I’m supposed to call the doctor in the morning to find out the results.  I just hope he has some answers as to the cause of all these problems.  From the EMG, he is pretty convinced this is not carpal tunnel, so now we wait to see what the MRI shows….he suspects there is some sort of nerve issue with my neck that is causing all the problems.  We shall see.  In the meantime, TTFN and TGI(almost)F!

See?  I just can’t stick to the topic.  I get carried off on tangents, just like my Grammy K used to. 

Ok, junior high.  I was in UIL both 7th and 8th grade.  This time it was for Prose.  I remember in 8th grade I read an excerpt from To Kill a Mockingbird.  I had so much fun doing that one.  It was the part where the teacher freaks out over finding a “cootie” in a child’s hair.  I was the Student Council President in 8th grade.  I also started playing volleyball in 7th grade (first year we had the opportunity).  I played every year after that, all the way through graduation.  I was never what I would call “athletic” but for some reason, I fell in love with volleyball.  I was pretty good, too. 

Anyway, sticking to the topic, I also was a cheerleader in 8th grade and my freshman year in highschool.  I didn’t try out again after that because 1) it interfered with volleyball, and 2) it stopped being fun when it became all about popularity.  I marched to the beat of my own drum, and in a small town school, that was not something  that fostered popularity or a desire to be with that group.  Not that they were bad people, I just wasn’t into the same things they were for the most part.  I had my “bad boy” boyfriend by then, too, which didn’t help matters.  I hope this is not sounding bitter or mean.  I’m trying not to get carried away with stories right now and just giving some basics.  The bad boy and I got together in 7th grade and were off and on, mostly on, through graduation.  I’ve referred to him previously here as Psycho (he called himself that back then, so I’m not being ugly by calling him that). 

High school:  As I mentioned, I played volleyball all 4 years.  We had a freshman, JV, and varsity team.  Midway through my freshman season, I was moved up to JV.  By my sophmore year, I was on varsity.  My senior year, I was named to the All District team, voted my team’s MVP and Best Offensive player.  It was an interesting year because basically, by then, I was the only senior on the team.  It was a “rebuilding” year.  We had 2 juniors and the rest of the team were sophmores.  Apparently a period of disinterest in volleyball over those few years, I don’t know.  But it was still fun and one of my very favorite parts of my high school experience.  I was also voted the “Volleyball Sweetheart” for Homecoming.  I didn’t tell anyone I was planning to do this, but my dress had a long slit up on leg.  So, when they escorted us out onto the field and announced me, I popped one leg out from the dress and had on my red volleyball kneepad!  It was awesome!  My coach loved it and, for atleast the next couple of years while she was still at that school, it became a tradition that the volleyball sweetheart wear a kneepad out on the field.   

I was on student council, but that was pretty lame and we never really did much of anything.  I only did that two years I think.  I was in FHA and the FHA reporter for one year.  That Future Homemaker’s of America.  Looking back, I’m surprised that there was a group essentially dedicated to those who aspired to be….stay at home mom’s.  No one took it for that reason though, but if I read back over some of the materials about FHA, that’s essentially what it was.  We all took it because it was fun and easy and the teachers were cool.    I don’t think I was in UIL 9th or 10th grade.  Not for lack of wanting to be, the teachers just didn’t seek us out like they did in younger grades.  In fact, I don’t think I even realized UIL still existed until my sophmore year when my English teacher asked why I wasn’t participating. 

In 11th grade, I took typewriting (yes, back when we still actually used typewriters instead of computers) as one of my electives.  That teacher immediately recruited me for UIL typing.  So, 11th and 12th grade I did that.  In 11th grade, I won at district, advanced to regionals, and right before the contest, I jammed my finger playing volleyball.  It was off-season, so it was just a stupid injury from goofing around in the gym during athletics.  Needless to say, my typing teacher wasn’t thrilled with me.  My finger was swollen and I could barely bend it.  But I suffered through it and still managed to get 3rd place.  Not high enough to advance though.  My senior year, after again winning and advancing, my teacher joked with me about how she better not see me anywhere near a volleyball before contest.  Yet somehow, I don’t even remember the circumstances, but you guessed it, I jammed a finger (different one this time, but also from volleyball).  She heard about it before I even made it out of the gym to head to lunch.  I was less driven and less serious about typing that year, I will admit.  And I will never pass up a chance to play volleyball, so….I did ok at contest, but again, not enough to advance to state.  When I think back, I’m irritated at myself for that.  If I’d been 100%, I have no doubt I could have advanced.  Based on the scores of those who did, I KNOW I could have.  I was getting practice scores that high on a regular basis.  But, I was having too much fun being a senior to practice and focus (and skip gym for a few weeks).  It would have been fun to go to state contest, but at the time, I would rather stay home and hang out with the boyfriend and my two best gal pals.  Ah, the follies of youth.

I was also in One Act Play in high school.  Every year except freshman.  That was a lot of fun, too.  I won a couple of awards my senior year.  I was never in a starring role, which was fine with me because, as I mentioned before, I was kind of flaky in high school.  I was all about spending every spare second with Psycho. 

Ok, I think that pretty much sums up my school activities, the officially sanctioned ones at least.

And now, for today’s tweets…Powered by Twitter Tools:

• Too true! RT @drdrew: It’s discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit – Noel Coward #
• lol…nice! RT @TFLN: (317): when im not freaking out about dying alone and unloved, i actually really enjoy being single #

1. I’ve come to realise that my last kiss…was the beginning of a nightmare.

2. I am listening to…the rain.

3. I talk…too much when I shouldn’t and not enough when I should.

4. I love…to sleep.

5. My best friend/s…are a blessing.

6. My first real kiss… was forgettable.

7. Love is…a battlefield.

8. Marriage is… what bwwings us togevuh today.

9. Somewhere, someone is thinking…about swine flu.

10. I’ll always…buy more shoes.

11. The last time I really cried was because…I’m just going through the motions.

12. My cell phone…is a mix between a necessary evil and an addiction.

13. When I wake up in the morning… I go to the bathroom.

14. Before I go to bed… I read.

15. Right now I am thinking about…a presentation I need to prepare for work tomorrow.

16. Babies are…fascinating little creatures.

17. I get on Myspace…never, if I can help it.

18. Today I…was in meetings the entire time.

19. Tomorrow will …be fun because I’m meeting up with MommyK and MrsDrillTeam after work.

20. I really want to be… happy.

21. The person/people that will fill this out is/are…awesome. Or bored.

1. Stephen Lynch concert this Friday – the guy is freaking hysterical. 
2. Morrissey concert next Friday – I’ve been in love with this guy since I was about 13.  Age has been kinder to him than it has to me and he still has one of the greatest voices in music.
3. A vacation day added to a holiday weekend – yep, I’m taking the Monday after Easter off to make it a glorious 4-day weekend.
4. Girls Getaway Weekend – we missed it in 2008 due to a hurricane, so we’re doing it in May this year.  Added bonus is that we’re doing it over Memorial Day weekend so we get an extra day together to act like the silly girls we are!
5. Photography Weekend Workshop – I’ve been wanting to sign up for this for the past few years but always managed to miss it.  This year, I’m registered and my friend, Flirt, has decided to join me.  We’ve already got our room booked at the B&B.  So excited!

So there.  Some positives in an otherwise dull existence. 

V turned up a little later and regailed us with stories of her vacation in Viet Nam.  She’s the only person I know who can return from a 2-week trip, a long ass plane ride, and then be up for meeting for drinks within a couple of hours of returning home. 

There was a brief moment when Red thought we might end up in a fight with random guy’s girlfriend, but that appeared to be unwarranted.  So, aside from the initial trepidation about returning, it was a great night!

Quotes of the evening:

Red:  She just got back from Viet Nam. 
Drunk guy:  Whoa.  Are you in the service?  Are you ok? 
V:  Um…you know that war is over, right? 
Drunk guy:  Sorry.  I’m not very educated.

“Tell striped-shirt-guy that I will make him moan all night.”

Red:  Just how horny are you?  
V:  DAMN horny. 
Red:  Ok, let me see what I can do (as she wanders off to chat up random guys).

Dry socket.

A cold.

Sinus infection.

Bronchitis.

A new puppy.

Potty-training.

No bite.

Crate.

Thanksgiving.

Sleep.

Awake.

Potty.

Nap.

Howl.

Whine.

Work.

Back to it.

It is now almost a week later.  They are still without power in Pinewood, but rumor has it sometime in the next day or two it should be back on.  I know they are anxious to get home.  I am mostly enjoying them being here, but I have to admit, as someone who lives by herself, it has been taxing on my sanity.  I’m a creature of habit and my normal routines have gone out the window.  Nothing compared to what they are going through though, so I am grateful to be in a position to help out in some way.

Her mom and 3 aunts all had beach houses at Crystal Beach.  yes, I said HAD.  All 4 of them are now GONE.  Completely disintegrated and washed away to parts yet unknown.  All that remains, from what we’ve been able to see in videos and online photos, is the concrete slabs. 

It’s so sad to see the massive destruction there and in Galveston.  Growing up, I (mis)spent a lot of my fun-filled youth cruising the beach and window shopping on the Strand. 

Anyway, just had a few quick minutes to myself and wanted to blog a bit while I was thinking of it.

I’ve signed up for LifeWalk 2008.  This is my first year to participate.  It is about a 3 mile walk around a scenic area of Dallas on Sunday, October 5.  And it benefits a cause that I strongly support.

Proceeds will benefit Aids Arms, Inc, a United Way agency that advocates for AIDS/HIV education and prevention, helping Dallas residents with health care, resources and the support necessary to manage the challenges of living with HIV/AIDS. (See www.aidsarms.org)
Why:

• Dallas leads the state in new HIV infections, with more than 20,000 residents living with the disease.
• HIV/AIDS continues to be a growing epidemic in the U.S.
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that an additional 30 percent are infected and do not know it.
• African-American men make up nearly 50 percent of all new AIDS cases in the U.S.
• AIDS is the third leading cause of death for Latinos.
• Half of all new HIV-infected people are younger than 25.
• More than 250,000 American women are HIV-positive and make up 25 percent of all HIV infection in the U.S.

This evening I am going to relax, watch some movies, and maybe clean up around the house a little.  Or start reading something new.  I just finished reading How to Be Good by Nick Hornby and, while everyone raves about its sarcastic wit, it just left me feeling down.  So I think I’ll read something fluffier next.

Tomorrow night it’s dinner at PF Chang’s for a friend’s birthday.

Sunday, out to Fair Park for our employer-sponsored free weekend.  Mexigoalie and I went last year.  It was my first time to visit Fair Park for something other than the State Fair of Texas.  I enjoyed the flower gardens, the Hall of State, and the Musuem of Natural Science.  But not the walking around outdoors in the heat most of the day.  So this year, Mexigoalie, Nala, and V are coming with me and we’re planning to be there earlier in the day.  I’m just excited to have a chance to dust my cameras off again.  I haven’t been making nearly enough photographs lately.

That’s it for now.  Hope everyone enjoys their weekend!

[x] Say cheese!