Friday, August 01, 2014

Friday Freestyles

Friday!

Payday!

GLORY!!!

LOL

Ain't like I can spend much of anything. I just paid my bills. And closed the online pay window. The end.

It is a dreary Friday morning in my beloved ATL. At least it's not hot. For the past few days, the temps haven't risen above the 80s. I need it to stay like that.

I am off on Monday, which gives me a 3 day weekend. This week has been O_O. Between trying to do this detail, and having to train a chemist from a state lab on some equipment, I have been running hard. I am exhausted. It is all I can do to go home and do a few chores and lay down.

I'd been getting outside and working in the yard for 30 minutes a day, but one of the local fellas came over and offered to cut my hedges. They are 6 feet tall, and I can get them cut, but it is a battle, another version of LadyLee versus the Forest.  So I paid him to shape up my front hedges and to remove all the brush off the backyard fence and to cut back branches on the trees in the backyard.

I don't like the backyard much because I came home late one night and I saw a possum.

He looked me straight in the eye.

And I saw his teeth.

And he was running along the backyard fence.

Let's just say I let all those weeds and vines stay on that fence.

So I paid $35 for all that. Dude wanted a down payment. Uh no. You might not come back, hon.

I wanted to holler "You can smoke a lot of crack with that $35!"

But I didn't.

He did a great job. Hope he comes back.

I like my 30 minutes of day working in the yard. I can do that 3 or 4 times a week. I have to now because of all this rain. And it's been raining on the weekends. Sigh. So I better get in where I can fit in.

I am not doing much of anything this weekend because of the financial fast. Best just to stay in the house. I may go to church. And I haven't been driving much.

Look at my gas guage, Chele!

That's after 8 days. I meant to take a picture of it today (Day 15), showing the needle falling just below the halfway mark.

Man. I would fall out if I had to gas up once a week. Simply fall out on the hard concrete.

I will let ya'll strong folk deal with that.

Not I. I prefer not.

I made a batch of peanut butter cookies last night.



Not for myself, though. Let's back up. I made some last weekend for a coworkers special request for her birthday. But there were extra Reese's peanut butter chips laying on the counter. I have been walking back and forth past those alllll week. I didn't want to throw them away so I made a batch for someone else. They came out good. Chocked full of peanuts too. Good cookies. 

Food-For-Thought.  One of my coworkers passed unexpectantly last week. All I know is that I came to work on the morning of July 24th and ran into a sad coworker and she told me what happened. Sigh. I'd just talked to that coworker the week before. I don't see her much because she's in the next building over. But the lab for which I am doing my detail is in the next building. And I have to walk by the suite of offices where her cubicle is located. I'd been walking past and wondering "Dang, where is Shoni at? I can't catch her at her desk."

And I couldn't because she had passed.

This type of thing always causes me to pause. All this stuff, all these daily things of life we worry about and concern ourselves with... without taking note of tomorrow is not even promised. We could die today, and this time next week, our loved ones could be coming together to put us in the ground.

This life is so short. On the time scale of the age of the universe, it is probably the length of a puff of smoke.

Maybe even shorter.

It makes me think of my own life, and how there is no time for worry or anger and all that negative stuff. One of my daily confessions is "I WILL enjoy my life today. On purpose. Great things will happen in my life today. And if not in my life, then in the life of others."

And that never goes unfulfilled. Never.

Might as well be thankful for today. Because today could be your last. And I spend much time thinking about that when this type of tragedy happens unexpectantly.

With that said, rest in peace, Shoni. I will miss joking in the hallways with you. I will miss stopping by your desk to say "what's up?"  You had two girls in college and you were so proud of them. My heart hurts for them because they lost their Mom. Rest in Peace.

A few months ago, we had a long conversation about our favorite Teena Marie song. She liked "Deja Vu". I'd never heard it before.  She sang some of the lyrics. I was O_o because of her take on the depth and breadth of the lyrics.

"That song is bad, girl," she said. "She got real back-up sangers on that song. None of these weak singers. Real singers."

We went over to my desk and I pulled it up and we listened to it. And she knew every word.

So that's my Song of the Week. "Deja Vu (I've Been Here Before).



So that's it for Friday Freestyles. I am so tired. I WILL be getting some much needed rest this weekend, as it's suppose to be all rainy and nasty outside. I don't plan on stepping outside the house unless I go to church. I hope to get some writing done. And some blogging.

Only 13 days left on the Sweepstakes. Get in where you can fit in!   Win that money.

On purpose.

9 comments:

  1. Anonymous2:51:00 PM

    It is been comfy here in Montgomery as well. I have been a bit blue this week and it seems to coincide with the death of a guy, younger than me, in our IT dept. I didn't know him personally, but we were cordial in the hallway. It just had me all in my feelings and looking at things to improve my live in August and I like the affirmation "I will enjoy my life today." Needed to read this...

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  2. Anonymous4:39:00 PM

    My sympathy on the loss of your coworker.

    BTW, my birthday is Aug. 24 and peanut butter cookies are my favorite cookie. IJS....

    Enjoy your weekend!

    ~LisaBinAR

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  3. The rain held off (at least in Henry)! Mom's in town and asked about you!

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  4. Sorry for the loss of your coworker. It can be a shock. The nice cleaning lady on my floor died this winter. She left for work after getting off the night shift and got hit by a car. To se her one day and gone the next was a shock.

    Those cookies look good. I haven't made any peanut butter cookies from scratch in years.

    Hope you enjoy your 3 day time off.

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  5. I had a bad today. This blog reminded me that I can't get caught up in the tiny, insignificant inconveniences that pop up every now and then. I have a good life. A full life and for that I am so grateful.

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  6. This has been the strangest summer weather-wise.

    I would let that possum have the whole backyard. lol Those creatures are scary.

    Sorry to hear about your coworker. Unexpected deaths always make reflect over life, things I'm worried about, etc and I'm reminded that I need to live for today because you never know. You just never know.

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous9:00:00 AM

      My friend just told a story about how she tied up some leftover boston market and put it in her garage. She went into the garage a day or 2 later and it was UNTIED (meaning something with fingers) and some of the boston market was eaten.

      She about died because she knew it was a possum. SHE KNEW!

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  7. Anonymous8:58:00 AM

    sorry to hear about your coworker. That does make you re-evaluate how you are living...because one day you may not be.

    This is the most mild summer I can ever recall! There has been a hot day or 2 but overall? You would think it was fall.

    I was actually hoping for rain this weekend. I wanted to stay in and do some cleaning because I had been out of town for the last 2 weekends. Of course, it was beautiful so I wasn't able to do everything I wanted inside.

    I need to find someone to handle my yard. Its a mess.

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  8. Rest in Paradise to your coworker Shoni. Prayers to her family especially her daughters. It's hard to lose a parent especially a mother when you are young.

    I can't with a possum. I saw a rabbit at the park today and was in disbelief. I would be downright terrified seeing a possum.

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Slap the *crickets* out the way, kindly step up to the mike, and SAY something!!