Fall Flower Close Ups For My Family On Friday
I am really working the “F” thing. Sorry for that. But I mean, what the hell. I have the pictures. Now I have to go to work but still try to stay relevant in the blogger world. If all goes according to plan, this will be my last day as a floor nurse and a PM shifter. It’s kind of slippery to slide work news in between fancy flower pictures, but, bombshell info, I will be switching to days next week and also becoming the manager of my unit. Pause for applause. Thank you. And did I mention that it’s Monday through Friday with no weekends, except for on-call every 4 weeks?? Taking the next steps in an upward position. Kind of scared actually, but I think I can do this job. And I think I can do it well. It’s a boatload more responsibility dealing with patients, families, corporate and state regulations and regulators. My new boss, who used to do the job that I will be doing, has been asking me every few days for the last few weeks if I still want to do this. Will I sign? Am I sure? Not in a negative way, but in the positive way to be sure that I don’t change my mind. How bad can it be when you have the support of the previous job holder? I type, so naively. My coworkers are already calling me boss, and I have been working on a clever post-it note system of employee relations that I want to incorporate for when I have to discipline or encourage any of my former co-workers. Everyone loves post-it notes, and wouldn’t it be less of a blow to get yelled at via post-it note? I think so. I’m going to color coordinate and everyone gets to pick their own. It’s also interactive! And that’s all there is to it right? Hahahaha. Soooo delusional. Anyway, more on that later. I will also be going back to school. Corporate has already heavily advised me that it would be a good idea. So, as usual, let’s jump in the pool, both feet forward and off the ground. No turning back, cause it’s too late when you’ve already signed on the dotted line. In even more news, I have to get my first mammogram next week. Also something I am nervous about. So, welcome again, !, and happy October. We have job news, school news and boob news. This site really has everything! Please share and share and share! Now, let’s see if any of my family still reads this. Just kidding. I’m gonna call all those crazies personally in the next hour. But in the meantime, here’s another picture. It’s orange. Later.
So When You’re Near Me, Darling Can’t You Hear Me? S.O.S.
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me, S.O.S.! When you’re gone, how can I, even try, to go on?
Oh the drama. September is over. My favorite month. I’m going to bookend this month with one last post. I think I hit the significant dates though: 2, 10, 30. Hmmm. Maybe I should play the lottery. That would be a nice October. Anyway, I really am bummed that September is over because now that means we have to get ready for the long, brisk, shuffle into winter and start praying for an early spring.
There is football though. And I was contemplating just making this site a homage to football players and their personal bodies, you know, muscles, hair, bootys, etc., and of course their teams and stats and all that, blah blah, along with a feature like, “Arms Of The Week” or something along those lines, where I could feature a player of the week. Body wise, it’s still Clay Matthews for me.
But for pure NFL power, no one beats Peyton Manning.
He is my all time favorite, and he’s practically a super hero this year. I think they fixed him up with bionic parts the year before and he needed last season to reboot, like a RoboCop, except for football, where he is throwing passes like bullets. He is a man on fire. And of course I have missed every single one of his games so far due to a little thing I like to call, work. It’s all work it seems like. Except that’s not really true either. I have done lots of stuff, and this month literally feels like it flew past on fast forward, and I did not type one word about it here. Too busy living I guess.
The truth is, I feel adrift in this bloggy world. And kind of in real life. No direction. I have potential work changes on the horizon, but I really can’t say anything yet. One, because it’s all confidential and nurse-type stuff. And two, I really don’t know anything beyond a couple of interviews and the occasional reference to the job at hand.
At any rate, I will find my way. I always do. And while I’m waiting, today in particular, since I was off, I made my daughters favorite “big-pot” meal: Jambalaya. It’s a mix of many recipes and my own spin, but I try to stay as true as I can to my oldest, and best-good friend Beverly’s, original recipe that she kind of gave me many many years ago. She said it’s not really a write-down kind of thing as it is made in her family the old fashioned way. One person knows how and just makes it. She’s true blood Creole and French from the swamps of Louisiana. And when I made it for her to judge my skills, she tasted it and said, and I quote, “Hmmp. Not bad.”
I will take it. Also, I have been drinking since 2. While cooking. And listening to really really loud music. It helps while you are cutting up the 50 ingredients that this meal requires in order to be, “not bad”. My drink of choice was Redd’s Apple Ale. Here’s a pic with the chicken, because everyone likes the chicken.
This is the apple beer with the really stupid commercials where they throw an apple at someone’s head. Terrible. But soooo tasty. Seriously. I wanted Bloody Mary’s but I forgot to buy the V8 when I was at the store. And we already had the beer. FYI, if you like apple juice, you will like this beer. It tastes like alcoholic apple juice with a bit of beer flavor. I have also tried Angry Orchard apple ale, or, I think it’s called hard cider. That’s even more apple juicy and less beery. I have no picture of that one though. You will have to take my word. Not bad. See how I wrapped that right up? The BF is home now and I am cooking up a little garlic bread to go with the Jambalaya, so I need to get off this.
Oh, one more thing. Thank you loyal readers, followers, or general browsers! Whoever you are. Even though I haven’t posted but 3 little blurbs all month, I still have 10-20 people checking in and hoping for something great every day. I really don’t know how that is possible, but one of these times I hope I can deliver on this optimistic, anonymous vote of confidence. The BF is opening wine so I really really have to go.
New kind we are trying tonight. I picked it because of the 2010 year. I looked it up. It was a good year for wine in general. I will let you know. However, I probably won’t be able to post anything later due to “intake” issues, but there is always tomorrow. Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love ya tomorrow. Your only a day away….Cheesy Broadway ending. Later.
Monday Was A Good Day
Two quick pics to keep this site interesting and I am going to get ready for work. Monday was a good day for my viewing numbers–Thank you all for following me!–and it was good for life in general. I felt very good and healthy. Very glad to be alive and thankful for life and family and a job that allows me to have days off during the week. Living the dream, for realz. Haha. Anyhoo, I also managed to accomplish most of my list goals, including shop for food for the fam for the rest of the week while I am at work, and laundry. Sort of. It’s not piled up on the floor, so it counts. I had a hawk in the backyard, first thing, yesterday morning, 7 AM. A hawk. Just sitting there, on the ground, under the bird feeder, scaring away every other species of wildlife in the area. No joke. Not one other animal-like creature, be it bird, squirrel, butterfly, chipmunk, rabbit, etc…, was in my yard the entire time the hawk sat there. And it was very quiet too. No sounds. Not even bugs and insects dare make a peep when the top-of-the-food-chain predator for our little suburb decides to pop a squat after a long night of hunting or whatever it was doing. Of course I got pictures. About 100. Wait until you see them! This is the enticing, hanging story line, that I am using to bring you back tomorrow. I have to sort the pics and pick out the non-blurry ones. And I truly do not have time. As usual, I am pushing my “wasting” time into my actual “need to go” time. If it’s a good night tonight at the old general store, I will post them later, if not, then in the AM when I crawl out of bed. This is the nice time of year for weather around here so everyone enjoy and I will be back. Later.
Another Bug
Hanging out near my sitting spot Friday morning. No harm came to this creature by my hand. I just photo’d him and put him back near a tree. I’m going to do some bird pictures next. Something pretty. I have work today. I am tired. My shift is going to be good. I am telling myself that because I want to have a positive attitude. Super Saturday! We will see.
Classy All The Way
On the Port-A-Potty Express. This picture has many things that I like and am trying to include as new features and categories. Stuff On Trucks. Check. Driving To Work. Check. Random Images. Check. And it’s mostly blue. The color. I like pictures that have a lot of blue in them. Hence all the sky and clouds. But you know, they can’t all be sky and clouds. Of course I took this picture while driving on the highway to work. There was another truck exactly like this one right behind it. Full of the same cargo. I sort of got both in one shot but it doesn’t pack the same punch, I felt, as this one did. So there you go. I have to go to work but I wanted something new up here to jazz it up for Wednesday. Remember WOW Wednesday? Say it with me…WOW!
Day Off (Yesterday) With The Kids
Imagine how many pictures I can take of nature type things. Now multiply by 2. My daughter and me taking pictures all day?? Oh yea. There’s a lot. A. LOT. Just waiting for their moment to shine via the internet. Plus storm debris from the nasty little burst we had roll through here yesterday at exactly 6pm. Gotta go to work right now though. I mean, I have to work some of these days or the BF is going to kill me. And I will be off again for the next 2. (Sorry honey–I’ll call in a bit to explain!! Don’t be mad!!) But, I have to do CPR Re-Cert, so it’s still like work. That’s a lot of italics in a short post. I better go. More later.
Floating Rain Logs
Two extra days off. Let’s make the best of the free time. All the posts that I want. With all the pictures of nature that I have. Finish that laundry for good. Do all the chores on the list. Drag around the two kids, plus one, that I have for these two days. I inherited my brother’s step-daughter for a few days. And they want to go to the video store and rent The Walking Dead–Season 3. And get pizza.
If available. Otherwise scary movies. I’ve committed some of our night to The Dukes Of Hazzard movie, per my son. So, I will have plenty of time to get that laundry done and all the other stuff too. I wasted my last days playing this damn game:
I revamped my Tiny Village to make it more profitable and visually appealing. And since I’m anal and have OCD, it really took a lot of my time. Oh, and I have fishing day pics too. Less typing, more action. More later.
Smokin’ In The Boys Room
And by “boys room”, I mean the outside. While I work this weekend, my BF has decided to do many manly things, like, work on his motorcycle, cut large tree limbs with a chainsaw, and smoke much meat. It sounds like so much fun I just wish I could have had these days off to be here for all of it. Ahem. No, really. (Not really). I like to spend my holiday weekends working and taking care of sick people and listening to their families tell me what a crap job I’m doing. It’s what I got into this profession for. That rewarding feeling of spending more hours with other people’s families instead of my own. Without sarcasm, I really do like my job. It’s just some families make it very difficult to keep calm. The patients are fine. It’s just the families sometimes. Still, I think it will be better than the manual labor that needs to be done here. Sweaty, with heavy lifting. Oh wait, that’s my job too. Ha. OK. Enough. That’s my work rant. Back to the meat!
Apparently this is stuff you need. Along with a starter tube thing that gets the coals going, a temp gauge, (actually two temp gauges, one for the cooker and one for the meat), water for steam, spices, herbs, liquids, “rubs”, side dishes, buns, etc…and of course: The Meat. This will all cost you approx. 90 dollars or so. If you had to buy your own smoker, that could be an extra 100-500 dollars, depending on quality and advanced smoking technology. Or something. This smoker in the picture was the gift the BF got for working so hard at his job for this many, past 15 years. It seems like it’s nice smoker machine. I have just been informed that the meat is at 162 degrees. The number we are looking for is 190 I believe. We are doing pulled pork as the maiden smoking. I keep typing “we”, but I literally have done NOTHING except take the pictures and type this. Soon, I will get dressed and leave, so I won’t even be here for the big finish. But, of course I have a preview. Please feast your eyes below on three hunks of pure animal flesh, cooking and smoking, slowly, and at a certain temperature, for maximum tenderness and pullability. It really smells good too:
Two on top, one below. That sounds like a good name for a band or a book title. The key to cooking this right, I am told, is slow and low. Also, coincidentally a good band name or book title. At any rate, what we want is to put it in our mouths and not even have to chew. The meat should literally pull apart and melt like butter on our palates and slide juicily and effortlessly down our throats to our waiting tummies without any pesky chewing involved. But usually it’s on a bun with sauce, so please, family, while I am gone, chew a little, please. Bread mostly needs to be chewed, somewhat, to break it down. Then swallow. No need to ruin a good weekend with “Heimlich’s” or “ambulances” or “hospitals” or “morgues”. Thank you.
Thus ends the meat post for today. I hear and smell lots of manly things going on in the neighborhood today, so I need to get the hell out of here! The outside temp is up to 75 degrees. Sunny and beautiful for the Midwest. The meat temp is at a cool 165. The BF is cutting sticks with the chainsaw. The boy/son is playing XBox in his room enjoying none of the outside weather. The daughter is still at my sissy’s house and will prob go from there to her cousins house to spend the night, after she stops here first to eat meat. She loves meat. Yes, I see what I typed there, but I’m leaving it. It’s too early (for me) to try and fix the innuendo. She’s 14 for cry-yi. Some girls are salads and try a vegetarian phase, not mine. She is steak all the way.
Let them eat meat! And don’t forget it’s Memorial Weekend. Hug a vet! Thank a soldier while you are grilling those hot dogs and drinking that beer! Even if you just send up a big toast and a cheer into the great unknown. It’s all good karma to the universe. Later.
Since I Need To Post Something…
Why not make it the most disturbing picture I took all week. I call it: Baby Head In Corner. Third day, out of four, in a row, at work. Late nights. Saw this as I was leaving. Hesitated, but took the picture. Showed anyone I saw on the way out and everyone agreed it was creepy. Some even went to go see it for themselves, as if I would lie about its placement and location. It is kind of frightening if you stare at it too long. And there is no logical reason why something like that would be where it was. It was gone the next day. Is there any lesson here? Or bigger message? Occasionally look down? Sometimes, don’t be afraid to peer into the corners? Ask why? Or at the very least, take a picture. For proof. Later.
Nice Cell!
Thank you low census Monday and Columbus Day. I get to hang with my kids and they finished all their homework! Then we got to bowl, have dinner, watch movies and football and go to bed way too late when we all have to get up early tomorrow. From one, many. Goodnight all.
just shy of pretty 