Stage 1 and Stage 2 Complete

March 21, 2011 at 5:36 pm (Day to Day, Updates) (, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , )

Of Spring Break….Overhaul!

Such high hopes. (I guess I was off on Thursday and Friday too, but it didn’t really count because I had to take my mom to the doctor and I had to sit on my butt and watch tv while thinking about stuff I should do)

Stage 1. The START of Stage 1 so I guess it can’t be considered complete, but the point was to do it. So it is “completed”. “IT” is exercise, of course. Official Training for the first charity run of the season. It’s pretty cool. Me and my sissy get to run from United Center to US Cellular Field. Home of the Chicago White Sox and my sister’s idea of heaven. We get to run INTO the ballpark and touch the grass. That’s all she wants to do. Touch that grass and walk around on the field. So, I have to train. It’s like six miles, or so. I did three today. Under the required time limit. All week I am going to do this. Yay….

Stage 2. Food in the house. Actual food. AND nothing unhealthy. I know, boring. But, it must be done. We are all too porky. And summer is coming and spring is almost here! I know I already said that, but it’s so nice again today! 60 degrees and sunny, it’s too much for us midwesterns. All we want to do is run around outside without our coats and catch pneumonia.

And I am going to make dinner! What?? I know. It’s crazy spaghetti night. Red, meaty sauce with different shapes of noodles. That’s the crazy part. We are just nuts over here. Dinner is not really part of the stages but it is a nice thing I get to do when I don’t have to desperately try and cram in studying with every free moment. (But I have managed to get a little in! Sad that I feel happy. I did some on Saturday. I plan on doing more tomorrow.)

I will begin Stage 3 after I post this. The Laundry. UGH! I hate it. Just ignore last weeks post where I said I was doing it then, because I didn’t. And just to clarify for all my fans and my boyfriend: When I said he made a valiant effort last week to do all of it, he actually did do all of it. The only thing left was one basket of various loose clothes. But now its all back. BOO.

Stage 4 is magazine reading. Book reading was a fail over Christmas. So I’m not even going to try that again. I never did finish that Denis Leary book. And that is really sad because it’s good and funny and easy to read. And I want to read it. But attention span. So short. I still have a few mags coming to the house every month and they sit in a pile getting old. I like to “read” one (flip thru mostly and look at pictures) now and then to keep up with (somewhat) current events. I shall combine three and four. That way I don’t get too burned out on either one.

Stage 5 is more posting. I-tunes. I-pod. (need new music for running—so boring and loooooong) Bills. Money issues. Purchasing things that I need and don’t have time to go get until a week like now. (I’m lumping all that together because it’s lumped in my brain like that)

Stage 6 is tying up loose personal ends. I have alot of little things I like to do on a daily basis and things that I want to do and things that I will need to do, that I feel better going over and organizing for spring and the rest of the year. ( I hear you out there little chatterers…smiling to yourself and snickering) It’s like a giant master to-do list that keeps me on track and moving forward. I sort of plan out the things I need to do after next week and try to anticipate all the changes that are about to occur. Some people (laugh, but I don’t care and I still love you) may call that OCD and anal and/or annoying but I call it progress and staying linear. Back tracking or being stuck in one place is the enemy!

Stage 7 should be housecleaning. Like the “spring cleaning” type. I heard alot of my friends from school talking of this insane practice. Seems hard. Seems like alot of work. Yuk. I guess I better get the clothes off the floor first and aim for whatever is underneath. I’ll let you know how that one plays out.

Stage 8. Schoolwork. Always schoolwork. Always MORE to study. I have a paper to write (its an extra thing that isn’t really graded but part of the whole experience) that needs to be finished and done with. Some clinical loose ends….a care plan and some evaluation goals. The Math! I have math to go over. Final test next week. This is the clincher. Then the normal lecture test. LOTS of material, but I’ve already started so I can just keep doing some every day. Even after graduation I still have three more weeks of extra school. It’s a class designed to help me with the licensing test. Then even after that I have to go on. Add more letters. Go for the gold! Luckily it won’t be full time anymore and I think I can do alot on the computer. At night. After work! (I talk, but I can NOT wait! I love my soon-to-be job!)

Stage 9. Watching more TV! I hate to admit it but I am eh-eh-EXCITED! for Dancing With the Stars tonight!! I have never watched one minute of that show but I plan to tonight. I hope it’s good! I like Kendra and Kristie and Wendy. I think I saw some other people too like the Karate Kid. I didn’t even know! Anyway, I hope it doesn’t suck. I don’t even know how long it’s on for but if it’s really good it could take me thru graduation! Also…this is just an FYI if you want something good to watch. Chicago Code. It’s a “cop” show but very interesting and they make Chicago look like one of the characters. I believe it’s from the brain of one of The Shield writers/producers/etc…I’m just going to end the paragraph like that.

OK Monday night is here already. These days do go by so quickly! I have kid stuff to do and that dinner to make and that laundry to run. Maybe I’ll be back. I do have more pics….gotta get them off the phone and onto the internet or it never happened.

Until later then.

I feel like I need more of a sign off sometimes….like some catchy phrase or word or something. If you have any ideas, let me know. Comments and thoughts are always welcome!  Later. L.

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Bonus Cool Word! because I like to confuse myself, and I need this word typed out to understand.

August 13, 2009 at 11:23 am (Cool Words, Day to Day, Pictures, Random Images, Unusual) (, , , , , , , , , , , , )

Existential (adjective)

Definition: Relating to existence, living or occurring;  Based on experience.

Thereby, Existentialism (noun)

Definition: A philosophy that emphasizes the absence of supernatural authority and the freedom of  and responsibility of the individual in a universe that lacks essential meaning;  Randomness of the universe.

The problem I have here, is that I believe in the randomness of the universe, but not in the idea that things like a solid, physical object can suddenly appear with NO explanation at all. Even if the explanation is that there is no explanation.

Confusing? I know. That’s my brain right now. Which means I have to stop.  That’s what those philosophy courses are for at the big universities! My brain is going into shut down and I need it to drive my mom back to the doc for her eye check in a few hours. I’m going to go take a shower and watch TV. Hot water and television will restore all the brain cells I need to complete my day. Ciao. Internationale!

0721091221

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When last you heard from me, I was on my way to school…

August 5, 2009 at 10:37 am (Celebrity, Day to Day, Drunk Posts, Exercise, Movies, Phone Camera, Pictures, School News, Things The Kids Like, TV Shows, Video) (, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , )

…with high hopes for the rest of the evening. When suddenly…Tequila! (And that was TWO days ago.)

I did go to school. I got the “pre-heads-up” to the actual “heads-up” classes I have next week. Signed some paperwork. Got some questions answered. Payed for classes. Bought more books. Drove home excited as hell, but unaware of the complicated nature of what I am about to embark upon.

I have three books and a syllabus right now, and I have three more books to buy. Definitely the most I have needed so far. When I trained for EMT I was on an adrenaline rush for hours after every single class, for like 4-6 months. It was crazy. And I have that same crazy feeling just looking at these books. Two years and god knows how many hours are about to go into this program, but I am ready. I’m not sure my body can take the intensity. I had trouble sleeping before, but I guess that will just help me on the job!  I talked so much on the phone to the BF just driving home from a pre-class class, that I, “low-battery-powered-off”, the cell phone. The damn thing drained out good. First time I talked to the cut-off. Even after I plugged it back in it wouldn’t turn on for a little while.

So I take a closer look at this new book. Calculating With Confidence. Drug calculations, measurements, math conversions…OMG, it looks hard. Drug labels, syringes, pills, liquids, fractions, decimals, cc. mL. mg. oz. You need: Aspirin gr 10 p.o. q4h p.r.n. for pain. You have: Drug label, that suddenly makes no sense whatsoever. And tell me how much, with how much diluent, time of day, route of administration, but don’t forget who you are giving it to, how much they weigh, what else they are taking; now mark it on the drawing, and don’t “F” it up because you could kill someone…. I’m paraphrasing…but that’s the idea. Once you take off the plastic shrink wrap, the front cover has a skull and crossbones on it. They don’t want you to see that until it’s too late. And you thought that the nurse handing you two Tylenol in the hospital after dinner didn’t require any skill. HA!

The amazing thing is, that in 2 months, that book is going to make perfect sense, and I’ll be calculating in my sleep (not literally), but for now…we better go to Pepe’s and think about the future.

So the guy that has been working there since he was a child, really, (I know, because we as a family, collectively have been going there for his whole life basically, I even remember a time when he was out in the parking lot trying to drive off in his older brothers car…he got in trouble for that…) anypepestoryway…this kid/adult now (Ricky? The name would not come to me, don’t judge, I’m approaching 40, but Mason and Stevie both agree, yes, on the name) made me a killer, and I mean KILLER margarita. I took 4 drinks and I was feeling the heat. By one third gone, I was TWO thirds gone. I wish I could say I was joking, because I was getting “altered” and fast. (My teeth were numb and I tried to walk out of the clear glass panel NEXT to the door, when I left the restaurant) I ate some chips and salsa and some shrimp cocktail on crackers and a tamale and a chili rellano but food was failing me fast, so I concentrated on finishing the medium margarita that, based on my morning calculations of how-long-it-takes-my-body-to-filter-out-the-alcohol (years of research have perfected this system) there must have been at least, 5 shots of tequila in my drink. I can say that with confidence because I was still slightly drunk at 7:30 in the morning. And I even tried to move the alcohol along with activity and oxygen before I fell into dreamy-drunky sleep the night before but sometimes you can’t keep a good buzz down, or up, or whatever. End of story.

I dragged myself up, took out the garbage, diluted my remaining blood level of tequila with coffee, and watched Regis & Kelly with Pat Tomasulo subbing for Regis (!!) I wrote it on the calendar! Busy schedule, yeah yeah, I’ll be working soon enough and you’ll miss these long, rambling posts. (More Pat Stuff)

The Pat Down. For your enjoyment. And since this is Chicago, we have 2 newspapers…here’s the Trib version. Ok, I think I’m done now.

Then I really pushed the limit with a five mile run. Five point one something something, to be exact. I ran the water bill to the Village Hall, which maps out at 5+ miles. MapMy Run.com. 30 minutes there. 34 minutes back. One hour, four minutes. I will take it. I ran on the sidewalks. Concrete, hard on the shins with lots of hills, (dang Park Forest doesn’t have a completely flat spot 10 steps in a row), and chock full of tripping hazards. Broken cement, uneven, crooked, weeds, rocks…I’m not sure what the village is doing all the time. It seems like they dig holes in random spots all around town just so there’s something for the kids to fall into. At any rate. I was done for the day. Kids got home about 3 ish and we ate ice cream and talked about all they did last week. Stevie made cupcakes! First time on her own and no crunchy ones from egg shells! (So far) So proud. Then dinner and a movie. (Burgers on the grill and Smokey and the Bandit from Netflix) unpack the bags, go to bed and poof! Here we are. Today.

I’m going to skip the run today, maybe go take a walk at the nature trail if I can get the kids out there. Mason has grass to finish and we are open. I have the pictures you have been waiting for…I didn’t forget, it’s just time and energy and getting them off the cell phone. I even have video! The kids wanted to play in the water, but we don’t have a pool. We have a hose. So they filled up larger, plastic, Tupperware bowls and put their faces in them or dumped them over their heads. They would swim in a wet sponge if they could. Then they played water-hose-jump-rope, which is actually pretty funny. So that’s coming too! And all that other stuff I said I had…Remember my theme: Everything is always two days ago!

Cupcakes!

Half with sprinkles, half without! Tasty!

Half with sprinkles, half without! Tasty!

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Chicago Support! And something funny after all the sadness! (By season, because I may have overdone it and I need some kind of purpose other than my lack of self control)(I also may have taken some liberties with the whole “season” thing too…)

July 30, 2009 at 10:33 am (Celebrity, TV Shows, Video) (, , , , , , , , , , )

Summer Time, summer time, sum sum summer time…

I have to say I am hitting that “celebrity” Tag  a lot lately…but it’s getting into August…dog days of summer…my life is kind of boring…seriously, this is my day: Run and finish painting the kids room. I’ll post pics later of my progress. (Don’t roll your eyes)

Winter Time. There’s no song for that.

Since I am feeling out of touch with the world, I started getting up early again to watch the news which then segways into Regis & Kelly. Channel 9. WGN News/Station, Chicago, Illinois. I love the morning team. I think they are all pretty funny. I suppose I should shout out: Robin Baumgarten, Larry Potash, Ana Belaval, Dean Richards, Valerie Warner, Paul Konrad.

Forward Time. No, it’s not a season….YET.

But I especially love Pat Tomasulo! The Sports Guy. So funny! And apparently America thinks so too, or at least Chicago America because they voted him to be a co-host for Regis & Kelly when Regis is on vacation or days off or whatever! I didn’t even know there was a contest!! Local news people all over the country, men and women, (for when Kelly is gone). Anyhow, I have been laughing at him way back when I still had a job! This was my:

First Time. (with Pat)

So, in honor of him winning I turned to good old You Tube and posted just a few videos, so you could laugh too! As you may have guessed. Don’t give up right at the end here! This is one of the best! Come on! 3 more minutes of your life is all I’m asking!

Good Time.

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The name’s Kanockers, Vod Kanockers.

June 23, 2009 at 12:26 am (Video) (, , , , , , , )

There’s pie???

If you do not laugh at this clip that I thankfully found on You Tube, from Two and a Half Men, one of the funniest episode ever, then I can never play the, “We Drink When Charlie Drinks”, game with you.

This kid is perfect. He is exactly portrayed like an eleven year old boy, going on twelve. I should know, because I have one.

Sadly, we have finished our DVD run for Two and a Half Men. The last season out (5th) is watched and put away. The days are long. The nights are longer. Thank goodness I’ve rediscovered Jack Daniels. Now I can relive my wild youth, while waiting for the next season.

Anyway, I’ve seen this one a few times and replayed this exact part for the kids and my own hilarity.

And it was just on regular TV mere minutes ago…(The free cable movie stations are gone. Channel Not Purchased. Call Customer Service. Sob.)

Gotta go to bed. Test in the morning. Until then, I leave you with this: Drink, gamble and hump!

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My fans await…

June 8, 2009 at 4:39 pm (Day to Day, Movies) (, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , )

And here I am being lazy all day. Seriously lazy. It’s 3 pm and I am just now up and doing stuff. Too bad too, cause it’s really nice outside. I probably could have done tons more.

I’m adding a warning right here, before I get a call from my sister telling me how lame and annoying I am:

This post contains a long, possibly boring narrative of my days and nights since Saturday morning, before the party. Proceed with caution (and a drink for maximum enjoyment, I recommend the Vodka Mixer, but only if you’re over 21. Please drink responsibly.) if you continue. I cannot be held accountable for what you think is funny or not. End of warning.

I was awake at 10 am. And I had coffee and watched tv. I checked my e-mail because the kids both got their own e-mail accounts and they like to send messages and videos and chat back and forth even though we are all in the same house. It’s really fun. They send an e-mail, hand me the computer, I open my e-mail, read and reply, and hand the computer back to them. Only kids can give you this kind of entertainment.

Anyway, as luck would have it, they are at their dads right now (which is why I can lay around until 10 am in bed on a Monday. School is over for them and mine is on Tuesday’s) so since they are actually out of the house I knew there would be messages. And there were. Checked and replied. Drink more coffee. Watch a movie.

Ladies, (or guys), if you are going to cheat on your spouse, watch this movie first: Clash By Night

It’s surprisingly violent and straightforward. I flipped it on thinking that old movies sometimes are the best on days like this. And I was right. The poster and IMDB kind of make it seem like a Marilyn picture, but it’s not. It’s about love and the giant mess it makes when you get married, and have kids, and have lovers and families and live by that sexy ocean when it’s hot outside…but judge for yourself…that could be the Bailey’s talking.

After the movie, I decided that a shower might be nice. I was kind of hungry too, but way to lazy to make anything or even go out to get something. So I did all the personal hygiene stuff I like to do when the kids and BF are gone, played some Pocket Poker (lost everything) and moved onto the mail and the couch. It’s windy and keeps trying to rain. I wish it would because then I don’t have to feel guilty about sitting inside like a hermit.

After the paperwork I had to do was done, I moved onto laundry, and vacuuming. This is gripping reading I know. (Shut up! Aman-duh!) I am just now getting the house back to it’s pre-party condition. Not that there was a big mess or anything. My sisters and family toatally helped clean up! Thank you! I just like to remove our daily living paraphernalia from the public view. But, you have to put it all back because you find out you need it at hand. Stuff like, my food journal, and bills, and magazines and school books, things like that.

Speaking of the party…it was good. Really good I thought. Party was scheduled to start at 2 pm. It rained at exactly 2 pm.

But then it stopped and warmed up just enough for  everyone to go outside. I’d say a majority of those invited actually came. Very successful. You never know with these kinds of things. You want the party to NOT be a disaster. It’s really all you can hope for. The food arrived, everyone ate, drank, socialized, and left. Last people out were my sisters. 11 pm ish, I think. Not bad at all.

Sunday morning was raining a bit. Mason had grass to cut. Another job! Then we went to the movies. Land of the Lost

It’s not bad. But it’s not worth paying full price unless you really LOVE Will Ferrell. There are some really funny parts and some that just aren’t. Also, alot of swearing and jokes and visuals that might be a little too adult for the younger crowd. Mine are 10 and 11 and I was cringing a few times and working up the explanations in my head.

We had a gift card so it wasn’t too bad. The food cost more than the admission! Bleah!  Then we motored the children on over to their daddy’s. The BF and I watched Mr and Mrs Smith for the gazillionth time, ate food and hit the sack. And here I sit today.

Laundry is cooking, books are waiting, pictures need posting…I could spice up the story with some sordid little details about how I earned a buck-oh-two on Saturday night, or what vodka, 7-up and bags of ice brought to the party Sunday night, but I bet you can think of a million better things than I could come up with, including the truth. This site is interactive! YOU tell ME and I’ll let you know if you’re close.

Which reminds me, my brothers favorite movie is coming on tv soon. You can’t handle the truth! At least I think it still is. I personally don’t care for the “Jack” myself but I try to be nice. I prefer his other favorite Keyser Söze. I’m not sure why, but if it’s on tv I watch it, no matter where in the story or what time it is. I’ve watched it at 4 in the morning on Christmas Eve. Why is it even on at that time?? It’s a sickness.

Alright look around for some pictures. I have more stuff to come, including a caterpillar update. What are those crazy cocoons up to?? You know you want to know.

Find out! Later!

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