Picture..

I have been debating about putting a picture on the blog.. you know.. face to a name... still not sure tho.. I'll keep thinking about it.

:D

Life..

Ok, now back to the regularly scheduled (ha!) blogging.. :D
Anyway, so the last few weeks have been a little hectic. I went to the "parent/teacher" conference at school. Turns out my kid is pretty dang smart, just really BORED. Ok, not too bad. Maybe.
So.. we are working on this "talking" problem she has. Seems so far, it's been working. She hasn't "pulled a card" or been busted for talking or getting up. We'll see how long that lasts..
My brother got out of jail, (that was fun! NOT) and he has been shipped off to Idaho to go live with the Folks. Good times. :D Really tho, I'm glad for him. I am happy it's all over, that he's out of jail (I don't have to go every week for visitation).. and even that he is living in another state. BUT, I miss him already. We got to talk for a couple hours before I had to leave for work, and it reminded me how similar and how damn funny we are!! It's all good.
I just got back from working in Atlanta... decided that is yet another state I do not want to live in. :D
I like Hot. Hot is good.. HUMID, HOT AND STICKY.. Not good. :( Glad to be back home tho. Really. And the time difference is a total mess... I just get back to a little bit of normal and we get to change the time again this weekend... OY!
Riding / Camping season is upon us.. The BEST time of year to hang out with my kid and just relax and enjoy life.. I for one will be enjoying as many weekends as possible out in the "DIRT" with her and appreciating the desert... I mean really.. is there anything better?

"Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of."
Benjamin Franklin

SIGH..

I am going to post a little differently today. This blog is all about me, but today.. it's not. By now everyone is aware of the devastation in southern california. Yes, I live here. Yes, I have been affected. No, I didn't get evacuated. No, I didn't lose my home. However, seeing all of the aftermath of the thousands of people stranded at Qualcom stadium and the multitude of other venues certainly made me think. I read about a woman whose strength came from her 4 year old daughter. That spoke volumes to me. We all take for granted all of our "posessions". We never stop to think that in an instant they could be gone. I don't want to talk about the precautions to take and all that, because it's all over the news daily. You all know that by now.
Life is really short. Hug your kids. Your spouse/significant other. Appreciate each day that you have here with them. I'm not big on praying (although I should try it more often) but I do pray for all of these people every day for the strength they need to get thru what may be the most difficult time of their lives.
I can only imagine.

“We never understand how little we need in this world until we know the loss of it”
Norman Cousins

Indescribable..

Seven Wildfires Remain Burning in SoCal Region

The Southern California wildfires that began one week ago are becoming contained one by one, as the cooler weather and lower winds are helping firefighters to battle the blazes.

Of the 20-plus fires that were ravaging the region and driving people out of their homes last week, only seven are still burning.

“Improving weather conditions have allowed firefighters to make good progress on containment percentages on several of the larger fires,” Iskow said. “And there was no significant growth to any of the fires that our crews are assigned to.”

All together, the fires so far have burned over 500,000 acres in the Southern California region, and destroyed 2,300 buildings. Twelve deaths and 78 injuries are attributed to the wildfires.

The federal disaster declaration President George W. Bush signed last Wednesday will provide fire victims with extra money and resources. According to a press release from SurfMedia Communications - the agency that represents the American Red Cross - chapters across the state are accepting financial donations.

Los Padres National Forest spokesman Joe Pasinato said in a press release that the forest, along with Angeles National Forest in Los Angeles County, remains closed indefinitely due to fire danger.

Me Time..

Well, I got my "Me" time.. LOL. I got sick. Had to take time off work, and spent 4 days just relaxing and resting and sleeping. A LOT. 14 or so hours a night, and then napping during the day. To be honest.. It was really nice. Anyway, my brother finishes his time in 6 days. Then he's off to Idaho to live with the folks. I"m happy for him, he really needs to get out of here.. I'll be leaving around the same time to go out of state for work. Just for a couple days, but it will be really nice to get away for that short period of time.
Because I have been doing everything for everyone else lately, I seem to have been neglecting my kid. Not in the sense that I don't talk to her or ignore her. I have just assumed she was doing well at school, and doing homework as she should. Ya, Not exactly. Now, I'm having issues with her... She doesn't seem to want to do any school work. Or stop talking during class. Or stop getting out of her seat.. Go figure. I could say "she's 7, they do that", but I think it's more of a lack of my parenting skills. Or maybe teaching skills. So I need to spend more time with her, and "teach" her things. I'm not the smartest person, but I think I have some things that I can teach her to maybe help her along. All I want is for her to succeed. Somehow. And I will do whatever I have to, to help her. She is going to have it better than I did. I want her to have everything she wants, but to also APPRECIATE it all.
Ok, enough of my whining.. She is a good kid tho. I know she is normal. Well, as far as normal goes right?

"A characteristic of the normal child is he doesn't act that way very often." Author Unknown

ME!

As this blog indicates, I just want to be me. Not what EVERY OTHER DAMN person wants of me. I can only live up to so many expectations (and THAT isn't all that easy). I like the saying "You can please some of the people some of the time, but you can't please all of the people all of the time" But there is another one... equally good "I Can Only Please One Person Per Day. Today ain't your day and tomorrow ain't lookin' good for you either". I can't seem to please ANYONE lately. Least of all myself. And isn't that how it's supposed to work? To do things to please OURSELVES first? I guess that is difficult to achieve when you are too busy trying to please everyone else at the same time. The shitty thing there is, how do you prioritize who you try to please first? I mean, there has to be a chain there somewhere right? There aren't enough hours in a day to do EVERYTHING that seems to be expected of me. Let's see, I broke my foot, had to deal with Dr's and hospitals for xrays, and meetings for work, and family... no wait.. not a lot of that here for me now. Let's see, what else? Oh yea, my kid, and homework, and laundry, and cleaning, and making dinner, and making lunches for school, on top of working all day. Oh, and let's add to that I have a cold now and I can't breathe. I have friends that need help with a computer, or a phone, or a whatever... I really need to stop everything I do, and just hang out with ME for a while. But then of course, you will all think I am a selfish bitch. This isn't me bitching about how busy my life seems to be, ok, yea it is.. but it's my fault. I really don't know who reads this, but I have an idea, and this relates to every single one of you... somehow. Not MY time / energy per se.. but you can relate. I don't think you'd be human if you didn't.

"If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am not for others, what am I? And if not now, when? "
Rabbi Hillel