It's A Monday

The weekend FLEW passed me. All of the Saturday tasks were accomplished. I made progress on Q and Erin's weddings favors on Sunday. The kitchen was ignored. The Grand Canyon in my mind that exists between knowing what I need to do and DOING what I need to do is pretty GRAND. So far I've been able to discover only the occasional temporary bridge that crosses to the other side.

Good news on the home front. Krista starts a new job in two weeks. She got a phone call last week completely out of the blue. She had left an application at a large medical office a couple of months ago and then didn't hear anything from them. Then this past Wednesday she got a call for a medical assisting interview. Friday she interviewed and less than an hour after she left the interview she was called with an offer. Here are the STATS:

Current job - 28 hours/week, $7.50/hour, no benefits

New job - FT hours, $9-10/hour/full benefits in 6 months (or a raise - her choice). Can you say BENEFITS???

I am thrilled for her. Not only will she work primarily for one doctor in the clinic but she will eventually have the opportunity of working in surgery with the plastic surgeon who is also on staff. Krista is focused on Dental Hygiene for future school but this could open a whole new world of possibilities for her.

The Road to Willows

I talked with Corey last night and even though our extended visit has been delayed to July, we DID come up with a Plan B. I love Plan B's. Don't you? Friday around 3:30 a.m. Don, Kris, and I will leave for the long drive up to Forest Grove (near Portland). We pass right by the Willows exit a farming community (population 5,000) and Corey's home that is just large enough to support one Starbucks. Plan B - meet up at Starbucks just off of Interstate 5 around 7 a.m. for a 30 minutes meet and greet and sharing of hugs and hellos. I can hardly wait. Pictures forthcoming next week. Corey will probably get hers up first since we won't be home until the following Monday and we will be doing a lot of sleeping that day.

I have a boatload of work on my desk. Time to leave this break. Perhaps more later. Wishing everyone a great week.

Good Things Treasure Chest - Feb. 4th - 10th

Feb. 4th -
Excellent homily. The Colts won. Did a lot of writing today.

Feb. 5th -
Two more boxes out the door. Cleaned the oven cabinet with mineral spirits. Tomorrow I prime.
























Feb. 6th -
Today is bright and beautiful. Then I found out I had to have oral surgery on three teeth. I know there must be a silver lining in here somewhere.

Feb. 7th -
Lost is back and on tonight. Sixteen new episodes coming up. Yippee!!

Feb. 8th -
Box #8 out the door today.

Feb. 9th -
The tooth came out with relative ease. Pharaceuticals made it all very easy today.
I spent the afternoon watching this funny little show on the E! called High Maintenance 90210. Total amusement for a rainy day and an upper jaw that needs TLC.

Feb. 10th
Spent several hours at Borders. Found a comparative religion book and wrote of my last meeting with Fr. Silva. Surprising things emerged.

Good Things Treasure Chest - Jan. 28th - Feb. 3rd

January 28 - Lots of busy work accomplished today. Especially good is getting Quanah and Erin's wedding favor materials ordered.

January 29th - Created a new blog today - INTERIOR DIALOGUES. Deborah ok'd my time off in March to go to Erin's bridal shower in Oregon.

January 30th - Nothing

January 31st - Nothing

February 1st - lunch with Kristina and Ali, two sweet young women with their lives before them. I chatted with Miss Robyn on Yahoo Messenger tonight. What a treat. Feeling a bit better (big mental crash Monday and Tuesday that all come pouring out today in a separate post). I need to pay attention to my grief. I've been ignoring it.


February 2nd -Did a lot of thinking today. Read four more pages of Benedict's encyclical.

February 3rd - Coffee this morning at House of Java. With some marathon reading, I finished Benedict's encyclical. Much to reflect upon. Huge shopping success at Target. Lots of underwear for the kids in Afghanistan. Found the next book to read after I finish Reading Lolita in Tehran - Sidney Poitier's Measure of a Man.

Good Things Treasure Chest - Jan. 21-27

January 21st
It was a peaceful day

January 22nd
Back to work after three days off. Busy, winter retreat, home looks good. It was a peaceful evening.

January 23rd
I rediscovered Leonard Cohen today thanks to Daisy Lupin.The woolies for the children are pouring in.

January 24th
Today Judie at Little Art Room inspired me with her post to rename this weekly report. This isn't just a report, it is a place where I can place treasured memories, some great but most just small little bits of daily life that are too easily forgotten.

January 25th
I met with Fr. Silva today and began the next step in my spiritual journey.

January 26th
Today I have an address for Frida. Woolies go out on Monday.

January 27th
Spent the afternoon with Don shopping for new appliances. WhewHoo. Fridge, washer/dryer/dishwasher/oven. Amazing.

We also prepared the woolies for packing. Don typed up an inventory for the box. It looks like Tuesday will be the actual shipping date. Monday he goes to the post office to talk with my contact there, Larry, and determine the ideal box size considering the destination.

Good Things Report - Week of January 14th

January 14th - Kind words from Jeanne that warmed my heart: I will never forget how you understood and embraced the book project... other people give lip service to 'Good Causes'... you are willing to actually DO something about them... you are one of the few people who actually Live their religious ideals... if everyone in the world were more like you, it would be a greatly improved planet for sure!!

January 15th - I'm met David for coffee this morning at Starbucks. We used to do this alot when mom was in the final stages of her illness but less so since then. Meeting him this morning for no other reason than we are important to each other is a Good Thing.

January 16th
I was at work yesterday and was relentlessly cold. Then I got home and continued to shiver and freeze, not to mention the nausea. No dinner to me, thank you very much. Don buried me under blanks and quilts and I laid down on the couch, my head in his lap. He takes such good care of me.

My first donation of hats arrived on my doorstep today. Thank you Kris.

January 17th
All better this morning. Well sort of anyway. Well enough to go to work.Work - The HEADS report is all but finished. This is a nightmarish report that I have to submit every year to our accrediting body. Parts of it go really fast, others are statistical and make my head swim. Tomorrow it goes in for review and then it's out of my hair. Yahoooooo.

January 18th
I got an address from Frida today. The goods will be on their way.
I started reading the most outstanding book - Asne Seierstad's The Bookseller of Kabul.

January 19th - Today I was given a spiritual advisor. I will meet with Fr. Silva a couple times a month for the next six months. Then he will be gone but I will be prepared for something else by then. Life is good.

January 20th - The meet-up at Placerville happened. I'll have our adventures and pictures posted tomorrow.

Good Things #1

Please click here for my first weekly

Good Things Report.

Good Things Report - Jan. 7th through 13th

January 6th
As I reflect on 2006 and think of what I would like to see happen in 2007, it occurred to me that I needed to keep in mind that there is always at least one good thing that happens for me everyday. I have been so weighed down by family responsibilities and work obligations that I lose track of the good things that are given to me. I don't want to overlook them and forget them this year. I don't want the good moments to be lost in the web of daily life. Often the bad things that happen are so upsetting that they live in our minds to plague us long after the fact. I would like to change that cycle and keep a list of the good things, the unexpected things, the unusual out of the norm things that I might do or experience. So with this introduction, tomorrow will be the beginning of my Good Things Report. Every single day will mention at least one good thing so that I can focus on the good rather than the bad, the sad, the frustrating.

January 7th
Mass this morning was really satisfying. We have not had a regular, assigned priest since early this past summer and will not have one until June. Fr. Mike was here for six months at the 9 a.m. Mass and now Fr. Robert Silva will be here through June. Both of these men would make excellent pastors and between the two of them, the priest who will finally be appointed here in June will have some big shoes to fill. Both Fr. Mike and Fr. Robert are excellent speakers, intelligent and articulate. They are warm and friendly and humorous. Sunday morning was not a disappointment at all.

January 8th
It's cold and crisp today. The smell of burning fireplaces fills the air. I love my Winter.

January 9th
I received an email today from one of my Amazon customers. The CD wasn't the one he was actually looking for but because the cover was the same, I had no way of distinguishing. As it was, he really liked the CD and we wrote back and forth a couple of times. I rarely get such excellent and thoughtful feedback. Instead of getting mad at me, he thanked me. Made me feel really good and he lucked out and received an unexpected CD that he is really enjoying.

Also, The unexpected gift of a manger from an anonymous friend. Click here for the story.

January 10th
Today was one of those screwy days. Not good, not bad, just . . . well . . . it just was. Some days are like that. However by the end of the day I had really gotten into the meat of Groeschel's There are no accidents. I'm loving this book. I borrowed it from a friend but I MUST buy a copy for myself to add to my library.

January 11th
I just learned that I will be meeting a blogging friend the end of February. I'm so excited. I'm keeping the name a secret until it happens.

Today has been a terrific day. I woke up feeling good. Have felt upbeat all day. Smiling like a goon. LOL. Don't you love it when days just inexplicably are wonderful days?

January 12th
I've been reading Benedict Groeschel's, There are No Accidents and the first part of the book is his interview with John Bishop in 2002. There are many things in the interview that are cautionary, illuminating and downright humorous. Most humorous to the point that it had me laughing out loud was when B mentioned a particular conversation with Mother Teresa (they were friends for 32 years). She was needling him about something and B noted that being needled by Mother Teresa was like being harpooned by Ahab.

January 13th
Today I go to visit my mom and dad together for the first time since her interment last month. I don't feel at all sad. I actually feel joyful because I know they are now together again.

I am grateful and happy for the initial outpouring of support for my wool goods collecting efforts for Frida in Afghanistan.