EYE IN THE SKY by Noa

My Son and the Blue Angels

This is my son, Chris (J Cage is his "stage" name for his radio show) and his flight with the Blue Angels. His pilot was the late Lt Commander Kevin "Kojak" Davis, who was the Blue Angels pilot that was killed on April 21, 2007, when his plane crashed during an air show. These are the kinds of things kids do that give mom's heart attacks. He also enjoys bungee jumping, white water rafting, being a member of the Polar Bear Club by jumping into freezing river water, and riding through a drive-thru car wash in the back of a pick-up.

This pilot loved what he did, and gave my son an experience he will never forget. Today, as we all experience the sixth anniversary of September 11, I thought I would focus on one great American who gave all for what he believed in.

Britney, Whoopie, Boobs, Gray Hair, and Sauce

My friend who is going through a divorce met with her ex, their lawyers, and a mediator this week. One thing she asked for was half of the medical expenses she has incurred since their separation. The total bills were a little over $300, his part of course $150. His reply was, "No, I'm not paying that. She's got 'em now. They're HER kids, and it's HER problem."


The other night her neighbor came over and said she had seen him come by on his motorcycle, hide it behind her house, and walk around the house a couple of times. Of course, no one was home. She has no idea what he thinks he's looking for. When she told me about it, we both remembered once when I was going through my divorce with the kids' dad, and she and I were at Dairy Queen getting ice cream. We were in the line at the drive thru, when a car pulls up beside us and suddenly snaps a picture of us with a bright flash. Guess he had someone following us to get pictures of me out having some wild affair, but his problem is he didn't know me well enough to know my wild affair is with hot fudge and ice cream. With whipped cream and nuts. And those were the only kind of nuts I was interested in at that time. But we got a good laugh out of it. I told her she'll get through this, and some day it will all actually be over with, but it can't be soon enough for her.


Her biggest concern is that he said to one of her children if she came up dead, he'd get SS benefits and not have to pay her a dime. Now she's afraid he might actually do something. I told her to write it all down in a letter and let me and my hubby put it up in a safety deposit box, in case the idiot does try something.


I watched The View today, and they were going on and on about Britney Spears and her paunch and poor lip syncing at the awards show last night. I'd like to look that good with a paunch, but I do think she could have washed her hair. I feel sorry for her in a way. I can't imagine being her age, having to deal with the press, the money, and the notoriety. I can't imagine having it in the papers every time I went to the bathroom. She needs some serious counseling.

I could actually do it for her. We'd begin with "How to Overcome White Trashy Ways" by an Alabamian who has to live down being from the South daily. I'd also tell her she had made one good move by dumping that lousy excuse of a thing she called a husband, and now she needs to hire a first class nanny and never leave the house without her, while the nanny is showing loving, care to the children, including making sure they are strapped in the car seats. She needs to buy some new underwear and clothing that covers her butt, and wear both. She needs to let her hair grow to some normal color and consistency. And then she needs to dump whatever manager is letting her get by with the press she has been getting.


Whoopie Goldberg also got fitted for a bra today on the View. Seems there was a reason she wore the peasant tops and long, loose vests--she hates those torture devices we call bras. They fit her in one, so now she can tug and squirm and get squished and squashed like the rest of it. I think she should burn it in BaBa Walters coffee cup myself. I used to think wearing one would prevent them sagging down to my waist, but alas, it didn't prevent a thing. I should burn mine in BaBa's coffee cup, too.


So then I flipped over to the Today show, to hear them say that it's now the "IN" thing to wear your hair naturally gray. Hey, I'm "IN" now. Wait until my kids find out.

I found some frozen Italian meatballs in our freezer. I have some spaghetti, but no jars of sauce. I did have some diced tomatoes, which I seasoned with some basil and oregano and am trying to simmer down to something that looks like sauce. If it works, my husband will have it for dinner. If not, we'll have to get take out. Either way, I couldn't care less. ha. At this point, it's the same number of dishes either way.

I hate dirty dishes. Like cooking, but hate doing the dishes

What a Week!

When we got back from the beach, my middle son called and said he was having trouble with our dogs. He took them home to keep at his apartment and we thought it was going to work out fine. They are both tiny dogs, get along well with each other, and he loves having the company. However, it seems one of them had begun to piddle anywhere and everywhere. This from a dog I had housebroken when I got him as a puppy. I realized he had never had to try to "go" on a schedule before. He was used to going to the door and I'd jump up and let him out into the back courtyard anytime he seemed to want to go out. With my son he had to go during a morning walk, then again at lunch when my son came home to eat, at five when my son got home from work, and then again before bedtime. He had also begun to cry at night.

We thought maybe he was going through mama withdrawal, since he'd always been with me. The other dog was doing fine. So I told my son to bring the pee-pot dog back home and I'd work with him and see if I could get any improvement. One thing my son requested was that I always take him out on a leash because he had such a time getting him used to "going" on a leash, and I agreed.

Well, yesterday, I took the dog for a walk in the morning, first thing, and he went. No problem. Then about ten o'clock he made a mad dash for the back door whining and I figured he couldn't wait any longer, so I ran to find the leash. I grabbed it, grabbed the dog, and fumbling with all that, got him outside, clipped on the leash, and all was well.....Until I decided he had finished and we needed to go back in. I had locked myself out. No shoes. No cell phone. No keys. Just a happy dog who got to pee and a mom who was pissed.

None of my neighbors are home during the day so I knew going somewhere to use a phone was useless. I decided I had to find a way to get into the house, since my situation was complicated by having food cooking in the oven and a husband not due home for several hours. Our back door has the top half covered by several small panes of glass, so I thought I'd just find something in the utility room off our garage to break out one pane and get inside. Well, it turns out we have been much safer all these years than we realized, because even with a hammer and my beating on that glass with all my might, that sucker would not break.

I guess it's some sort of safety glass, tempered glass, or something. I was really getting mad by then. It was hot outside, I had upset the dog by making all that noise with the hammer and he was whining. I had to get inside.

So I took a large flathead screwdriver and busted out the side of the door knob latch. (We also have a deadbolt on that door, which thankfully was not latched, so I knew we could secure the door with that until I could repair the knob. It worked and we got inside. I called my husband to tell him how happy he should be that we have such secure glass in our door but he didn't seem to be as thrilled about it as I was, especially when I told him what I had done to the door facing. He also didn't seem to believe that the glass was that unbreakable, so I actually demonstrated it to him with the hammer when he came home.

Then tonight, we were going to go to the temple to a Shabbat service. Well, tonight we got over there for the service that was posted in the bulletin we received last week saying the service was at 8 PM. We got there at 7:30, and found the parking lot full of cars. These folks usually all arrive about five minutes before services, so that was unusual.

We went inside and could hear the service going on inside as we approached the sanctuary, so we turned around and left. I didn't want to walk in and interrupt anything. It's not a short drive there either, so we wasted over a hour getting there. Maybe I was just being grouchy, but that really ticked me off.

I decided to go to the family reunion thing. I'm not sure which is more uncomfortable for me, going through the dread of going or the guilt of not going. I figured the guilt would be worse.

I hope next week will be better than this one.

I did try out a new recipe today. I made apple blintzes. They are made from crepes with an apple filling. It took awhile to make the crepes but in the end, the taste was great. I'll put a picture of them with this post.

450th Post to This Blog- And an Age Reminder

My husband, daughter, son-in-law, granddaughter, and I went out to eat at a local seafood restaurant in Gulf Shores one evening during our trip. The waiter seated us and handed each of us the large folded menu, then gave my husband and I each a smaller laminated menu that he didn't give the others adults.
Guess what it was...SENIOR MENUS. Guess what I did? I ordered off of it. Guess what else I did? I seriously considered dying this gray hair back to some other color.
In the end, I left the hair gray and just pigged out on my stuffed shrimp at a discount of five dollars off the normal price.
I remember the first time my mom was offered a senior discount. She was about my age, around fifty. We had stopped at McDonald's and ordered our lunches, the exact same things. I paid, and then she did. As we walked back to the table, she said, "Hey, you got the same thing I did. Why did yours cost more?" As she looked over her ticket, a look of horror crossed her face and she said, "Oh my God! I got a SENIOR discount!" She wasn't very happy about it. I guess it was easier for me to be happy about five dollars than for her to be happy over 80 cents.

Chillin' At the Beach

I am sitting here looking out at the ocean in Gulf Shores. Gulls are diving and padding across the sand, the little kids from next door are digging on the beach with their pails and shovels and I'm just relaxing. It's funny how you really don't know how much you need a vacation until you get one. We've been spending our days watching the ocean, playing with the grandbaby, stuffing ourselves with seafood, and napping.
We are vacationing in one of those "house up on stilts" that are so famous down here on the ocean, because of the tides, I guess. The only problem is when you lie in the bed at night you feel it shaking just like someone was standing there shoving it with their foot, back and forth. I tried to pretend I was sleeping on a float in the middle of an ocean. That didn't work. Finally, I got up and took an Ambien and couldn't have cared less the rest of the night what rocked and what didn't. It would seem to me a house protected from high water that still resides in a high hurricane watch area would not want to be perched up on sticks that rock in the wind. Creepy feeling. Nice house, though. Even has high speed internet access, we found out today, hence this post.
We're going home tomorrow. I miss being home. Vacations are usually good for me about five days at the most and then I'm ready to go home. I'm a home-body in every sense of the word. I like puttering around in my own kitchen, having my own supply of books I can read, and having my Tivo with my own shows recorded for me whenever I want to watch them. I also hate watching commercials. I had no idea how spoiled Tivo had made us. I realize now I could live fine without telephones (Sorry, Alexander Bell) but I'd go through serious mourning over my Tivo.
Well, a barge is going by, so I'm going to go ocean-gaze awhile longer. Something about sea air makes me so sleepy. A nap won't be far off.

He's Got Gas

Ok, I couldn't resist sharing this one. We were coming home from my son's house, which is about a thirty minute drive by interstate. On our way home, I notice my husband did not get onto the on-ramp for the interstate but instead was going on the two-lane highway.
Me: Where are we going?
Him: Home.
Me: This way?
Him: Yeah, they have cheap gas at the station down here.
Me: Hmmm...Ok.
He pulls into the gas station, which is packed with cars, and finds the only pump available has an out of order sign taped to it.
Him: Well, %^**#!
Me: Can't we just get it at the station by our house?
Him: Wait, that guy is almost done. I'll wait on him.
Five minutes pass...six....seven...Guy has finished pumping gas, has gone inside, and finally comes out with a sack, pulls out. My husband wheels in.
Him: Something is wrong with the pump. It won't take my #$%@! debit card.
Me: Why not?
Him: Says it's not reading it, and I have to go inside.
Me: So?
Him: There's a long line in there.
Me: Why don't we just go home? We've still got a half a tank anyway.
Him: But I wanted to get this cheap gas.
Me: Well how much is gas at the station by the house?
Him: It's $2.58 a gallon.
Me: And here it's...$2.55?
Him: Yeah.
Me: How many gallons does your tank hold?
Him: Fifteen I think.
Me: So you'd be buying a half of a tank, let's say eight gallons, and you'd save...24 cents.
Him: What?
Me: Yeah, you drove the long way home, sat here twenty minutes now, and all to save 24 cents.
Him: You're sure? Twenty four cents?
Me: Yeah, plus it costs us extra for taking the long way home.
Him: (Grunts). I never thought of it that way. (While shooting me that dirty look that says you women ruin all the fun we men have driving long distances and burning up several dollars worth of gas to save less than a quarter. Geez.)

Toxic Abusive Relationships

I wrote an article awhile back for Associated Content. It was interesting doing the research for it, because I have been in the middle of a dysfunctional relationship and found it very difficult to see the extent of the control when I was smack dab in the middle of it. Other people could but not me. Anyway, I thought it was a good article, but nothing that would generate much attention. As of today, that article has had more hits than my other fifty articles put together, over 25,000 hits. I guess a lot of people find themselves in relationships they make excuses for, and need a checklist of ways to tell how sick it really is. Anyway, the article is here.
Think back to the sickest relationship you've ever let yourself be involved in, and see how it stacks up to the list. Hopefully, you're not in one now.

Funny Ebay Auction....

Why does this story sound familiar? Hmmm....

Same O Same O

Tonight, we watched America's Got Talent. This whole time, until tonight, I wanted Julianne to win. But tonight, we changed our minds and want the ventriloquist to win. He's really good. I can't stand that Butterscotch Beat Boxing girl. She's so in love with herself, she doesn't need the rest of us to.

I'm still doing my bible study thing, and the Hebrew. It's really interesting. Much more than I thought it would be.

There is a possibility my daughter, her hubby, and our granddaughter might be moving closer. I'm trying not to get my hopes up until we see. I sure hope they do.

My friend that is getting the divorce still has not gotten anything settled. They were scheduled for mediation, and then two weeks after that they had a court date. Her "almost -ex" called to postpone the mediation the night before saying he didn't know about it until that day and he had to go out of town. Therefore, they canceled it and postponed the court date, too. The only good news is he has moved his girlfriend back in, and I think that will help my friend's case a lot.

I'm still not any closer to finishing Harry Potter 3. I just have to find some time. I hate starting and stopping.

Not much else happening around here...same 0...same 0.

Reunions, Showers, and Chicken Soup

I saw the counselor yesterday, and she had me buy a book to read called, "I Don't Have to Make Everything All Better." I guess that tells you how she thinks I'm doing.....ha. What I really wanted to talk to her about was an invitation I received from a cousin of mine, whom I've not seen in twenty years(??) about a "cousins reunion." All the first cousins, and also my dad and step-mom since he's the only surviving one of his generation in his family. He was one of ten children, and was next to the youngest. I have twenty "first cousins."

My first thought when I received it was, "Oh noooooo...." I don't know most of them, I'm anything BUT a social person, and I'm going to feel guilty and obligated and lower than a ant's belly if I don't go...and I don't want to go. I'd rather have surgery than go...if that tells you how I feel about it. But once the invitation arrived, I'm on the hook. It's one of those RSVP things, so I am suppose to call either way...If I do, I'm going to be asked why, and that would require a lie of some kind.. It just gets deeper.....and deeper....

So when I told the counselor all that, she suggested that book. I bought it and started skimming through it, and I see myself on every freaking page. The author gives examples of conversations where people feel obligated to fix things, or where people are being manipulated, etc. Well, I was married to an extremely manipulative man before current hubby, and I never saw it coming and later would wonder how in the world I let myself get dragged into whatever interchange we had just had.

I try to tell my kids what to do because I don't want them to have things hard or be unhappy. I know. I shouldn't do that! I'm notorious for telling people everything is going to be OK, even when it very well may not.

So I'm reading that book. I'm still working on the Harry Potter series. Number Seven is waiting patiently on my book shelf for me to finish the other six. I'm still on book number three. I haven't done much on that lately.

I also decided that it's a good time in my life to stop and reevaluate what I believe to be true in my life and what isn't, as far as religion goes. My only religious upbringing was a short time in the Baptist church, so when I had children, that's where I took them. I have a larger world view now, and even though this is the Bible belt, I've met a lot of people from different faiths. I find it fascinating. So I decided it's as good a time as any to do some deep study for myself, and not based on what anyone else has told me.

If it sounds like I have too much time on my hands, I probably do, but I love studying, always have. My husband has always wondered who in their right mind would do math problems for fun...(me). So I'm fascinated by all this.

I went down to have my allergy shot this morning, and after I got home, I started wheezing. It freaked me out because my mom has these MAJOR allergic reactions where her blood pressure drops, she swells up and passes out. I called the doctor and they told me to take Benedryl and put ice on the injection site. But I knew Benedryl would knock me out, and my husband gets off at four. I don't want to be knocked out, because I want to go out to eat and a movie tonight if possible. So I rumbled through the cabinets and got his inhaler (he has asthma more often than me) and I used that. I still feel a bit tight in my lungs but not wheezy anymore so I guess I'll live. ha. The bad part is, this is going to be a major setback in them up-ing my dosage, which means I have to take them a lot longer....whoopee.

The press releases on the Chicken Soup book my story is in was sent to all the author's hometown newspapers and television stations. Some woman from a local station called me and wanted an interview...,and you wouldn't get me on TV without a lot of cash. I've been paid for my story. I don't make anymore if the book does well, or doesn't.

And I have to share this video my daughter sent...If you think you have bad days, just check this out. Makes me wheeze just looking at it.

My Granddaughter says Hey!

She is a true Southerner....Now if we can get her to say, "Hey, Ya'll".....
Here she is...

DIE-et Coke

I've been doing some reading on aspartame, since I've admitted on this blog in the past that I'm a Diet Coke addict. (Here in the South, we call everything Coke. As in: What kind of Coke would you like? Diet Pepsi or Mountain Dew?) I'm don't actually care what kind it is. I'm just as happy with a Diet Pepsi, a Diet Rite, Diet Coke, Caffeine Free Diet Whatever...So I've often thought I must not be addicted to them, since not having the caffeine doesn't diminish my craving for them. Wrong.

I figure I drink about ten Diet drinks a day. On the days we don't have any in the house, I make a drink Crystal Light by the gallons (more aspartame). Well someone asked me if I had ever gone to the www.aspartamekills.com website. Uh..no....but when I was asked, I figured it's some nut case who just wants to create some sort of hype about artificial sweetners being bad for you. But I agreed to look. Turns out it's actually a lot of news videos, investigative reports from various news programs, plus interviews with the original FDA- appointed research team whose opinions to NOT approve it were dismissed by the FDA.

But what interested me the most were the list of symptoms aspartame can cause, including vision problems, hearing loss, depression, fatigue, weight gain, etc. etc.
I had been diagnosed with about seventy-five percent of the symptoms in the last ten years. Freaky.

I've made resolutions to stop drinking them many times in the past. I honestly think it would be easier for a junkie to stop using heroin. At least they have inpatient detox programs for that. They don't have a place to lock up people who would scream out the windows for a Diet soda. So, if Diet drinks are really bad for you, if they really cause all these problems, including weight gain, then why is there such a big hype to sell so many? Hmmm...MONEY!

I'm just one person, but I figure I drink about fifteen dollars of Diet Coke a week. Over the last ten years, that means I've spent almost $8,000 on Diet drinks.
Needless to say, the more Diet Coke I drink, the less water I drink. My veins run Diet Coke.

I'm going to have to give these things up. I found a challenge online: Give up aspartame for sixty days. If you don't feel dramatically better, then go back to drinking them. Sounds like a good challenge to me.

P.S. My son-in-law said he lost weight by giving up Diet Drinks. He may be on to something there.

11 Rules for Life

It's so true.

Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world.

Rule 1 : Life is not fair - get used to it!

Rule 2: The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3 : You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4 : If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5 : Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.

Rule 6 : If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8 : Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9 : Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.

Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11 : Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.

When You Gotta Go

I love to travel, and do so whenever I can afford it. Several years ago, we traveled to London. This was my first trek out of the continental US, and I was surprised by a lot of things, one being bathrooms.

The bathroom in our hotel (a country inn) was very primitive-looking, with the toilet sitting on a dark wooden box that obviously held the pipes and ran across the entire wall. The toilet in the airport had the tank up high on the wall over the toilet, like we see in Victorian pictures.

Our most eventful bathroom story was when we had a long day of shopping and tried to go to the bathroom in Harrod's. This fine, upscale store, with multiple floors and lavish everything, also had an attendant outside the bathroom and a machine in which to deposit your pound sterling. At that time, a pound was about a dollar and a half, and for the three of us in the group to go would have cost us four fifty. To go to the bathroom!

Two of us begged off from being "scalped" by the bathroom mafia, but one of our group could not wait and paid the pound. After depositing the coin, the attendant smiled and held the door. Inside, he said, was a lavish bathroom with soft hand towels and another attendant standing by to keep the sinks and floors sparkling. Hey, for a dollar and a half, they should have even wiped your butt.

We take many things for granted in America. One is a certain amount of privacy. In other countries, this seems to be a bit more relaxed. Take for example, the VERY public urinals of Amsterdam. Men don't seem bothered by this, and don't ask me what they have for women. I have no idea.


In Japan and Taiwan, they have a very unique style of toilets that look like this:


And this:


It's called a "squat toilet" and I also found instructions on how to use it here.

We Americans take many things for granted, and at age 51, I admit I may have some bathroom hang-ups. I won't go in a bathroom that has no doors on the stalls. I won't go in a toilet that is nasty, no matter how bad I need to.

On the other hand, I have used an outhouse, as my uncle and aunt used to have one. They had a mountain cabin and I guess there were no sewage systems back then on the mountain. All I remember was it was dark, stinky, and had flies. Afterwards, my dad told me I was lucky not to have seen snakes, as they tend to love outhouses. He then recounted how his family used to love to get the Sears & Roebuck catalog because they would use it for toilet paper after everyone was done looking. They also used dried corncobs. Can you imagine? If it's not Angel Soft, I don't want it near my hiney.

So after posting about my granddaughter every post for a month, I thought you all might like to read something a little different, and I guess this qualifies. C'mon, share your favorite bathroom story!

Sitting on My Butt

I seem to be going through a very lazy period right now. I get up, shower, dress, and sit on the computer, read, or watch TV all day. I did all the laundry last Sunday. We ate out tonight for dinner. My granddaughter has gone back home. I have a lot of things I could be doing.
I'm trying to read all the Harry Potter books before the 21st. ha. I am halfway through number one. The seventh comes from Amazon then. Oh well, even if I don't read them all before the new one comes, I'll still have it to look forward to.
I keep thinking I need to update this blog but nothing really exciting is happening right now. I like to have periods like that though. My friend said it's because we've gone through all the things with the new baby being in the hospital, and now that it's over, I'm trying to recharge. Maybe. I do tend to isolate to recharge.
I wanted to start a walking program going to the mall every day. But my feet still hurt and I guess it may take awhile for them to get better even with the orthotic thingies. I don't want to push my luck. I need to lose some weight. I think menopause should be menopounds because they sure seem to be adding up lately.
My husband is on the phone with his dad. His dad walked out on him and his mom when he was sixteen. As my husband puts it, "When I have to, I take him off the shelf, deal with him, and then put him away." He didn't want to talk to him tonight but his dad keeps calling and calling, so he had to call him back to stop it. His dad and step-mom are fighting again, and they call my husband so he can listen to their arguments. Lucky him.
I think the last half of this year will surely go smoother than the first half has, although I know we've been blessed in many ways, it just seems like there's been a lot of bad luck, too.
Well, I'm feeling boring again so I'll stop.

Hey, Where are the Chair Legs? Where are MY legs?

I'm always up for trying new things, and one thing my son, David, loves is a Japanese restaurant near his house. It has all types of tempura, teriyaki dishes, miso soup, sushi, and rice bowls. My daughter is here visiting with the baby, so we thought it would give she and her brother a good chance to catch up with each other if we met him for lunch. They have booths that are surrounded by privacy walls on three sides, so we thought that would be perfect, since we have the baby.

When we arrived, they said "No booths available. We have table?" I looked at my daughter, since she has all the baby equipment to balance, and she said fine. We were lead to the back room, told to take off our shoes and shown to a table in the corner. A table for four, with four seats on the floor, and a table without legs. I'm fat, my daughter is not too flexible giving she just had a baby, my son is 6 ft 5 inches barefoot. We just couldn't see how we would make that work. It was hilarious watching each other trying to get around that table. I swore if I ever got down there, I'd never get back up again. We laughed so hard. My son couldn't resist taking a picture, and even though its a terrible picture of me, I still think it was one of the funniest experiences we've had in a long time.

I Have Granny Shoes!

Not only am I a Granny, but now I have Granny shoes. I saw the podiatrist and he said I have plantars fascitis, need to keep my feet up, use ice, and wear these supports in my shoes that he gave me. He also said no sandals, going barefoot, or wearing house shoes. So I tried to fit them in my sneakers, but ended up having to put them in some black lace ups I had when I used to work. And so here I sit, with black Granny shoes. I have gray hair, Granny shoes, wire rim glasses, and love to sit in the rocking chair with the baby. I guess I've officially graduated from Granny school.

My friend who is getting the divorce got another lawyer. Her church took up a fund for her to pay an attorney who is suppose to be a real aggressive type, so hopefully she will have her life resolved soon. She's depressed, but doesn't want to hear that. I told her she needed to see her doctor about meds, and she sure didn't want to hear THAT. But she told me "she's so tired" and that sometimes she just wishes she would die so all this would end. If that's not depressed, what is. I'm concerned for her.

It's been fun this weekend watching my daughter with the baby. She's really such a good mom already. I got up last night with the baby so she could have some time off. She got up at 4 and said she was missing the baby. ;-) I look at her giving the baby a bath and remember when I gave her the first bath and it seems like such a short time ago, but it was almost thirty years. I told her to enjoy this time because it's over with before you know it.

I bought all the Harry Potter books, and when my son was hospitalized a few years ago, I read the first one and part of the second. I've gone back now and began at the beginning, so I'll be one of the few people in America who will begin and read them all straight through the series, because I figured I'll be ready for number seven when it comes out on the 21st.
That's about it for now.

Weekend Plans

I spent the day doing some shopping at the fabric store, doing some secret shops, and making some baby blankets. My daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter will be here tomorrow for the weekend, and we are excited to see the baby. I think my next sewing project will be to attempt some more jeans.
My friend that is going through the divorce last heard that the judge had canceled their court date because she felt "they were so close to settling everything and should go into mediation." That was the last thing her lawyer told her. That was over six weeks ago, and since about that time, her husband has been giving her $100 a week child support for eight children. Yes, eight. When she asks, pleads, begs to him about it, he simply says he has bills of his own to pay and she will just have to manage.
She made over twenty calls to her attorney, was told first he was out of town, then that he would return her call, and eventually, she just started being sent to his voice mail. She was at a loss. I am no expert on legal matters, but I do know she has a woman judge who went through a divorce herself. I told her maybe she could go up to the courthouse and plead her case with the clerks in the circuit court's office and see if anything could be done. They told her to draft a letter and they would present it to the judge. I helped her write it. We basically said everything I just said above, plus the fact that he had enough money to move his new girlfriend into the house he still jointly owns with his WIFE, bought his girlfriend a car, and my friend can't manage on 400 a month for eight children.
She got a letter back from the judge's office. It was a copy of an order that her attorney set up mediation immediately, and that the next court date was set for the first week of August. Attached was a note from the clerk saying they had contacted her attorney and he said he was no longer her attorney. This was the first she had heard of that. Her lawyer agreed to take the case for a set amount of money rather than hourly, and he decided he wasn't making enough on it, so he dropped her with no notification. She has called numerous attorneys and has been told they either "don't handle contested cases" or that they need a big retainer, which she does not have. So she has cried for two days, and I have no idea what to advise her, except to show up on the court date in August and explain her situation. She is so intimidated by the whole thing. It's such a shame that it is this way.
I have a doctor's appt at 2:45 with the podiatrist. I've never been to a podiatrist, but I think I have something wrong with my heel because it hurt all the time I was walking at the hospital. When I sit it feels fine. If I just walk around the house, it's ok. But when I get out and walk at a store, etc. it swells and throbs. I don't even know what a podiatrist does when you go, but I guess I'll find out.

Baby is Home and So Are We

Our grandbaby is home from the hospital, and my daughter says she is doing well adjusting to being home. She is still on oxygen, but not a lot, and the doctors think she won't have to have it long. She's taking a lot more at a feeding, and they see the doctor tomorrow to see how her weight is doing. I haven't seen her in two days and it seems like two months.
My husband and I were cooking breakfast and started thinking about how we could see her. He reminded me of a wooden TV tray my daughter wanted to borrow to use beside her rocking chair. He said, "Do you think we could convince them to come to get it?" Then he remembered my son-in-law wanted a place to store some of his work tools he's not using right now, and our case was building! But I called and mentioned those two things and maybe they could come soon, and my son-in-law said he's trying to figure out something.
I wish I wasn't allergic to cats. I tried everything I knew to do, taking weekly shots to build up my tolerance, etc. but nothing seems to be helping with the cat thing.
We sat down last night and made up a picture album with all her pictures we have so far. We put them in an Anne Geddes book and it has a baby on the front. Really cute.
I'm trying to get back into the swing of things now that we're not spending all our time at the hospital. The carpet cleaning guy is coming tomorrow. We really need to get out and buy groceries, as we let everything run out since we weren't eating here much. I've got a lot of sewing projects in the works. I have plenty to do and just need to get motivated to do it.
I've gotten encouraging emails from many of you during the baby's hospital stay. I just wanted to say how much I appreciate all the thoughts and prayers, even though I didn't get to answer everyone yet. I know the prayers made a big difference in how fast she recovered from her surgery and everything.
If any of you sew, I have a sewing question. I bought a jacket awhile back that is a patchwork of different batik fabrics. The jacket is too small, and I'd really like to re-work it so I can wear it. I thought of taking it apart and adding some matching fabric to it. If anyone has any ideas, let me know. (What do you think, Jessica???? )