How It Works

Today a coworker and I were discussing what it would be like to put someone from several centuries ago into a time machine and transport him to today. How would you begin to explain what things are and how they work? Here are a few explanations I would have to offer to a time-transported individual:

1. Electricity: You flip a switch and the lights come on, or plug up a machine, and it runs.
2. Light bulb: A sealed, glass container with a bunch of wires inside that becomes bright when a switch is flipped.
3. Telephone: A communication machine that doesn't have to be plugged into anything to work because it gets signals from satellites.
4. Satellites: Something like the moon except that human beings put them into the sky.
5. Car: A horseless carriage that runs on gasoline. (Hey, it worked in Henry Ford's day.)
6. Gasoline: A fuel made out of dead, liquefied dinosaurs and other carbon sources.
7. Carbon: One of 117 chemical elements found in all lifeforms including plants, animals, and possibly Jimmy Hoffa.
8. Airplane: A horseless carriage that is sort of like a bird because it can fly, but sort of unlike a bird because it has no feathers and it doesn't have to flap its wings to fly.
9. Camera: A device used to capture a still portrait so that it can later be used to embarrass a teenager or to end the career of a politician.
10. Computer: A machine that can save or waste a lot of time, make life easier or harder, fix things or mess things up, solve or create problems, keep a person connected or make him isolated. It has bits, bytes, bugs, disks, RAM, ROM, gigs, cookies, icons, and peripherals. I'm not even going to attempt explaining all of that. My internal memory would surely implode.

Fun at the Fair

Grammy had a good time with Emily, Caleb, and Alexa at the North Georgia State Fair yesterday morning. Admission and rides were free from 10 - 11 a.m., and so was parking, because we walked from Emily's house.
Caleb really did enjoy the rides, even though you can't tell it from most of these pictures.

Alexa didn't end up riding this car. Because it took so long to get the rest of the cars loaded, she was climbing out before the ride began, so Emily had to go get her.

The bubbles were definitely the highlight.

Continuing to Seize the Day

Today I saved 57% at Kroger, 59% at Publix, and I made $119 selling a set of my Falcons tickets. I am happy to have those gone, because now the next home game tickets I have are for November 9. That means I won't have to think about posting and selling tickets again until after our two trips in October. There's also a potential buyer for the November 9th tickets, so perhaps in another day or two those will be gone as well. The housework is done and the last load of clothes is in the dryer. All in all, a very productive day, even if it did start way too early.

Carpe Diem

If you're going to be awake in the wee hours of the morning, then seize the day -- redeem the time. Since 2 a.m. I have made a grocery list, printed coupons, clipped more coupons, checked email, responded to a potential ticket buyer, and now I'm blogging. Then I'm going to bed. Again.

About a month ago I began a new treatment for my sinuses. The "preparation" has to be concocted in a handful of specialty pharmacies across the country, and my prescription and dosing/administration apparatus is Fed-Exed from somewhere in Florida. Round two came this week, and I noticed that, like virtually all prescription items, this particular component requires a doctor's order, as indicated in the photo of the packaging.

Exactly what is this controlled and regulated item?

Don't ever try to get one of these on the black market. It could be a felony.

Thursday Thought for the Day

This is straight from the lips of the President... the President of my company, that is. To put it into context, his comment is about someone outside the company who was determined to do something the slow, tedious, hard, painful way.
If someone wants to pull his nose hair out, let him.

Lost and Found

I got a call from my mother-in-law last night about a problem she has. It's very difficult, especially over the phone, to get to the heart of what the problem really is. She was inquiring about activity on her Discover Card. To make a long story short... (if I didn't have this three-day headache, I'd make a long story longer with plenty of embellishment) ...she'd lost her credit card. I couldn't get out of her whether she'd lost only the card, or if she'd lost the entirety of her important personal docu- ments. So, I told her that I'd be over after work the next day (today), and after hanging up, the first thing I did was to call Discover and have the card deactivated. My initial stop this evening at the assisted living facility was the staff person who could tell me if they had a record of excursions and who went, thinking that I would go by or call these places to see if anyone had turned in her stuff. (They do keep a trip record.) When I went upstairs to the apartment, I sat down and navigated the semi-pertinent rabbit trails until I determined that everything is lost... credit cards, I.D., insurance cards, etc. And she doesn't know what-all she had. I asked for permission to search, and I got the flashlight and was looking under and behind furniture -- places that she might have missed. I didn't find the zippered pouch of credit cards and such, but I did find a bottle of medication that she had reported as missing. Next, I called Discover and let her give them permission to speak with me. When I inquired about any activity on the card since the last statement date, they told me of a single purchase, made two weeks ago at Hobby Lobby. She remembered that her youngest son had taken her. We called him, and guess what? The pouch of missing cards was in his truck. Whew! Except for having to get a new Discover Card, that sure did save me a lot of work! And, a big postscript, said younger son is going to photocopy everything before he gives it back to her so that I will have a record of what needs replacing if (when) this ever happens again. Don't you just love a story with a happy ending?

WWJD?

What Would Joan Do? if she didn't work full time? Here are some thoughts:

1. Spend more time with Caleb and Alexa
2. Actually cook real food for supper instead of nuking frozen stuff
3. Clean stuff in my house that rarely gets touched now like miniblinds, kitchen cabinets, and closets
4. Read more books, especially non-fiction
5. Write more hymn lyrics
6. Participate in church activities on days other than Sundays
7. Finish cleaning out my in-laws' house
8. Do more sewing
9. Join a quilt guild
10. Visit my parents and in-laws more often

Sigh... As my mother used to always tell us, "If wishes were horses, beggars would ride."

Fun Fundraising

American Vision had a fundraising dinner last Thursday. It was at Chene Rouge, a new facility in an old house in Hiram, about three miles from the office. It is a beautiful venue, specializing in weddings, but it worked perfectly for our catered dinner as well. The dinner was a great success, and quite enjoyable for the staff. Dr. Gary North spoke about the growth in technology from the mid-1800s to today, and AV's president, Gary DeMar, followed up with how AV is using that technology to get our message out to more people than ever before. AV's vision is this (from our website): An America that recognizes the sovereignty of God over all of life and where Christians apply a Biblical worldview to every facet of society. This future America will be a “city on a hill” drawing all nations to the Lord Jesus Christ and teaching them to subdue the earth for the advancement of His Kingdom; and our mission statement is: Restoring America’s Biblical Foundation—From Genesis to Revelation (Psalm 11:3).

Here are some pictures from Thursday's event.

Vice-President Brandon Vallorani, Dan (warehouse), Linsay (customer service), Ashley (event planner)

Eric, Audio-Visual Manager (with his famous gaffer's tape)

Dr. Gary North

Dr. Gary DeMar

Brandon, his wife, Jan, and baby Charity

Newlyweds Catie (customer service) and James DeMar (web design)

Sunbathing Saturday

Caleb Fix It Sink

We're babysitting the grandbabies at their house tonight while Emily and Dave are at Covenant College Night at the Braves game. Emily cares nothing for baseball, but they have the tickets that come with all-you-can-eat ballpark junk food. Enough said.

First, we played outside.

Next, we had supper.

Then, we "worked." For several weeks after James fixed their kitchen light with Caleb helping by holding a flashlight, Caleb kept saying, "Caleb fix it light." Now he finally has a new experience: Caleb fix it sink. Alexa helped too, as you can see.

Thoughtful Thursday

Seven questions to ponder... Feel free to post the answer(s).

1. If shampoo comes in so many colors, why is the lather on your head always white?
2. When you open a new bag of cotton balls, are you supposed to throw the top one away?
3. If your glove is too big, does it still fit like a glove?
4. Why don't ducks duck when you shoot at them?
5. If the energizer bunny attacks someone, is he charged with battery?
6. Do sheep get static cling when they rub against one another?
7. If you could walk through the walls, wouldn’t you fall through the floor?

Too Tired to Type

I finally gave up at work last night about 8 p.m., but I got our software back up and running at 11 a.m. today. For more news, chick here.

Terrible Tuesday - Part II

It's 7:07 and I'm still at work. Believe it or not, I'm not the only one here. The file back up is 95% complete. We'll see what happens next.

Terrible Tuesday

I'm writing this from my office at work at 5:25 p.m. and the trip home does not appear on the horizon. Our primary software went down around 1 p.m. today, and I've been working on the problem ever since. Right now, the data base is backing up so that I can then attempt a rebuild of the data. The backup is about 75% complete, but it's been running for two hours. I have no idea how long the rebuild will take. I probably will leave when the rebuild starts, but if something goes awry, then when everyone arrives in the morning, they still won't be able to work. Nothing like having six people on the payroll sitting around doing nothing.

Motivated to Save... And Write about Saving

I got up early this morning, shopped at CVS and Publix, and still made it to work at 7:55 a.m. Then I went to Publix again on my way home from work. I saved 66% at CVS, 68% on my first Publix stop, and 56% on the second Publix stop. I have boat loads of Lipton tea now, but that's my primary beverage, so all is well.

Today I learned that my boss wants to use one of my blog posts as next month's fund-raising letter. Since American Vision is not-for-profit, we depend on donations to supplement income from book sales. Back in July, I wrote about the growth of the company in the four years I've been there. An edited version of that post, along with an opening and closing paragraph that I wrote today will hit about 35,000 mailboxes in late October. I'm honored. Maybe next month they'll let me drive the fork lift.

More Saturday Stuff

Angi and I made twelve meals each at A Dinner Afare yesterday morning. They have aprons and baseball caps for the customers to wear, but my hair was french-braided and I didn't want a hat to mess it up, so I opted for the hairnet instead. Angi assured me that it was lovely, but I forgot my camera, so you'll have to take her word for it. And I'm sure it's an honest word, too, because she has seen me at my very best and at my very worst.

After lunch, James and I headed to the fairgrounds for the pre-fair event -- a craft show and classic car display. We bought a wooden puzzle at one of the booths because it was an animal that we wanted, not because we felt a kinship with the proprietors.

Here are a few of the cars on display. Look closely. There are actually four yellow cars.

Saturday's Stuff on Sunday

As promised, here are the grandbabies. First, here's future Olympic gymnast and/or stunt double, Caleb:

Here's the prestidigitator, Alexa:

Finally, here's mom (Emily) trying to keep the peace while Gramps is inciting to riot:

Silly Saturday

Today's events will take me several posts to cover, but this had to go first... even ahead of the grandbabies.

At the fairgrounds today, some people were pushing babies in strollers, and some things just do not require additional commentary.

Finally Friday

Today was my day to clean house, shop, do laundry, and other not fun stuff so that I can play tomorrow. Angi and I are "cooking" in the morning at a Dinner A Fare. Actually, we won't be doing any cooking, just assembling twelve yummy entres to take home and freeze for later. Then, James and I are going to the Blue Ribbon Affair, the pre- North Georgia State Fair arts & crafts and classic car show. We'll probably go straight from there to Emily's house, since she kindly invited us to supper.

I made reservations today for our trip to Nashville next month for Phillip's commencement from Nashville Auto Diesel College. He won't actually be finished with the program until mid-November, but they hold commencement four times a year, and you participate in the one that's closest to your completion date.

Here's what under $20 (a savings of 62%) will buy at Publix:

Thoughtful Thursday

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
I finished the Ellery Queen mystery about 4 a.m. yesterday (don't ask). In addition to a good story, there were these words of wisdom from the famous detective: It pays in the end to tell the truth in the beginning.

Wonderful Wednesday

Woo hoo! Our cruise tickets have arrived. It's not exactly what I expected, this nice, blue embossed fabric wallet. It's filled with all sorts of information and two buttons. I'm not sure what the buttons signify, unless it's something like, "These people have never cruised before and are likely to wander around with bewildered facial expressions until they find some hapless crew member who will have to deal with their endless stupid questions." Identifying us will allow said crew members to disappear if they've already dealt with so many of our peers that they're about ready to throw themselves (or us) overboard.

There's also shore excursion information included. In the Bahamas, I thought we had an opportunity to visit a French Maggot and Butterfly Farm, but upon closer reading, I discovered that it is actually a French Marigot and Butterfly Farm. I don't know what a marigot is, but it has to be decidedly preferable to a maggot. We can kayak, ride horseback, bicycle, or parasail. (No, no, not likely, and not in a million years.) The glass-bottomed boat tour sounds good, as does the Floating Foam Mat. Float. I can do that.

Going, Going, Gone!

I'm happy to report that my two tickets for the Falcons game on September 21 are gone. I posted them on Craigs List and I had a taker in under 24 hours. He paid via Paypal today, and I sent them off UPS from work. Selling the first four tickets has netted me about 1/2 of what I figure the tax liability on my winnings will be. If the Falcons play well..... well..... $$$$

Maniac Monday

I enjoy reading, particularly mysteries. My gripe is that so many modern-day authors* do not seem to understand that there are readers out there who do not want to read about hedonistic immorality nor graphic gore. Is it too much to ask today's writer not to use "the F word" on every page?! Good grief. I've always contended that those who use profanity do so because they haven't the vocabulary to express themselves otherwise. Case in point: I'm currently rereading The Spanish Cape Mystery, an Ellery Queen title with a 1935 copyright date. The investigating police inspector is frustrated by the victim's audacity in getting himself murdered. "For some seconds, he [the inspector] expressed himself with violence and fluency, describing the nature, habits, temperament, and antecedents (probable) of John Marco with a comprehensiveness, lucidity, and imagery that shocked Judge Macklin and caused Ellery's eyes to widen with admiration." (page 161) Bravo. Not a single profane word in that sentence, but the meaning is abundantly clear.

* Footnotes:

• Here's a way I have devised to find a decent library book in the mystery section: I look for the oldest copyright dates I can find, and I look for an author who has more than a couple of titles on the shelf. When I find an author I like exceptionally well, the books are usually out of print, so I'll go in search of them in used bookstores, either physical ones or cyberworld ones.
• A good many contemporary titles I've read do omit profanity and graphic butchery, but they've managed to omit a complex and satisfying plot as well. I recently read a bestselling author's mystery that is set in a bakery. The writing was bland and the conclusion predictable, but there were a number of cookie recipes included, so the purchase wasn't a total loss.

Priorities

I had to go to CVS early this morning because one of the deals was only good yesterday and today. I was five minutes late to work, but CVS paid me $2 to take this stuff home. Emily assured me that my priorities were in order though.

Silent Sunday - Enjoy this Montego Bay Sunset

Two Projects Go Kaput

Several weeks (months?) ago, I rambled about several projects underway. One of them was this jigsaw puzzle. It's a goner now. I acci- dentally knocked it all over the dining room floor when I was cleaning up to set the table (see second project to follow). So, it went back in the box. I haven't been in the mood to work on it in a long time anyway.

While I was in the floor picking up puzzle pieces, I looked under the china cabinet to see if any had gone underneath. They had, but look what else turned up. It was sort of gross. I tried to figure out how long it might have been there. Since neither parent would have let Caleb have a pink sippy cup, it has to be Alexa's. Since she's just over fourteen months old, and since she wouldn't have had a sippy cup at all before about eight months old, then the cup cannot have been there longer than six months. That made me feel better. Anyone can go six months without looking under furniture. A little bleach, a little soaking, a little scrubbing with a toothbrush (not mine), and the cup is usable now.

My second project isn't totally kaput -- just delayed.

There should be people sitting at this table with food on their plates. James and I went by the assisted living facility on Thursday after work to invite his parents for lunch today. The occasion is my father-in-law's 89th birthday, which will be on Thursday. Anyway, James went to pick them up, and found them in the dining room having almost finished lunch. In under two days, they had both forgotten about the invitation. James is going to pick them up later for warmed-over supper instead. Note to self: Next invite, call the day before, the morning of, and an hour before pick-up time.

Friday Finale

We just got home from the fifth of five concerts in the Country Nights series at the Mable House Amphitheater. Tonight was Diamond Rio.

Here's who we saw, with my favorite at the top:

1. Craig Morgan - He's the only one who actually left the stage and came into the seating area.
2. Oak Ridge Boys - Their music was lively and they seemed to be having as much fun as everyone there.
3. Blake Shelton - I really like his music. The thing I didn't like was the profanity that came from his mouth every time he spoke.
4. Diamond Rio - They extended lots of songs with just the instruments.
5. Randy Travis - We enjoyed his music, but there was nothing in particular that made his concert stand out.

I'm sorry that it's over. The concerts were fun, and we'd definitely do it again. An added bonus is that it takes us just 10 minutes to get home when the show is over.

Freebie Friday

Here's what I got for free at CVS today. Thanks for the coupons, Emily. And for the tip that the $2 off 2 Gold Emblem nuts works on the 99-cents snack packs. I would of never thought of that. (And I wouldn't have thought of it either.)

Did I need free body wash? Judge for yourself.