Ten Thursday Thoughts

 My oh my... Ten Thoughts on a Thursday!

1. It has been such a long time since I have been on here. Oh yes, I come on here to pull pictures and look for old information. That's what is great about it and why I should keep it going. If only for myself, really.

2. I have been teleworking since March 2020. That makes 16 MONTHS and some change. That is a long time. 

3. One huge regret I have had during this time: that I didn't make some major goals and plans for this 16 months. I could have started a business, etc. Something. But my thing is... I thought we were just going to be home for 2 weeks. It took me about 8-10 months to get that out of my head. 

4. I gained about 20-25 pounds during these Covid days. I developed diabetes. I developed an arthritis problem. All from sitting still, and going from 10,000 steps a day to around 1500-2000 steps a day. Sigh.

5. But the good news is that, as of today, I have lost approximately 50-54 pounds (tends to fluctuate). I average around 7000 steps per day. And I can walk up hills and walk over 2 miles without half passing out. I am getting stronger each and every day. Diabetes has reversed. Arthritis is still there, but not as bad. So I am doing better and getting better. 

6. One thing I have missed during this time is much time with family and friends. I tend to be a loner at most, but it is still hard just dealing all this time alone. I am very thankful for technology, and for porch visits. 

7. Work has been so-so. I guess I am doing good because I get good work reviews and good bonuses. But I am sitting here alone with my thoughts. I am a chemist, and I need a laboratory. 

8. I have written approximately 40 short stories/micro fiction/flash fiction during this time. And I have almost completed a short novel. I am giving the short novel to a friend for her birthday. So that is due on August 29th, a month from now. That gives me a month to re-read it and do some editing. 

9. My favorite food to eat during all this time: chicken wings. I am a chicken wing FIEND. I eat them at least five days a week. And right now, there is a chicken wing shortage. Sigh. So I get them where I can!

10. I will probably post more now, as I would have had to do all this from my phone. I found I hate typing on my phone. Well, texting is fine, but writing anything long on my phone is for the birds! Ugh. 

Well that is it for my ten Thursday thoughts. 

That felt good! Gonna do it again... and again!

Ten POLITICAL Thursday Thoughts

Ten Thursday Thoughts... with a politics slant... YES.

  1. This guy right here.

2. Excuse me... this is our beloved president. That photo is one we all, if you're over 40 or so, have taken at our local Sears and/or Olan Mills photography spot.

3. Since the debate, all the journalists heads have been on fire. And rightfully so.

4. Me, I'm just annoyed. I may have to extend my no-news weekends into the weekdays. 

5. Hot topic right now: this white supremacist mess. How hard is it to condemn them? We know you would be lying. Just say it, feign shock at it all, and move on, Sir. Wow. It's like he chokes up when asked about all that. 

6. His supporters don't care what he says... afterall... 

7. Look how we stone cold forgot all about his interesting tax problems. 

8. However, another hot topic right now: poll watchers. Folks coming to polls to intimidate people, I guess. Not sure what that is about. 

9. I already have a plan. Going down to a hood spot and voting. Ain't NOBODY coming up in there talking trash. They not having. I went there during the early voting of the last presidential election. I was in and out in 5 minutes. Pleasant experience.

10. There is a lot going on. However, I had to look back over my life, especially the past 30 years, and I have to say, unequivocally and with no doubt, that I have experienced increase and growth in virtually all area of my life, no matter who the president is. 

You know why?

(And I told one of my Trump supporting friends this...)

Because God takes exceptionally great care of me. 

That is what I have faith in, and what I will stand on. 

A lot of this is disrupting my peace... and anything that cost me my peace is too expensive. 

This is, like, a textbook study in mental chaos. 

And besides, you all do know that we know only a miniscule amount of what is really going on, right?

I am just saying... hmm.

Y'all have a great Thursday!

Ten Thursday Thoughts

1. We are well into month FIVE of quarantine. Well, by this time, pseudo-quarantine.  I don't know what to call it. All I know is that I am just numb right now. Numb is the only word I can use to describe how I feel. And I'm all tapped out when it comes to work. I really need a lab to get experiments done, but it is just not worth me going in. For once in my life, I just need to put myself and my well being before my job. And let the chips fall where they may with management.

2. I had a doctor's appointment today. This completely unnerves me, as every time I touch something, I douse my hands in hand sanitizer.

3. My doctor's appointment was at 9:00 am. I didn't go to bed until 3:30 am. Ugh. And doctor is 30 miles away. That is, like, a very long road trip for me.

4. I did have an incredibly quiet and peaceful shopping experience at the Eagles Landing (far south metro Atlanta Suburb) this morning. People had on masks and were social distancing and the store was not at all crowded. That's the way I like it.

5. I have gained Covid weight, but all my bloodwork is very good. I am no longer anemic. Cholesterol and blood pressure are within normal levels. All my electrolyte, vitamin, mineral levels are within range, kidneys are great. So that is good. I suppose. Gonna be thankful anyhow.

6. "Your legs are skinny," my doctor said.
    "But I've gained weight!" I screeched.
    "That is because you are not moving," she explained. "You need to move. Join a gym."
    "I am not running up in no gym right now. No way. Found some youtube videos, though."
    "Good for you," she said.

And that's all I can do right now. And hope for the best.

7. If I listen to terrestrial radio in the car, I like to listen to an Old school station. I heard some good songs on my 60 mile round trip to my doctor's office. Some Kool and the Gang, Earth Wind and Fire, and the like. The problem is that it took me back to days when I was little and my Mother and I would be listening to music in the car and singing along...

8. I got all teary-eyed at those memories. So I guess I have to just plug in my Spotify playlist and listen to that until I feel better about it all.

9. And with that said, look what comes up on my timeline: Forever More by Enchantment.



10. Prayers for Texas and Louisiana right now.

How in the world does one deal with a pandemic, racial injustice AND a hurricane during this time? I just don't know.

Praying ALL of this craziness will just be over soon enough.

Those are my 10 Thoughts. On a Thursday.

Ten Thursday Thoughts

Ten Thoughts! On a... Thursday. (Had to pause to figure what day it was. They are all running together right now.

1. I am not sure what day this is of the quarantine. Are we still under quarantine? Well, we are almost halfway through month #5. Oh joy. MONTH 5!

2. I find myself napping or simply falling asleep at night in my "easy chair" (that's what my grandma called her recliner). I would watch my Grandma do this and thought that I never thought I would would do such a thing. Lo and behold, I do this now. And it reminds me of her, and how much I miss her.

3. I am team leader on some project at work. It was originally mine, but there are a couple of guys working on it, since they are brave enough to go in. All I know, I am just not in the mood to deal with fragile, almost femalian (is that a word?) male egos. Not in the mood.

4. Best thing I did today? Turn in my timesheet so that I can paid. Thank you, Lord.

5. Kamala Harris is the vice-presidential pick. I am neither here nor there with her. I think she is a politician, and will do well enough. I am looking forward to her verbally smoking Pence, with his milquetoast self. They are going to attack her viciously. I know she can stand up to it. Us black women are strong like that.

6. This may be too much information, but I had a cycle last month. So what? Well, I thought I was in full menopause. No ma'am. It's been six months, then SURPRISE. And there was me being sad, and walking around wailing, "I thought this was suppose to be over now!" I was so devastated. That is the only word I can use to describe how I was feeling.

7. Lupus symptoms get worse around that special time of the month. This is a none thing. This time, my left hamstring was on fire. It was a little difficult to climb stares and walk. I mean, I could do it, but I was 25% slower, something like that. I think it was inflamed. Just never felt like that before. And it ain't like I can go the doctor during these covid times. Shoot, I only go if I absolutely have to, and have an appointment. But I must say, after all was said and done, it feels 95% better now. But I would hate to feel like that again. Ugh.

8. I wish I had someone to share these things with. I was thinking about joining a support group of some type, but I don't think I can deal with too many of us wailing, all at the same time. I am a part of a web group, though. It might be a good idea to keep up with it and be alert. I may find something helpful.

9. Our beloved president seems to be doing press briefings every evening. It catches me off guard, having me saying "Wait, wasn't I just watching the news?!?!? Where the hell he come from! Oh hell no!!" He acts like he doesn't even want to be there, and he starts rambling. It is such a waste of my brain cells to watch and figure out what the world he is talking about. When I can tell you that I can't find my tv remote fast enough to turn the station... Ugh!

10. I have about an inch of hair growth which is so weird to me. But I refuse to get it cut. It's not like I'm doing nothing, not even going to work. And I wear a scarf when I leave the house. So what's the point?

that's it for my 10 thoughts! Enjoy your day!

Ten Thursday Thoughts

1. I am not sure what day this is. Day 87? Day 87! I am really ready to go back to work. Management still don't have a definitive plan in place, though. Sigh.


2. My girl cat Sister Callie Jo is chewing on the USB chords I use to charge up my phones. Maybe she will stop if she gets shocked.


3. I think I forgot to pay my power bill. That's the real reason I thought my power went out this past Sunday. It was a neighborhood outage, though.


4. The rowdy a.ir.bn.b neighbors are GONE. It is generally quiet over there right now, but I do think there are some people over there. I hear the lovely laughter of little children playing in the yard. That is SO much better than some woman wailing about her $200 that somebody owed her. (Hope she got her money. Yes, and amen.)


5. Vice-President Biden has spots on social media where he's asking for campaign donations. I have never donated to campaigns, and probably won't in the future. Well, I might if they come up with a system to refund my donation if they lose.


6. I personally think our beloved president is going to cancel the election and declare himself president until death. I really think that.


7. One of my friend's sons, who has degrees in political science, said it can't happen. I hope he's right.


8. I had a great baby spring lettuce, strawberry, peach, green apple, psyllium husk smoothie this morning, It was so good!


9. I have the attention span right now of a puff of smoke. It's there, then it disappears into thin air.


10. Last night I went to sleep around 3:00 am in the morning. I would give anything to fall asleep at a decent hour, like midnight.


That's it for my 10 thoughts on a Thursday!

Ten Thursday Thoughts

Ten Thoughts! On a Thursday!

1. I don't even know what Day this is of Quarantine. I think it is like, day 75. DAY 75! Who knows.

2. A plan seems to be forming for us to go back to work. Seems is the operable word here. Management seems to be up in the air about it. There is much navel gazing and staring into the sun going on. Which means they won't be seeing me anytime soon.

3. Hell, I have, like, 8 weeks of annual leave and 1000 hours of sick leave. Listen, they keep fooling around, they won't be seeing the Original Oldgirl until Christmas. It ain't nothing but a thang.

4. Georgia voting for the primary was F*CKED up. Excuse my language, but that is the only word that describes what happened. It was a master class in voter suppression. People were in line for 2-8 hours. That is some mess. And my area is heavily gentrified, so I thought that they wouldn't mess over these white folks like that.

Humph. They surely did. Shocked the cheese out of me.

5. How 'bout I rolled around to my precinct and the sucker was closed. There was a sign of where to go. And someone put a map up on twitter, and they estimated the line for where I needed to vote to be quarter mile long. Get the heck out of here. How 'bout I drove right on past it. Oh well. I tried. But there is NO way I am standing outside IN THE RAIN for any length of time. NO.

Oh, and I got a notice in the mail about the precinct changes two days after the election. LOL! You can't make this stuff up. Voter Suppression 101!

6. But I will work it out for the presidential election. You best believe that. If I have to get my tail up there at 3 in the morning, then that will have to do. Because man... we have all been taken through some political MESS.

7. Personally I think our beloved president will cancel the election, and he will declare himself president until he dies. I would not be shocked in the least if that happens. And the folks around him are too hypnotized and weak to stop it.

8. So... we have zoom-type calls for meetings at work. These are usually pretty boring. We all make it a priority to keep our webcams covered. I have learned to put everything on speaker, and take that time to wash dishes or fold clothes. At any rate, I need to be able to dive for the computer if someone asks me a question.

9. How 'bout someone flushed the toilet yesterday during our group meeting call. Everyone was like REALLY? Who was that? No one fessed up. And I don't blame them.

10. The calls usually consist of group business and scientific discussions. Then we get over into "Someone talk about something they did this weekend" or "Someone tell us something funny."

And in my mind I am screaming:

ARE YOU KIDDING ME? THE WORLD IS ON FIRE!

Spiritual fire.

Ain't nobody trying to be funny right now.

That was what someone's toilet flush was about. Let that be the funny for the week. Otherwise, I don't wanna hear it.

That's it for Thursday Thoughts!

Ten Thursday Thoughts

1. I am glad it is Thursday.  Not sure why, as I am just at home. I think this is day 70 of quarantine? Not sure. Day 70!  All I really know though is that tomorrow is PAYDAY! Glory.

2. I really wished I would've started working on developing some new good habit during this time. Imagine where I would be right now, 70 days later. Sigh

3. I had a four hour training on gub'ment travel etiquette. After 3.5 hours, I unhooked my laptop, got up from the dining room table, and went and laid across the bed with it. This was me for the last 30 minutes of that training:

After about 2 hours, I figured this training was for the new people. But I think they made us Oldheads take it just to keep us busy.

4.  It's been raining a lot. I have been staring out the window with Mitch and Callie at the rain... and whatever other craziness is going on.

They especially like licking on the salt rock lamp. I told them they gonna get high blood pressure if they keep it up.

5. Speaking of Mitch and Callie, they are so done with me.

You can really see on Big Mitch's face that he is REALLY done with me.

6. My idea of exercise these days is walking 50 times around my kitchen island. I gotta do better. Gotta march around it 100 times.

7. I talked to my mother last night. She's in a nursing home, and they have restricted visitation. It was good to talk to her. Odd to see when she calls, but she is doing pretty good, and she sounds good.

8. I drink more coffee than I should.

My normal is one regular cup a week. But right now, I drink coffee three or four times a week (including weekends). I have learned to brew my coffee 2 parts decaf and 1 part regular. This helps a bit to cut down on the caffeine.

9. With that said, I went to sleep around 2:30 am last night. I must remind myself not to drink anything caffeinated after 12 noon.

10. What I'm listening to right now: Salt-n-Pepa "How Long"



That's it for my Thursday Thoughts!

Ten Thursday Thoughts... Beauty Supply Store Edition

Ten, no SEVENTEEN Thursday Thoughts from my venture out to the Beauty Supply Store!

1. First of all, there is NO WAY I wanted to run up in a Beauty supply store. NO WAY! I'm doing good just to make my venture out to the grocery store biweekly (or weekly).

2. My aunt needed some supplies for my bedridden Uncle Dean. I usually order these things online, but with the pandemic wrecking shop, it is hard to find certain things.

3. One of the supplies that are hard to find are disposable gloves. And I needed some latex free gloves, since my uncle's folks are allergic to everything.

4. I called the local beauty supply store, and lo and behold, they had gloves. So I had to get the nerve up to go up there, because I was antsy.

5. Why was I antsy? Because you've been in a beauty supply store. There's a lot going on, in the Asian ones especially. And this particular one is very cramped. So I organized my mask and sanitizer. I carefully fold paper towels and place them in a storage bag and soak them in 91% rubbing alcohol. And I am prepared to run my tail up in there and run out quickly.

6. So I drive up to the store, which is a mile from my house. I am masked up and ready. There are two women standing at the door talking. I go to open the door and it's locked.

"They only allowing 3 people at a time in there," one of the women said.
"Oh, ok," I said.

(She could've told me that before I touched the door)

*ladylee dousing hand in sanitizer and alcohol wipes*

7. I leaned against my car and waited. The two women at the door were a bit overly agitated about one of their relationships. One told the other that she was right to drop that fool. I happen to agree with them, but I said nothing.

8. When it was time to go into the store, the clerk said everyone needed masks. One of the two ladies protested. But they got it figured it out.

9. We all went into the cramped store. I moved fast to find the gloves, but I had to ask. The black male clerk pointed to where they were and I headed that way FAST. But I was trying to figure out which ones were latex free. I yelled out the question. And the Asian clerk came over and leaned down next to me to show me where the gloves were.

This frightened me terribly. I know I fainted a little inside. I almost yelled SOCIAL DISTANCING PLEASE!!!!

But we both had on masks, so... Jesus, take the wheel. Gotta have faith right now.

10. Here are the gloves. And doggonit, they are expensive!

$14.99 a box! Usually on amazon, before the pandemic, they are around $7-10 a box. Right now on Amazon, gloves are $28 a box. So this is a good enough deal.

Good enough.

11. While this is going on, one of the two ladies who came in with me was going OFF on someone on the phone. I don't know who it was, but I felt sorry for the person, because they were getting verbally shanked!

12. The black male clerk kindly asked the lady to leave her phone call and finish shopping, to which she complied, thankfully. (I just knew she was going to tell whoever she was talking to hold on... then cuss the clerk out. And I was here for it!) The two ladies turned their attention to the many packs of fake yaki hair hanging on the wall.

13. I took the opportunity to look around for more stuff I needed. I needed bandannas for my head!

They are small and tight. I have a big head, but I will work with them. They were cheap. I know that because one wash had them fraying at the edges.

They say keep your hair covered up when you're out and about because droplets can get in your hair. I have been living off the same head scarf for the past 20 years, seems like...

I love it. And it is big, big enough for my big head. I need backups, though.

14. I needed some rattail combs. I found the blue one on the left at the house in a utility drawer (not sure why it was in there)! Oh how I jumped for joy! I bought the black one.

15. I bought some gel to lay my bee bee shot edges down.

Shine 'n Jam, baby! Shine 'n Jam!! Silk Edges!

Not all that important, since I won't be going anywhere, but I happen to see it, and thought.. that looks interesting.

I'm definitely gonna toss them under the bathroom sink

16. I checked out my stash with the cashier, and left (after the ladies). All in all, it was a decent trip. But I do NOT want to go back anytime soon. I bought my aunt four boxes of gloves. She better make them last. I'm not going back until July!

17. I was out and about for a couple of hours. (I made a stop at one of my small neighborhood markets on the way back home).

This all puts me in a bit of awe, day by day, that we all breathe each other's air. And this whole virus is airborne. I hope we make it through all of this. Scratch that... I KNOW we'll make it through all of this.

Yes and Amen.

Those are my SEVENTEEN thoughts... on a Thursday!!

TWELVE Thursday Thoughts

Ten, no TWELVE Thoughts... On a Thursday!!!!


1. Man... I have lost count of what day it is in this quarantine madness. I think it is Day 50? Ugh. DAY 50.  This leaves me near speechless.

2. These days are running together. And I don't go back to work until June. COME ON, JUNE! Geesh.

3. That is, unless the Covid madness barrels out of control, and we spike back up in cases and deaths. We will be closed back up in the house... again.

4. I find that I am a bit haphazard. I may get some work done some days, then I may get absolutely nothing done (or at least it feels that way).

5. I never have to comb my hair, as I usually have it shaved down near bald once per month. But with all that's going on now, I haven't had a hair cut in 7 weeks. And right now, I find myself searching around the house looking for a rattail comb, because I desperately need it!

6. The ice cream man keeps circling the block. I think he is friends with the fellas that live a couple of houses down and across the street. They are always outside talking in the middle of the street, laughing and what-not.  At any rate, I wish the dude in the ice cream truck would turn that awful music off (One of my neighbors called it pediophile music. I think that phrase is stuck in my head.)

7. These new neighbors, who have been here about half a year, are better than the old ones. The old ones played music all time so the night. They were just so doggone loud.

8. With that said, I don't call the police on people. I just let them be. Play your loud music. I am too afraid of calling the police, and they come through acting a complete fool and something tragic happens. Ain't nobody got time for that. I don't want to have to live with the thought of  "If I just would've not called the police, none of this mess would've happened."

9. I made a grocery store run today.  I only wanted some fresh fruit and vegetables, but daggonit, I bought the whole store (well, not really. Only feels that way). My goal is to do major shopping every 2 weeks, and go once a week if I run out of salad greens and perishables, stuff like that. That is working out, but I need a plan B. Only spend a certain amount. Ugh.

10. Right now, I don't go to bed until around 1:30 am. I HATE that. I want to go to bed around But I rarely sleep 8 hours. I sleep about 5 hours a night. I wish I could change that.
11. One thing that gives me some solace is that my pastor does a 15 minute affirmation and confession session on facebook most mornings. I really look forward to that. Helps shift my attitude into a better and more positive space, because Lord knows I truly need it.
12. I am overly grateful for journaling. And for being able to post something on blog. I feel like it keeps my mind alert. If it wasn't able to get my thoughts, plans, and frustration out on paper where I can see them, I don't know what I would do.


That's it for my 12 Thursday Thoughts!

Ten Thursday Thoughts

My oh my... these "Thoughts" days know they be rolling around quickly!

I actually have about 46183 thoughts, but I will just write out the 10 straight off the top of my head.

1. So the state of Georgia is open now. I didn't' see my Governor's news conference on it, but someone sent me their thoughts. Basically the shelter-in-place is lifted, but he suggested we stay inside. Also, keep six feet distance from folks unless you can't help it. No social gatherings unless you just have to...

What kind of tomfoolery is this?

2. Alas, I will do what my city of Atlanta mayor Keisha say do: stay my a$$ in the house unless I got some essential ish to do.

3.  My journal entries every night more often than not start out with: "Today was a slow day..."

4. Tomorrow is Pay Day. Woo-hooo!!!

5. I am more than thankful for it, but this doesn't mean much. Ain't like I can go out and go shopping or anything. I have gotten to the point where I just schedule all my online bills a week in advance.

But I need some clothes. But OH WELL.  Hence, just pay bills.

6. My oven element broke. I ordered a new one, and watched a video on how to replace it. I'm not pressed about it, as I rarely use my oven (just for cookies these days, and I haven't made any since mid-March). Hence, the element is in a box in the corner of the dining room. I wear my toaster oven OUT, though.

7. I have a real expensive downdraft stove. So if I needed to get it replaced, it will cost me about $3400. No ma'am. No sir. I think I would just go buy a hot plate, and stick with my trusty toaster oven.

8. All this time at home, I would've really appreciated having a microwave oven. I haven't had one in about 5 or 6 years. But Lord have mercy... it would've been nice to have one these past 6 or 7 weeks I've been cooped up in the house. I am doing more cooking, and I always have leftovers. Would've been nice to just pop items in the microwave... instead of having to bust out a skillet or a boiler to heat up food. Ugh.

9. Last time I went to the grocery store, all the bacon was gone... except for the Smithfield bacon. With all the problems they are having at those plants, people were steering clear of it. I managed to score a pack of Oscar-Mayer bacon.

I rarely buy bacon. I tend to buy it from the butcher section of a place like Whole Foods, where I can, for example, just buy four or five slices. (Those four or five slices will last me a couple of months if I wrap them right. But before we got stuck in the house, I decided to buy a whole pack of prepackaged bacon.

Now the last time I remember buying bacon on the regular many years ago, a high price was about $4.99 a pack. But now it's around $7.99. When the world did that happen?

10. I plan on going to the grocery store in the morning. I wanted to go this morning, but I need to run up in there around 8 am, when there's not a whole herd of people up in there. Let's just say I didn't roll out of bed until 9:30 am. Sigh.

I have to get there early, because you know with the lockdown, folks had already lost their minds. Now with it really over,  they gonna be REALLY out in the streets...
Damn all the social distancing,
Damn the masks and gloves.
Damn all of that.

So I will don my mask and gloves, get my baggie of wipes together, and stuff two small bottles of hand sanitizer strategically in my Corona shopping pants (a pair of multi-pocket cargo pants), quietly run up in the Publix and get my items...

... And hightail it lickety-split back to the house.

Really, tho...

That was a fast Thoughts! 

Wanted to add more, but I would be writing all night long.

You have a good evening! On purpose!

Twelve Thursday Thoughts

Here we go with the 12 Thursday thoughts. I kind of shiver at the thought of coming up with 10 thoughts, but I have been ending up with MORE. GLORY.

1. I have had a strange craving for blackberries for the past month. I have NO idea what that's about. But I am gonna eat them.

2. With that said, I found some at Trader Joe's for $5.99 a pound. They are worth every penny. They are good and sweet, too.

3. I am in charge at work this week. I am NOT impressed with the acting supervisor role. I don't like people running up on me speaking in docile tones, talking about, "Ladylee, I'm taking off tomorrow", or "LadyLee, I will be late for work."

4. The phrase "I don't give a dayum!!" is always perched on the tip of my tongue ready to take flight like a small bird. But alas, I just say... "That's cool."

5. I had some great chicken lasagna for lunch this week.

6. Who the heck thinks of chicken lasagna? And no, it wasn't ground chicken. It was sliced and diced chicken meat. Like, they baked the chicken first then put it in the lasagna.

7. God bless whoever at DeKalb Farmers Market came up with the idea of chicken lasagna. God bless YOU. Amen.

8. I am working on a project at work that is giving me FITS. I hate when I wake up in the morning and it is the first thing I think about. Ugh. It needs to be over SOON.

9. I have been assisting with preparing my mother's meals for the week. I made some bake chicken and it was FIRE!

Oh my, I wish I could recreate it. I will surely try again.

10. I am so glad tomorrow is FRIDAY. And it will be Payday!

11. It is raining cats, dogs, rats, and frogs in the ATL. Will I ever see the sun again??

12. I have made a goal to read an hour a week this week. I have done well with that, and it feels so good to have a steady reading habit again. I hope I can keep it up.

Those are my random thoughts on a Thursday! I hope you enjoyed it!

I know I did.

TWELVE Thursday Thoughts on Valentines Day 2019

Happy Valentines Day 2019!

And here are TWELVE thoughts... on this special commerce holiday!


1. I am not booed up on this holiday. I am good with that, though. This is a manufactured holiday.  How many fights gonna bust out over somebody not getting what they thought that she should be getting?

2. But I have had some great and memorable valentine's days, and I hope to have many more in the future.

3. Fun day; My Mama said I took my first steps on Valentine's day 1971. So I have been walking for 48 years today.

4. Some days I pray while walking to the workplace from my car. This is rare, but it was cold this morning, and I needed to pray to get my head right. This morning my prayer was "I know it's Valentine's day, a day to celebrate love, but God I thank you for loving me and taking care of my every day, 365 days a year." That prayer brought a tear to my eye. Not sure why I got emotional in that moment. But sometimes it is just a good thing to take a moment and acknowledge God and His goodness, and spend a couple of moments meditating on that before the hustle and bustle of the day takes over.

5. Here's a memory I will always keep which happened on this valentine's day: A couple of the brothers in the cubicle area passed out red roses to the women in the cubicle area. I thought that was very kind of them.

6. What was funny was that some of the other men in the cubicle area were getting an attitude about not getting one. (Hopefully they were joking. That may have not been the case...hmm).

7. Here's a picture of some squash I made this past weekend.

8. I did not make that for myself. Me and my sister are taking turns cooking for our mother. So This week was my week. But I think I will make some for myself tonight.

9. I did not really give out Valentine's gifts in the workplace, mostly because folks who don't get nothing from me might want to talk trash, and I didn't want to have to pop suckas upside their heads. But I gave this to one of my favorite coworkers.

How cool is that? A Patti Labelle mini pie. Only 50 cents. That is a hard gift to give, because some people do not like sweet potato pie.

10. I am acting supervisor next week. Ugh. I am NOT impressed with being acting supervisor. That means folks will be bothering me. Ugh.

11. I need to drink more water. I do not know what my problem is lately, but I do not want to end up back in the hospital. LAWD NO.

12. Favorite song this week, as I have not heard in a long time:



Such a great song.  It came on when last night when I pulled my car into the garage and I was reading my mail (I have some weird habit of reading my mail in the car). It was just great to sit there and listen to it until it went off.

I remember that is one of the first songs I heard when I was little, where a woman was moaning in a song, and I remember thinking... "Um, I don't think I'm suppose to be listening to this. LOL

But I do not think that this song will work too well in this #metoo error. Hmmm....

Okay, those are my Thursday Thoughts on Valentine's day!

Happy Valentines day!

Ten Thursday Thoughts

I wrote this first as Ten Tuesday thoughts, then I realized it wasn't Tuesday. Then I got happy! Because the weekend is one day away. GLORY.


1. Whew wee... this has been a mentally taxing week. Why? Because there are only 10 people working in the whole building. Talk about eerie. I miss the busyness of the cubicle area. I miss the conversations and laughter of my coworkers.


2. With that said, I am ready for this daggone gub'ment shutdown to be over. I cannot believe that congress is allowing this.

3. Thank goodness for Nancy Pelosi and the women of congress, because most of the male members are Ken dolls. (If you don't understand what that means, go buy a Ken doll and pull his pants down. What do you see? That is all.)

4. Interestingly enough, I have to work during this shutdown. I may or may not get a paycheck. Who knows. I will not allow myself to be stressed, because...

5. The Lord takes care of me. That is all.

6. I had my appraisal hearing. I think it went well. They need to visit my property and measure my house, something like that. Information is wrong in the county system. So, I will wait around with that. Hey, as long as they lower my property taxes, I'm good.

7. I have to make sure that I keep up on my water intake, as I do not want to end up back in the hospital again. So I bring water to work.

8. Look at that glass bottle of water. That is some spring water from Italy. There is nothing like water out of a glass bottle. This particular bottled water has NO aftertaste. So that makes me want to drink it even more.

9. But lo and behold, look what's over behind all of that bottled water. Hmm.

Soda! Pomegranate soda! Ugh. I would love to drink it, but it ain't water. It's been sitting off in the back of my cubicle for 6 months, though. I will just leave it there until I can share it with someone.
10. I am coming to work earlier since the shutdown began. I do not like being one of four or five people in the building after dark. It feels good to get home in the evening while it's still daylight! I may have to keep this schedule.

That's it for Thursday thoughts!

Thirteen Thursday Thoughts

Lots of thoughts today, so many that I had to go over ten~




1. I made a mistake of buying very cheap trash bags. They are so cheap that I have to double them up so they will not break when I take them out to my can outside. I will not make this mistake again.


2. I have a work trip coming up soon. The worst part is going to the airport, hoping that I didn't leave anything.


3. It always surprises me that I have a lot of clothes. I only find this out when I am packing.


4. It's been raining so much in the ATL that it makes me wonder if we will ever see the sun again.


5. We rarely get hurricanes coming this way, but we do get the outer remnants and bands of the hurricanes. Nevertheless it's always a ton of water involved.


6. With that said, someone should have told Hurricane Alberto that hurricane season starts on June 1, 2018. Humph.


7. And while we're at it, someone tell Roseanne that it's nice to call people out of their names. I am not sure what Jarret did to deserve that. Being black is not a reason.


8. And it's all another lesson in seeds and fruit for me. That show got canceled. And a lot of workers and actors lost their jobs behind a bad seed sown.


9. It's a reminder to check my beliefs and actions, i.e., check my "seeds".


10. Sowing and reaping are first cousins to that thing called Karma. And karma is something else, isn't it?


11. Valerie Jarrett handled that whole situation with class, didn't she? I'm not that mature. I think I would've told that chick to kiss my a**.  Enough said


12. On a good note, Georgia has a chance to have its first black AND female governor. How cool is that.


13. I caught much traffic when trying to go vote in the primary. As a matter of fact, I arrived
at the polling site 5 minutes before closing. It was funny because there was a gang of us running for the door. 


I wasn't going to go since I was running late... but how often do I get to vote for a sister for the democratic ticket for governor? Never. So I ran for that poll!

Ten Tuesday Thoughts

1. The holiday is over! That was a fast 3 day weekend.

2. It felt pretty awful driving in to work today, especially since it was raining hard. There is nothing more interesting than Atlanta traffic as it is, but mix in thunderstorms. WoW!

3. I am amazed that that doesn't happen more often, this rain and traffic mix.

4. The focus of the month of May, well, the past couple of weeks, has been a bit of crocheting

5. That picture in #4 is nice, but it has all looked more like this.

6. I HATE whipstitching squares together. But I'd sent a coworker some pictures of baby blankets, and I let him pick out the blanket he wanted me to make. He chose a checkerboard blue and white blanket, and I hollered "Ewwwwww!" (using my inside voice, though).

7. With that said, this has been an amazingly peaceful whipstitch experience. Why? Because I pulled up some YouTube videos on the subject, and I found a better way to do it. GLORY!!

8. Whipstitched blankets take me about 20% longer to make than a regular baby blanket. And that's alright. I just need to work a little faster.

9. I did not eat lunch today. I was running late this morning and I thought that I would just eat out. But I just called a bootleg fast and kept it moving.  I will eat when I get home. Only water thusfar (and some peppermints). Amen.

10. I missed a group meeting today. I am not sure why we planned a meeting right after a holiday, right when I am scheduled to start work. But I should have known something was up when I roamed around the cubicle area and everyone was gone. That is a bad feeling. I have to come up with a way to remember meetings.


That is it for ten Tuesday thoughts, the post holiday edition. Have a good evening!

Ten Thursday Thoughts

Ten Thursday Thoughts! Long overdo.


1. My oh my how time flies. 25% of the year has gone by. And it is STILL cold outside.

2. That's not necessarily true. It is actually warm outside today in the ATL. But I've had to wear a coat the last few days. I must say that I am ready for it to be warm.

3. My perfect weather: 75 degrees, full sunshine, and a 5 mph breeze.  That is perfect.

4. When I don't post, I realize just how MUCH has been going on that I should post about.

5. A couple of things I forgot to post about: my best friend's 50th birthday, my brother Milk and Cookies visiting me, and Tayari's massive book.

6. I have been super busy with a project. It may do me well to stop what I am doing for about 15 minutes per day, during a break, of course, and just write.  It would do much for my mental, it would.

7.  This is my favorite song that I'm listening to while I am cleaning up:



8. I'd never heard that song before. I heard it for the first time a couple of months ago. (I didn't hear it back when I was 4 or 5 years old. I was more interested in songs like "Funkytown" and "Boogie Wonderland").

9. But I have heard a song that used the sample. I heard it back in the 90s during the Freaknik era.



10. I tell you... I wish we had good original music like we had back in the 60s and 70s. I don't quite remember when all this sampling started up, but it needs to STOP.

That's it for 10 Thursday thoughts!

Ten Thursday Thoughts

It has been a LONG time since I have done a thoughts post. So here we go.

1. I have been super busy. And for once, I don't feel bad about that. My days are productive and they go by pretty fast, and I enjoy the simplicity of going home, getting my chores done, and winding down for bed.

2. I am very spoiled, meaning that I have been living in the gentrified area too long.

3. An example: I was doing some grocery on the southside, after leaving the dentist. I usually shop at the nice gentrified stores near my home. While shopping on the southside, I was AGHAST at their only being ONE type of kale in the produce department.Only ONE. (What. the. world?)

4. I didn't realized that I was accustomed to a choice of kale: lacinta (dragon) kale, purple curly kale, and green curly kale.

5. Hence, I will be sure to buy my kale at the downtown gentrified stores. (Yes, this is a high class problem).

6. Today has not been all that busy. And I am glad of that.

7. I found out that a big project that we are about to start begins three weeks from now.  NOT next week like I thought. *lee pumps the brakes and chills ALL the way out for the afternoon*

8. This is important because I have been busting my azz trying to learn a new instrument that I haven't touched in 20 years.

9. Speaking of 20 years, it has been 20 years since I earned my PhD. That is a long time.

10. This has taught me one thing, and I have written about it many a time on this blog: We always go through tough things. And that PhD process was one of the toughest of my life. But the tough things will eventually pass, and they will soon become a memory in our lives. All that matters is that we learn the life lessons during the process.

That's it for Ten Thursday thoughts! That's a short one, but good one!

Ten Thursday Thoughts

Ten thoughts.

On a snowed-in Thursday.

And here we go!


1. The best thing about being snowed in is that I won't be out and about spending money. This is not a been an overwhelming problem for me, but has been a slight concerned lately.

2. The worst thing about being snowed in: if we have our work laptops, we must telework. I guess this is okay, as I will get some things done. But I must admit that it is difficult to police myself.

3. I had the strangest dream this morning. I was up in Detroit for some reason, but I had to get back to Atlanta because I had to give a big chemistry talk the next morning AND I had to bring a dish for a workplace potluck. Seeing that it was late in the evening, I was a bit stressed because I would literally need to miss my morning flight and jump in my car and DRIVE to Atlanta. And that's a 12  hour drive. At that point, I woke up.  And I was relieved that it was all a dream. But I am wondering what the dream means. (Maybe it means that I don't need to sleep with the TV on). 

4. I had that dream twice. The second time I woke up, I figured I needed to get up out of bed and start my day. I have no idea what that dream means. Sigh.

5. It is 19 degrees this morning. That's a rare thing in the ATL.

6. I watched the The Assassination of Versace: An American Crime Story last night. It was interesting, but it may be something I have to binge watch when the complete series is out.  Meaning, I'm neither here nor there concerning it. It is a decent watch, though. 

7. Being snowed in has wrecked my eating and exercise plan. There is way too much mindless snacking going on.

8. But I had a great salad for dinner last night.

That's raw kale, craisins, golden beets and pecans. I had a superfood salad from Farm Burger and I promised  myself I would duplicate it. I did my best. (There's is much better than mine).  But it was GREAT. I may just have it again tonight.

9.  Golden Beets. Golden Beets are AWESOME.  I cooked them for the first time, and it was quick and easy! 

They are not as strong as red beets, and that is fine by me. But they are a fun new salad addition.

10. Speaking of Farm Burger, there's a location coming to my neighborhood! Oxtail marmalade and roasted bone marrow on  the burgers now! (Never tried those toppings and I never will).
Gentrification is a mutha! But that's alright. I will be up in there getting that superfood salad.

That's it for Ten Thursday thoughts!

Ten Thursday Thoughts

Ten Thursday Thoughts

1. Is it Thursday already?

2. I ask that because my days are ALL jacked up after 2 days off because of Irma. For some reason I keep thinking today is Tuesday.

3. The last couple of days were spent contemplating as to how to cancel a work related trip I had to Florida.

4. I was supposed to go to a conference. I wasn't presenting, but just going.

5. I didn't really want to go, but you know... got to do stuff just so I can place it on my end of the year review.

6. It was O_O watching the news and seeing Hurricane Irma make landfall at the city where the conference was to be  held.

7. The resort has no power. They won't be getting power for awhile, looks like. Not until a couple of Saturdays from now. Wow.

8. We finally figured out how to cancel the trip today. Funny how nobody seems to know how to do this type of stuff immediately.

9. One of my coworkers was worried about us getting charged anyway.

10. I told her I will tell them, "Send the bill to Mrs. Irma H. Cane." 

 She will gladly pay it!

Ten Thursday Thoughts

Here we go with my ten Thursday Thoughts...

1.  My goodness! It is straight RAINING in the ATL.

 Wow. All this water... where the world is the sun?

 (And no, I will never be holding my hand out like that in the rain. Nope!)

2. I'm 'bout sick and tired of my salads. But I'm still getting it in, though!

3. I thought I was in charge for 1 week. But I have learned that I am in charge for TWO WEEKS. Ugh!!!! Lawd.

4. I think that means no one will be here. This will make me happy, as I will only be in charge of myself.

5. With that said, I have some supervisor tasks that I have NO idea how to get done. But that's Oldboy's fault for leaving me in charge. In other words, I hope he don't come back talking a bunch of trash. No sir. Don't do that.

6. I have never had a desire to be in management, although that has been discussed a good bit over the past 15 years.

7. Managing scientists is like managing cats. No thank you.

8. And when I think of the whole idea of management, I think about this Abraham Lincoln quote:

"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power."

9. And since it's raining, and we won't be getting sunshine until next Tuesday.... here's a video with a whole lot of rain in it.  Ashanti's "Rain on Me"



10. One more good video with rain in the title. SWV's "Rain"




That's it for my Ten Thoughts on a Thursday!