Dairy and Cellulite

I just learned from Martha's blog that dairy causes cellulite.  This is not a good thing, what with yogurt being a favorite food.  Man.  I'm swiping her meme because it's a good opportunity to blog. Topics are hard to come by, lately.

Your best friend tells you she is pregnant.  What do you do? 

Congratulate her and start planning the baby shower.

 

When is the last time you wanted to punch someone in their face?

 

I've never wanted to punch someone in the face. 

 

 

What is the last thing you spent money on?

 

Groceries

 

Do you think you gained or lost weight this past month?

Might have lost a couple of pounds.

 

Crunchy or Puffy Cheetos?  

 

Puffy!  They have a good crunch AND they dissolve nicely in the mouth.

 

Congratulations! You just had a son. What's his name? 

 

Wow, that didn't hurt a bit.  If I had another son, his name would be Christopher Garrett

And if it was a girl, she would be

 

Cameron Britt.  I actually suggested that name to my daughter for her baby.

What are you craving right now? 

Iced tea.

 

What was the last thing you cried about?

Leaving the hospital on my last day.  In the last few minutes there, I choked a little.

 

When you buy something and your change is 2 cents, do you keep it or tell the cashier to keep it? 

I usually keep it unless they have a little "need a penny, take one - have an extra, leave one" bowl.

 

What color is your tissue box?

 

Mauve!

 

Do you have a ceiling fan in your room, and if so, is there dust on that fan?

No ceiling fan in here!  Perhaps when I move, I'll put a ceiling fan in the new bedroom. And try to remember to dust it.

 

Scariest thing you've experienced in the last year?

My mother's and father's hospitalizations.

 

Have you ever had a garage sale?

Once - it's a lot of work, but I need to have another one.

 

What color is your iPod? 

Don't have one. Don't want one.

 

 

What is the last alcoholic beverage you had?

Blackberry merlot - that was probably two years ago.

 

Are you happy right now?  

I'm content.  No complaints.

 

Who came over last? 

My daughter, today.  She's here for a week!

Do you drink beer?

 

Nope - beer makes me mean. 

 

Have your brothers or sisters ever told you that you were adopted? 

 

No, they claim me as one of them, for some odd reason.

 

What is your favorite key on your key chain?

The key to my car, Zelda.

 

What was the last movie you watched at home?

Across the Universe

 

What is in your pocket?

Three peppermint candies.

 

Where do you hurt?

 

Chest. 

 

 

Has someone ever made you a Build-A-Bear? 

No, don't know what that is.

 

What's something fun you did today?

Ahh..drove to Durham, picked up the daughter, had lunch on the way back, shopped for groceries, played with the baby, visited mom and dad, made a cherry cream cheese pie for dessert and played in the rain. 

What is your favorite aisle at Wal-Mart?

The shoe aisle!

 

When is your birthday? 

October 23

 

 

Is there anything hanging from your rear view mirror? 

An air freshener that looks like a candle and smells like cinnamon.

 

What kind of milk do you drink? 

Fat free

 

What is something you need to go shopping for? 

 

Clothes.

 

What day is this again?

It's Monday, right?  Holidays always throw me a little off kilter.  They're good, mind you, but the calendar in my head stops working.  I hope you all had a wonderful Easter.  It was nice, here, the family all together and the weather very nice.  We always have a cold snap this time of year.  It's perfect for Sunrise Services.  I like that chill.

Life has been so busy.  Last weekend, all the grandkids and their parents were here.  It was very crowded and noisy.  When they all left, I slumped with relief and sighed..but then, the quiet seemed too quiet.  It's easy to get used to it again, though. 

I started the new job last Wednesday.  It felt so natural to walk in the facility, like I had never left.  The job itself is wonderful, but DOC's way of training a person is trial and error.  You're shown some fast path codes for data entry, told to do them and so...you do them.  And if you make mistakes (which I did) your supervisor prints them out and hands them to you for correction (which she did).  I like it, so far - and as soon as I learn what the heck all those codes mean and what their purpose really is, I'll love it.  The pace is good and fast.  I haven't nodded off once.

 

coming down to earth

It seems longer than five years ago that I accepted a position at another unit.  I loathed leaving the hospital and the warmth of the people there.  It was almost a family atmosphere with the folks who had been there under human resources before it became a prison hospital.  But leave, I must, if I wanted a permanent position complete with benefits and retirement.  So I went...

to a place that was gray and concrete.  It had clanging doors that custody had to open for you - everything was locked - and on the mental health side, Christ roamed the halls and Satan was locked up in seg, my boss despised me and made no bones about it.  But I was trapped - it was stay or quit, and I couldn't afford to quit, with a sick husband at home who was depending on my health coverage to pay his hospital and physician's bills.

So I sucked it up.  I was a nervous wreck that first year.  The job itself was as huge a responsibility as the sick husband who became psychotic on his medications. I stayed - and worked damned hard because I had something to prove and a reason to be there.  But, oh, how I missed my former workplace and the atmosphere there, and vowed to go back if I could.

And then something happened.  I met an old man at the prison - a psychologist - who was very kind to me.  We became fast friends, and when things became overwhelming, I'd trip down the hall to his office to borrow a cup of his calm.  And then something else happened.  Somewhere between south unit and central, I made friends with the custody staff.  They gave me something that I whole-heartedly returned - respect.  I looked out for them the best my job would allow, and they did the same for me.  I was one of them.

And then other things happened - my boss decided I was a pretty-good-okay secretary after all, and our relationship became one of mutual respect.  I met a nurse from Trinidad - "the islands", as she put it.  And she was my charge nurse who depended on me and called me elephant brain because I knew the patients and their ailments as well as she did and she depended on me to know.

Then came the opportunity I had prayed for the first year of my employement - a position at my old unit.  I took it, though I loathed to leave my other team.  But I was tired and had taken an emotional beating over the past few years.  For a while, my time was split betweenboth locations - mornings were spent at the hospital and afternoons were spent as secretary to the nurses.  I didnt mind, actually.  And when that ended, I was full-time hospital medical records girl.

The place had changed.  All who had been there under human resources had left.  There was no responsibility, none of the adrenaline I had become used to - and addicted to.  Our office had become a gathering place for gripefests and the discontent among the employees under a new regime was loud and battering.  And there was no respect.  None.  There were loud arguments between my boss and the social worker, and on more than one occasion, I had to "testify" in an investigation.  Oh, how I longed for the place I had left and the old man's cup of calm.  For the respect.  For the team I had left behind.

And I vowed that one day, I would go back there.  I vowed it every time one of the officers from that unit came over and asked if I was ready to come back to them yet.  Every time they jokingly called me a traitor.  I would block out the sights that had driven me away and made me cringe every time someone mentioned the word "shower." 

And on occasion, I would see the old man in town and he would say - We miss you.  It feels like something is missing.  And I didn't tell him that there was something missing in my days, too, but I thought it, and hoped that the old man would still be there when I made my way back.

It was more than two years before the chance presented itself.  I pulled up the OSP jobs website one Tuesday morning an audibly gasped.  An opening there!  How very rare.  I spent the morning typing out my application and faxed it in that very day.  For  two weeks, I held my breath, wondering if they would even consider me for an interview after I left them.

And then they called me.  I had the interview.  I was so nervous I botched it - I wasn't professional at all, I was simply me, earnest with my answers to people who had once been my team.  I shook their hands as I prepared to leave and told them it was good to see them again.

And I heard nothing for two more weeks.  I had given up - if you have the job, usually, you know within a few days, and I knew nothing.  Then one night while I was laying in bed between sleep and waking, the small voice spoke to me from nowhere.  It said - You got the job. And I said - Aww, get outta here, dismissed it and fell asleep.

Two days later, my boss was reading her email and said - Did you know about this?  When were you going to tell me?  I was puzzled.  Know about what, I asked her.  She read the email aloud.  It said - We have just received approval for Ms. Broadaway to assume the position and would like for her to start as soon as possible.  Is March 17th all right with you?

I almost fainted.  I rose from my chair with the phone in my hand and told the person on the other end - I GOT THE JOB!!!!

In a building just down the road from the hospital, there is a lieutenant who will undoubtedly grin and say - what did i tell you? Now don't leave us again.  And there is a new supervisor and section head who have a faith in me that amazes me.  They chose me for a position they plan to expand.  They told me the job is a good place to start with their department, and that tells me they have plans for my future.  More importantly, there is an old man in that building who is waiting for me to come back to share a cup of calm, some laughs and a little philosophical conversation. 

I'm coming, Dr. H.  I'll be there soon.

Horrified

It all started when a teenager began posting on a local tv stations online community.  He made the mistake of admitting his age - clearly a violation of terms of service, as anyone younger than 18 is not allowed to have an account.  Some of the long-time members (adults) began a heated debate on the young man's first blog post.

The young man didn't cause a stir himself, but another young poster, who discovered the community because his teacher at school is a member, "came out", so to speak.  And when he did, he threatened that "blood would flow."  I'm leaving out the rest of the remarks.  I haven't decided whether the kid is doing it for the shock value or if he's a real danger to someone.  What I read was horrifying.

I am - was - a member of the community.  The remarks of the angry blogger were bad enough.  And then came the adults in an attack that only inflamed the situation.

So...this is what the internet has come to? 

I'm not naive - I know that there are stalkers, flamers...but I have never witnessed anything like I saw tonight in any forum in which I participated.  I would think adults would look at the world today, at the angry people who could find them because they've posted pictures of their homes and given out the names of their towns, that they would see the potential for danger when confronting an obviously disturbed person on the internet - young or not, young especially - My God.  I would think they would be in possession of better judgment and let the authorities handle it.

I'm dropping my membership there right now.  I don't need that crap.

Going to the Dogs, in a good way

Anyone who reads me knows at least two things about me - that I work in a prison, and that I love dogs.  About six years ago, a new program called PAWS was started at the prison.  Inmates were carefully selected to train service dogs.  I was so excited about the program's inception.  It gave the inmates a chance to give back to society, and so far, it has been successful.

More recently, the program took a temporary detour and the guys are now learning/providing basic obedience training for canines from the local no-kill shelter.  Now THAT is truly exciting!  I've volunteered at the shelter on too few occasions, cleaning cages and feeding the animals there, and I know the owner, Linden, puts forth an enormous effort to feed, house and arrange for their adoptions  When we noticed the obvious "mutts" being walked instead of the usual labs, we were curious as to what that was all about.  And today, we got a more detailed answer in this:article: http://fayobserver.com/article?id=287406

One of these days, I'll learn how to do html in this thing.

I'll be back later to write about Lacy and her blankie.

of cabbages and kings

The past week and a half has been crazy around here.  Jim, who was laid off in January, started a new job.  He is a small engine mechanic and has spent years working in unheated shops in the winter and in the summers he burned up.  Well, this new job is in sales - he has to dress up for work ( i LOVE it!) and he goes to work clean and comes home clean.  It's a novel experience for him.  The only fly in the ointment is his bout with gout.

He didn't want to go to the doctor, so my boss suggested using a cabbage leaf.  And last night, I parboiled a leaf, wrapped it in place around his foot and made him sleep with it on.  Oh, how he moaned (almost as much as when I used to make him dress up) about having to sleep with produce.  My daughter called.  She said, what's dad doing?  Oh, he's in bed with his cabbage.  She never paused - kept talking and I was thinking - doesn't she find that the least bit odd?

Well, when he woke this morning he could tell a difference in his foot.  He asked me if we had another leaf for tonight.  One more should do it! he said.  How neat.

I did a little research and learned that cabbage leaf poultices work for a lot of ailments, like post surgical hematomas and breast engorgement.  And yes - gout!  

I had the flu the past week and feel like a new person today.  I know the misery has to run its course, but when my throat was on fire, I remembered my boss saying something about garlic.  Well, it was too late for pills, so I pulled open the garlic box, cut off a clove and ate the darned thing.  Man, did that burn - but in minutes, my sore throat was soothed.  ALL DAY!  And so I continued to eat garlic (no self-respecting virus will hang around the odor, apparently) and drank ginger tea and lots of water.  And when I ran out of cough syrup, I recalled the onion cure.  I put sugar on a diced onion and stored it in the fridge overnight, drank a few teaspoons of the syrup that resulted and son-of-a-gun, it worked.

A little research later, I had learned that garlic is a potential treatment for MRSA.  I also learned that the allicin in garlic can be used to treat upper respiratory infections, certain wounds...of course, you should always consult your physician before taking matters into the realm of homeopathy.  But I can tell you - the garlic, onion syrup and ginger tea really helped.

Used to be, every time my boss came up with a new herbal cure to use on everybody, I cringed and thought she was a bit cracked.  But from now on, I will listen to her.  It appears she DOES know what she's talking about.