Monday, A Day Off

     

Today was a day off work for me. I slept in obscenely late .... I won`t even tell you just how late!

So I had lunch at Wendy`s and did some grocery shopping at Walmart. I finished the book I mentioned in my last entry, My Sister`s Keeper. Wow, what an ironic twist at the end!  And since I am a total bookworm, I have already started reading The Summons by Grishom. I think it`s going to be good.

I found out if you go to AOL Settings and go to Environment, that you can get your own personalized greeting when you sign on or get mail. Now this man says to me,"Welcome, Penny. " He sounds nice, like he could be kinda cute. <looking around for him....>

I used to fly quite often. When I lived in NY, we flew out to California every winter. Or I`d take a quick trip to Boston, or wherever. Then, oddly, I developed a profound dislike/fear of flying. ( I attribute this to a horribly scary flight I once had. ) I bring this up because sometimes lately I dream that I am on an airplane. Usually it is huge, bigger than even the very large planes with several rows. The strange thing is, it has huge windows, like picture windows, on three sides, so I am seeing the entire sky stretched out in front of me and on both sides. It`s not a comfortable feeling. Not scary exactly, but unnerving. Kind of like the feeling one gets standing on the rim of a mountain highway looking down.....down....down.....afraid that you might fall or jump.

Anyway, I`m off to finish laundry and see why Mandy is barking (again. )

Have a good night!

Penny        

 

My Father`s Chair

                         

I was just reading in Jeanne`s private journal -

A Journey to a New Me about how she has been missing her father.

My dad passed away in January of 1998. I did not do a tribute in my journal to him that day this year but I sure thought about him a lot.

When Rick Springfield lost his dad, he wrote a powerful song called My Father`s Chair. Anyone who has lost a loved one can relate to this. I`m sorry it`s sad, but death comes as a part of life.

This is so touching to me :

 

My father's chair's still standing there
All alone since the long night
Now it's three years on and I still feel
He'll come home, we'll be alright
So where's this healing time brings
I was told the pain would ease
But it still hurts like the first night

That night my brother, my mother and I
Were looking up at a distant star
And wishing we could reach that far
And back in the house
And alone for the first time
We told each other we cared
We avoided my father's chair

I watch my family, we hold on
We are strong and we'll be alright
The clock continues counting down,
All the while
And every child will share the long night
But do the spirits meet again
Why am I still so filled with doubt
Is my soul everlasting

And the far distant future
When I knew you'd be gone
Came too fast and stays too long
Why do they leave the weak of spirit
And take the strong

But wherein the world turns sour
And I get sick from the smell
And I can't find no comfort there
I climb into my father's chair

Simply Sunday

        

Greetings once again. Not too much going on here. It`s snowing on and off in Ohio. I went to church and will probably spend the remainder of the day relaxing.

  

Yesterday was a good day at work. Banking is not what it used to be. As a teller, part of my job is getting sales, or getting customers over to the desk to talk with one of the bankers. Some days go smoothly, other days it`s like pulling teeth. If we reach a certain quota, we do get a pay out. I think I made it for the month of January.   :)

   

I`ve spent some time this weekend on MySpace. I decided to try a page there again and get some friends added to it. I`m pretty lost over there, compared to how easy this AOL journal is. I ended up giving my daughter my account name and password and letting her set it up for me. But anyhow, I must thank Delaine over at Bluesmoke Inn for offering to help!  I was able to find an old friend through MySpace that I haven`t been in contact with in over 16 years! How wild.

   

I am reading a strange book by Jodi Picoult called My Sister`s Keeper. It`s about a young girl who takes her parents to court. Her sister is dying from leukemia and this girl wants to have the freedom to say no to being used as a donor. Not her best book, aside from the fact that I`ve been treated for leukemia for nearly two years now. Next up is The Summons by John Grishom.

I`m tired of some things. I`m tired of hearing everyone bash the Presdient. How about praying for him and our country more instead?

    

I`m tired of so many people trying to be "politically correct." I`m not out to offend anyone but some things are just WRONG. Any lifestyle, any belief...as long as it makes you happy it`s okay. Not! I don`t believe in being mean to others and I think we should respect our fellow humans, but I will not compromise what I believe to go along with the flow. Just my little vent because it`s my journal and I can.   :)

   

I hope this finds you having a happy weekend and that you`re all happy and well. I know the winter blahs tend to set in. I`m already making a mental note of what flowers I want to plant in the spring!

   

                          

 

            

Tags: Ohio, reading, leukemia

Snow & Stuff

 

This will be a quick entry. The last one I wrote would not save, and I`m not going through all that again!

Today was my day off and a busy one. I did a bit of grocery shopping and picked up a prescription for my daughter, only to find out that she was not listed on my insurance! It will take a few days to research and find out why this happened and get it corrected. In the meantime, I had to fork over $150 for her medicine. Thank God she had her loan check deposited for college this semester!

I also bought new pajamas at Fashion Bug. They have the best pj`s. I didn`t realize until I got them home that the buttons are heart shaped. ( Very excited about this. )

We got quite a bit of snow yesterday. What a mess my car was from the snow and salt on the roads! So I washed and vacuumed it today.

Well, I`m ending this here in case it doesn`t save again.

Have a good night!

Staying Warm

              

Hello, my darlings! I hope this finds you all doing well.

It`s a refreshing 18 degrees here this evening in my part of Ohio. I`m in my comfy pj`s and slippers, sipping a hot chocolate. Toasty!

We have a bit of snow on the ground, but not much.

                             

I had a nice day, even though I didn`t do a whole lot. I tried sleeping in, but ofcourse the steroids I`m taking didn`t want to cooperate, but I did stay in bed and rest. Then I met my co-workers for lunch at a nice Italian restaurant. One of the girls I work with is having a baby soon, so we had a luncheon for her. It was nice. I work with a good group of people.

I ordered salad and cheese ravioli. And they had the best bread at this place. Yummy!

I have been cleaning and re-organizing. Things are looking pretty good around here.

I just finished a novel by Beverly Lewis called The Brethren. I love her stories of the Amish.

So tomorrow is church and on Monday I have a day off. I`m thankful for the time to rest and catch up on things.

Stay warm !   

           

 

 

Soggy Weather, Some Sobering Thoughts

It is currently 27 degrees in Ohio and raining with a chance of snow flurries. I have been on the road for the past two days and the rain never stopped. The sky was a mirky gray, even in the early part of the day and the highway visibility was horrible with all the wet mist.

Anyhow, my daughter is back at college, so I am once again back to my normal schedule.

Yesterday I had my monthly leukemia treatment at the Cleveland Clinic. I know I speak of this often, but it`s just been such a major part of my life for the past two years. Meds and chemo, and being tired....it`s just become part of my life. Thankfully, I only have to go once a month now and I have often said this is a piece of cake compared to what I went through to get to this point. However, yesterday was a sobering day for me in a couple of aspects. Firstly, my doctor told me that he has 2 other leukemia patients whose illness has returned. I was very sad to hear that.(They have a different type than me. ) You just hope and pray that after all this extensive treatment that you will stay in remission. Forever! On second thought, I won`t even go into the other reason. It`s another much more disturbing story that I heard about treatment being administered wrong and ended up being fatal to the patient.

On the bright side, ( which I always try to stay on whenever possible ) my doctor gave me a good report. I was happy about that. I told him I was tired so often and he basically said it`s because they are kicking my butt with treatment!! I`m not complaining. It`s gotten me well!!

Oddly enough, I am wide awake this morning. I`m never wide awake in the morning. I have never been a morning person. For the next five days I will be on steroids and it`s difficult to sleep. When I do sleep, I am bombarded by the strangest dreams ever! One of the hardest parts of this whole ordeal are the huge doses of steroids.

WELL..... enough about that. Thanks for standing by me through all this. I would appreciate your continued support and prayers. Thank you.

Anyone out there getting hit with all this snow I keep hearing about on the news?

I am hopefully going to New York in a couple months. I would really like to be able to swing it. It would be nice to get away for a few days! Do you think I should pack an extra suitcase to bring home goodies in? Lotsa purses to buy in the Big Apple! <wink wink>

Have a wonderful day, my friends.

God bless.

Thanks, Angela for this sweet tag.   :)

Ready Spaghetti

         

It was a good day. My day off. :)

Corey and I went over to Janice`s house for lunch. On the menu was salad, garlic bread, and spaghetti. Snowman dishes and festive glasses along with lots of conversation and laughter made it a fun afternoon.

 

I have a very round face largely due to steroids that I have to take. "Prednisone cheeks." Can`t wait to get off these meds!!!!

Janice still has her tree up because she is having company this weekend.

Notice I have hair! This time last year I had hardly any due to chemo. I`ve had it cut a few times, but now I am letting it grow. :)

                        

There is an email floating around that states if you are at an ATM machine and need assistance in an emergency that putting your ATM number in backwards will summon the police. Don`t believe it! I work in a bank and know that this is not true. The best thing you can do when at an ATM is just use common sense. Look for one that is well lit if it`s nighttime. If it`s a walk up ATM, get your money quickly, pocket it and get back in your vehicle. Then count it. If it`s a drive up ATM, keep your doors and all other windows locked. Don`t pick a pin number that is easy to guess, such as your house number, birthdate, last 4 digits of your social security number or anything likethat. Many people have had their wallets stolen with their ATM cards and personal information inside. The robber then uses the ATM card and tries to guess your pin number. They are often successful if you make it an easy number, such as your house number.

Just thought I would pass this along.

                        

Tomorrow will be a busy day of appointments and grocery shopping. Saturday I work. Sunday I will be on the road, taking Corey back to college. Monday I have to go to the Cleveland Clinic for treatment. ( Almost done. I know I keep saying that. Almost!! ) Tuesday I work. Wednesday I`m  meeting Janice for lunch.

I have been organizing my home.... cleaning out cupboards and closets...throwing out things.... filing papers and shredding others. I love being organized. Once my daughter goes back to school, I`ll do more. Right now there`s a lot of shoes and clothes laying around. And purses and scarves and make up and curling irons and flat irons. lol

Remember I told all of you that I bought a brand new  silver Toyota Yaris. Well - the other day my daughter and I left Walmart. My arms were full so I hand her the keys and ask her to unlock the car. She says, "the key doesn`t fit!" I say , "What??" So I try it. Sure enough, my key doesn`t fit in my lock. What the heck??

"Oh my gosh, Corey," I say .... "this isn`t my car!" I yell as I look in horror at this silver Toyota Camry I am trying to break into! lol

We took off across the parking lot giggling like a couple of idiots - two rows over to my own car, where the key did indeed fit!

 

     

Been A While....

          

Hello, darlings. Has it been a week since I posted? Geesh. Not a lot happening, just been busy. Feeling better, too. :)

I`ve just been working and going out now and then with Corey. We had lunch at Panera, which was nice. Sometimes I just have to take a break from the internet and get things done. LOL.

I see some snow flurries out there today. I`ll be leaving for work soon, but I just wanted to check in. I hope to get around to journals soon. I know I have missed a few days.

Thanks to  Missie for the lovely snowflake tag!