Leprechauns? No...Just Gremlins

Today may be St. Patty's Day, but there are no leprechauns in my house. No pot of gold, no rainbows, just kitchen gremlins.

You see, I go to bed at night with a clean kitchen. Dishes are all done and put away. When I get up in the morning, I find opened bags of nachos; small dishes with dried up con queso sauce in it; opened, unwashed cans of tuna (and I hear complaints when I cook fish and it smells); and other dirty, gross dishes with food dried on them. Who do you suppose is doing this? I never see it happening. I occasionally hear the beeps of the microwave in the late night hours, but I never see this creature in action.

Yes, I believe I have kitchen gremlins. Even the shoemaker had elves who helped him out at night. Why, then, do I have gremlins who like to make work for me? Oh woe is me...

Instructions Not Included

Keyboard, have you created a Quick Reference Card for the use of that remote? Perhaps that would be an asset for MouseGuy. Better yet, can you create a poster with a picture of that remote and rename the buttons for the appropriate use? Sorry, MouseGuy. I couldn't resist!

Keys

Have you ever noticed how many different kinds of keys there are in this world?

- Car keys
- House keys
- Safety deposit box keys
- Key ring
- Key on sardine or corned beef cans
- Answer key
- Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean
- Keys to old watches and clocks to wind them
- Piano keys
- Key on a music scale
- Keyboards on computers
- The key ingredient to something
- "That's the key!"
- Key-stages in educations (grades 3, 6, 9, and 12)
- The key to the city (Who put up a gate and locked it anyway?)
- Melancholy key (a tone of voice)
- Keyed up (Be careful of this person.)
- Key fruit
- Keyhole
- Keynote
- Keystone
- Key West, Florida
- Key Lime Pie
- Kiwi (teehee)
- Key to someone's heart

With all those keys, there must be a lot of busy locksmiths in this world and a lot of untrustworthy people. Yikes!!! Imagine the size of the keyring you would need to hold them all!

Murphy's Law

Everyone has heard of Murphy's Law right? Well...who the heck is Murphy and why did he make this law? Someone should have smacked him hard upside the head when he made it.

The best laid plans of mice and men often go astray. There's another one of those sayings that should disappear.

I've had a Murphy's Law/mouse plan kind of day. Urgghh!!! Every plan I made got changed in one way or another. Everything I touched did not turn to gold. Going with the flow today felt more like drowning than floating along peacefully.

On the upside, I did find some spans of time here and there to enjoy my day, especially the time I spent with my daughter. I embraced those hours. But hey...it's all good. All the problems are actually opportunities for me to learn patience and endurance. I will be thankful for them. Let's just remember one thing:

Everyday above ground is a good day!!!! Life could get worse.

March Break

Wahoo!!! It is March Break this week. That means I am on vacation. I take March Break off every year. Last year my March Break ended up being bereavement leave, since my Dad passed away, but this year will be vacation again. I'm not even going to check my work e-mail, although they will be expecting me to. (Teehee, that ought to surprise them!) Yeah, I will clean the spam mail out of it for my own sanity because I get about 150+ per day, but I will not check the business mail. This will be a week spent with my kids and friends and doing what I want to do. It should be quite enjoyable.

Did you know that March Break is always the week that has March 15 in it? That makes it easy to know when it falls each year. Many people are not aware of how that is calculated.

Traffic should be less and so will the ridership on Transit. Many families will be away vacationing somewhere sunny or on the ski hills. (Those are the lucky ones with money!) I only know the office will be quiet without the teachers and school board offices calling and without me there. O:-) Actually, I am the quiet one. Some days my co-workers remark that they didn't even know I was there. I'm the one who is working diligently away. They know I'm there if I laugh, though. I have inherited my father's laugh—straight from the belly. (teehee) The one thing Dad left me with was the ability to laugh at life and at myself. I love to laugh. Thank you, Daddy! That was a precious gift.

Health Care

Have you noticed that the province promotes a healthy, active lifestyle? They have advertisements about eating right; keeping ourselves healthy mentally, physically, and spiritually. Why then, does our healthcare system not pay for preventative medicine? It doesn't pay for us to see naturopaths, to pay for natural medicines or vitamins and minerals, or for preventative measures such as massage therapy, chiropractic care, and orthopedic devices that help keep us moving to stay active and healthy. They also fall short in helping provide coverage for those things for their provincial government workers. Yet there is an attendance policy in those offices that as long as you can drag your weary butt out of bed and into the office, you are required to be there. Does this make sense to you? Sure, it is wonderful to have coverage if you are already sick, hospitalized, or require chemical drugs to help you heal, but it falls very short in helping you stay healthy and out of the hospitals or your sick bed. Why do they make it so hard to be and stay healthy? Go figure!

MouseGuy Remembers!!!

Hey, Keyboard, it looks like MouseGuy remembered his password after all. He managed to get his little dig in, didn't he? It seems there are some things that you just can't do with a keyboard and need to use a mouse. I know...I use both, whichever is fastest or more convenient to do what I need to do. My preference? I think I will keep that to myself for fear of becoming the next object of the blog wars. Will we all get invited to this party when you finally get the invitation sent out?

Poor MouseGuy!!!

He forgot his password to his blog??? Oh dear me...what could be worse? Looks like you will have to wait for his revenge, Keyboard. Be patient. He will figure it out sooner or later. It may be when you least expect it, but expect it. I can't wait to see how it turns out!

Patiently waiting for the antics to begin again...

Born Free...Taxed to Death!!!

It's tax time again. Groan!!! Have you ever noticed how people react at tax time? Some of them are excited about refunds while others complain about having to pay more in. Let's think about this.

We pay taxes on the money we make. Then we pay taxes on almost everything we buy with the money they have left us with. I'm told that every cent of money we make up until late June each year belongs to the government. What we make the rest of the year belongs to us. That's very kind of them to allow us to have half of our money!!!

If you get money back, it is money you already made anyway that the government has used for the year and gained interest on for themselves then gave it back. Is it a gift? No it isn't. You've already earned it. If you get some back, it's because you don't make enough to live on in the first place. This little bit back helps, but it doesn't fix the deficit problem in our wallets.

If you break even, that's not so bad. But if you have to pay, that is painful. I've been there. Having had a business for many years, several years ago, I know the pain involved in paying large sums of money to the government only to have them ask for more at the end of the year. And then they fine you for not paying it in 30 days. Do they give you interest for the money of yours they have used for the year? I think not!!!

I don't mind paying taxes to provide us with health care, fix our roads, and provide us with the necessities such as fire and police, but there are many uses for taxpayers money that I do not agree with. The only say we get is at the polls once every few years. Does that seem fair? I thought taxes were begun to help out with the war effort in the early 20th century. Did someone forget to tell them the war is over?

So...although we are born free, I think the taxes are what kill us in the end.

English Grammar

Isn't English grammar fun? No wonder it is such a difficult language to learn. Look at these examples.

Moot - Meet - Meat
Foot - Feet - Feat
Boot - Beet - Beat

These structures do not work the same way. They all have different meaning. Look at these synonyms.

Red - Read
Read - Reed
Vale - Veil - Vail
eye - I
site - sight
boat - bout
see - sea

These sound the same, but have different meanings. Look at how these words are pluralized.

mouse - mice
house - houses
moose - moose
foot - feet

It seems every rule in the English language has an exception. What have we done to our language? Little wonder our young readers and writers are having difficulty. Bless their hearts!!

Parenting

I read the most fascinating article today about parenting. It said so much of what I have seen and experienced, I couldn't put it down until I finished reading it. Let me see if I can sum it up. It was entitled Parents: Don't Try So Hard and had originally been published in The Washington Post.

The article began by describing what childhood was like for those of us who are from the baby boomer era. When we grew up, our parents really didn't spend much time with us. We had chores that had to be done, homework we did mostly by ourselves, and we had to hold part-time jobs, sometimes just to help out with the day-to-day expenses of living. We didn't have brand-name clothes, cell phones, and every technological contraption that was available in those times. Our parents didn't spend all their time or more money than they had trying to make us happy. They were more concerned about their own happiness. The article went on to say that we would consider that selfish. But was it?

The next thing it described was our children these days. We give them all we can--all our time, energy, and money. We buy them brand name clothing, pay their way through school, provide them with cell phones, digital cameras, and computers, sometimes even cars, all the while sacrificing our own lives--friends, family, and our own happiness. The result: young adults who are takers rather than givers, who do not know how to be self-sufficient, and expect the world to hand them everything, while being unempathetic most of the time.

You know, the author of this is right. Not everyone has turned out this way. I never try to paint the world with the same brush. I can only speak from my own experience.

One of my children's grandparents insisted on buying "stuff" for my children...every day, and I mean every day. Even when I pleaded and asked for this to stop, it fell on deaf ears. I have not been one to hand everything to my children. I don't believe in that. Sure...I have done some of those things that I probably shouldn't have, indulged them a little too much by times, but this grandparent carried it to the extreme. One of my children can now not figure out how to get an education and start life as a self-sufficient adult. I'm constantly struggling to help them make decisions for themselves and not ask me how to solve their problems. I have another child who can't seem to take enough initiative to go looking for a job because it is too easy to ask Mom or Dad or Nanny for money (alternately, mind you, so the other doesn't know). Both of them are bored if they can't find something to keep them entertained. What happened to the imagination we used to use to occupy ourselves? One of my children doesn't even want to do volunteer work because "What's in it for me? Will they pay me? If not, I'm not doing something for nothing!"

I hang my head in shame about these things. I was so afraid of these things happening. I don't lay blame entirely on the grandparent, but it was certainly a key factor. I know where I am to blame too. How do you undo these things? I vow never to do that to my grandchildren, if I am lucky enough to be blessed with any. Gifts on birthdays, Christmas, and other special events, but love in abundance. That is what I will give. Love cannot be purchased. Are we really doing that? Are we trying to buy our children's love? Are we defining what we believe is happiness for them instead of letting them find happiness as we did?

No one is perfect, and we will always do some things wrong. Let's just hope that our children can correct these trends in their children. Material things are not happiness. Some of the happiest people I know are very poor financially, but rich in love. After all, that is what life is all about...

Router Rage

Who ever said home networking was easy? They had to be on drugs or something. Things are not always as simple as they first appear to be. Sometimes it takes a lot of research to find the right answers. I'm having a great deal of difficulty trying to set up my router. I even have a tech friend of mine stumped. Urgghhh!! Sooner or later we will figure it out and then wonder what all the fuss was about. You may depend, though, that I will try to keep an accurate step-by-step record of the successful route, just in case... Wish me luck!

Conspiracy??

It appears there is a little conspiracy going on in the office. S pulled a prank on L yesterday, so she got him back. Then she decided to get him back again today. He came in the office today and went to log into his computer and the mouse wouldn't work. There a note attached to his monitor saying "You have balls!" He picked up the mouse to look at it and started laughing hysterically. Then he came over to me saying "Someone took the ball out of my mouse. Did you take it?" Who me? No it wasn't me. Finally L came over to his desk when she heard him frantically trying to find out who did this and where was his ball? She made him sweat a few minutes, but she finally showed him that she had put it on top of his tackboard. Had he looked around enough, he would have found it. He was laughing hysterically. He vows to get her back. I can't wait to see what he does. What a great laugh!

Cleaning up and bracing for the next one.

Well...I'm told unofficially we received 95 cm of snow in 24 hours. Officially it is said we got 80. I only know it was way too much snow. It has been brutal. It has been over now for 36 hours and still many secondary streets have not been cleared. There is too much snow for the ploughs to get through, so dozers and backhoes have been a common sight. There are many people walking dangerously on the roads to get some much needed supplies before our next storm arrives tonight. Another 15-25 cm on top of this! Where are we going to put it?

I ventured out today to finally get some groceries. The stores have been closed for the past two days because they just could not get cleaned up enough for people to get into the stores and personnel couldn't get dug out to run the stores. Pulling into the parking lot was mind blowing. The snowbanks were so high the parking was limited. Many of the parking spaces were filled with these gigantic mounds of snow. (I wouldn't have wanted to be the person who threw the snow up there.)

I knew I was in trouble when I arrived there at about 10 a.m. (a usually quiet time) and found no carts to be had. I went back out to find out and actually waited for someone to put their groceries in their car and confiscate their cart.

It was amazing how bare the shelves were. Almost no bananas let. Bread was almost impossible to find. The only thing left was the stuff nobody wants. Milk? What milk? The shelf was completely bare of any sort of milk whatsoever. Some people were waiting and were told the delivery would be there in about 10 minutes. So I went to pick up a few more things and went back in time to find that the delivery was already gone and so was the driver. I looked around and got the last 1 litre of white milk and one of the last 2 litres of chocolate milk. I continued through the store. Almost no chips available. Eggs were hard hit. It seems the staples were the things going quickly. I proceeded through the check-outs. As I was finishing up paying for my order, someone said the next milk delivery had arrived. So...off I went to the back of the store and stood there for a moment while the delivery was being wheeled in. Just what I wanted. I quickly grabbed two 4 litres bags and headed back to the quick check out and head home. This little adventure took much longer than it normally would have. Every isle was busy. I seemed to get behind a crowd no matter which way I turned. I sure was glad to get back to the safety of my abode. I think I shall stay here until the next one blows over. Will we get to work on Monday? I hope not...*evil grin*

Walking in a Winter Juanderland!

Well the storm is finally over and we have had 80 cm of snow dumped on us in 24 hours. It has truly been a White Juan! It is unbelievable!!! The whole province is still shut down to allow for clean-up. So...wax your shovels, stretch well before you start, and rest often while you are shoveling. This will be a workhorse kind of day. Take care not to overdo it.

Let it snow, let it snow...make it stop!!!!

Holy cow!! We are in the midst of the worst blizzard I can remember since I was a kid. It has been raging wild for over 12 hours now and is expected for another 12. By the time it is over, we will have about 60 cm of the white stuff dumped on us. It is crazy! Cars are completely buried in places and the entire province has all the public school systems shut down. The province has declared a state of emergency, and shut down government offices again like they did for Hurricane Juan. This makes the 3rd day since the end of September that they did that, and the first times in the 23 years I've worked for them. What's happening to our weather patterns? All I know is, I don't like this much. It can stop any time.

Not a shovel to be found on the store shelves anywhere...Hurry up spring!!!

Duhhhh....

I did something really silly today. As I left the office this afternoon, I turned my head as I crossed the street to see if my bus was coming. Nothing in the distance. I continued to walk up the hill. Halfway there, one bus pulled in to pick up passengers, but it was not my bus. Where the heck did it come from? There was nothing there a second ago. As it pulled out and I continued walking, I caught sight of something on my left. I turned my head in time to see my usual driver pull up to the stop and open the door for me. I got on the bus and sat down.

It was then that I had a "duhhhh" moment. I realized that the drivers would be switching soon, but I wasn't sure of the date. Was it today? My morning driver was not the same, so it could be. Then the thought hit me that I wasn't sure which bus I got on. I didn't actually see the sign, only the driver. Did I get on the right bus? I tried desperately to read his sign display on the panel up front. I couldn't see that far. Then I tried to see a reflection of the sign on the side in the bus window. No go. He turned down the right street. Maybe it is the right bus. Next stop someone who usually gets on the bus got on. OK...maybe I am on the right bus, but no one else looks familiar. Maybe it was just a coincidence. Still, better be sure. I didn't dare ask the driver. He is often cranky, and I was afraid he would think I was stupid. (At this point, I couldn't really dispute that.) Can't ask him. So then I strained to catch a glimpse of the sign on the side in the windows of the businesses we passed on the street. Blinds in this window...can't see it. No glare in this one...can't see it. Ahhh...there's one that I can see in. The window is too short to get a good glance as the bus flies by. The bus pulls up to a red light. Ahhh...I'll look in that window. No reflection on those windows. Finally a set of windows long enough and reflective enough for me to read the sign backwards. YES!!!! I was on the right bus. Checked the website when I got home and found out it is next week that the drivers change routes. I best be on my toes then for sure. Meantime, I can relax for this week.

Oh well...if you can't laugh at yourself someone else will laugh at you. And how was your day?

Valentine's Day: Another Hallmark Holiday

Well...Valentine's Day is just around the corner. A wonderful day of the year for some, a sad day for others. In any case, it is a Hallmark Holiday, another day when Hallmark hauls in a big load for all those mushy cards. I've never quite understood why we should have one day of the year to let someone know how we feel about them. Why can't we do that everyday? If someone is special to you, they want to know that, they need to know that, on a regular basis, not just one day of the year. Everyone needs to be wanted and loved, even if they say they don't. It is just as wonderful to get flowers or candies or some personal gift that says "I love you" on a day that is not imprinted on a calendar. Those gifts do not have cost anything either. Remember the intangibles: a walk in the park, a drive in the country, quality time together, cooking a meal for someone, etc. You get the idea. The other thing that upsets me is that some people expect to be pampered, wined, and dined on Feb. 14, even when they have treated their significant other with disrespect the rest of the year. Why should they be "rewarded" for that? Gifts are supposed to come from the heart and be given with meaning, not from a sense of duty or expectation.

Wherever you are in life, I hope your Valentine's Day is the way you would like it to be.

Multi-tasking

People talk about multi-tasking all the time. Computers are know for being able to multi-task, doing several things at once. But is it really multi-tasking or just a façade? Have you ever tried to get your computer to open more than one application at the same time, copy files, and print from yet another application all at the same time? What happens? Most of time, the computer will crash. So does it really multi-task? I say no. It still can only perform one task at a time, just like the brain that developed the thing in the first place.

People claim they multi-task all the time. It is very difficult to do two things at once. Have you ever had trouble patting your head and rubbing your tummy at the same time? Remember that from when you are a kid? That just proves that the brain cannot successfully do two things at once. Sure, we may switch back and forth between tasks, constantly switching gears with our brains, but we still are only doing one thing at a time. So the next time someone asks you if you can multi-task, think about what your answer will be.

One thing at a time, one moment at a time, one step at a time, one day at a time. Today is all we really have. Yesterday is history, tomorrow has not yet come, so live in this day only and deal with tomorrow's issues tomorrow. If we worry about tomorrow, we miss what we have today. Look ahead only long enough to plan, then come back to the present and enjoy it. Embrace life!!

The Scoop on Poop

Yesterday I had the pleasure of perusing a book intended for grades 3-6 students. It was entitled The Scoop on Poop. The books explains how all different animals poop, why they poop, why it is brown, smells, and what it is made up of. It also explains how animals use it for mating, cooling off, and even building their homes.

Did you know that termites have the largest poop houses of any animal? There is a picture in the book of a woman standing beside a termite house (and yes, she was touching it) and it stood about 6 feet tall. How cool!!!!

Did you know that in some places in the jungle that people use cow dung to coat the outside of their huts to keep it cooler inside.

Did you know there are more than the two names that we use for it?

There was also a picture of an ostrich having a poop. Let me tell you that I would not want to be standing behind that sucker when it let loose. And you thought the seagulls were bad!!! Thank God that ostrichs don't fly.

The animal that has the largest poop is the African elephant. He can drop turds that weigh a hundred pounds. Don't stand behind him either. They poop enough to completely fill the trunk of a car each day. I'm glad I'm not cleaning up their barns. Sheesh!!!!

I couldn't help but laugh as I went through it. It was great. The kids are gonna love it!!!! Can you imagine the talk around the supper table the night after the kids read that in school? I wish I were a fly on the wall. I would like to have a copy too. What a great conversation piece it would make to leave it on the coffee table. Shall I invest in one?

hahahaha