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Gas vs. Frappuccino

// April 13th, 2005 // 2 Comments » // tagged: Jokes > Life

I filled up my tank yesterday at $2.20 a gallon - and while I know that gas in the US is cheaper than almost anywhere in the world - it still irks me to pay that much when I remember getting it for 98 cents a gallon not too many years ago. I have seen the bit below many times -- but it still makes me laugh (as I grab my purse to head to Starbucks for my frapp-fix)! Think a gallon of gas is expensive? This makes one think, and also puts things in perspective.

Starbucks Frappuccino Grande 16 oz. $3.99	$31.92 per gallon
Diet Snapple 16 oz $1.29	$10.32 per gallon
Lipton Ice Tea 16 oz $1.19	$9.52 per gallon
Gatorade 20 oz $1.59	$10.17 per gallon
Ocean Spray 16 oz $1.25	$10.00 per gallon
Brake Fluid 12 oz $3.15	$33.60 per gallon
Vick's Nyquil 6 oz $8.35	$178.13 per gallon
Pepto Bismol 4 oz $3.85	$123.20 per gallon
Whiteout 7 oz $1.39	$25.42 per gallon
Scope 1.5 oz $0.99	$84.48 per gallon
Evian water 9 oz $1.49	$21.19 per gallon - for WATER

So, the next time you're at the pump, be glad your car doesn't run on water, Pepto Bismal or Nyquil!

The Most UnRomantic Day

// February 14th, 2005 // 1 Comment » // tagged: Life

Why is it considered romantic for your significant other to do something for you because a national holiday has reminded them to do so? Is it not more romantic, more special, and certainly more meaningful, for your significant other to give you flowers, send you a card ... give you a present ... on a random day. Just a normal day ... no holiday, birthday, anniversary. Just a normal day. March 19. January 5. October 4. Whenever. On those days ... it means more because they were thinking of you all on their own. My husband gets this. He sends me silly little cards ... gives me flowers ... gets me a starbucks on the way to pick me up ... and he does all this quite frequently ... without a national holiday having to remind him. I love that. :heartbeat: So, on this capitalistic-greeting-card-industry-created holiday, to my husband Steve -- I say -- thank you for knowing me well enough to know you don't need to waste your money getting me flowers on Valentines Day ;)

Catch My Breath

// February 4th, 2005 // 2 Comments » // tagged: Life

Whew. This is the first chance I've had to blog in two weeks. I've been covered up with web work (which is nice) - and then of course, it's musical time again. For the past two years, I've worked with my church's musical productions. It's a pretty cool endeavor - as the church does ACTUAL Broadway musicals. We've done Sound of Music, Brigadoon, Meet Me in St. Louis, Hello Dolly!, Oklahoma, Crazy for You, Bye Bye Birdie, Fiddler on the Roof ... and this year we're doing Anything Goes. As it's a church .. we do some serious rewriting of some of the more "off color" lines of dialogue and songs -- but not too much. We do several big dance numbers - yes - even at a Baptist church!! We usually have about 50-60 people involved ... and atleast two casts. An adult cast .. and a youth cast. The chorus sings with both casts. We do four performances -- and they are always sold out. It's a big thing at the church -- and a lot of fun. And A LOT of hard work. This year ... it's a bit more work than I originally signed up for. I was signed on as the assistant director this year ... assisting a woman who has amazing talent in directing and choreography. She used to be a dancer on cruise ships -- playing the lead in most of the shows she was involved in. Now she's a music teacher in the local school system ... and directs musicals at her school - and also at our church. We've worked together on the musical for the past three years. A little over a week ago, her dad was put in the hospital - and she had to go to Cincinatti to be with him. Which meant I was going to have to direct the weekend rehearsals. Something that isn't exactly my strong point. But hey ... it can't be that hard, can it? Exhausting. That's what it is. You have everybody coming at you -- the whole entire time -- asking you questions that sometimes don't have anything to do with the scene you're currently blocking. And you have those high-maintenance people who think that everything is about them ... it just makes you want to scream! But we got through our big Saturday rehearsal ... and got a lot accomplished. Our directors' dad just kept getting worse - so I ended up doing our weekday rehearsals. Those aren't as bad ... because you're only dealing with the principal actors. The chorus doesn't come on weeknights. Sigh. Thank goodness! Then on Thursday, our director's dad passed away. She is completely heartbroken ... and it's so hard to talk about something like that over the phone. You just want to go give her a big hug. She is in shock - having gone up there thinking he was just really sick, and would come out of it -- to now -- she's having to deal with funeral plans and dealing with all the aftermath of a parent dying. And yet ... during all this ... she's still worrying about the show. That saying "the show must go on" -- so true. Less than 2 hours after her father passed away, we were on the phone blocking scenes for the next few rehearsals that I'm going to have to lead. I'm extremely stressed and think I'm coming down with a cold ... but I think -- at least I can do this for her. At least she knows the show is in fairly competent hands. I don't want her to have to worry about this. She should be back by Thursday of next week ... and then she can work her magic in the scenes we've worked on. You know ... adding in those extra touches that really make a show ... sing! Sooo ... back to getting my schedule together for tomorrow's rehearsal. Maybe I'll have another chance to blog in March -- when the show is over ;)

Twenty-Seven

// September 21st, 2004 // 4 Comments » // tagged: Life

:bday: Today is my 27th birthday ... and I can't think of any better way to spend it than to be on my way to California for a two-week vacation. :present: It's hard to believe I'm only 3 years away from 30. Am I where I thought I would be? Absolutely not ... Am I glad I'm not there? Absolutely. :) Here's to another year ... :beer: (I need a smiley for diet cokes toasting each other .... ) (blogged in San Diego)

Grampy, MacGyver, & the Spin Cycle

// September 16th, 2004 // No Comments » // tagged: Family > Favorite Entries > Life > MacGyver

It's been so hectic in Lacyville here lately. What with dealing with my grandfathers cancer diagnosis and surgery, MacGyvers mite infection, our upcoming two week vacation ... we haven't had much time to just "hang out". Don't you always find that it's during these busy times that things go wrong. On the day we were supposed to drive 3 1/2 hour to see my grandfather, the brakes on the Escape suddenly starting making this scraping sound. So off to the mechanic we go - and there went $$$. Last week, our washing machine decided that it wanted to keep the water in the machine. Why spin? We've been tricking it into spinning for the last week -- by doing the regular cycle for washing and then switching it to the delicate cycle and doing that spin cycle twice. We just have not had the time to go looking for a washer - and we won't be here for the next two weeks to have it delivered. Sooo we're trying to make do until we return in October. We also have several relatives down in Florida dealing with hurricane hell. My great aunt has lived on the beach in Cocoa Beach for practically her entire life. Growing up, I used to spend summers down there - it was great her house was right on the beach. You walk off her back porch, and you're on the beach. They had a forced evacuation last week - they were told the storm surges alone would go over their homes. Get your insurance papers and family mementos, and be out by 2 PM. She went to stay with her daughter ... who lives in Melbourne, FL. THey were in the path of the hurricane as well ... but only lost a section of their roof and several trees. My aunt was finally able this week to go down and check on her house ... it was flooded. Pretty much everything mildewed and ruined ... all her furniture, appliances - damaged beyond repair. Now we just pray that her insurance carrier will do what they're supposed to! My grandfather is doing amazingly well. He has surprised all his doctors (and his family!) with his quick recovery. The surgery he had is a brand new procedure ... so both his surgeons were just so pleased that he has come through so well. He still has to go see the oncologist next week ... but they don't think she will recommend any chemo or radiation. They just want to have him in every few months for a new set of xrays. It is simply a miracle. When we first learned about his cancer, the pulmonologist told them he had maybe 6-9 months. It was that bad. Thats why I say it was a miracle. Because less than three weeks later, he has a cutting-edge surgery with not one, but two very talented surgeons and they are able to remove all the cancer. It hadn't metastasized. I believe God truly had his hand over my Grampy; miracles aren't just when someone is inexplicably healed; sometimes miracles occur in the form of just making a cancer treatable. As for MacGyver, he is almost back to normal. His behavior has improved dramatically; he's running, eating, and more playful; his hair is growing back quickly in some places, and not so quickly in other places (his tail is really slow in growing back hair!). But I think we've gotten the infection taken care of. We go back to the vet tomorrow afternoon, to see if he needs another shot of Ivermectin. AND to see if we still have to do the baths every two days. Let me just say thats been such a joyful experience. He hates water, doesn't like the medicated soap, and he especially doesn't like it that we have to leave the soap on him for 10 minutes before rinsing him off. Soooo, maybe we can get down to once every 3 days. Nonetheless, I'm just so glad he's feeling better and not constantly scratching and biting himself. And now, I'm off to try and trick the washer into doing a load of laundry that we need for our trip next week! ;)

IQ versus Knowledge

// August 5th, 2004 // No Comments » // tagged: Life

I came across this IQ test tonight ... I'm a sucker for online quizzes. While taking it, I was reminded of the GRE exam taken for graduate school. It's not so much an intelligence test as it is a test for your ... capacity for intelligence. None of the questions have to do with knowledge. It's about being able to figure things out. Concepts. Work puzzles out in your mind - figure out spacial relationships. Sequences. Therefore ... it's possible to have a very high IQ, and yet be unable to compete with the very knowledgeable (and seemingly unflappable) Ken Jennings on Jeopardy. So ... if you're trying to get ready to take the GRE - I recommend taking online IQ tests til your eyes hurt. (Well that ... and study vocabulary lists 24/7 for all the metaphor questions.) Also took the very long Inkblot Test. Very long. That's actually pretty accurate. Especially the "You love to brainstorm and imagine new possibilities." and "You have a deep desire to use ideas to change the world around you."

It can only get better, right?

// April 27th, 2004 // 3 Comments » // tagged: Life

Steve and I saw someone killed in a wreck this morning. We were in the eastbound lane heading downtown, and right in the middle of one of the huge construction sections on I-40. It's always nasty driving through there, more so in the westbound lanes - they're working on three overpasses right now - and this morning was no different. We had just passed under White Bridge Rd and a white truck just ran underneath a tractor trailer. The back corner of the tractor trailer was basically sitting in the back of the truck. I don't know how many people were in the truck, or what precipitated the wreck - but I know there is no way anyone survived. You see it, but you don't really see it .... I've seen death before - I've seen mangled bodies. I worked in surgery for several years - but I always saw the bodies, saw the severly injured people, AFTER the wrecks, after the shootings, after the stabbings. It's different to see them in a semi-controlled environment of a hospital. It's still tragic, it's still bloody and messy, but you see them there, and you realize they are there so that you can help them. They've made it that far - you're going to help them make it through. But this morning, I saw what happened before they got there. And I know, the people in that truck won't need help from a hospital. They were dead as soon as their windshield broke. A few months ago, a couple & young son from our church were driving home after the holidays. A tractor trailer drove through a stop sign and hit a utility pole. The pole hit this couples car, killed the husband and son instantly. The mother survived. She survived to bury her son and husband. An amazing person, this woman. She's still living here, in the same house. She truly is a survivor. Therapy, depression, anger -- thats going to be her life for a while though. This is what I was thinking about this morning as Steve drove me on into work. I was just sitting in the car wondering what how many people's lives will be changed instantly with the phone call that will be coming any time now. Telling them their husband, mother, father, brother -- whoever they were -- has just been killed. What a way to start a morning. Now I remember one of the reasons I was always so churned up when I worked in healthcare. I don't seem to have that "turn off" button.