tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45031851982694419722024-03-05T19:28:45.112-06:00By Grace AloneTammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.comBlogger33125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-44730852006793604572023-03-05T13:11:00.002-06:002023-12-05T23:15:32.515-06:00PrioritiesHave you ever been in a rut? I mean, a big, deep, garantuan rut that you simply cannot escape no matter how hard you try? That has been my predicament for months. I was working on my MBA (FINALLY finished it last week!) and I've taken on more and more responsiblity at work. I've been given these 'other dutires as assigned' not because I am the most qualified to do them but because I am the only one stupid enough to volunteer. I genuinely want to help my studets, so some of the tasks I took on were for that purpose. Our pre-dissertation and dissertation templates were a disaster, so one of my colleagues and I were itching to get our hands on them. Once we got permission to redo them, we worked really hard. I even worked on Christmas to try to get it done so I could start distributing them to students in the new year. I also got corraled into 'temporarily' taking over the facilitation of the virtual residency that is held every nine weeks. Now, it's not looking quite so temporary. My boss also laid in my and my colleague's (we call ourselved Laverne and Shirley) lap an onsite residency that is supposed to be held the last weekend of April, although it may not happen because there is not a lot of interest from students. There were three students signed up last week and we were told we'd go forward with it if there are five, which I think is really stupid because nobody wants to attend a residency that only has five students. We've already put quite a bit of work into planning it, though. In December, I started teaching a class. Up until that point, I was solely working as a doctoral mentor, helping students plan their research and write their dissertations. As of right now, I have 19 mentees and 14 students in my class, so grading takes a long time. And now, to top that off, starting in April, Laverne and Shirley will be mentoring every student who enters the pre-dissertation phase to help them get their research project hammered out so they can be handed off to another chair to conduct their research and write their dissertation. <br/><br/>
Most of this my own fault. I was so eager to prove how valuable I am to the DBA program that I jumped at every opportunity. But now, I just feel like I'm being taken advantage of. Laverne and Shirley get the work because it gets done, but, essentially, all we've done is bail out the other chairs who cannot get their students through their dissertations because they never had a good study to start with, and we've make it easy for them to say no to requests to take on additional responsibilites. But I'm <i>tired</i>. We had the virtual residency yesterday from 9:00 to 3:00 and I felt like I could sleep for 15 hours after it was over. One of the chairs who presented was supposed to talk about chapter 3 in the dissertation but instead, she talked about our proposal review board. I was so stressed out and angry that I couldn't see straight. And on top of everything that is going on in my department (lack of oversight, lack of accountability, and lack of caring), major changes are being made at the university level that are stressing me out. It wouldn't be so bad if the changes made sense, but they don't. I've been preparing myself to step back for a while now. I'm tired of working 60 or more hours a week while the rest of the chairs work 20. I moved to the Gulf Coast so I could enjoy the warm weather and sand between my toes, but all I do is sit in front of a computer screen and read poorly written papers that make no sense and stress out about things that are out of my control, wondering what is going to be put on my plate next, and only finding out because Laverne tells me about it (my boss rarely meets with me to ask me how I feel about taking on these projects). <br/><br/>
Two week ago tomorrow, my daughter texted me and told me that one of my son's old girlfriends died at the age of 29. She was a wife and a mother of two little girls ages 5 and 3. She fought cancer for 2 1/2 years and on Sunday, February 19<sup>th</sup>, she went home to be with the Lord. I did not know Lexy. I probably met her once or twice 15 years ago, but if I'd have met her on the street, I wouldn't have known it was her. Yet, I was shaken to the core. I cried a lot--not so much for Lexy, because I know she is dancing on streets of gold--but for her mother. She and her mother were very close, very like April and I are, and my mother's heart aches for her even now, two weeks later. Of course I am sad for her children, because they will not remember much about their mother, and for her husband, who is a widower much too young, but the momma bear in me hurts so much. Her death also woke up my slumbering (or maybe smouldering) passion for the Lord. For years I just haven't invested much time or energy into my spiritual life. I stopped going to church when I went to Disney with April last March and focused all my time and attention on things with no eternal value, like work and playing video games when I needed to unwind. I'm not saying my work isn't rewarding, because it is. I make a difference in my students' lives; they tell me so. But I needed a wakeup call. One of the pastors who spoke at Lexy's memorial service was the pastor of a church I attended when I lived in Kansas City. At that time, I did not have the same appreciation I have today about the kind of church he pastors. I decided to listen in on a series of sermons he's currently preaching and I also joined an online Bible study. Spiritually, I am starving. I've forgotten how to pray. I'm scared to even try because I feel like I have ADHD whenever I start to pray.<br/><br/>
I need to slow down. I know that now more than ever. Life is vapor, here for a moment and then gone, and I am already more than halfway through my life. I do not know how many more years the Lord will bless me with, but I want to live them the way I lived my younger years when I belonged to the online group Faithfully Standing and couldn't get enough of God. Every thought every minute of the day was consumed by Him. I decided to listen to some of the Christian music I listened to in the 1990s and 2000s. Songs by Twila Paris, Steven Curtis Chapman, Todd Agnew, Rich Mullins take me back to that time and remind me of what I felt like then. I kept saying that once this project was over or after I finish this, I'll stop working so hard, but that day never comes because something comes along to fill the empty space, much like trying to create a hole in the sand on the shore of the ocean; the tide comes up and fills it back in. I need to <i>intentionally</i> leave some empty space in my life for what is important, and I'm finally ready to do that!<br/><br/>
Unfortunately, I have to do some work today since I was unable to finish grading yesterday, but tomorrow I plan to take most of the day off. I need to go grocery shopping and my house needs some TLC. So I am off to read the last of my dissertations. I leave you with a picture of my kitty Georgie. Georgie is the kitten I wanted to adopt nearly two years ago, but my daughter fell in love with her so I took the other two sisters. Well, back in November, she asked me if I'd take her because she was bullying her oldest cat, so now I have all three sisters (and yes, she bullies my oldest cat, too, but Charleigh can hold her own).<br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyEuwDxgP66EPp7fd0C0zjFRzOZseUl9qkyhpYubbsF5gBokzvnazEsfgcUl4PO1N6yMdnVg-dDbyyxmhV9RBVWMn-lccTOzOktHC7R6CPvi0SUKA4uKKNkzj7U-VAE-ri0cHFeYZjQXXby1kVUN51J2HuEj9XPcGvOFPsKJd1kP5Mk5TYtZGDk0nH/s640/me%20and%20Georgie.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyEuwDxgP66EPp7fd0C0zjFRzOZseUl9qkyhpYubbsF5gBokzvnazEsfgcUl4PO1N6yMdnVg-dDbyyxmhV9RBVWMn-lccTOzOktHC7R6CPvi0SUKA4uKKNkzj7U-VAE-ri0cHFeYZjQXXby1kVUN51J2HuEj9XPcGvOFPsKJd1kP5Mk5TYtZGDk0nH/s320/me%20and%20Georgie.jpg"/></a></div>Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-41228918477520316352022-08-29T22:04:00.001-05:002022-08-29T22:04:54.575-05:00My Crazy LifeI'll bet you thought I dropped off the face of the earth, huh? I apologize for my very prolonged absence. I have tried to come here and write a few times over the last year, but my life has been crazy busy. I've been working as a doctoral chair in addition to performing my Writing Center duties and working on a second master's degree for a year. I started out with 3 students last August and now I'm up to 16 in addition to being a committee member for seven student (although two of those are graduating in October). Of my 16 students, 11 are in classes right now and 5 are pre-dissertation, which thankfully means I do not have to do much with them at this point. Last year when I started working in DBA, my boss and the program director (PD) of the DBA program worked out a deal that permits me to work on my doctoral student stuff during the day after I finish reviewing the papers assigned to me. My supervisor assigns me fewer papers to review than she gives to the others and once I finish them, I do my doctoral stuff. It is a real blessing because it would be really difficult to keep up with everything if not for that concession. <br/><br/>
Back in February, the PD asked me if I wanted to go full-time, and I said YES. Unfortunately, it didn't work out at that time. Our student enrollments started dropping because of covid, so the university implemented a hiring freeze. It was disappointing, but I knew that I just needed to be patient because the PD promised me should would continue to fight to get me transferred. Well, long story short, after months of fenagling, I finally got word last Wednesday that the transition had been finalized and I am starting full-time in DBA the day after tomorrow. Tomorrow is my last day in the Writing Center. Although I really enjoyed my job for a long time, I can't say I'm particularly sad about leaving the WC; to be honest, I sort of started disconnecting from my job back in February when the proposition of working full-time in DBA was presented. I have been a writing specialist for nearly four years and I confess that I am a little burned out.<br/><br/>
Interestingly the same day I got my job offer, DBA posted a job for a dedicated doctoral writing coach (which is similar to the job I am leaving). The job was actually first created back in 2020 and I really wanted to apply for it, but the way the job posting is written, I was not qualified. The person they hired was in the position for about a year and a half and she did a terrible job. She was finally let go in June and they reposted the job. I applied for it this time because I was qualified and the PD told me she would give it to me, but she asked me if I really wanted it or if I wanted to be a chair. I told her there was no doubt that I want to be a chair but that I would be willing to take the writing coach job to get transferred to DBA and then wait out the chair opening. At that point, I had no idea how long it would be before they could get approval to open a position for me. She told me she wanted what I wanted and encouraged me to wait. I told her I would continue to be patient. Well, the writing coach job ended up being placed on long-term hold and I think it was because the PD wanted me to get the chair position but didn't want to fill the writing coach position in case the chair position didn't come through because it would have closed the door to me transitioning to DBA. So, after my chair job was secured, the writing coach job was posted, but then it was almost immediately taken off the public website and posted internally, which I thought was odd. But then the PD asked me if I could recommend any of my coworkers for the job. I told her I had someone in mind, so I contacted him and he applied. I feel kind of bad about the prospect of stealing another writing specialist, but we desperately need someone who can help our doctoral students with their writing. Since our student numbers were down, we did not replace the last writing specialist who left and the director of the Success Center was very eager for me to apply for the writing coach job in DBA when it opened because even being down a specialist, there is still not enough work to keep everyone busy. However, losing two writing specialists will hurt them a bit. I think he's a shoe in, so they may end up having to hire someone after all.<br/><br/>
So, that is my life for the past year in a nutshell. It has been crazy, frustrating, and immensely rewarding. I am excited to start my new journey with just one job, at least for awhile. I might pick up a part-time teaching job down the road a bit, but for now, I will be content to just relax and maybe get to the beach a few times. It's been far too long since I last stuck my toes in the Gulf.
Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-27630091071502177422021-10-17T14:02:00.002-05:002022-08-29T22:13:42.537-05:00Short UpdateHappy Sunday, friends. I don't have a lot to share today, but I thought I'd pop in since it's been a month. Our weather changed yesterday. A cold front must have blown through yesterday morning, because for awhile it looked like it was going to rain, and then the sun came out and a brisk north wind started blowing. We had temps in the 70s yesterday and as of 2:00pm, it is only 71 degrees. I am thinking that chili is on the menu for dinner tonight.<br/><br/>
For the past few weeks, Dan has been building April a screened porch. Today we are going to hopefully finish up. He has it all framed; now he just needs to install the screen. April's kitties will be very happy to be able to go outside. Mine spend a lot of time on our screened porch. Other than that, I don't have a lot on my agenda for today. We just groomed and bathed Emma, and now she's sulking. That was the only thing I really wanted to get done this weekend besides a grocery trip, which I did yesterday. I learned a long time ago to not go to Walmart on Sunday. For some reason, Sunday mornings are insane. Most of the tourists are gone now, but the snow birds are starting to arrive. Fortunately, they are easier to deal with because there are fewer of them. This past summer was insane. We had so many people visit the beach this year. I think it's because nobody traveled last year because of the virus-that-shall-not-be-named. I'd like to make a trip to the beach next weekend, though Friday is graduation, so the CSU graduates might make the beach a bit more busy than usual.<br/><br/>
Speaking of graduation, this will be my first graduation as a faculty member. I'm kind of excited to see things from that perspective for once. I have always viewed from the audience. It's the first time I'll get to wear doctoral garb as well. I ordered a tam and gown for my graduation, but I never wore it since my graduation was virtual. Some day I might travel to California and walk in a graduation, so I'll need that getup. I think faculty sit according to college, so I won't be able to sit next to Dan. I am also only participating in two of the ceremonies. The third one is at 5:00pm, and we have to be at the auditorium by 8:00am, so that means the animals will be home alone all day for the first time in I don't know how long. The second ceremony should be over by 3:00pm, so I'll leave after that. Dan probably won't be home until about 7:00pm. <br/><br/>UPDATE: here is a picture from graduation. <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheSZj1i4eN6MFZY99pNDDYefxCzfsnZckxpW2YJ8_CcfsvE0Dbmg30HPuHVyPrXXGcjDy6ONz28kTcGvhoM9Ij63By4bjVE-XYy63swQSu9-DWTVKaP4gNHfEfHfCvsW6I3RkNNonpOfY/s1574/grad+pic.JPEG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; padding-right: 20px; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="1574" data-original-width="858" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheSZj1i4eN6MFZY99pNDDYefxCzfsnZckxpW2YJ8_CcfsvE0Dbmg30HPuHVyPrXXGcjDy6ONz28kTcGvhoM9Ij63By4bjVE-XYy63swQSu9-DWTVKaP4gNHfEfHfCvsW6I3RkNNonpOfY/s320/grad+pic.JPEG"/></a></div>
I revised my school plans and will now be starting classes on November 10<sup>th</sup>. I'm a little bummed that the new Pokemon games and a big update to Animal Crossing are coming out right around the same time, so I won't have a lot of time to play them. My second doctoral course (as a teacher) starts the same day, and I may have five students next term, although more than likely I'll only end up with about four. One of the students I was supposed to have last session is still not making any progres in the course he dropped last term (which prevented him from progressing to the dissertation phase) and had to retake, so I don't hold out a lot of hope that I'll end up with him this term either. The course I'm teaching now isn't officially mine. I do the grading but it is actually my mentor's class, because I was not officially hired when it started, but now I am official. I received notification last week that I will be getting at least one of my own classes next term, and I may get a second if I get a newbie (or two).<br/><br/>
Well, that is my short update. I need to get ready to go to April's house now. I hope you all are enjoying your fall!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-35705146307054100102021-09-17T22:37:00.001-05:002022-08-29T22:08:09.151-05:00Another Rainy AnniversaryWednesday was my and Dan's 31<sup>st</sup> wedding anniversary. Last year we had to put off celebrating our anniversary because Sally was blowing in, and she made landfall very early on the 16<sup>th</sup>. On Wednesday, Nicholas was making landfall in Texas, which is not very close to Alabama, but somehow we ended up with seven inches of rain just on Wednesday from him. It finally stopped raining around 4:00, which was perfect timing, because that is when Dan and I got off work and went to grab dinner at our favorite Mexican Restaurant. Here are a few pictures of the rain, the water-filled drainage ditches, and dinner.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbGlzg3gAIfGNBGmIaRbbZVY9j-sSn7SwV6nmL1ifIalxdxcCUJCxMYEC9FeRilAjfHC1XxczfWrEa_eRE4honqDG7r3T61PvNnVfnLsJUoHXwe54i7YByKFck-yfLoFOPJKGq0-efBvk/s640/65342006993__86FBD514-79B9-4D2B-91AB-7EBFE94BDD4A.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbGlzg3gAIfGNBGmIaRbbZVY9j-sSn7SwV6nmL1ifIalxdxcCUJCxMYEC9FeRilAjfHC1XxczfWrEa_eRE4honqDG7r3T61PvNnVfnLsJUoHXwe54i7YByKFck-yfLoFOPJKGq0-efBvk/s320/65342006993__86FBD514-79B9-4D2B-91AB-7EBFE94BDD4A.jpg"/></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5H0ZVy70WL4NK93jDfHCA1HeEK9AnEUlsFGBu88vQQ9Xp2TQTf-BPPRbLAPnNLaryBfO6yjlMwmtMOVHvcRG04XG6-1_QJHc_fJQ6BcVefhvhHau8ZykUcCAdbplixmA6I_p-8S9EEG4/s640/IMG_1641.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5H0ZVy70WL4NK93jDfHCA1HeEK9AnEUlsFGBu88vQQ9Xp2TQTf-BPPRbLAPnNLaryBfO6yjlMwmtMOVHvcRG04XG6-1_QJHc_fJQ6BcVefhvhHau8ZykUcCAdbplixmA6I_p-8S9EEG4/s320/IMG_1641.jpg"/></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMil60_IBU4XG3TQN9kSA_mVUr6fNU42o9qIU8D6ULhC-7FoWRMYmzM0bvqOh70IxmkbeTDYqg8CY0KlF_Ey79zMkeE8yQD6MdhaYQNDCiouHw-E4WaAdivwCJ7ZH_CYThTOtLJm-edDg/s640/IMG_1642.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" hspace="8" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMil60_IBU4XG3TQN9kSA_mVUr6fNU42o9qIU8D6ULhC-7FoWRMYmzM0bvqOh70IxmkbeTDYqg8CY0KlF_Ey79zMkeE8yQD6MdhaYQNDCiouHw-E4WaAdivwCJ7ZH_CYThTOtLJm-edDg/s320/IMG_1642.jpg"/></a></div>
I splurged a little more than I should have, lol. It's the chips and salsa that always get me, but the veggie quesadillas were pretty good too. It started raining again just as we got back home Wednesday evening and then it rained a little more yesterday. Today was dry, so Dan and I decided to go for a drive along the beach road.<br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb1uGEELvMhydvr9nEnto0MPvoK0BLaIKtmFLxDTlmEF8XSaOnghhWPqBXRMz7fLPeinBohAj0Wh7YoOD2wQBPC62W3tUbUyvKIs_EJRDa8YHASXlYMUe2Rf0qK_PJzEfMSfNhrJZIghQ/s640/IMG_1643.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb1uGEELvMhydvr9nEnto0MPvoK0BLaIKtmFLxDTlmEF8XSaOnghhWPqBXRMz7fLPeinBohAj0Wh7YoOD2wQBPC62W3tUbUyvKIs_EJRDa8YHASXlYMUe2Rf0qK_PJzEfMSfNhrJZIghQ/s320/IMG_1643.jpg"/></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWFQ2sxsONfWH5IUbDvnHGqgtDuHpoYZtN9TzwaXH06fZC53AUdiBt0TTqLYFBYTgDrzzZSzknlc25PGR6SgH1RmZS4dK2JHXg50tZnx6dMB9gUAePV0FLFJrh5RvUEqPM9kKvplk_e1Q/s640/IMG_1644.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWFQ2sxsONfWH5IUbDvnHGqgtDuHpoYZtN9TzwaXH06fZC53AUdiBt0TTqLYFBYTgDrzzZSzknlc25PGR6SgH1RmZS4dK2JHXg50tZnx6dMB9gUAePV0FLFJrh5RvUEqPM9kKvplk_e1Q/s320/IMG_1644.jpg"/></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3pW3Mbv_mSEDINhctsh7VGucXYq2WEyakMZCGx64A1c6-P43A2CMJuer13wN1M6PpRXM0iZBbmlOf2fIc9UY8qm283BdtV55Uv5_9lb4IER6fjMAdVVpBTWO7eSDR45OSQAkCa07l2LY/s640/IMG_1657.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" hspace="8" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3pW3Mbv_mSEDINhctsh7VGucXYq2WEyakMZCGx64A1c6-P43A2CMJuer13wN1M6PpRXM0iZBbmlOf2fIc9UY8qm283BdtV55Uv5_9lb4IER6fjMAdVVpBTWO7eSDR45OSQAkCa07l2LY/s320/IMG_1657.jpg"/></a></div>
We drove through Orange Beach and over to Perdido Key, FL just to see what is there. I noticed lots of shops that I'd like to visit someday, but since Dan isn't much of a shopper, I didn't suggest that we stop.<br/><br/>Do you all have anything fun planned this weekend? I have a student's paper to look over and give feedback on and then I may start working on the class I signed up for this week. It won't officially start until early October, but I can get a head start on the assignments. Other than that, I will probably do some cleaning and laundry. Oh, and my diploma was supposed to be ordered today. I never found out why it was not ordered after my degree was conferred, but I'm just happy it was a mistake. I had to order another copy of my transcript to be vetted for my faculty position, and it was delivered almost immediately. I remember the old days when they had to be mailed out and it would take weeks. Now with digital technology, it's almost instantaneous.<br/><br/>
Well, it's getting late, so I am going to call it a night. I hope you all have a great weekend!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-23648722149279241042021-09-12T18:12:00.001-05:002021-09-12T18:12:29.307-05:00The Jeep Has ArrivedI have a few minutes before the virtual mini doctoral residency starts at CSU, so I thought I'd pop in with some updates. I am not required to attend, but I told my mentor I'd stop by for a bit. The kids are going to come over in a couple hours and we are going to the beach. It is supposed to be a beautiful day. Humidity is low, so it feels a bit like fall. <br/><br/>
It's been an eventful couple of weeks. The day after I published my last post, we got a call from the dealership that our Jeep had arrived! We went to pick it up on September 1<sup>st</sup>, and we have been really enjoying it so far. I would love to take the top off today, but I'm not sure Dan will feel up to messing with it. He had two teeth extracted yesterday, so he'll probably be pretty sore. He is still sleeping and I am going to let him sleep as long as he wants to. I haven't taken any closeup pictures of the Jeep yet, but I'll try to do that today and add them to this post later. After Dan's surgery, we went to the DMV and ordered a personalized license plate. It says PHDX2. The clerk told us that we could get any plate design we wanted and it would cost the same, so we elected to get Roll Tide (University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa) plates. I think they are going to look really pretty on the snazzberry red Jeep. It will take about 6 to 8 weeks for them to arrive, so we were given a temporary tag to display. I also got my official paperwork to sign for my new faculty position yesterday, and now I am officially a DBA faculty member. Yesterday was a really good day overall except for one little snaffu.<br/><br/>
I called Trident because I still haven't received my diploma, even though it's been nearly 10 weeks since I officially graduted, and I found out there is some sort of hold on my account. I am not sure why, because I have no balance and my degree was officially conferred on July 4<sup>th</sup>. The registrar's office is looking into it, so hopefully I will have it soon. I'm really glad I called, but I am annoyed that I had to. I really hope it was a mistake. I ordered transcripts and they were released, so I cannot imaging what the problem could be. In reality, transcripts are more valuable than the diploma, but I want to frame it and hang it behind my desk. I should frame my bachelor and masters diplomas too. My master's degree disploma is huge. I might have to special order a frame for it.<br/><br/>
The only other piece of news is that I took the kitties to get spayed a couple of weeks ago. I hated to do it, but they are 5 1/2 months old now, so they could go into heat anytime. I had the vet give them their immunizations and microchip them, so they are good to go for a year. They are really good cats. They are very good natured, confident, sweet, and cute. I am really happy to have them in my life. They make me smile the way Jasper did, and they make it easier for me to think about him now.<br/><br/>
I think that is about all that has happened since my last post. Oh, I just remembered--we also finally got our fence replaced. It fell down almost exactly a year ago when Sally blew through. Hopefully it will stand for at least 10 years. The guy who installed it did a great job!
Well, I am going to leave you with a few pictures. I didn't finish this post yesterday, so I managed to take a picture of the Jeep, and I have to leave some kitties pics too. :) Whenever I bend over, Bella jumps on my back and lays down. She is a character!<br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWoEj5hiCf81RVeZ-PkT3OR2u80meKOXb3lcOJdhnz6Twqpvrju8s8utBUoZnjEz31aXe6G5m2KqiX-x3Iv7ejZEQFg6XeMF6rZpLE7so_XRK44KMcHm9PSkYi299RJpcvuWpruiZjfaA/s640/Bella.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWoEj5hiCf81RVeZ-PkT3OR2u80meKOXb3lcOJdhnz6Twqpvrju8s8utBUoZnjEz31aXe6G5m2KqiX-x3Iv7ejZEQFg6XeMF6rZpLE7so_XRK44KMcHm9PSkYi299RJpcvuWpruiZjfaA/s320/Bella.jpg"/></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXWshppTHEEicfJRAevMjMDlTE3BVavsATKfQaRC_EFkycWXkqq0fec8xeh4l-JAvvlkttEPZlMdkoD9SjYbnS9CTCIoPEStRsWHLsRQHrPXtl72BJLdvHnR9T4zJRV3fb5w1tQZg12Zk/s640/Charleigh.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXWshppTHEEicfJRAevMjMDlTE3BVavsATKfQaRC_EFkycWXkqq0fec8xeh4l-JAvvlkttEPZlMdkoD9SjYbnS9CTCIoPEStRsWHLsRQHrPXtl72BJLdvHnR9T4zJRV3fb5w1tQZg12Zk/s320/Charleigh.jpg"/></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrgGE-M44q-bFVXbiFbUamWEhoxrqOpEVZyMUWgWBUlsSkGcF-43Tx8fvIslOnzQR01PsPwXvC01T-IL8-muS-wdnJkC1NPewX6fted4-VCrm5HF0N3z-laClbdJtAlX4k_lfA3dzenwc/s640/Jeep.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrgGE-M44q-bFVXbiFbUamWEhoxrqOpEVZyMUWgWBUlsSkGcF-43Tx8fvIslOnzQR01PsPwXvC01T-IL8-muS-wdnJkC1NPewX6fted4-VCrm5HF0N3z-laClbdJtAlX4k_lfA3dzenwc/s320/Jeep.jpg"/></a></div>Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-16566480055984048272021-08-29T09:32:00.000-05:002021-08-29T21:32:54.776-05:00Another Month DownHello, friends. I hope you are all doing well and staying safe. I'm slightly past one month since my last post, but I guess it's better than six months, right? Life has continued to be busy, but things are finally going to start slowing down. Yesterday I worked really hard to finish my community health class. I wrote a seven page paper, which I finished this morning, a six-hundred word exam essay, and two 300+ word journals. Now that I have that behind me, I am going to take a break from school until after the first of the year. I'll write more about this later.<br/><br/>
To follow up on my last post, the camper is sold. We got a decent deal on it, but we still took a loss. I am just happy that we do not have to worry about it any longer. It was a real dark cloud over Dan's head. He is much happier now. After we were sure everything was going to go through, we stopped by the Jeep dealership and ordered our Wrangler. It is a four door in snazzberry pearl color. We should hear something in about four weeks. Even though we took a hit on the camper, we will come out ahead on the truck and even sell it for more than we paid for it. The truck is a 2018 and only has a little over 4,000 miles on it. It's really huge. It's a Ram 3500 duelly. Dan has a hard time finding parking places for it, so we usually take my little Fiesta when we go places together. I have never driven the truck. It is just too big for my liking. I won't miss it much, even though it is a really nice vehicle. <br/><br/>
The biggest relief about having the camper sold is that we don't have to worry about it taking damage from Hurricane Ida. Even though we are only taking a glancing blow from the storm, there was always a concern that something would fall on it or that wind would blow it over. We are supposed to stay below tropical storm force winds, but there is a tornado threat and we are under a tornado watch until 7:00 tonight. I really feel sorry for those in Louisiana. Sally hit us last year as a strong category 2 storm, and we had no power for several days. This storm will devastate the coastal communities for months. If you think of them, please say a prayer for their safety. Currently, the storm is a category 4. To put that in perspective, Katrina hit as a category 3. Dan and I went out and bought a generator a couple of days ago. I don't think we will need it for this storm, but eventually we will. Dan is going to have the electric company wire our meter so we can plug the generator right into it. That way, we won't have extension cords running all over the house. Last year during Sally we used our small camping generator. It worked fine, but there were some things it couldn't do, so having one that is more powerful gives me peace of mind.<br/><br/>
I have some exciting news to share about the DBA chair stuff I mentioned last time I wrote. I hunkered down and finished my IRB courses a couple of weeks ago, and then I emailed the program director to let her know and ask her what my next step in the process was. Well, she went and talked to the director of my department, and together they agreed to share me. I was planning to do the dissertation committee stuff on my own time, but I have been given permission to work on it during work hours. My director, assistant director, and supervisor are all very supportive, and they know that there are not many opportunities for advancement where I currently am, so they are allowing me to perform my chair responsibilities during work hours in hopes that it will eventually open a door to further advancement. It turned into a bit of an odd situation. I was 'hired' to do chair stuff, but then this past week, Darlene asked me for my transcripts and a CV so she could vet me for the position. She said she was working with HR and that I had nothing to worry about on my end. On Friday, she emailed me to tell me that I needed to apply for a part-time faculty position that was going to be opened for me on the website and that I would need to 'interview' for the position. It is all formalities, but I have never gotten a job before I interviewed (at least never where I knew I was hired, lol). My interview is scheduled for Tuesday morning and Darlene told me not to prepare for it--that it is going to be very informal and last about 30 to 45 minutes. What is really exciting is that I will officially be considered faculty, so eventually, if a full-time faculty position opens, I may be able to slide into it. I have already been assigned my first two student and have my own class, although it will not be officially mine until next term when all the paperwork is processed. I will appear as the profesor everwhere except in the professor profile, which currently shows my students' committe member. I am not sure that the students will even look at that section of Blackboard, though. If they do, Jan told me that I can just tell them we share the class. I spoke with one of my students last week, but the other has not contacted me yet inspite of the fact that I have reached out to him twice. I have a feeling I am going to have trouble with him.<br/><br/>
I mentioned taking a break from school for a bit and part of the reason is that I am contemplating changing my major. I elected to pursue the master of public health for personal reasons. I have been interested in health and nutrition for many years and I thought this degree might be a way to shift into the field. However, now that I will be working in the business college, I am contemplating pursuing an MBA instead. Business does not really interest me much, but my undergraduate degree is in human resources management, and there is an HR concentration in the MBA track, so that is what I am considering doing. The only problem is that I do not want to take the research methods class, so I am trying to figure out if a statistics class I took back in 2000 will satisfy the requirement. I took four research methods classes in my PhD program, but apparently classes won't transfer between education levels, meaning a doctoral RM class will not transfer into a master's level program. I think it's stupid, but if the stats class won't transfer in, I will petition for a substitution and argue that I could teach the RM class, which I could. Hopefully I will know something in the next few weeks, but in the meantime, I am going to relax and enjoy life for awhile.<br/><br/>
Well, I think that is all the news I have right now. All I really have on my agenda for today is a bit of house cleaning. I plan to stay inside since it's supposed to rain on and off all day. Fortunately, I did my grocery shopping yesterday, so I have nowhere to go. I hope you all have a great new week, and happy Labor Day early!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-73583562697499976482021-07-20T07:02:00.001-05:002021-07-20T07:02:55.790-05:00Time for My Monthly UpdateGood morning, friends! I hope you are all doing well. Life is pretty status quo right now. It is summer in Alabama, and we have been getting rain pretty much every day for weeks. I don't mind at all because I love rain, but a lot of people are getting really tired of it. It has been much cooler than normal, and I don't think too many people are complaining about that. Right now I hear thunder, so I am guessing that in about a half an hour or 45 minutes there will be a downpour. <br/><br/>
I am still waiting for my dissertation to be published. As soon as I got notification from the registrar that I had met all the degree completion requirements, I submitted my dissertation to ProQuest, which is the company responsible for publishing theses and dissertations. Everything happened really fast at first, but once it was actually delivered to ProQuest, I didn't hear anything, so I went to the Q&A page and found out that it can take 8-12 weeks for the dissertation to make it into the database. Regardless, though, my degree should have been released and I should receive my diploma in the mail before too much longer. My graduation ceremony is this weekend. I really wanted to go walk in person, but my university decided to hold another virutal ceremony, so I will be watching online instead. <br/><br/>
Right after I passed my defense, Dan emailed a couple of the administrators in the DBA program at CSU and asked them if I could possibly sit on a dissertation committee, and the program director emailed me a couple days later and asked if we could talk. She called me and told me that she would send me some training links and that after I complete everything, she will pair me with a mentor, and eventually, I will be able to chair committees. I have a lot of training to get through, though, and it is going slow because I am also working on my class. I think after my class ends next month, I will take a month or two off to focus on the training and get that finished. I have to take three IRB classes (Institutional Review Board, which is the body that governs ethical research practices), and one of the classes has 34 modules. I am about 1/2 way finished with my first, five module class. I have a long way to go, but I was told that I could take it as fast or slow as I want to. <br/><br/>
In other news, Dan and I have decided to sell our camper and our truck. We really enjoyed camping when we lived in Omaha, but after moving doing here, losing my birds, and starting work, neither of us really has much of a desire to disrupt our lives to go out with it. Right now there is a camper shortage, so we should be able to sell it pretty quickly. We plan to take it to a dealer this weekend and have them sell it on consignment for us. We are going to take a bit of a loss, but right now it is doing no good just sitting in a storage lot. It is a really nice unit, so I would love to see someone use it. After the camper sells, we are talking about trading the truck for a Jeep. I have never had a fun vehicle. We are also talking about a convertible of some sort, but we like the utility of a Jeep. After the camper sells, we will make a final decision. <br/><br/>
My kitties are doing really well. I had to take both of them to the vet (one on a Wednesday and one the following Monday). I think they had some kind of infection. The vet gave them an antibiotic shot and two different dewormers. I am still giving them one of the dewormers. I swear that it is a never-ending bottle. I have been giving it to them for a week and the bottle is still more than half full. I hope it magically empties in the next few days. They don't really mind the taste of the meds, but the do not like being messed with, so giving it to them every night is a two person job.<br/><br/>
My final news is that I plan to book my cruise today. My mom finally figured out who she is bring with her and we nailed down the kind of room we want, so I wam working with a travel agent friend to try to get a good deal. She said she'd let me know today what she figures out for us. April and I will be heading to Disney World for five days in about six months. I am super excited about that trip. Last time we were there, April was sick and had a badly sprained ankle, so I am praying that this trip is less eventful and much more fun. <br/><br/>
I just got my downpour, and now the rain is falling gently. I love the tropical downpours we get here. I live about an hour away from both Mobile and Pensacola, and I heard that Mobile is almost a foot above average for rainfall at this time of the year. A weatherman in Birmingham who I follow said that next week is supposed to be drier and warmer, so the rain haters should be happy. I hope you all have a wonderful week!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-8018144757381456902021-06-08T18:38:00.004-05:002021-07-20T07:04:31.299-05:00IT IS OFFICIAL!!Hello, friends. I just had to stop in and announce that <i><b>IT IS OFFICIAL!!!</b></i> I am Dr. Corcoran! I defended my dissertation on Wednesday, June 2<sup>nd</sup>. I made the revisions my committee recommended that evening and emailed it back to my chair before bed that same night, and on Friday, June 4<sup>th</sup>, my chair emailed and told me that the program director of my college had approved my dissertation with no further revisions, which he said has never happened in the 50+ dissertations he has been the chair for. At that point, it was forwarded to the dean for final approval, and I was really hoping that I would hear something by Friday evening, but I didn't. The dean's part of the process is a formality, but that is what makes it official, so until I got the email saying I was Dr. C, I couldn't claim the title. What a journey it has been. And yeah, I should take a nice long break, but I have already signed up for another class. I started a Master of Public Health degree at the university I work for about 3 1/2 years ago (before I started working there), and I decided I want to resume it because I get a 90% tuition discount, so I started my new class on Wednesday. My ultimate goal is really to be a health educator. I have been interested in health for many years, and with obesity at epidemic proportions, both Dan and I have a heart for helping people escape the trap and learn how to not only lose weight, but maintain the weight loss forever and get their health back. With a Ph.D in educational leadership and an MPH, not to mention the holistic health coaching certificate I am working on and my own weight loss, I should have decent crediblity, so we shall see what happens in a couple of years after I finish my degree. In the meantime, I am very happy with the job I have now and have no intention of leaving at least until after I finish the MPH.<br/><br/>
I brought my kitties home on May 8<sup>th</sup>, so they have been with me now for a month now. They are really super sweet. Their names are Charlotte (Charleigh), the tabby, and Isabella (Bella) is the calico.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV6L5p6etWvR1JjTanW1wZx5wQ36Xsb5CUPC_DnfPRr5qLRnf5Z55tMs-I6p7Ezysx7-lBv9F0l7xUuJEe32nwaQv4DPigqfzQHxjDItbMBspMXYT5dmeleMej-16h9HoNo69ZRt8pNvQ/s2016/Bella2.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="2016" data-original-width="1512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV6L5p6etWvR1JjTanW1wZx5wQ36Xsb5CUPC_DnfPRr5qLRnf5Z55tMs-I6p7Ezysx7-lBv9F0l7xUuJEe32nwaQv4DPigqfzQHxjDItbMBspMXYT5dmeleMej-16h9HoNo69ZRt8pNvQ/s320/Bella2.jpg"/></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-MHGWYR1oUcCwaPXrsNYAAGnfxulW72jd4O9oDys97FVr0tOmety4GGHM4O-v6CC2CYo8YRdFR9Ic8amrtzifzdvcXz8bCSUvgQm1dTs0-W-pEEB0OyQjdgFjmzs1OvqfZRJHGc5VaZA/s640/Bella.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-MHGWYR1oUcCwaPXrsNYAAGnfxulW72jd4O9oDys97FVr0tOmety4GGHM4O-v6CC2CYo8YRdFR9Ic8amrtzifzdvcXz8bCSUvgQm1dTs0-W-pEEB0OyQjdgFjmzs1OvqfZRJHGc5VaZA/s320/Bella.jpg"/></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;" ><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTSGBZsFbuCavdVJtK5FEg-gm4HV7PRYGN8p95iGAECth4IwdkNum3JtMFkg_KPi0f5bGCU70nR8wCpIMVRa3xKsEs7p4Tn3V4VM6EWJYew63H8AWQV0ijfcgDPyswJrmBaz2xd0MLjEs/s640/Ellie.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" vspace=0 hspace=10 data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTSGBZsFbuCavdVJtK5FEg-gm4HV7PRYGN8p95iGAECth4IwdkNum3JtMFkg_KPi0f5bGCU70nR8wCpIMVRa3xKsEs7p4Tn3V4VM6EWJYew63H8AWQV0ijfcgDPyswJrmBaz2xd0MLjEs/s320/Ellie.jpg"/></a></div>
Bella was a bit standoffish when I first brought her home, but she has really warmed up to me and now she loves to sit in my lap and purr until she falls asleep. Charleigh initially was the one who wanted to be with me all the time, but as she gets bigger, she tends to want to sleep on my desk or on a chair next to me. Emma likes Charleigh a lot, but she tends to growl at Bella. Dan thinks Emma might think that Charleigh is Mimi, the kitten I resuced from my back yard about five years ago. After I was unable to find her a home, my daughter decided to adopt her, so Emma and Mimi basically grew up together. Mimi is also a tabby, so it is possible that Emma feels a kinship with her. I have only let them see the birds a couple of times because they really want to get them and the birds are a little too curious about them.<br/><br/>
I finally went and got my hair colored a week and half ago for the first time in about a year. I got it done last summer when I thought I'd have to go back to work, but after they announced I was going to be permanently remote, I just let it go. The whole top of my head is pretty much gray now, and I was getting a bit tired of looking old. Here is a picture of what I had done. I didn't get it cut. It is very long now. It is down to the middle of my back and I let most of my bangs grow out, but I decided to cut a small fringe because I think I look younger with bangs.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI3n6jlr-2sUZ_-zNXDfHy601ROaB9Z2CoSu95e1FewMSVkLLUw7ZJ63deT0x6itQ-IwPs3u1LryH5Iq8Sal7EDbkiRvb_XTjTBHPzSQCH0TkVvoNLe3yfiGHB6k09rWHQG5pikYk-6H0/s640/haie.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" hspace=10 data-original-width="481" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI3n6jlr-2sUZ_-zNXDfHy601ROaB9Z2CoSu95e1FewMSVkLLUw7ZJ63deT0x6itQ-IwPs3u1LryH5Iq8Sal7EDbkiRvb_XTjTBHPzSQCH0TkVvoNLe3yfiGHB6k09rWHQG5pikYk-6H0/s320/haie.jpg"/></a></div>
In other news, April and I will be taking two vacations next spring. We are going to Disney World for five days in early February, and then we are going to take a cruise with my mom in early April. Disney is about 7 1/2 to 8 hours from where we live, and the port for the cruise ship is an hour away, so all within driving distance. I am really excited about going back to Disney. Last time April and I went in 2013, she got really sick and our two day vacation turned into one decent day and one really sucky day sitting in our hotel room. I am praying that since we will not be flying, she will not get sick. She does not travel well for some reason. My mom has wanted to take a cruise for years, and she was supposed to go with some of her friends to celebrate their 70<sup>th</sup> birthdays, but their plans fell through, so she asked if we would go with her next year. We will probably do a 5 day cruise to Mexico. Hopefully it will be better than the cruise Dan and I took in January of 2020 when we were fogged in at port for over 24 hours and never made it to Mexico. It was sad.<br/><br/>
I hope y'all are doing well. I will make some blog visits either tonight or this weekend.Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-978889739122362021-05-08T11:47:00.000-05:002021-05-08T11:47:56.788-05:00Kitties!Are y'all amazed that I'm writing again within a month of my last post? I am sitting at my desk watching a cat video and trying to get motivated to work on my dissertation. I have to proofread and format it, and then it will be ready to submit to my chair. I should be super motivated, but I'm not. I've just been too distracted with other things (kittens), and work wore me out this week. All I can say is that I am thankful for weekends! <br/><br/>
In my last post, I included a picture of Charleigh, the kitten I was planning to bring home. A few days after I posted that picture, we went to meet the kittens, and April and I both fell in love with all the females. She was flip-flopping between the other two, whose names were Brie and Dumpling. She finally decided that she would just take them both, even though she was hesitant about caring for four cats, so I talked to Dan and he acquiesced and said I could bring two home (he's such a softie, lol). A few days later, Lexie, the lady from work, who lives in a strickly pet-free apartment, got found out, so April offered to take mama cat and kittens until they were weaned. Lexie quickly rehomed the boys even though they were a bit too young to be without mama, and April and I picked up mama and the three females on that Saturday evening. April kept her for about a week and half, and when mama cat stopped paying a lot of attention to the babies because she went into heat again, we took her back to Lexie so she can find her a new home. <br/><br/>
Anyway, as we watched the kittens interact, we noticed that Dumpling and Brie were pretty much inseparable, and Eclair liked to be off by herself. I really had my heart set on Eclair, though, so April went back and forth trying to decide whether she wanted to keep Brie or Dumpling. She finally decided on Brie, but I realized that Eclair would probably do better without her sisters than either Dumpling or Brie, so last night April and I decided that I will take those two and she will keep Eclair. Here is a picture of my babies.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLXTNAMFpZW-siAQRzqrnB85sLbVgWawhTyFfcWFi6LzW2QYCw74ueYD4BJKf8n9eKQ-SqCTYhqhhNhVar-x5GSQwjJpJ15YnHPoKaiC-YNPv_47NunrFrwWS7J368telvvfSGXiwzdQU/s640/kitties.jpeg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" hspace="15" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLXTNAMFpZW-siAQRzqrnB85sLbVgWawhTyFfcWFi6LzW2QYCw74ueYD4BJKf8n9eKQ-SqCTYhqhhNhVar-x5GSQwjJpJ15YnHPoKaiC-YNPv_47NunrFrwWS7J368telvvfSGXiwzdQU/s320/kitties.jpeg"/></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBVx4kR29NJ_domDo_mlCV5xwZsxJ4g8Pk9poGlxY1TbjewR5_b8fpj_j9SyFImmvNgBaThkLNOPa3e4FpjxmHh7APIBD5i9C95mz2wiSUl3XAbIBtAiVmfyKQtzJO5ezPndOC1wm5F44/s640/Ellie.jpeg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; clear: left; float: left;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" hspace="15" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBVx4kR29NJ_domDo_mlCV5xwZsxJ4g8Pk9poGlxY1TbjewR5_b8fpj_j9SyFImmvNgBaThkLNOPa3e4FpjxmHh7APIBD5i9C95mz2wiSUl3XAbIBtAiVmfyKQtzJO5ezPndOC1wm5F44/s320/Ellie.jpeg"/></a></div>
Dumpling and Eclair are very similar in that they are both tabbies, but Eclair is a little darker and has more or a tortie look to her while Dumpling is more striped. I haven't completely settled on names yet, but I am thinking Eloise (Ellie) for the tabby and Roxanne (Roxy) for the calico. I was going to name Dumpling Charleigh, but it just isn't sticking because Eclair is Charleigh. I had started calling her Ellie, so I think she is going to have to keep that name, and Brie does not look like a Charleigh (not that I really know what a Charleigh looks like). It is possible that I will bring them home today. I am pretty much ready for them, so I will let April decide when she thinks Charleigh (new name TBD) is ready to let her sisters go. <br/><br/>
Today is the three year anniversary of moving into this house. A lot has happened in the last three years; hurricanes, remodels, losing pets, etc., but in spite of some sad months, I am still very happy to be here. Today Dan and Ben are going to the beach to talk. I ask for your prayers for Ben. He has gained a lot of weight and Dan wants to try to make him understand that his life is going to be very difficult if he does not get his diet under control. He has asthma and I worry because he is short of breath pretty frequently. As an asthmatic myself, I understand how carrying extra weight can make things worse, and that is part of the reason that I was determined to get rid of the 30 extra pounds I was carrying around. While they are out, I am going to April's house to help her clean, and I may be bringing kittens home with me. :) In the meantime, I am off to read a couple pages of my dissertation. I am contemplating taking a few days off work next week to try to finish (or nearly finish) the dissertation up.<br/><br/>
I hope you all have a fantastic weekend!
Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-14308187154462690662021-04-16T20:21:00.003-05:002021-04-17T15:41:33.797-05:00World's Worst BloggerI am officially the world's worst blogger. Life has just been really busy, and time flies. Since I last wrote, I have basically finished up my dissertation. I just need to format things and proofread for typos and other mistakes. I will probably turn it in to my chair in about a month, and I should be finished completely shortly thereafter as long as my committee doesn't want me to make a bunch of changes. Dan ran all my statistics for me, so I will need him to explain everything to me before I defend, but it shouldn't be too hard because I have a pretty good idea of what is going on. I am pretty excited to see the light at the end of the tunnel :)<br/><br/>
In about the middle of January, we started tearing into our floors, and I am happy to say that after a couple months of mess, my house is pretty well back to normal. We have a couple of closets to do, and Dan has to reinstall the quarter round around the baseboards, but those are minor projects. I also need to paint most of the house, but we decided to wait until fall. I want to enjoy the summer and not be fixated on home improvements, and Dan worked so hard that he really deserves a break. Since I am permanently remote, I decided to turn the room that was the bird room before Ben moved out into my office, and it turned out really nice. I painted the walls a neutral beige color and it made the room warm and inviting. I bought a couple of bookshelves and a printer cabinet, which make it feel like an office. Now I just need to hang up a couple of pictures and I will be finished. <br/><br/>
After almost three years of living in Alabama, Dan and I finally found our gumption and got back on the WFPB wagon for good. We had so many false starts over the years. The only advantage to the false starts is that I didn't let myself completely go, but I never could make it past a month or so before I caved and we went out for Mexican food and margaritas. My last margarita was on February 19<sup>th</sup>, which was my year anniversary back to work. The next day, I started eating healthy and I never looked back. Once I realized that I was in this for life, I decided to sign up for a holistic nutritionist certificate program, and I started last week. I probably should have waited until I am finished with the dissertation, but I have six months to finish it, and because I care about it, I shouldn't have any trouble keeping myself motivated. I have been coaching my supervisor. She finally decided that keto wasn't working for her, which was my opportunity to tell her about WFPB eating. She was desperate enough to try it because of some health issues, and she is completely ecstatic about the results so far. She thought she would add a little meat back into her diet after about three weeks, but she is feeling so good that she has no desire to eat it now. I am so stinking proud of her. I do whatever I can to encourage her, and I think she really appreciates it. It has definitely helped us bond further, too.<br/><br/>
Aside from all that excitement, I have three pieces of recent news. Two are not that exciting, but I am pretty excited about one of them. First, I got my COVID vaccine last week. I got the J&J vaccine just before the paused its administration. I am not too concerned about adverse side effects. Aside from feeling dizzy right after I got it, I had no pain in my arm and no illness. My kids got the Pfizer vaccine yesterday and they both felt a little rough today, but I think they are feeling better now. Second, on Wednesday we drove to Pensacola and watched a hockey game. I went to a couple of hockey games about 25 years ago, and I forgot how much fun they are. I will definitely go see more games next season. Finally, at the beginning of May, I will be adding a new addition to my little family. <br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEzjPFu4VztNfzvhwCaCMlLPZv8HbJIMoYkOX60XXldylKlWEFaSAXY4JIabpineDV8x8AJj1fuw6EMDm32encXlH_6T1s7NuiHYVvoS7y2IoCYQeqV7UJsxJVK1frLVYV_gxL8PxjHG4/s1136/kitty.jpeg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="954" data-original-width="1136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEzjPFu4VztNfzvhwCaCMlLPZv8HbJIMoYkOX60XXldylKlWEFaSAXY4JIabpineDV8x8AJj1fuw6EMDm32encXlH_6T1s7NuiHYVvoS7y2IoCYQeqV7UJsxJVK1frLVYV_gxL8PxjHG4/s320/kitty.jpeg"/></a></div><br/><br/>
At work we have a message board, and a lady posted that she has six kittens that need homes. April has been wanting to add a new female kitten to her home, so I sent her the lady's contact information and she sent an inquiry, but she didn't get a response, so today I reached out to the lady and they started texting back and forth. April sent me some updated pictures that she got, and I fell in love with this little girl. I asked Dan if I could get her and he finally relented, lol. We may get to go meet them on Sunday afternoon. I haven't settled on a name yet, but on my short list is Charlotte (Charleigh for short), Olivia (Livvy), and Theadora (Teddy). I was also considering Delilah, Dinah, Bella, Chloe, Kiki, and Thomasina. Maybe when I see her, I'll just know what her name is. Right now, her name is "Eclair." :D<br/><br/>
Well, that is about all I have for now. With my track record, I'll just say that I will see you all again in about six months, lol.
Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-44177089163977738092020-12-17T22:51:00.001-06:002020-12-17T22:51:41.196-06:00I PASSEDI thought I would come by to let you all know that I passed my dissertation defense and only need to make minor revisions to my proposal. I need to add a few details to my abstract and a couple of documents to my appendices, and then I will resubmit it to my chair by this weekend. The next step is to start working on my IRB application. I imagine that it will not be approved until after the first of the year, but that is fine. I do not plan on doing much between now and then anyway.<br/><br/>
I realized that I forgot to mention that we decided to refinance our mortgage, and we closed on the new loan today. When we closed on our first mortgage 2 1/2 years ago, our interest rate was 4.75%, and I was able to get it down to 2.75%. We also went from a 30 year to a 15 year mortgage, and our payment will only be about $150 more a month than what I was paying. Oddly, we did not have to bring any money to closing--in fact, the title company is going to mail us a $500 check on Tuesday. It does not make any sense to me that we had to borrow money to pay ourselves, but I guess that's an extra $500 I can put toward my principle in February.<br/><br/>
I think that is all I have to say at the the moment. Tomorrow is Friday, and I get off work at 3:00, so Dan and I will probably grab an early dinner and then watch Christmas movies. Sunday I would like to try to get my office painted and my house cleaned up so it's in order for Christmas Eve. Merry Christmas to all of you!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-77327738223868084922020-12-15T09:05:00.002-06:002020-12-15T09:05:20.908-06:00Defense DayI am off work today because at 5:00 I am going to be defending my dissertation proposal. I was supposed to do it last Thursday, but I was not ready. I am nervous and will be happy when it is over, but I am pretty sure I will pass. The next step is my instituional review board application and then I will put my survey together and send out the link so I can get my results. After I have about 200 survey replies, I can run my statistics, write up my results, defend my dissertation, and be finished with school <i>forever</i>!!!<br/><br/>
Other than that, there is not much going on at the moment. There is a lot in the works for after Christmas, though. I got my new countertops a week ago, and they have really brightened up my kitchen a lot. My old countertops were black granite. Apparently they were very popular in the early 2000s. I hated them because they always looked dirty and I could not find things I set down on them. It's like the item would get sucked into a black hole. My new countertops are white quartz with a gray pattern. After I take my Christmas tree down, we are going to rip out my floors and lay new vinyl planks down in the whole house. We already ripped carpet out of two of the bedrooms. Only my bedroom still has carpet. After we get the floors laid, we plan to paint, but only because I am not 100% sure of about what color will go best with the flooring I have chosen. If I can nail that down before we lay the flooring, then I might paint first, which would actually be better. We bought a sprayer, so that should make quick work of it. After those two big projects, there will just be small projects to do, and after I finish my dissertation, for the first time since 2014 I will not have anything big hanging over my head. It will be nice to have weekends to just go do fun things and not think about how I should be writing rather than playing Animal Crossing or cleaning my house. <br/><br/>
Christmas is 10 days away and I feel like I have not really done much to prepare for it. My tree is up and I have decorated the inside and outside of my house a bit, but I have only bought a couple of presents. I bought April an Animal Crossing Switch and Dan wanted Game of Thrones DVDs. Ben will want money, and last year I bought Matt an Amazon gift card that he never redeemed, so I will regift that to him, lol. I also bought my nieces an Amazon gift card last year that their dad did not redeem, so guess who will be getting another regifted gift card. I bought my mom an Amazon gift card when I went to visit in October, so she is taken care of. Those are really the only people I need to buy for. I pretty much buy what I need when I need it, so I do not ever know what to tell people I want. I prefer just to enjoy the company of my small family. I will host Christmas Eve at my house and April is hosting Christmas dinner at her house. She is very proud of her new home and loves when Dan and I come to vist. She and Ben are making it really cute. I am glad that they get along so well. <br/><br/>
Well, I really need to go and study. My defense is in eight hours and I want to be very well prepared. I hope you all have a wonderful and blessed Christmas!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-35331389356714087732020-11-12T15:17:00.001-06:002020-12-02T22:02:07.369-06:00Lots of News to ShareI have become the worst blogger in the world. I am sorry I didn't update sooner. Life just stays super busy and throws me surprises left and right. After Hurricane Sally, we had a few other threats, but everything stayed to the west (poor Louisiana!) Eta was a potential threat, but it looks like it made landfall in north-central Florida and is now heading out to the Atlantic. Hurricane season officially ends in 18 days, but with the way 2020 is going, I wouldn't be surprised to see storms forming right up until New Year's Eve.<br/><br/>
In other news, April and her boyfriend broke up shortly after Hurricane Sally, and she decided to buy a house. That has been a whirlwind. She found a really cute house not too far from where I live and put an offer on it, but the seller was not really ready to sell and so he tried to give her the run-around to buy some time. She wasn't having any of that and instead put an offer on a house three or four doors down that is the exact same floorplan but is brand new and a bit less expensive. The only disadvantage to the new house is that the driveway is steep, much like the driveway we had in Belleuve. The upside is that we don't get snow here, so she will never have trouble getting into her garage. She also had to buy a refrigerator and will have to buy window coverings. Today at 9:00am was her walk through and she will close next Friday at 1:00pm. Understandably, she is happy, sad, and stressed all at once. She really loves her boyfriend and she wanted to marry him, but there are some issues that she just couldn't see past, so she decided to make the break. I think it is a good thing to be honest. He is a really nice guy and I like him, but I never felt that he was right for her. She wants to stay friends with him, but it is doubtful that they will since they will not see each other very often.<br/><br>
April has always been very financially responsible, so this big purchase also has her pretty stressed out. I suggested that maybe she could have Ben move in with her, but she was not excited about that idea after living with him in the apartment they shared last year. Let's just say that he is not a very good housekeeper. She started rethinking things and finally decided to ask him to move in with her late last week, so once again, Dan and I will be empty nesters as of next weekend. It really is the best situation for everyone. April and Ben can share expenses because if they each lived alone, they would be stretching themselves financially. Ben has a steady paycheck now, but he is at the lower end of making of living wage. April can afford the house, but she, too, would be stretched, so this is a good answer to the problem. I have already spoken with Ben about being a responsible roommate, and April is giving him some creative license with the house in an endeavor to give him the feeling that it is his home too. I think that as long as Ben holds up his end of the bargain, everything will work out fine.<br/><br/>
Going out looking at houses with April really gave me the itch to do some remodeling, so I hit that head on. The first thing we did was replace my old refrigerator and stove (FINALLY!) I bought a refrigerator over a year ago, but it was delivered banged up and dusty, so we sent it back. After that I just kind of gave up. We also had to replace our HVAC system because there was a leak in the coil area that was spilling water into Ben's room. The timing was a bit unexpected, although we knew that eventually it would have to be done. We also had to replace the hot water heater because it has been acting up for some time. I finally got tired of not knowing whether I'd have hot water or not and persuaded Dan to replace it. Yesterday someone came to measure my counters because I want to get rid of the black granite countertops in my kitchen. It's not that I utterly hate them, but my whole kitchen was dark: black appliances, black countertops, and darkish cherrywood colored cabinets. On top of that, the living room floor is a darker-colored wood color, the front door had a stained-glass looking film on it for privacy (which I removed yesterday), and my back porch is screened in, so I do not get a ton of light in my house. After the beginning of the year, we are going to paint the walls and replace all of the floors except the bathrooms. Dan is thrilled to have such a big project coming up (she says facetiously, lol). I keep telling him that we can hire someone, he insists on doing it himself. Ben said he'd help, and I will do what I can, so I hope that it goes fairly smoothly.<br/><br/>
So that is about all of my news except for one new piece that I got about three hours ago. My employer is making my position permanently remote, so I will not be going back to the office! It was very welcome news, but I have to admit that it feels a little weird to know that this is permanent. It is definitely a good thing, though, because one of my coworkers moved to Illinois a few months ago, and I think she was very hopeful that we would be allowed to continue working remotely so that she would not need to find a new job. I think that this covid thing has demonstrated to a lot of employers that people can work from home and remain productive. I think that it probably also helps with retention, and it definitely helps with expenses. People are going to save money on clothes, gas, and going out for lunch, and fewer people driving to work every day will help with the environmental footprint impact. I am not sure if all departments are going to be allowed to work from home, though. My director started advocating for us to work from home before covid, so the fact that we have proven we can do it likely helped her cause. <br/><br/>
Well, my lunch break is over, so it's back to work for me. Based on my blogging record, I might as well wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year right now, lol. Love you all!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-59336784046435291032020-09-17T08:10:00.002-05:002020-11-12T07:29:57.646-06:00Hurricane SallyI survived my first "real" hurricane. When I moved to Fairhope back in November of 2009, Ida was a thing, but we laughed at the storm. We experienced much worse weather in Nebraska. Over the past two summers, there was never any threat of anything hitting us, but this summer has been very active and back in June, Cristobal hit to the west of Gulf Shores and brought us a nice amount of rain without the destruction. As the summer progressed, there werw other storms in the area, but the National Hurrican Center always did a fantastic job of predicting where they would hit. I was amazed at their accuracy. It looked like either Laura or Marco had the potential to affect my area, but both meandered well to the west, and I began to feel very sorry for Louisiana. When Sally entered the Gulf, it too was proejcted to hit somewhere in Louisiana. By this time, I had total faith in the NHC's forecasts and was not at all concerned. But as the days went on, the storm seemed to inching closer and closer to Gulf Shores. I was still not concerned, though, because Sally was such a slow moving storm that it was forecast to weaken to a tropical storm before making landfall due to it stirring up colder Gulf water and encountering wind sheer and land friction. All I can say is that Sally was a very fickle lady and defied the forecasters at every turn. Not only did she meander some 200 miles east of where she was originally forecast to hit, but she also made landfull (right on top of Gulf Shores at 4:45am on Wedensday, September 16<sup>th</sup>) as a very strong category 2 hurricane. <br/><br/>
Three years ago a tornado formed over my neighborhood in Nebraka and we lost so many trees and limbs. I remember standing in my kitchen and looking out the window at the wind, and as I stared, a tree fell over. It was then that Dan yelled to get into the basement. By the time I rounded up the animals, the threat was past. It didn't occur to me that a tornado was coming through until it was too late. Fortunately, it was a minor F0 that strengthened just a bit to an F1 before disapating, but it scared me enough to never want to experience another one. Sally was very much like that brief moment when I watched the tree fall. It sounded like a locomotive outside my house for hours. I went to bed grateful that it was a weak storm. Little did I know...<br/><br/>
I woke up about 5:00am to dead silence. We were in the eye of the hurricane. It was surreal. I walked outside about 6:30 and already my neighbors were out assessing the damage. My next door neighbor to my right had a tree on the roof. Neighbors on the other side lost most of the shingles off the front of their roof. A very large palm tree in the front of a house up the street was split in half horizontally. My back fence had blown down and was under a foot or so of water. And 95% of Baldwin County was without power. After a couple of hours, the wind started to pick up and we were warned that the backside of the storm had yet to come through. Thankfully, once Sally made landfall, the backside of the storm began falling apart, and aside from some wind and a few light showers, the worst was over for me. <br/><br/>
Dan wanted to venture out and try to find gas for our generator. Unfortunately, since this storm was forecast to hit well to our west with relatively minor impacts to our area, very few people were prepared for a nearly major hurricane. We sat in a line for nearly a half an hour waiting for a gas pump. We needed to buy oil, but the convenience shop had lines out the door and around the building, so we decided to find another store. Every place that was open had the same issue--lines for days. We were able to borrow a quart of oil from a neighbor, so our generator is functional. It is doubtful that we have enough gas to last until the power comes back, but we are hopeful that more businesses will be open today.<br/><br/>
Obviously, I will not be working until at least next week. Ben finally got hired at CSU, and he was supposed to start his new job yesterday. Now that has been pushed back to the 30<sup>th</sup>. If the electricty comes back on this weekend, I will be able to work on Monday. I am not looking forward to the number of papers in the queue. There were close to 50 left when I left work on Tuesday. Our new writing specialist was supposed to start yesterday too, so now she will be two weeks behind in her training. Also, my and Dan's 30<sup>th</sup> wedding anniversary was Tuesday. That is one we will never forget.<br/><br/>
Speaking of wedding, Dan and I honeymooned on the Carnival Fantasy cruise ship back in September of 1990, just months after she was set to sail, and this past January, we took a cruise out of Mobile on the Fantasy--almonst 30 years after our first one. It was quite a walk down memory lane. Last night Dan told me that the Fantasy is being scrapped. I found it a bit coincidental that our first cruise was one of the first on the brand new Fantasy and our last cruise was one of the last. 2020 has been quite a year. <br/><br/>
I will try to post pictures of the damage in my next blog post. I am currently running my laptop on battery and need to end this for now. I appreciate prayers as Gulf Shores and surrounding communities begin to clean up and put lives back together. We were very lucky--our damage was minor, but others were not so lucky. My director lost part of her roof and a wall in her condo collapsed. My supervisor has 6 trees down and she lost her shed and her lawnmower. Most larger cities are under curfews until further notice. We have a relatively long road ahead of us. (BTW, I apologize for any typos. I will clean them up when I have a better internet connection.)Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-65463356604021578932020-08-22T10:09:00.001-05:002020-11-12T17:44:13.280-06:00Surprise!Surprise! Yes, I am back finally--at least with one post. I hope everyone is doing well. I have settled into my new routine of working from home and have been doing it now since March 19, so five months. We were given new telephones that work with the internet and a couple of months ago we were issued laptops, so I am now able to use my writing tablet, which makes reviewing papers so much easier. Things seemed to settle down a bit at the beginning of summer, and we had quite a few summer vacationers down here, but now things are pretty quiet again with kids back in school. Schools opened back up a couple of weeks ago, but my understanding is that only about a half of kids returned. A lot of parents elected to keep their kids home and let them do online school. I personally think the whole thing was overblown, but I guess time will tell the truth. I never was particularly worried about it. I know that there were many sicknesses and deaths, but that is not uncommon with any virus. The media rarely reports on flu deaths because we all know that older people are more susceptible to catching pneumonia when they get the flu. But since this was a novel virus, the media decided to make a huge deal. In the end, the number of deaths was well below the projections, but the powers-that-be have managed to fundamentally change America. Many people I have an opportunity to talk to tell me that they prefer not to go out. They have grown accustomed to being at home, and it is now their comfort zone. I imagine that as things get back to 'normal,' people will readjust, but it has been a bizarre time to be alive. <br/><br/>
In November of last year, Ben started streaming a Pokemon game, and I thought it looked fun, so April bought it for me for Christmas. She gave it to me on Thanksgiving, and I delved into the world of pocket monsters. I really didn't think I would enjoy it, but surprisingly, I did. It got me through the months of December, January, and February, and helped me get my mind off of how much I missed my job. By the time I returned to work on February 19<sup>th</sup>, I had accomplished most of what I wanted to, and one unintended consequence of starting Pokemon was the fact that I no longer had time for Facebook. After a few weeks of logging on very rarely, I stopped visiting the site at all, and this past week, I decided to deactivate my account. I heard from my family how toxic the environment was with everyone disagreeing on COVID and politics, and I was blissfully unaware of all the hatred and vitriol. However, Dan still visited frequently and talked about things a lot. I wished he'd leave too, but he had nothing constructive to do to get him away. On March 20<sup>th</sup>, the new Animal Crossing game was released. Back in 2007 or 2008, April bought me the Animal Crossing game for the Wii, and I played that game for about eight years, so I was eager to play the new game. I bought a Switch a year and a half before the game even came out in anticipation. Dan always enjoyed watching me play and he mentioned that he wouldn't mind picking it up. However, Switches were nearly impossible to find with the pandemic, but one day I checked Amazon and they were in stock, so I bought one and copy of AC for Dan for Father's Day. I figured that he would start the game, get tired of it after a few weeks, and leave me to maintain things. I am happy to report that two months later, he still plays everyday and stil enjoys it very much. AND, it has gotten him away from FB for the most part. <br/><br/>
Everyone here is doing well. April seems to enjoy her job, and she started streaming a few weeks ago. She made it to affiliate within seven streams, so she is now making money from people who subscribe to her channel. Ben has been streaming for over a year, and the money he makes is giving him enough to live on until he finds a job. Of course he is living with us (he decided not to move to Nebraska), so he does not have a lot of expenses. He applied for a job where Dan, April, and I work, and he has an interview on Tuesday morning. I pray that he gets this job, becaue he applied there a few times and was passed over. He is an excellent worker, so I know he will do a fantastic job if they will give him a chance. Matt is doing the same job he has done for several years and he still hates it as much as ever, but he is unwilling to make a change, so he lives with it. Dan and I have tried several times over the past couple of years to get back to eating healthy, but were always unsuccessful until about a month ago. We are now back to eating WFPB and walking almost every night. I did not let myself get overweight, but I did gain a few pounds, so I am in the process of dropping them so I can get back into my skinny jeans before I am required to return to the office. We are supposed to be updated by October 1<sup>st</sup>. We were supposed to return on August 31<sup>st</sup>, but they postponed it to see how things would go with kids going back to school. My guess is that as long as things stay relatively controlled, we will be going back in early October. I wouldn't mind working from home, and I am equipped to do so, but it is doubtful that I will be permitted to. I am still working away on my dissertation and will be defending it by the end of this term. After that I will run my research, write up my results, and then hopefully be finished. I am still shooting for the end of the year, but we shall see.<br/><br/>
Well, I think this is a decent stopping point. I will make some blog visits a bit later. Hugs!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-84196262282706248762020-03-17T22:03:00.001-05:002020-03-17T22:03:21.182-05:00Crazy TimesHi, friends! I hope you are all doing well and surviving the COVID 19 scare. Things are going well here. On Thursday I will have been back to work for a month. Most days I feel like I never left. It took me literally one day to get back into the routine. I realize now that I was not at all happy when I was at home. I feel like I have a purpose when I go to work and help students. Yesterday a student called the phone rotation and I got his call, and after talking him through some things he was so thrilled that he asked if I could be the one to review the paper he was going to send in. It always feels good to know that I am doing something that makes a difference. I will most likely work at my job for a long time--maybe even until I retire. <br/><br/>
April found out last Tuesday that she got the instructional design job. Of course she is thrilled. Today was her last day as a CSU employee; tomorrow she transitions over to Waldorf. She was supposed to be at CSU for the next three days for training, but the trainer has decided to do remote training in light of the virus stuff, so I am not sure what is going on. I don't think she is either. She said she was coming in tomorrow at 9:00am, but I am not sure how long she will be there. I will miss her, but I am so proud of her success. <br/><br/>
There is a possibility that my department will be going remote for awhile. CSU leadership is trying to get as many people working at home as possible. It's a little tricky for us because we have to talk to students on the phone, but they could set us up with a chat function for the short term. Today my supervisor came around and asked everyone if they have a reliable personal computer and internet connection. Normally, remote employees are given laptops, but there are obviously not 400 laptops laying around, so they are trying to work with what they have. I know they are working as fast as they can, especially since kids are now out of school until at least April 13<sup>th</sup>. Some people have no child care options, so life is going to be tricky for awhile. Working from home would definitely alleviate some of the stress for them. We are also not hiring new employees for the foreseeable future. Billie's last day is Friday, so it looks like we are going to be super busy with requests again for awhile. We've done it before, so we will be ok, but that means that projects will go by the wayside again. That is unfortunate, because the new APA Manual was released late last year and we are scheduled to implement it on July 1<sup>st</sup>. That means all of our new resources need to be ready to go by early- to mid-May. Fortunately, we have a good start on them, so hopefully we'll be able to push everything out on time.<br/><br/>
Susan, to answer your questions on my last post, the birds are doing ok. Dan is a good bird dad, so they are always entertained. The kids are doing fine. April, of course, starts her new adventure tomorrow, and Ben is going to give his notice at the hotel he's been working at for almost a year and a half. He is planning to move back to Omaha sometime next month or early May. It's hard to say how the virus scare is going to affect hotels down here. It's spring break time, but I imagine most of the kids will stay home now. I did find a really nice church not too far from where I live. Dan has been going with me and he likes it too. Last Sunday we had an online service, and I imagine we will continue to do it that way for at least a month. I am still working on my doctorate. I have at least two more sessions to go, but it might take me three more to finish. I'm hoping to be done by the end of the year. <br/><br/>
It's bedtime, so I am going to close for now. I will try to do some blog visits tomorrow after work. Maybe I'll have an update by then. Stay safe and healthy!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-56645882395966221622020-03-09T06:48:00.002-05:002020-03-09T06:48:20.821-05:00Back in the RoutineI just read through my last post and realized that I have things to update. First, Nicole decided to make February 14<sup>th</sup> her last day at work, so when I got the job offer call on Tuesday the 11<sup>th</sup>, I was told my start date would be February 19<sup>th</sup>, so I had about a week to get everything done. I had to do another background check and drug test, and the drug test was so stressful! I had an appointment at 11:20, and in spite of the fact that I drank a ton of water before I went, I just did not have to go. So I sat there for an hour waiting to feel like I had to go, and when I finally did, I was accused by the medical assistant at the clinic of cheating. She said my urine looked like water and was not warm enough to have come from my body. I was so upset. Of course I knew it was a legitimate test, but she said she had to send it to an outside lab. Obviously everything turned out fine, but I am contemplating telling someone in HR what happened, because she was very rude and unprofessional, and this happened at a clinic that was opened for CSU employees. I do not think CSU would be happy to know that people are being treated that way.<br/><br/>
Anyway, I started on the 19<sup>th</sup> and I only had to spend the morning in orientation. After lunch, I went up and spent the rest of the afternoon getting reacquainted with my computer, phone, and the processes. On Thursday I processed five papers, and on Friday I was back on the phone and back up to speed completely. Now it feels like I never left; they even put me back in the cubicle I was in when I first started. I am very happy to be back. I went through orientation with the new math specialist. That position had been vacant since before I left in August. I guess it is tough to find math people. His name is Larry and he is from South Africa. He is here on a student visa and needed a job because he had graduated and was at risk of being sent back home. He's very quiet. I hardly even know he's there. <br/><br/>
The director of the Success Center, Wendy, has been out since before I started because she has had some health issues, and she came in early last week to tell us that one of her doctors had potentially found something else, but after consulting with another doctor, her fears were put at ease somewhat. Wendy has had some really tough times lately, so I pray that she can start mending now. She also told us that she is fighting hard to get us a 12<sup>th</sup> writing specialist. Student requests continue to increase and we are very busy on the first two or three days of the week. She told me when I applied that she was trying to get a part-time position, which would actually suffice for right now, but I am not sure if the new person would be part- or full-time. I think that if she can justify hiring a full-timer, she definitely will. When my job was posted on the CSU website, I figured HR would take it down when I started, but it still up because Wendy is trying to get a pool of applicants to choose from. I know that Crystal, the Writing Center supervisor, is very concerned about finding someone who will mesh well with the rest of the team. When I very first started, there were a couple of very contentious people working there, and now they are both gone, so things have been much more pleasant. Of course there are still issues. I know of at least two people who really want to find new jobs, but there aren't a lot of opportunities in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach unless one wants to get into hospitality. One of the gals wants to find a job in Washington state where her daughter is, but so far I do not think she has had much luck finding anything. The other is looking for a remote copy editor position, but she only has a bachelor's degree and online jobs are very competitive. <br/><br/>
Case in point, Billie has been applying for remote jobs since before I left because she want to be home with her little girl and have another baby, but until recently she had been kind of particular about the jobs she was applying for. She found out about a month ago that both her in-laws need surgery, and they are the ones who watch her daughter during the day, so she told leadership that she has to find another job and leave. Last Thursday she found out that she got a remote position with WGU and Friday the 20<sup>th</sup> will be her last day. It is only part-time, but it does offer some benefits. She is hoping to supplement that job with another remote teaching position. I am very happy for her, but I am sad for me because she is my best friend at work and I will miss her a lot. So we may have two new people coming into the department again.<br/><br/>
I need to go get ready for work now. I hope you all have a fantastic week. BTW, I am not enjoying waking up when it's still dark. :(Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-74855700707306657572020-02-08T21:28:00.001-06:002020-11-12T16:40:48.202-06:00I'm Going Back to Work!So, Wednesday when I went to meet Billie, she asked me what I was doing today (Saturday), and I said I didn't think I had anything planned, and she said, "Good, because we have to help Nicole pack." Nicole got a job in Iowa and she starts two weeks from Monday! So today she and I spent several hours at her apartment helping her pack things up, and I will probably go help her again next weekend. Then yesterday, April came over after work to feed her snake (which I am temporarily housing for her) and she told me that Nicole's job was already posted on the CSU website, so I texted Wendy and asked her if I needed to apply or if my old application would suffice, and she told me to go ahead and apply, so I did that yesterday. I texted her and told her I had it submitted, and she seemed very excited. Then this morning, she texted me and said, "Oh. And you are hired!!!!! Hahah" Then she said, "I may need to interview you first to determine if you are still as awesome as we know you are. Lol." We bantered back and forth a bit and then I asked her when I could start and she said, "As soon as the position is available and next start date. I’m thinking first week of March!!!! I will talk with HR Monday." So, it looks like I will not need to interview for it and that my start date will be March 4<sup>th</sup>. I wish I could start sooner, but I am super excited. I have at least two dreams every week that I am back at work, and now my dreams are coming true. April is happy, too. I will get to see her every day again--at least for awhile. She applied for an instructional design job and if she gets it, she will be working from home. She wants it really badly, so I pray that she gets it.<br/><br/>
Susan reminded me that I didn't update about my cruise, and to be honest, it wasn't all that great. We were all ready to set sail when we were informed that Mobile Bay was closed due to fog and they were not sure when we would be able to leave. I woke up the next morning and we were still in port, and at about 8:30 they announced that we would set sail about 11:00 and that those who elected to stay on board would receive a 50% refund and 50% off a future cruise. Those who elected to not sail would receive a 100% refund. We decided to go ahead and sail, but the weather wasn't great and we did not get to go to Cozumel because we lost an entire day, so we basically sailed around in the Gulf for two and a half days. The weather was really nice the last day and we had a nice time being together, but I was ready for it to be over and get back home to normal life. I didn't eat as well as I wanted to during the cruise, but I also didn't eat terribly. It has taken me awhile to want to get back on track with my healthy eating, but I finally did at the beginning of this week. Dan and I also started walking every night again, which helps me want to eat healthy. Nicole took me and Billie out for lunch today at a place called Island Wing Company and Billie and I both got the vegan tacos. They were really good, but I doubt they were particularly healthy. I got some exercise today, though, so I don't feel too bad about it. I ate better than I would have eaten a week ago. <br/><br/>
I need to go get ready for my walk now, so I will end this for now. I will update again soon.Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-62697438983368606342020-02-05T12:03:00.000-06:002020-02-05T12:03:28.088-06:00Very Long Overdue UpdateI am sorry that it has been so long since I last updated. I just really have not had a lot to write about. After I stopped working and got past my oral exam, life seemed to get boring, if not a little depressing. I knew very quickly that I wanted to return to work if Wendy would have me, and now it looks like it may happen relatively soon. Two people (perhaps three) that I know of are looking for other employment. One gal's husband had open-heart surgery in his home town in Iowa, and his doctor wants him to stay close, so he has requested to work remote from the Des Moines area. She is looking for employment in Iowa and once she finds a job, she will move. I am praying that it is soon for both of our sake. The other person who is looking for another job is Billie. That one makes me sad, but she has a little girl and wants to have another baby, so I understand her wanting to find a job that she can do from home. It's not easy to find online employment, but she is determined; so much so that she told Wendy and Crystal (the supervisor of the writing center) that she has to find another job. I also know that one other lady wants to move to Washington state to be closer to her daughter, so last I heard, she is looking for a job there. She has not been happy at CSU for some time, so it is not surprising that she wants to leave. Another lady also wants to leave, but her prospects are limited, so I don't anticipate that she will be leaving anytime soon. So I have several opportunities to go back; it's just a matter of one of the gals finding the job she is looking for.<br/><br/>
I finished my last class at the end of December and am now officially in the dissertation phase of my degree. I am not at all excited about school anymore and am just so ready to be finished. I am hoping that I can finish up by the end of summer, but it will depend on how long my committee drags the process out. I am required to take three dissertation classes and my first one ends at the end of March and my second one ends around July 4<sup>th</sup>. I am not sure when the third one ends, but I am guessing around the end of September. Regardless, time will get behind me and it will all be over soon. <br/><br/>
I was very happy to see 2019 come to an end. It started off rough and ended a bit rough as well. In January I said goodbye to my beloved Jasper, in February we had Hailey, our eighteen year old westie, put down, in April I had to say goodbye to my other beloved bird, Avery, and then right after Thanksgiving, we said goodbye to our almost twelve year old silky terrier, Maddie. I am now down to my two sun conures, my blue crown conure, and Emma, the shih tzu/maltese mix. If anything happens to any of them, I will not be replacing them. I thought getting birds would heal my heart and help me get over Jasper and Avery, but it didn't. These birds are nothing at all like them. Of course I knew that they wouldn't be, but I think my broken heart wanted one of them to be close at least. They are quirky and entertaining (and quite messy), but they will never replace Jasper and Avery. <br/><br/>
Other than that, things are pretty much status quo. Dan and I decided to get back to eating strictly vegan, so I went grocery shopping yesterday and bought a whole bunch of fruits and veggies. Last night I made ratatouille and tonight I think I'm going to make vegetable fajitas. I am kind of glad to be cooking again, because while we were not being strict, we ate a lot of black bean burritos, and Dan usually made them for us. I sat around a lot and played my Pokemon Sword video game. April bought it for me for Christmas and I got hooked. I've finally gotten to the point where I am tired of it, so now I can go back to watching recipe videos and planning meals. <br/><br/>
Well, I need to finish reading my chapter on Anna in my <i>Twelve Extraordinary Women</i> book before I go have lunch with Billie. We started doing this Bible study together a couple of months ago, and I have really enjoyed spending time with her talking about spiritual things. Unfortunately, it is pouring and doesn't look like it is going to let up any time soon, but hopefully it won't be coming down as heavily in an hour. I will try to get here more often to update, but I may not be back until I know I've gotten my job back. Here's to hoping that it will be sooner rather than later. My job gave me a real sense of purpose and I really miss that.Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-21073978662582182502019-11-04T10:14:00.002-06:002019-11-04T10:14:58.477-06:00Our New Orleans TripApril and I had a nice trip. We left a little later than we wanted to on Friday morning but still made it to New Orleans with plenty of time to get to our piercing appointments. When we arrived at the shop we were asked to choose our jewelry and the piercer came out and looked at my ear. She told me I have a shallow daith top and she needed to assess it a bit more thoroughly to determine if it was piercable. After measuring and looking, she determined that she would feel comfortable doing it, but she used a larger gauge ring and it is larger in diameter as well. She told me there is a chance that it could migrate and that it will take an entire year to heal, so I will just baby it as much as I can, avoid sleeping on it, and hope for the best. She looked at my tragus and found that it was still open from the last time I had it pierced, so she just used a taper to open it and inserted jewelry into it. To be honest, it hurt worse than the daith piercing, and it is still sore at the three day mark, but once it stops hurting, I won't have to deal with the healing process, so that will be nice. It also saved me $30 not having to get it repierced. After it heals up really good, I will get a smaller hoop put in.<br/><br/><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtFmPJKWbXHsYn9eBmd0dIzc8DfFqJmAHADa-I25HP8n3TNkU4MiCCeUpNQev7urzQn8wGKwenbGKAT-2MxVQxA5D7nt0P7kSjxI1xl2jYH-YJonQz4EHePDs51S_asxdm1DiqxMV3kOQ/s1600/daith.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtFmPJKWbXHsYn9eBmd0dIzc8DfFqJmAHADa-I25HP8n3TNkU4MiCCeUpNQev7urzQn8wGKwenbGKAT-2MxVQxA5D7nt0P7kSjxI1xl2jYH-YJonQz4EHePDs51S_asxdm1DiqxMV3kOQ/s320/daith.jpg" width="240" height="320" data-original-width="1200" data-original-height="1600" /></a></div><br/><br/>
I didn't get a picture of April's trio piercing. I'll have to have her send me one. It turned out really cute, but of course it was pretty sore. After we finished with our piercings, we checked into our hotel and then we went to eat sushi. On the way back to the hotel we stopped at a grocery store to get some pop for April and we picked up a couple of bottles of liqueur to make 'buttery nipples.'The ghost tour provided buy one get one free hurricanes, but they were expensive and we found it was cheaper to buy our own alcohol. We each had a drink before we headed to the tour. The tour was actually more interesting than I thought it would be. We weren't out ghost hunting, but rather the tour guide walked us around the French Quarter and pointed out old houses where weird things are purported to happen. There is a lot of history in New Orleans, so I paid more attention to that rather than the ghost stories. We got back to the hotel after 10:00 p.m. and I was beat. We had walked over 18,000 steps, which wouldn't have been bad if I was used to walking, but I have been lazy for the past several months. Many of the sidewalks are tilted because they have settled. New Orleans is built on silt and sits below sea level, so it is essentially sinking. Things have to be built back up regularly. Walking at an angle made one of my knees hurt, and I compensated with my other foot, so I was sore on both sides of my body and very tired. <br/><br/>
The next morning we checked out of the hotel and walked back to the French Quarter. We ate lunch at Cafe Beignet because you can't go to NO and not eat beignets. We also ate a veggie sandwich that was surprisingly good. The line was long, so it took us a good hour and a half to get our food and eat. After that, we walked around a little, but there was nothing either of us was interested in looking at and we were still worn out from the day before, so we decided to just head home. We got home around 4:30 and I hung out with April and Ben for awhile before heading home. I ended up going to bed around 10:00, so with the time change, I got a good night sleep and felt much better yesterday. I made a trip to the grocery store to get some healthy food because I decided it's time to get back on the WFPB way of eating. I need to lose about 10 pounds (maybe 15 to feel really good) and the only way I can maintain my weight loss is to eat mostly plant food. After I purge the highly palatable foods from my diet for a week or so, I really enjoy eating that way. It's just so much easier to eat junk food like bean burritos and tortilla chips. I have been eating vegetarian all along, but I have been a junk food vegetarian, which is why I have gained some weight. Thankfully I haven't gained much, but I can't wear my jeans right now, and that is my goal.<br/><br/>
Well, I am off to cook some rice and sweet potatoes. I hope you all have a wonderful week!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-83489203644903475082019-10-29T13:53:00.002-05:002019-10-29T13:53:43.178-05:00Time to Start Planning for the Holidays??It doesn't seem like it's been a month since I last posted, but timestamps don't lie. I completed my last assignment for my last class and my two week break flew by, and I already submitted my first assignment for my current class yesterday. It is basically a repeat assignment, so I just modified my last paper. Technically I am not supposed to do that, but since this is my dissertation topic, it's difficult to write a brand new paper. I think my next assignment is a PowerPoint that I have to present to my professor orally. I am not looking forward to that. I hate oral presentations. But I will do what I have to do. This class ends right at the end of the year, which means I'll have submitted my last assignment right before we take our cruise on January 2<sup>nd</sup>. <br/><br/>
I can't believe that the holidays are right around the corner. I need to figure out what I am going to do for Thanksgiving. Since we are vegetarian/vegan, a traditional turkey is not on the menu. I was looking to buy a tofurky, but by the time I had it shipped to me, it would have cost nearly $100, so I will have to start looking around on the internet to see what other vegans do for Thanksgiving. I know there are a lot of options. I haven't even started thinking about Christmas yet. I think part of the reason for that is because it just doesn't feel like winter is coming. Right now it is 72° and I have my back door open, while it snowed in Omaha last night. Everything is still green and flowery, which is not very Christmasy. I'm not complaining, though. I do not miss the snow and cold <i>at all</i>!! At any rate, though, I probably ought to start planning when I'll put my tree up and where I will put it. The spot I had it in last year is unavailable this year, so I might just put it out on my screened in porch. I won't really be able to see it out there, though, so I don't know...<br/><br/>
April and I are taking a mother/daughter trip to New Orleans on Friday. We will leave early on Friday, spend Friday night and come home late on Saturday. So far all we have planned is a trip to a body piercing shop and a ghost tour. I'm not super excited about the tour, but April enjoys things like that, so I'll go for her. When we were in Omaha in July, we went to the piercing shop we used to go to when we lived there. It is an Association of Professional Piercers (APP) member shop, which means they use specific cleaning methods that help prevent infection in new piercings. I got my nose and helix pierced, and April got two dermal piercing on her chest. APP members are tough to find. The nearest one to where I love now is in Slidell, Louisiana, and I was going to make a trip there just to get pierced, but then I decided that a trip to NO with April might be fun, and there are two APP member shops there. I made an appointment at the one that seems the least scary, lol. I am planning to get my left daith and tragus pierced and April wants a faux industrial. I'll post pictures below.<br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfkiAWqBuYlSp3NWCL1MVh-ImJxvGBkCisKHegNAm7902oL87SFo8fK9ZV76z4eQhlTq2nlLmzQCp98n7SfSHo_4vulBP-f5UuR80Io0jdspwLezxcEjB_El93OxTiRZwgA_HniSqUKLQ/s1600/triple+helix.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfkiAWqBuYlSp3NWCL1MVh-ImJxvGBkCisKHegNAm7902oL87SFo8fK9ZV76z4eQhlTq2nlLmzQCp98n7SfSHo_4vulBP-f5UuR80Io0jdspwLezxcEjB_El93OxTiRZwgA_HniSqUKLQ/s320/triple+helix.jpg" width="254" height="320" data-original-width="736" data-original-height="926" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguUmpcszkVtoYG3dfyKWCKoWYUwuoFypYXqcZYmL-P0nURdrwqcxoBSql17xqhZHDqq7JHa7X47qeCCOeACTj8eITjK43UwBQluQZSbYlKp_ZZnTwsKQIQDgdVRq8Liu-_5jCcN0yeCV0/s1600/daith+and+tragus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguUmpcszkVtoYG3dfyKWCKoWYUwuoFypYXqcZYmL-P0nURdrwqcxoBSql17xqhZHDqq7JHa7X47qeCCOeACTj8eITjK43UwBQluQZSbYlKp_ZZnTwsKQIQDgdVRq8Liu-_5jCcN0yeCV0/s320/daith+and+tragus.jpg" width="256" height="320" data-original-width="1280" data-original-height="1600" /></a></div><br/><br/>
The first one is what April wants to get done, and second picture shows what I eventually want my left ear to look like. I already have two lobe piercings and the helix. I probably won't do the third lobe, but I do like the two forward helix piercings, so I may do that in a year after the daith and tragus heal up really well. I'd also like to get a rook piercing on my right ear, so that ear will look something like this when I am finished: <br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitvmLkW_jJJUVNBSIh9pOPptamL2xaPg2Kl4aiMF55vx5iFRNChTy0ssMzW2fw5O-I_cf01mDSblT1jr2NVnXV-ADqpNfVL6IM0eS5QA3VqU8e2e2aMtk_fnn8OpBpFWEJxX4-UeBvPKk/s1600/conch+and+rook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitvmLkW_jJJUVNBSIh9pOPptamL2xaPg2Kl4aiMF55vx5iFRNChTy0ssMzW2fw5O-I_cf01mDSblT1jr2NVnXV-ADqpNfVL6IM0eS5QA3VqU8e2e2aMtk_fnn8OpBpFWEJxX4-UeBvPKk/s320/conch+and+rook.jpg" width="203" height="320" data-original-width="608" data-original-height="960" /></a></div><br/><br/>
I already have the conch piercing, which is the hoop right above the lobe piercings. I've had it done for nearly 9 years and I love it. I am going to get a prettier hoop or a stud put in it when I go to the piercer. I have a plain silver one like in the picture, and I am ready for something nicer. Good jewelry is expensive, but since it's well healed and I will likely wear the new jewelry forever, I don't mind spending a bit for it. Merry Christmas (and happy birthday) to me!<br/><br/>
Well, that is about all for now. I hope you all have a great week!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-70130470312888451742019-09-27T12:38:00.000-05:002019-10-29T15:41:33.755-05:00A Long Overdue UpdateI am very sorry for my lack of updates. I have come here several times and started writing, but my heart just hasn't been into blogging. I haven't felt like myself for awhile. Quitting my job was much harder on me than I thought it would be. I have felt depressed and just blah. I actually asked Dan what he would think about me going back to work if/when there is an opening, and he said I need to do what makes me happy. I worried that he'd get on my case because he would be stuck at home all day with the three birds I brought home, but since they all get along so well and are relatively independent, he is ok with it. He said he is glad I was here to get them adjusted. Well, of course this is all contingent on Wendy hiring me back, so I texted her to express my interest, and I got no reply, so I fretted for days and worried that she was not interested in having me come back. However, a couple of weeks ago I went up to CSU to have lunch with Billie, and afterward, she invited me to come up and say hello to my old coworkers, so I ended up staying an extra hour and a half making the rounds. Wendy wanted to see me before I left, so I stopped into her office, and she told me she would hire me back once a position opened. I was SOOOOO happy! If I had known how much I would miss working there, I never would have resigned. It would have been difficult to get everything done for my oral exam, but I would have found a way to do it. Anyway, it's hard to say when someone will move on, so I will just be patient until it happens.<br/></br>
Speaking of my oral exam, I took it on Wednesday at noon and I was finished by 12:30. I passed with flying colors, according to my professor. I was so stressed out, but she and Dr. Wesolek, the other examiner, went pretty easy on me. They asked me about my study and how I plan to carry it out. I assume that since I was able to respond to all of their questions easily, they decided not to ask the basic questions. My guess is that they assumed that I was well prepared for anything they could throw at me. I am just so extremely happy to have that roadblock behind me. I have one more assignment to submit for this class and then I have two weeks off. I think a trip to the beach is in order for Sunday.<br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjiI8bk1SJ-ZXKiMHKs5VFrVZEExdpO_OkxF8DKj3ZHbopywUFER33CFT4Hkqwg6vW1yMhf-C174JLRIy1Lklfx-UHfWyU6_0tIUd0DWEw7l1FzwkoAZgtCFeVhv3LXJYERFtUWl7is6M/s1600/IMG_0633.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjiI8bk1SJ-ZXKiMHKs5VFrVZEExdpO_OkxF8DKj3ZHbopywUFER33CFT4Hkqwg6vW1yMhf-C174JLRIy1Lklfx-UHfWyU6_0tIUd0DWEw7l1FzwkoAZgtCFeVhv3LXJYERFtUWl7is6M/s320/IMG_0633.jpeg" width="240" height="320" data-original-width="1200" data-original-height="1600" /></a></div>On another note, my flock is complete and has been for awhile. Phoenix (not Harley, it just wouldn't stick) came home on August 23<sup>rd</sup> and Jack came home four days later, so they have both been here for an entire month already. It worked out well, because it took Rio a few hours to warm up to Phoenix, but when we brought Jack home, because he'd already had his world rocked, he wasn't phased, and Phoenix, being so new, wasn't phased either. They have become very good friends over the past several weeks, and they are all sharing a sleeping cage now. Things really went so much better than I could have hoped they would. <br/><br/>Well, I should press the post button before I end up back here in two weeks revising this blog post yet again. Now that I have the stress of my oral exam behind me, I should be able to focus on other things. The next step in my doctoral journey is writing my prospectus. That will occur in my next (and last) class. After that class, I am on to my dissertation classes. My journey should be over in less than a year, although they have me scheduled for another year's worth of classes. I am hoping to have my dissertation completed by next June, but I guess I'll have to wait and see how quickly they are willing to let me progress.Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-83322088420900089442019-08-25T21:41:00.001-05:002019-08-25T21:51:25.062-05:00Harley (Phoenix) is Home!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieR_md415pVphGFkP4rn7myiooSMF1iZz3Ez7p54Ad1CqhMZSQnwnvrqJ2ta1u3Iqd-fsjQ0CcFF6ZBMdO7SIC2gbhDFrRCZ3rs-tJhI7O_-_BXj_DaQIz4qIl40F0tcl72oj6O2MtnXg/s1600/riophoenix8.24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieR_md415pVphGFkP4rn7myiooSMF1iZz3Ez7p54Ad1CqhMZSQnwnvrqJ2ta1u3Iqd-fsjQ0CcFF6ZBMdO7SIC2gbhDFrRCZ3rs-tJhI7O_-_BXj_DaQIz4qIl40F0tcl72oj6O2MtnXg/s320/riophoenix8.24.jpg" width="241" height="320" data-original-width="1203" data-original-height="1600" /></a></div>So, Phoenix came home on Friday, and today we decided to change his name to Harley. Dan was having a hard time remembering Phoenix, and honestly, I had to think about it more than I should have. Now I will have to see if Harley sticks. He is a sweet heart! He came right out of his carrier and almost immediately acted like he's been here forever. Rio was not super fond of him the first night, but we got home kind of late and it was Rio's bedtime, so I put them to bed and the next morning, they hit it off immediately. Last night I put them in the same cage and they did great. Today they were together almost all day, preening and playing together, so I think it is safe to say that they are going to be BFFs. They are biological brothers, after all, so I really wasn't worried, but I am happy that it was such an easy transition.<br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYiTFdlCpDbM8WxmCbB1wbeOp7hP10QQMjlVldQo9lRtK0JsnzYG3BzOdGfcSaGsAZwvN9z2p_XalSaaORVSrr1oiNMntniG6s5Zjl67AaQvmhOaKC-r77L2UKGfFQDIap7cWpp-HUdsM/s1600/jack+10wks1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYiTFdlCpDbM8WxmCbB1wbeOp7hP10QQMjlVldQo9lRtK0JsnzYG3BzOdGfcSaGsAZwvN9z2p_XalSaaORVSrr1oiNMntniG6s5Zjl67AaQvmhOaKC-r77L2UKGfFQDIap7cWpp-HUdsM/s320/jack+10wks1.jpg" width="320" height="190" data-original-width="1024" data-original-height="609" /></a></div>I got an email last Tuesday saying that my blue crown conure is ready to come home. After I got the updated pictures, I decided that I want to change his name, too, lol. He just doesn't look like an Indie to me, so I am going to call him Jack. That name has always been on my list, so I am excited to finally use it. He is scheduled to come home on Tuesday of this week, so I am going to be busy. Dan actually shocked me tonight and told me that he thinks we should get another blue crown since Jack will be a fifth wheel. The breeder I got Rio and Harley from also breeds blue crows and thinks she will have some this winter, and I am already on her wait list, so when she has a boy available, I will snag one up from her. She does a great job with her babies.<br/><br/>
I spent a good chunk of the weekend with April, which was really nice. Since I don't see her every day at work anymore, I have to make more of an effort to get together with her. On Friday I went to CSU and donated blood with her. CSU sponsors blood drives about three times a year, and I try to give most of the time. After we donated, we went back to her apartment for lunch and ate chili. Then after we got Harley home on Friday night and settled into his cage, Dan and I went to her apartment and had dinner with her and Landon. Actually, we ate junk food, but it was fun. Last night I invited her over for pizza and she and I went to Office Depot on the way to pick the pizza up. I will see her in the morning, too, because I have to drop her off at work. Landon had to borrow her car to take to Pensacola to take a test because his car is leaking oil. I am so thankful that God gave me a daughter and that we are as close as we are.<br/><br/>
Well, that is about all the excitement I can think of at the moment. I took a benadryl because my allergies have been crazy all day, so I think I am going to crawl into bed and play on my iPad before I fall asleep. I hope you all have a great week ahead.Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-54950726241385776192019-08-17T11:05:00.002-05:002019-08-17T11:06:05.336-05:00Long Overdue Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeEbkotxm9QRVq5lrTLiwAfWkn8YRkHDTM5X4I4X0AKu6WxNBisQVuAgVvZFuBLVsS_xJIlhz82Gbdu5Q0aqxaiVBVB9reC-9UAXiywtPC3tkEJHxuEmBIK5ef6YUmLcX7UNpKzDM7xPs/s1600/sleepingrio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeEbkotxm9QRVq5lrTLiwAfWkn8YRkHDTM5X4I4X0AKu6WxNBisQVuAgVvZFuBLVsS_xJIlhz82Gbdu5Q0aqxaiVBVB9reC-9UAXiywtPC3tkEJHxuEmBIK5ef6YUmLcX7UNpKzDM7xPs/s320/sleepingrio.jpg" width="241" height="320" data-original-width="1203" data-original-height="1600" /></a></div>I am sorry it's been so long since I updated. I have just felt kind of icky lately. My first excuse for not updating was that I had to finish my previous classes and then I was out of town for a week visiting my mom. After I came back I finished up my work days, and that is when things got really funky. I took three days off my last week to be with Rio because Dan was out of town, and I really enjoyed those days at home. I cleaned and hung out with Rio and thought that adjusting to now working was going to be a breeze. I found out on my last Friday that it was not going to be that easy. I cried most of the day, most of that evening, all weekend, and then up through Wednesday of this week. I felt a bit useless and depressed. I missed getting up in the morning and having a purpose. I missed seeing April every day. I missed helping students. I was a mess. On Wednesday I met my Success Center team for lunch and I told Wendy, the director of the SC, that I would love to do my job part time, and she told me that she might be able to make that happen. I have my doubts, but it made me feel better to hear her say that the door was not shut and that maybe one day I would be able to go back to work there. I think that as time goes on I will get accustomed to being home and will not want to work in an office setting any more. I already feel better.<br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE3IqOPe5tfw-kbmWTLT8uwtJH-Y-HKg1N6Q9QTuF37RlsS_68zNxrHYiWVId2bcb8wwPp_s64eV7ou3UZSd38xdiKL9gK0r5alWBoMlidzoO4zz3zogzp1Aj2lbh21BGENHdt6nMsXEk/s1600/Phoenix+11+weeks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE3IqOPe5tfw-kbmWTLT8uwtJH-Y-HKg1N6Q9QTuF37RlsS_68zNxrHYiWVId2bcb8wwPp_s64eV7ou3UZSd38xdiKL9gK0r5alWBoMlidzoO4zz3zogzp1Aj2lbh21BGENHdt6nMsXEk/s320/Phoenix+11+weeks.jpg" width="240" height="320" data-original-width="1200" data-original-height="1600" /></a></div>Phoenix is ready to come home. I am just waiting for a decent day to fly him in. It has been really hot here. Yesterday the forecast said that Monday's high is only supposed to be 84°, but today they bumped it up to 89°. I asked his breeder about shipping him on Monday, but she never got back to me and now I'll probably need to wait anyway, although it will not cool down substantially for at least a month, so we will need to find a day in the not-too-distant future. This is the newest picture I have of him. He looks a lot like Rio did at that age. Rio's cheeks are getting much more orange/red now. He is a beautiful boy. <br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOy63i4FRhHFGtt7mX735-KdKF-uO0MEB4Ay0Q-75chpcl1ipAZf9B7QpT3rPtfOuwh_dlMVsIRYEHadeiib76rdnZTXma7gCq1I36o1n8jvtgLwFMTFxRRxycC1mySHWztFkGEnh6GBs/s1600/indy5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOy63i4FRhHFGtt7mX735-KdKF-uO0MEB4Ay0Q-75chpcl1ipAZf9B7QpT3rPtfOuwh_dlMVsIRYEHadeiib76rdnZTXma7gCq1I36o1n8jvtgLwFMTFxRRxycC1mySHWztFkGEnh6GBs/s320/indy5.jpg" width="320" height="213" data-original-width="1024" data-original-height="681" /></a></div>I also have another surprise. I put a deposit down on a baby blue crown conure. I have wanted one since I first saw the movie Paulie years ago, but at that time I thought having a bigger and louder conure would never happen. Now that I have a bigger and louder conure, and since I will be home again, I figured, why not? Phoenix was hatched on May 28<sup>th</sup> and Indigo was hatched on June 13<sup>th</sup>, so Indie is just a couple of weeks behind Phoenix and should be home in the next couple of weeks. I hope that being about the same age and coming from environments where they hang around with other birds will help to ensure that they get along with each other. Rio might have a harder time since he's been alone for awhile, but since he's so laid back, I am sure he will adjust pretty quickly, especially to another sun. <br/><br/>
Other than all that, I have been working on my second-to-last class of my doctoral degree. I have to pass an oral exam before I can move on to my last class, which means I need to be adept at explaining statistical tests, research methods, and theory. I have a lot of work to do in the next couple of weeks, but I think I will be ready. After I pass my next class, I will be ABD (all but dissertation) and I am hoping to be finished with everything by next June. It helps to have a PhD sitting five feet away from me! And on that note, I should go and start working on the assignment I have due on Monday so I can do some house cleaning a bit later. Have a wonderful Saturday!Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4503185198269441972.post-74669014894495440312019-07-10T20:38:00.000-05:002019-07-10T20:38:48.212-05:00More ChangesI hope you all had a happy Independence Day. Mine was nice. April, Landon, and Ben came over and I made a bunch of bean dishes for dinner. We ate and drank MangoRitas and beer and played Apples to Apples. I hated having to go to work the next day, but at least Friday was a short day, so it wasn't horrible.<br/><br/>
Bubo went to his new home on July 4<sup>th</sup>. I put an ad on Craig's List on Monday and within about 15 minutes I had an inquiry. The lady who took him almost fell through, but in the end she decided to drive the hour to come "meet" him, and she left with him and a few supplies that I gave her. She seems happy with him so far, so here is hoping that they bond and become the best of friends. <br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi_HpSQbojmpUGuFsbr19GoRkbdMPYkqu7rAWkqPvD9f7mE3e6d98jfxE7iIY7PpWkN3niux2l_38a5nYdkHOiO9Az4lfWjmPRH6OvxNv-4CQuff5FOz-ECTdg4nQTfgKz5uFQeV-s2SE/s1600/IMG_0484.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi_HpSQbojmpUGuFsbr19GoRkbdMPYkqu7rAWkqPvD9f7mE3e6d98jfxE7iIY7PpWkN3niux2l_38a5nYdkHOiO9Az4lfWjmPRH6OvxNv-4CQuff5FOz-ECTdg4nQTfgKz5uFQeV-s2SE/s320/IMG_0484.jpeg" width="241" height="320" data-original-width="1203" data-original-height="1600" /></a></div>Rio is so much more relaxed now. He has been more vocal the last couple of days and his real personality is starting to come out now. My favorite thing he does is when he climbs onto my chest, rolls over on his chest and falls asleep. He is definitely one of the sweetest birds I've ever met.<br/><br/>
I have been looking for a picture of Jasper when he was a baby. He was so ugly that I was sure there was something wrong with him. I even told the breeder that I wanted my deposit refunded. He finally convinced me that Jasper was fine, and I fell so in love with him over the six years I had him. I cannot find that picture now, but as I look at other pictures of him, I realize that my heart is finally mending. It took six months; a month for every year I had him and a Rio to get to this point, but it is nice to see him and not sob. I still miss him so much, and I suspect that I always will, but I really want to bring his pictures out and put them on my mantle next to his cremation box. I think Bubo being gone helps too. He was a constant reminder of what I lost. Rio is a reminder that there is, indeed, life after sorrow and intense heartbreak. I pray that Phoenix will be a good complement to Rio, because I want Rio to have a friend.<br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDNz_gxA93vMkik-5whSSos71E96kWEQdxt_taS3lU0LaXU59TcyhE2VG2QI3T18AvBSUQI8pBcleRFbxdiph4BspUt2TovQZkC6WR5tojmj22eaIFGwW-lgkbxUhEWEvgjbSplVuF2OU/s1600/Phoenix+6+wks+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDNz_gxA93vMkik-5whSSos71E96kWEQdxt_taS3lU0LaXU59TcyhE2VG2QI3T18AvBSUQI8pBcleRFbxdiph4BspUt2TovQZkC6WR5tojmj22eaIFGwW-lgkbxUhEWEvgjbSplVuF2OU/s320/Phoenix+6+wks+2.jpg" width="320" height="180" data-original-width="1600" data-original-height="900" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtMasmcRGig5lE0Og77fXsX4oxEswP26rjtG5Spqynb0PpamOkf3FmtfcrMK-8MpMJAexhWwlgQaJb9giSH1Nfj2rLsWfpaGUa-ruGFeSc1NXPVrn8CWk0VKXmzT_q_UfgL5_pnHXt-G8/s1600/phoenix+6+wks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtMasmcRGig5lE0Og77fXsX4oxEswP26rjtG5Spqynb0PpamOkf3FmtfcrMK-8MpMJAexhWwlgQaJb9giSH1Nfj2rLsWfpaGUa-ruGFeSc1NXPVrn8CWk0VKXmzT_q_UfgL5_pnHXt-G8/s320/phoenix+6+wks.jpg" width="180" height="320" data-original-width="900" data-original-height="1600" /></a></div>
I got some updated pictures of Phoenix tonight. OMGOODNESS, he is so cute! He looks a lot like Rio. He is definitely a sun and not a sunday conure. I pray that his personality is similar to Rio's. I will be beside myself if they get along like Jasper and Avery did! <br/><br/>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNW2jJmwGL6YNILC0OXynBKlE6GdaME0ZkRa0pG8gYenPcmb3CleILJKvDwjyVfVwpHQhsb9kpcrdrB2LMKpE09Uqwecw5sQYyruf1axMqq6gUBw9syWf7F4D6hpcavW90a4_1Ii05xdo/s1600/tree2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNW2jJmwGL6YNILC0OXynBKlE6GdaME0ZkRa0pG8gYenPcmb3CleILJKvDwjyVfVwpHQhsb9kpcrdrB2LMKpE09Uqwecw5sQYyruf1axMqq6gUBw9syWf7F4D6hpcavW90a4_1Ii05xdo/s320/tree2.jpg" width="240" height="320" data-original-width="1200" data-original-height="1600" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqAdagU1vdT0RYizqvKUu5CYamLcfP7-zwbrSjzYOdAgOqYFXrjc9HF2WZykdWTz9KZoixibFBcEdYzKCfwHpjYpP3v4BJ8I1g056X-3Os1RxlqQ2ywxLsMMVsz7O_IDsNDH-EZWGrYzQ/s1600/tree.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqAdagU1vdT0RYizqvKUu5CYamLcfP7-zwbrSjzYOdAgOqYFXrjc9HF2WZykdWTz9KZoixibFBcEdYzKCfwHpjYpP3v4BJ8I1g056X-3Os1RxlqQ2ywxLsMMVsz7O_IDsNDH-EZWGrYzQ/s320/tree.jpg" width="240" height="320" data-original-width="1200" data-original-height="1600" /></a></div>Dan is working on a play stand right now. Our next door neighbor cut down a chunk of his crape myrtle tree, so we asked if we could snag the branches. We went to Lowe's and spent about $80 on the things we needed that we didn't have, and today he got it mostly assembled. His plan is to make two larger stands and a couple of small portable ones, so the $80 price tag is not bad. They sell for over $150 for one on Amazon and Ebay, so that price for two is a bargain. I'm lucky to have a handy husband.<br/><br/>
My final piece of news I have is that I officially gave my notice at work yesterday. I gave an entire month notice, and my last day will be August 9<sup>th</sup>. I really do have mixed feelings about leaving, but I am sure that once Monday the 12<sup>th</sup> rolls around, I will be thankful that I don't have to fight morning traffic (as light as it tends to be) or fight Rio when I try to get out of the house. I am also looking forward to having time to cook healthy meals, clean house, and work on my dissertation--oh, and go camping! I will also have time to go to the beach and take walks again. There are only a few things I will miss about working. I will miss seeing April every day, I will miss Billie, and I will miss helping students. It really does give me a sense of accomplishment. But in time, I will have a teaching job again and I will pick up where I left off.
Tammyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04112745219653603578noreply@blogger.com2