye for now Specialsgurl...your daily presence will be missed.

I give up...you people win

Well, it would seem that the evil facebook people have won. I have had many requests from friends and family to add myself to facebook over the last few months. I have tried hard to resist them but you people finally wore me down. I now am on facebook.

Time Fly's

I didn't realize how long it had been since I last posted. I did find A new car on my first day out. Yes, I bit the bullet and bought a 2009 Jeep Liberty. I got a deal I couldn't refuse so I went with a new one instead of a used one. I love it! It's very comfortable for me to drive and I really like the way it looks. They redesigned the body type so it looks more like the Jeep Commander. I actually liked the look of the Commander over the more rounded old style for the Liberty so this worked out as well. The Commander is just too big a vehicle for me...I'd be a little nervous driving something quite so big. So, that is the big news from the past month. Work has taken up most of my energy lately so I really haven't done much of anything else. Well, unless you count cleaning out all of my kitchen cabinets so I can rearrange the kitchen to make room for the armour that sits in my livingroom. All that is left of that project is clearing off the kitchen table so it can go downstairs and getting a breakfast bar for the kitchen. The Squee child is going to help with clearing off the table (and clearing under it) so that the big bear and I can get it downstairs. I hope he has a spot ready for it. At least then two rooms will be finished upstairs. Well, finished until we decide to redo the upstairs plumbing, but that is a ways off when we redo the bathroom upstairs. It's been a slow process but at least I feel like I'm getting somewhere now. I may even get the livingroom straighted away the way I want it by the end of the Summer at this rate. So, that's what I've been up to the last few weeks.

This week at the barn

This week at the barn may be really busy or it may be kinda slow. I have decided that it is time to unload the mommy wheels and get a newer car. I had toyed with getting a new car in the fall, but I don't think that's going to happen. I have done some online researching and have found almost a dozen used cars that I want to test drive. This is a far greater number than when we were looking for the big bear's vehicle so I am optimistic that I should be able to find something I like within the month. I really like driving the big bear's JEEP Cherokee, but I would prefer something a bit smaller so I am looking at the JEEP Liberty. I figure that people must have unloaded their liberty's once the threat of a big storm was over, at least that's what I am hoping, since there is a much bigger selection of used one's than there has been all winter. I am hoping that the reason they all got unloaded wasn't because they are a heap of doody. I should be able to figure it out once I test drive a few of them. Yes, I have been looking all winter to see what they are going for used and all of that online. The plan had been that I was going to replace my car when my bonus check arrived from work at the end of March. The thing was that all winter, big surprise-not really, there weren't many out there to look at used. So, wish me luck on the hunt and hope that when I do some test driving this turns out to be the car I want. If it isn't, it could be a long time before I figure it out.

Pet Peeve #56

Okay, this is going to be a short one. My pet peeve of the day. Why is it that I can never get into the work server when I really need to at home. If it's not a necessity I can get on no problem, but when it's really, really, really (and I stress REALLY) important...I can NEVER get into it. Now it's in writing and I can get on with life feeling better.

Where is Bridget?

It's been 2 weeks that I've been in a fog and I look around my house and realize that some housekeeping is in order. I wonder what Bridget has been up to all this time...she really has been slacking of lately. Now, for those of you that don't know, Bridget is the fictitious family maid that gets blamed when chores are not done. I have a feeling she has taken a leave of absence for a while. Although there are signs that she has cleaned in the bathroom while I was at work yesterday since no one has claimed responsibility for the random act of cleaning in there. Well, that was one of the major projects I had planned for this weekend so maybe I'll actually get some of the projects further down the list done this weekend. Without having to deal with the bathroom clutter mess it will take no time at all to mop up the floor (I have the tiniest bathroom ever created so not much floor space) and scrub the tub. I think I will leave the livingroom to the rest of the members of the household and move straight to the kitchen. It would seem that people are afraid to clean that room because they are afraid I will get mad at their choices of where things go. It also shouldn't take me more than a day to reorganize it anyway, which is more than likely why it has been left to me. The Squee baby has only just started using the kitchen regularly on her own under my watchful but distant gaze. I've had to hold in a lot just letting her do these things herself, but I realize that she won't learn if I keep stepping in and showing her how. That always seems to end in me doing it all and she won't learn that way. So, as long as it's a feasible method of getting from point A to point B I let it go. This can be very difficult at times. But, back to the cleaning and reorganizing thing. Squee has no idea where the best placement of implements is to facilitate common kitchen tasks. I can tell her where to put things as I reorganize, but it usually takes a whole lot less time for me to just do it myself. (in some cases I try several spots until I get the right one, and that frustrates her) The entire kitchen needs to be done to make room for an armour to house my dishes, glasses, and pots & pans. I am way excited about this. All these things residing in one place; sheer heaven in my book. Not some pans here, some over there, dishes creeping into the foodstuffs cupboards, stuff I use a lot on the top shelves that I can't reach...get the picture? I'm kinda jazzed after my hair appointment today because we talked a lot about redoing rooms and organizing stuff. It's like I can see the end of the tunnel...and there really is light at the end. So, wish me luck in my endevor to finally get this big chore done this weekend. I'll let you know how it went. I'll also tell you if I find Bridget cowering in a cupboard somewhere.

My week off

Last week I had seven days off in a row. It was impromptu since I had no official vacation time requested this year. Since I missed the deadline for my vacation request form last November all of my vacation time will be that way this year. Luckily for me we have a plethora of floating pharmacists this year; something that is unheard of in my profession since their is still a shortage going on. I've been told that this could work out for me since there are almost a dozen new grads that have signed on that should be licensed this summer and will need places to go to make up their hours this summer. We may even be able to take the Squee child to Disney World if all goes well. Although, we haven't told her yet because I don't want her to get her hopes up if it falls through.

So, now about my week off. It was nice to not have to get up at the crack of dawn to be at work until almost bedtime, for an entire 7 days. It relaxed me more than I had hoped and rejuvenated me enough to be able to make it through the weekend of work that was absolutely crazy-busy. I was actually very surprised at how relaxed I had become on vacation due to the fact that it really didn't seem so relaxing at the time. My heart was heavy as lead since the first day it started. The week off started normally with a visit from my mother to get her hair done and then a breakfast date afterward to catch up and converse about life the world and everything. Pretty much it is our morning coffee routine only in person. That went well, as it always does and after that she went home and I got online to cruise the rest of the world. About an hour after I got home (that puts us at about 1pm) the phone rang, it was a friend of mine from PA. A friend that should be at work at this time of day, but I'd been trying to get a hold of her for a week or so and kept missing her. So, I figured she took Friday off and was calling me to catch up. Well, yes and no. She was at work, but she had news that I really didn't want to hear...but it had to be told. I mutual friend of ours had passed away and they were making the arrangements for the funeral and she asked if I and the big bear could get a hold of the people here in NY who knew him and relay the information in case they wanted to come to the wake and funeral. Not the best way to start a vacation but at least I was on vacation which left me the time to help take on this task. It ended up a series of phone calls between me and my friend and giving the information to my husband who in turn called "the guys" with updates on what was going on when. I had only met Skip a few times, but he was the sort of person that doesn't take too long to get to know. He was an upfront and personal kinda guy. He also had one of the warmest souls that I have ever met. My husband and his friends have known Skip much longer than me. My husbands group used to do security for Star Trek conventions and Skips group (and I'm sketchy on these facts because it's been so long) at least used to go to the conventions as group called the Keldans (not sure if that is spelled right). Now they may have done security too but I'm not solid on that fact. The important thing is that's how they all met and became friends. Several of my husbands friends (and himself included) joined this other group. Mainly on the fringes due to the distance involved. It is through this intermigling of groups that I met my friend in PA. That meeting is another long story for another day, although it does also explain my first meeting with Skips wife which was a series of phone calls back and forth about a very stressful situation happening up here. Seems my role in life is anchorman, absorbing and delivering information to people as it comes in. Out of the friendships formed through all of this we have stayed the most in touch. Since we talk quite frequently, or more to the point when we do talk it's for hours, each groups members have been able to keep up on what is going on with each other. So, no one had missed out on much of what has been going on all these years. Which brings us back to the news of Skips death. It was kind of like a cloud hanging over our home last week. There were things that needed to be done, but the only real things that got done were funeral related. As it turned out my husband was the only one from up here that showed up to it. There were 2 others that tried but they were out of state working and couldn't get away in time to make it. I think employers need to change a little bit about how berevement time is allocated and I realize that if they made it so that any funeral was allowed time off the problem that would cause with slacker people claiming every funeral listed in the paper as due time off. But, something needs to be done. The only way we could swing it was because I stayed home with the Squee child (she had school) since I was off that week. Even for us, had I been working it might have not happened being that the day of the funeral would have been my only day off that week.

I guess that you can tell by this post that my mind is still a little scatterbrained and moving in tangents that tell a lot but explain nothing. That's kind of how I feel right now.

This is why I keep it simple

Yesterday (Wednesday) the Squee child came home and handed me two papers from school. They were from her latest project assignment at middle school. She had to pick a country and make up a menu from that country. That wasn't a big deal, she already had that part done. The catch was that she had to make one of the items on the menu for class on Friday to share with a class of 20 students. I was intrigued and the project seemed fair enough albeit a little strange for an English class to bring in food items, but I was game. Now, as a pharmacist with a five year degree in mixing and proportions the kitchen does not scare me. I have also logged many hours growing up in the kitchen with my mother and older sister (2 of the best cooks out there in my opinion). I like trying new recipes and I can separate eggs and fold with the best of them when the need arises. I have to admit that my latest exploits in the kitchen have been breads from an Irish cookbook and many of my dinner creations have been adaptations of italian cuisine (chicken parmetorre comes to mind) I got to the bottom of the page and my heart sank to a whole new depth of dispare. At the bottom of the assignment page, which luckily required a parents signature to set in stone, was a space to put what dish the child was going to prepare. In bold pen the words Chocolate Souffle were staring at me from the line provided. The second paper she had handed me was a recipe for chocolate souffle that insisted that it was easy to put together. Well, duh, souffle is easy to put together, it's keeping it afloat once it's baked that's the hard part. All sorts of things ran through my mind at once including how do I tell Squee, who is brimming with exitement about the project she just handed me, that we can't make chocolate souffle. So, I managed not to crush her world entirely. She was not aware of the problem of souffle becoming pancakes if it is jostled even slightly. I told her it wasn't her fault because the recipe had no mention of this one basic fact anywhere on the recipe. In fact it toted throughout the page how easy and fun it was to make. Boy, I feel sorry for all the other people that printed this off of this persons web page and didn't know about the volatility of souffle. I am tempted to check out this persons comment section on the site to see if there were any questions about why their souffle looks more like a crepe. Talking about this situation with my mother I decided that the souffle was invented first and the crepe was invented shortly after the first souffle batch fell (yes, I realize that crepes are cooked on the stovetop and souffles are baked...but it's funnier my way). So, after much stress and mind blocks, mainly because I don't do much french cooking...too much heavy cream ... we came up with chocolate mousse. Creme Broullee was out due to the lack of a blow torch in my kitchen, although I probably could have improvised with the grill starter thingy. I'm not sure it would have enough gusto to carmelize the sugar fast enough though. That and the taste would be wasted on a bunch of 6th graders. Squee is dissapointed, but I'm thinking I'm off work next weekend so maybe we'll make soufflee then. So, in conclusion my day started with getting Squee off to school, getting the trash up to the curb and a trip to the local store for mousse mix and milk. I was back by 8:30am and have not quite known what to do with myself since I got off the phone with my mother this morning. I guess I should just rest up for the next crisis Wondermom needs to tackle.

Snowflakes that stick to my nose and eyelashes

Okay, it's time to get my whine on. I really don't complain about much, especially things that I can not control. I am however very tired of white specks that keep falling from the sky this winter. I realize that I reside in upstate NY and that snow is a given between October and up until May some years. This year however is ridiculous. I know we've been way overdue for a mostly snowy winter for quite some time now. The last few years have been fairly low on accumulated snow fall. Most of the recent years have only given us two or three 6 incher storms with a few flurry outbreaks. This year however has been different and I had a feeling it was coming when we had no snow at Thanksgiving. My postulate that if it snows on Thanksgiving it is a grey Christmas with no snow and if there is no snow at Thanksgiving it is guaranteed to snow at Christmas seems to have been correct again. Although this year it has been a little excessive. There have been only one or two weeks since December that it has not snowed. There was also one week where we had 3 storms that gave us 6 inches apiece; more in the hill towns surrounding my area. I consider myself a person that actually likes snow. I like it on my days off because I can watch it from my livingroom window with a hot mug of coffee in hand wrapped in a throw blanket snuggled up with a cat. If I'm working and it's snowing it means my morning is slow customerwise and I can get a lot done before they realize that it isn't stopping anytime soon and they sally forth to go about their daily routine. Having lived in the northeast all my life (my husband has as well) I never have to run to the store for supplies before the "storm of the century hits" and deal with that whole mess because this time of year the pantry has extra food stored for just such an occation. Sure dinner may have to be frozen or canned ravioli but it still eats. Probably the only thing we've really had to go out and get before a storm is milk, but these days if you have to you can get that at stewarts or even a lot of gas stations up here. You pay through the nose, but since you want to gas up your car before the storm anyway it saves a trip to the grocery store and dealing with the masses. For anyone reading this who is not from the northeast and wonders why you gas up the car before a storm there are 2 reasons (one of which my sister mentioned that I never had thought of because the first one was good enough for me). First and foremost: You may find yourself stranded for lengthy amounts of time out on the road due to traffic accidents(the most common occurance), weather conditions making driving over 20 miles dangerous (it once took me 2 and a half hours to make the 40 minute drive to work once), and the least desireable reason, you have found yourself stuck on the side of the road or in a snowbank and have to wait for a tow truck to come and get you (had this happen twice, once when my windsheild wipers quit on me so I had to pull over and once when I blew a flat and ended up skidding slowly into a snowbank). During a really fierce snowstorm you can wait a good long time for help to arrive. I was lucky both times because there was nothing wrong with my engine so I waited in comfort. Just remember folks that if you are in this type of situation and you leave the car running ALWAYS open a window. The last thing your rescuer needs to see is that he/she has arrived to save you and you are already dead due to carbon monoxide poisoning. That's your public service message for the day. My sisters add on to the gassing up thing is that it makes the car heavier and that is better for traction. My car is frontwheel drive (my husbands is 4 wheel drive) so I'm not sure that it would work as well, I would also have to crank out the figures of how much a gallon of gas weighs to figure out how much extra weight is added. If you go by the theory that every little bit helps though, then it helps. Adding that weight to the bag of sand, cat litter, or de-icer pellets you just put in your car (that most of us up here have) then you're talking something. Oh, and the aforementioned items serve a dual purpose, most of them can be put around your tires should you end up stuck to the point you can't rock your car out. Not so much of a concern now that I take the "big wheels" to work now. My husband 's vehicle has something called clearance that my little station wagon does not. My car does well in snow but not deep snow...gets stuck all the time in that because it's so low to the ground. I fear I have offened the snow gods because as I have been writing this the storm outside has gotten significantly worse, Tiddly-Pom. As I look at it through the window pane I realize that it is still beautiful. Carefree little flakes dancing in the wind. I just wish there weren't so many of them this year, that's all.

How does this happen?

I got onto amazon.com to order copies of a book a friend of mine just got published. It's a romance novel if anyone is interested titled "Falling in Love," byPauline Trent. (hey, had to get the plug in there for her) I put 3 copies into my basket (one for me, my mother, and my sister) . Funny thing is that because the books weren't so expensive I decided to keep looking. Before I knew what had happened there were 3 books and 6 seasons of anime videos in my basket (3 seasons of 2 different titles). I got really good deals getting each set of 3 together, I checked it out at my regular anime order sites and I saved about $10 on each season, so $60 total (and it qualified for free shipping...another plus these days). I should also add that one of the titles wasn't specifically for me it was for the Big Bear. Although, I will probably watch it at some point myself. I should also add that my birthday is next week and since I have most of the week off I will need something to occupy my time so I don't drive the family totally nuts. If I don't have anything occupying my time I find things for everybody to do, and they usually involve chore type projects. This became apparent when my daughter was still a toddler and I was off work for a week. Now to defend my husband, this was his baby girl, daddy's girl. She could get away with several things from him but not from me. I think I had just instructed her to put some of her toys away in her room while I went to the livingroom to work on stuff. She came out about 15 minutes later and told me, "mommy, you just go to work. okay?" The she went back to her room. Now, she had never complained about having to clean up before but then I realized. I only told her to do it on the days I was home all day. So, she was used to hearing it 3 or 4 times a week. She wasn't used to hearing it every single day for a week. Now that she is older, she does hear it every day because she's hit that age that she would rather do other teenagery (hey, that's a recognized word, sorry I digress) things. I put it that way because she hides in her room like it's a cave. I check on her periodically, call her out for dinner, she eventually ends up back in there. It doesn't appear that she's trying to hide anything. She even leaves the door wide open before she goes to school in the morning. I don't generally snoop, but I do peek in from time to time when the door is open for signs of any "bad stuff" and we'll leave it at that. I just realized that I just took a major side trip in this post. I thought about deleting the parts that didn't pertain to the beginning topic, but decided to leave it intact as this is the way my mind works. You should all be a little scared right about now.

Well, I've finally found it! This is the house I want to live in. I would love to come home from a long day at work to retreat and relax in this house. I can also see myself enjoying decorating this house accordingly. The only problem is that this house is somewhere in Holland. I was reviewing my mothers pictures from her trip last abroad and this was the first architectural structure she captured. Who knew it would be of my dream home. Even the big bear would like it. It wouldn't have the library spire that he ultimately wants, but I'm sure that he could make do with some of the corner rooms for his library. So, what do you think? Could you see me in this house? I know I could!

This makes me happy

It's really a small thing but it does make me happy. I downloaded an avatar from the Funimation website of my favorite anime character of all time and have managed to work him into my blog page. See him up there in my title...his name is Piccolo. It's kind of funny but I have been known to make that same face when dealing with issues at home. I guess it's a fitting picture for this page. He is a character that was first seen in the dragonball series, at least that's where I first saw him and it's my blog. He started out as a villain, a really nasty one at that, but through a twist of fate slowly changes to become one of the good guys. I think the reason I like his character the best is because he uses his brain more than the rest of the characters. So, say hello to the green man who is watching over and guarding the earth.

Sipping Coffee and Gathering my Thoughts

I don't know what it is about actually getting my thoughts written down that causes me to freeze. I sat down at the computer to write this and had so many ideas of what to write. I then spent about ten minutes of staring at a blank screen wondering what to put down. I finally decided to have my coffee and congeal on the matter. Coffee is a very special thing for me, as it is for many. At work, it's a necessity. Probably due to the fact that I am smoker and I spend 14 hours at work without a smoke break and caffeine works on the same receptor as nicotine...so, it keeps me from killing people. Truthfully, at work it doesn't even matter what kind of coffee or where it comes from, I will drink it in large quantities. At home it is a very different matter. I enjoy the taste and warm caffeinie goodness of a fresh cup of coffee. Although there are those that would argue that since I like flavored coffees and creamers that I really don't drink coffee at all at home. Let them think what they want. At home I like to be at least somewhat awake when I drink my coffee. In fact, many times I am fully awake by the time I make it. I usually realize that I haven't had coffee while on the phone with my mother in the morning and she's getting her second cup. Weekday mornings always start with a phone call to mom to see what she's up to. I really have to call to find out because although the woman is retired I have a hard time keeping up with what she's doing and where she's going next. My mother is a traveller. She takes trips all around the world seeing new places and exploring different countries. It also helps that one of her close friends is a travel agent. While she is home she participates in 2 to 3 intrumental bands, she plays clarinet. So, there are rehearsals and concerts and all sorts of other musical engagements. So, it's really like a morning coffee date with mom, catching up and keeping current with each other. Funny how it happens because at about the time the coffee is drunk we are wrapping up our conversation. The weekends are different. If I have coffee on my weekends off I don't have any until the afternoon (sometimes not at all). It must have something to do with not chatting with my mother on the weekends. She is far to hard to get a hold of at any set time then. Besides on the weekends I have to worry whether or not she is on the phone with my sister or brother then and I don't want to intrude on their time with her. See, the coffee worked. I've completed my post. So, here's to you "Coffee"!

A Normal Day at the Barn

This is my short week at work which means I've just worked an ungodly number of hours last week and am decompressing. The ritual begins Monday morning with coffee and a call to mom. I have a very good relationship with my mother and I attribute many of my better qualities to her teachings and warmth over the years. We talk about this and that, usually it's just a catch up on what my brother and sister are up to since I don't have much time to call them on my long week at work. It's also a nice way to ease into my day off after the squee child has gone to school. After that I usually hop online to check out what the world has been up to while I've been away. I check out the news, although the big bear (my husband) usually gives me the highlights and tells me of any important things I might want to check out. Somehow, this usually takes me straight into the time the squee child gets home from school. There is the usual how was school today conversation before she goes off to her room to do her homework. I suppose today I will need to erradicate the clutter mess in the livingroom in the time the child resides in her room until dinner. She is a "preteen" so she keeps to herself in her room until dinnertime when she has to be sociable. I can usually coerce her out of her room earlier by suggesting a game of "Smash Bros. Brawl". I fear though that the teenage years are creeping up and that may not work for too much longer. Maybe it would be a good activity for later today though. I am not sure of what will happen after dinner tonight, that varies. So, now that I have thouroughly bored all of you with a rather mundane list of daily activities at least you've gotten to peek into a day in my life. This is really just an outline. In any given week (or day with a "preteen") disaster can strike so I like to keep it simple in case I need to alter my plans to fit the situation. Like when a week before Halloween my daughter who up until this point said she was too old for a halloween costume decided she not only needed a costume for the school party but it needed to be a cosplay anime costume! ack! Well, between the 3 of us (husband included) we got it done in about a week and the child was happy with it. So, you kind of have to read between the lines because my life is pretty far from boring.

Who Knew?

Well I really didn't intend to post this, but since it came with a big old cat photo I couldn't help myself. Pobble had the test on her blog page and it intrigued me having studied a bit about spirit guides on and off over the years. This is what I got.

Your result for The Golden Compass Daemon Test...

Regal Soul

You love to be around people. Without them, you would wilt and fade away. Too much time alone leave you feeling listless and sad, but a good night out with your buddies puts the spring back into your step. You make friends easily, because you know how to adjust your behaviour for each person. With a rowdy, loud, social type of person you can be rowdy, and loud, and social. With a timid and mousy person you can be quiet and sensitive. While you have many friends and many faces, you have an inner circle of friends and family with whom you can truly be yourself.

You are a natural leader. You tend to be calm and rational, and it is rare that you get angry or upset. Often, when someone accidentally hurts your feelings, you will smile and pretend not to be bothered by it, because you want to project a positive, self confident image. You pick your battles. When someone does cross the line, they are often surprised at the sudden strength of your defensive attack. On the rare occasion that someone evokes anger or tears from you, it seems to them that this storm burst from clear blue skies.

Your daemon would represent your social, outgoing nature, your adaptable presence, and your tendency to hide your sensitive spots from strangers. He or she would help you mold yourself to every variety of social situation, being calm or playful or frightening as each situation demanded. When alone together, he or she would be someone whom you could share your real feelings with.

Suggested Forms: Lion, Orca, Chimpanzee, African Elephant, Goldfinch.

Take The Golden Compass Daemon Test at HelloQuizzy

Well that was quick

I only had this blog for about 3 hours when I was tagged by another blogger. Since I am new to this and people don't know me it seemed a good way to start out. So, here goes.

A. People who have been tagged must write their answers on their blog and replace any question that they dislike with a new, original question.

B. Tag eight people. Don't refuse to do that. Don't tag who tagged you.

001. What are your nicknames

Pharmyard is the closest thing to a nickname I have

002. How do you style your hair?

It's pretty much wash, air dry, brush and go

003. What's new in your life right now

I have a teenage daughter, what isn't new

004. How many colours are you wearing now?

7 (most are in the design of my t-shirt though)

005. Are you an introvert or extrovert?

introvert

006. What was the last book you read?

Vampire Hunter D (volume 2)

007. Do you nap a lot?

I used to...not so much anymore

008. If the person you secretly like is already taken, what would you do?

Walk away.

009. Is there anything that has made you unhappy these days?

yes, but I try not to dwell upon it

010. What's your favourite dessert?

Cheesecake (especially with sauce: blueberry, strawberry, chocolate, etc)

011. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?

20 minutes to a half hour

012. What websites do you visit daily?

due to my schedule very few things are daily in my world...but I visit my emails, several anime sites (too many to mention specifics), and 2 blogs regularly

013. What classes are you taking right now? And if you're not in school any more, what's your job?

I am a pharmacist (secrets out...that's where pharmyard comes from)

014. Do you like to clean?

the only part of cleaning I enjoy is the vacuuming, because that signifies the end of cleaning

015. What's the last song that got stuck in your head?

Vacation (by the gogo's)

016. What's the last movie you saw?

In the theatre Iron Man...at home Kung Fu Panda

017. What's better: eternal love or memorable love?

that's tough....I'll say eternal

018. What colour do you look best in?

grey (just about any shade), teal and greens

019. Best time of your life?

I have to pick one?

020. What are you most looking forward to in the coming month?

The end of the unhappy things in my life...in about a month they will be gone

Now, that wasn't too painful. But unfortunately I really don't have anyone to tag since I am relatively new to blogs. How about this, what if I tag the next 8 bloggers that like my blog and want to play too? Does that work?

Hello Internet...is this thing on?

Now that I have finally started a blog I am not sure what I want to say. I suppose an introduction to me is the appropriate thing to do in my first post. I have many interests and hobbies that I have accumulated over the years. I have an extensive collection of movies and anime that I enjoy watching and I like to unwind from work with a good video game. I like to read although lately I haven't had much time to do so. When the craft bug hits me I like to bead jewelry and ornaments. I love to learn new things. The internet is a wonderful place for researching things I do not know. I have a wonderful family...related and non-related. They are a wealth of inspiration and comfort when I need it. I have a full time job, and it is very rewarding on it's own, but I try to separate it from my home life so you probably won't see much of it here...hence the title "back at the barn".

Starting a blog is a very big step for me because I have always been a very private person. I am also a very curious person though and I love talking to people and learning about them. I like finding out what makes people tick so to speak. I like to hear other peoples opinions, but I am not a fan of profanity and I definately dislike racism. So, please try to leave both of those out of your responses. Other than that, feel free to respond to any and all posts! I am looking forward to meeting you!