Automated

There once was a time when utilizing a bathroom one had to push, pull, turn, or tear something. Now, so much stuff is automated:




The toilet flushes automatically (when they work).




Place your hands under for the soap to be dispensed.




The water comes out by placing your hands under the faucet. The only issue I have with these, sometimes, is the temperature of the water. It is generally not hot enough for me.




This, by far, is the best tool to me. I love not having to touch a wet handle to get out the paper towel.




This bathroom even had an automatic hand sanitizer dispenser.

The only thing missing in this bathroom was a sensor to automatically turn on the lights. That would make all of the automaticity complete in that bathroom.

Unexpected motivation

This morning I was challenged on my thoughts on an issue. That didn't make me happy. In fact, I've used it as motivation to continue this effort. Prior to this, I was debating with myself about resigning from this task. Now, I have extra motivation.

Is that crazy?

I wasn't too happy going into this meeting for many reasons, but now my feelings have changed. I'm determined to stick it out mainly due to the actions of that person. Perhaps that is what I needed to focus and make me more into this topic.

Small talk

Sometimes, I really despise having to engage in small talk.

-- Posted from my iPhone

Comfortably cute

Personally, I prefer comfort over cute. I like looking good, but comfort is key. Therefore, I like to think I look comfortably cute. Especially when I travel. I just don't see how some of these women are comfortable walking through the airport with those high heels on.


-- Posted from my iPhone

What's wrong?

• Baby placed in a box under the baby bed, missing for 5 days before found. Babysitter, babysitter's husband, and mom of the baby have been implicated in this incident.
• A man lives with 11 bodies (possibly more) in his house! Rotting bodies after the women have been raped. :(
• A man scalds his child's (4 years old) feet with boiling water because the child has a bed wetting problem.
• Up to 11 people are killed on a US Army base and over 2 dozen injured, allegedly by US Army soldiers.

Good Grief! What is wrong with this world?!?!? Those are just a few of the stories headlining the news this week. Tomorrow, next week, the following week, and each week to come there will be something different. I just don't get it. I don't quite understand why people are so cruel.

What is it about them that makes them like that? Will we ever know why?

Thrown off

The time shift has me totally discombobulated. I was ready to go to sleep at 8 pm last night, and I didn't wait too much longer. I think I was asleep by 8:30. Of course, I was awake at 4 am. I lingered in bed until 5 though.

The conference doesn't start until 8 and I don't really see any sessions that I want to attend. Booooooo! Such a waste considering I didn't really want to come in the first place. I will say I did attend some fairly good session yesterday though. Anywho, I force myself to go to a session at 8 and then I'll hit the road home.

6 blocks

I'm attending a state conference, and my hotel is about 6 blocks from the convention center. I was at the check-in desk yesterday when a phone call came through to the front desk asking for a shuttle pick-up from the convention center. Really? A shuttle? For 6 blocks? It was such a pretty day also! Personally, I couldn't see not just walking. It would have been much quicker as the lady indicated that the shuttle had 2 other stops before it would get to the convention center, basically it would be about 45 minutes. The person could have walked to & from the convention center in that amount of time.

Now, let me say this, I do realize that not everyone has the ability to walk that distance. I am well aware that folks have different physical capabilities that may prevent them from various physical activities (and that may have been the case with that lady), but 9 times out of 10 that is not the case. It is generally someone who has the ability to walk it themselves.

This morning I was in the breakfast area and many people were discussing how they were going to get to the convention center. Again, the people appeared to be able bodied (on the surface) and they were talking about driving. 6 blocks! Then they would have to pay to park once there. Hmpf! Perhaps I'm too cheap, or I just want to activity get some exercise. I walked. I mean, it was only 6 blocks.

Light & Shadow

Giving it a go: NaBloPoMo

Perhaps this is jumpstart I need to get back into this space. Today is the start of NaBloPoMo and I'm going to actively participate this year. At least, I'm going to make an effort to participate this year.

30 posts in 30 days.

Building a home

Last Saturday, for the first time, I worked on a house as apart of Habitat for Humanity. It was such a rewarding experience! I am so glad I participated, and I plan on doing so again in the future. Above is the house that we, my church, worked on. Below are more images from the day...

So young

Here's an image of my cousin. I forgot to mention in my earlier post his age. He's 52 years young. Yes, 52 years. That is all, and his brain is totally mush.

Unfortunately, as I stated before, it is his own doing. He did a lot of hard drugs over the years. Of course if you ask him, he'll say that he only did marijuana. So not true. I think if it was something one wasn't supposed to do, he did it and he did it hard.

This evening I labeled the clothes that he's taking with him. I asked him to bring me four pairs of jeans. He brought me two. I said I needed 2 more. He responded, "That's it?" I said I needed 2 more. He brought me one. It is the simple things that he has a hard time with.

Later we wanted to know where we going. :( In all honesty, I don't think he knows what's about to happen. Yes, he's been told and he's been to the facility. He just doesn't recall.

Tough decision

I've been back in home state since 2007. My move was so quick that I didn't have time to look for a place of my own. I moved into my mother's home. This was good for 2 reasons: I could save $$ for a place of my own, and my mom could use the help. You see, my cousin also lives with my mom, oh and my mom has Parkinson's.

Since I've been back home, my cousin's health has severely declined. He was diagnosed with drug-induced dementia earlier this year. I would say that over the past 18 months my mom and I have noticed a decline in various mental abilities regarding my cousin, but we couldn't understand why. Well, the diagnosis came back in March and light-bulbs went off for us. That is why he did x, y, or z; or didn't understand this, that & the other. I tell ya, we (mom, brother, sister-in-law, and others) have been extremely puzzled by his behavior. It was all explained with the knowledge that it is dementia.

I've said this in this space and others that I am ever so grateful that I've never had the desire to take a mind-altering drug. The damage that my cousin has done to himself is really tragic and sad. He is so very confused. I could write paragraphs about his confusion, but I'll spare you. Just know that his brain capacity is basically mush. That commercial about this is your brain, this is your brain on drugs showing the scrambled egg - it is true!

Since my cousin could not do a lot of stuff, it fell to my mom or me. So my being there has been a huge help. However, the stress from dealing with my cousin is not good for my mom. Stress aggravates the disease that she has, and dealing with a person with dementia is quite stressful at times.

We knew that at some point my cousin was going to have to placed in a facility that could care for him in such a manner that we could not. Well, that time has come. We didn't expect for it come so fast, but it has. He is actually moving tomorrow. As expected, my cousin is none to happy with this development. He doesn't see all of the troubles that he causes. In actuality, he thinks everything is normal. Believe you me, nothing is normal.

I have no idea of how this will occur tomorrow. I think he is in denial about this taking place. While this has been difficult on my mom, making this decision. It is what has to happen. She is thinking about her own health as well. Making this decision has been really difficult, but needed.

Fasting done

I applaud those that fast on a regular basis. It is truly not for me. I had to fast from midnight until after my doctor's appt. My appt. was at 9:30 and I was there for a little over an hour. I was good until about 8:30 this AM. It was at that point that I wanted some water. You see I generally drink 1 L of water prior to 7 am. So I was parched!

At 9 am, my stomach started growling. I was done, after getting a flu shot and giving 3 vials of blood, about 10:45. I had my small water bottle (20 oz) with me and I downed it immediately. Water never tasted so good!

I headed to Jason's Deli for soup & salad. Yum. Drank another 20 oz of water also. Now I'm feeling better. Well, I feel better after I get some coffee which I'm sipping on now.

Fasting

It sucks.

That is all.

A Complainer

Do you know someone that complains about EVERYTHING? Those type of people make my ass ache.

It is too early for that type of complaining on a Monday morning. I was just told that the formatting of a document that we are suppsed to review is just awful. Why didn't the person that originally uploaded the document make the font the same throughout the document? Why go from bold to regular and back to bold?

Ugh! Just like in my previous post about doing it yourself, this applies. You didn't volunteer to do it, so don't complain. Just deal.

-- Posted from my iPhone