Prayer request

Wow- 2 posts in the same week!  Must be a new record or something.

This one isn’t for me.  One of my very best friends (A) is having a hard time right now.  Her mom was diagnosed with leukemia several years ago.  They’ve gone through several different treatments but all of the options have been exhausted.  She’s now terminal and the doctors don’t think she has very long to live.  A’s family is trying to fit a lifetime into a few days.

What I’m asking for is lots and lots prayers for this family.  Prayers to help them find peace with all of this.   Prayers that A’s mom is pain-free and can enjoy the remaining time she has.

Socially inept

I have always felt awkward in social situations, especially with strangers.  I seem to lack the part of my brain that makes small talk possible.  Meeting new people is difficult.  I can go for long stretches of time without talking if I have nothing to say – I don’t talk just to fill silence.  I am also very self-conscious about pretty much everything I do and say, unless I’m around close friends and immediate family.  People in positions of higher authority make me so nervous I almost swallow my tongue.  I also internalize pretty much all of my emotions until I can’t stand it anymore.

I am fully aware of these shortcomings.  I struggle with not being quite so awkward, pretty much on a daily basis.  However, there are days when all of my skills escape me and I make a major faux pas.    Today was one of those days. 

A coworker’s son got married this weekend.  Today was the coworker’s first day back in the office since the wedding.  I didn’t ask how the wedding went (I didn’t go).  Coworker got upset – her feelings were hurt because I didn’t ask.  There are several reasons, but verbalizing these just makes them sound like excuses.  Basically, my already lacking social skills failed.  Coworker reacted by offering me some “advice” and pointing out my social inadequacies.  This did nothing but hurt my feelings and make me even more self-conscious.  I apologized.  Several times.  Then I barely spoke to anyone the rest of the day unless it was necessary.

How do I make this less awkward?  I know we’re going to have some uncomfortable moments.  We work together, but we are in separate rooms so we’re not together constantly.  And how do I use this to help my social skills?  And not let it completely destroy what little self-confidence that I have?  I have tried the “fake it until you make it” theory without much success.  In the past I’ve almost lost myself in the “fake”.  I still struggle with who I am sometimes.

Any and all advice is welcome!

Obviously, I’m a slacker.

So much for trying to be better at updating here.  Well, it’s now February.  I’ve completely missed an entire month of the year – not quite sure where it disappeared to though.  Between recovering from the holidays, trying to get to work between snowstorms, and struggling to stay warm without spending a fortune on heating bills, the entire month just kind of snuck past me.

Here’s a quick recap of what has occurred since I last posted:

• I managed to finish all of my quilt orders and gifts with a couple of days to spare before Christmas.  Everyone seemed thrilled with my work – especially my brother and his wife.
• Chad and I spent several days at my parents’ house celebrating Christmas, Dad’s birthday, and new babies (my cousin’s).  We had a delightful time and throughly enjoyed the time away from home and work.
• We also celebrated Christmas with Chad’s family.
• Spent New Year’s Eve at home and asleep before midnight.

January was a mass of snowstorms – one of which kept me from getting home one night after work.  We had a lot of wind with the snow and it just wasn’t safe to travel.  So I spent the night with one of my co-workers.  Cold weather was also a challenge last month.  We had a lot of days where the temperature didn’t get above single digit numbers.  Combine that with the snow that we had on the ground and it’s been a long, miserable winter so far.  Chad’s pool league started up right after the first of the year so we’ve been spending one night a week in the bar for that.  Thankfully this is the last week of the regular season – only two more weeks to go! 

That should just about bring this back up to date.  Hopefully I’ll do a better job of keeping up from now on!

Edited to add:  I have (finally!) updated my Blogroll.

100 things

I’ve copied this from Marathon Mom. The things I’ve done are in red:

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch – quilting counts, right?
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept overnight on a train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when your’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden a gondola in Switzerland
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagra Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen Amish country
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in movie
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi concentration camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. One cavity or less

Newsy bits & a reality check

Happy belated Thanksgiving!  We spent the long holiday weekend at my parents’ house.  It was a nice trip, filled with lots of food, family, friends, and (of course) shopping!  I finished what little Christmas shopping I needed to do and Mom got all of hers done too.  Now I just have to get it all wrapped!  We came home a little early yesterday so that we could go get our tree and get it up.  Chad helped me get the lights and decorations up – now it just needs tinsel.  I think that’s tonight’s project.  I’m glad the tree is up – it really seems like the Christmas season is short this year since Thanksgiving was so late – and I just love the smell of fresh cedar in the house.

Over the weekend some friends lost their home to a fire.  Thankfully no one was home at the time, but by the time the fire department got to the scene, it was too late to save the house.  They lost pretty much everything.  They didn’t have insurance, so the community is really gearing up to help them out.  We drove by yesterday when we went to get our Christmas tree.  It was really sad to see the charred remains of their lives being pushed into a pile with a payloader.

When I sat down to pay bills last night, the top one was our homeowner’s insurance.  Yeah, it seemed a little high when I first glanced at it when it arrived, but after seeing what was left of their home I had no problem writing that check.  I know that our friends lost so much more than just the “stuff” that filled their home, but I can’t help but think that a big, fat check from an insurance company would make rebuilding their lives that much easier.  So I happily mailed the next year’s premium to our insurance company.

Why can’t I just (re)learn to say no?

Like most toddlers around the age of two, I was quite proficient with my usage of the word “No.”  I would say no to everything (and often did) for days on end.  Often, my mother would reprimand me for telling her no.

I think I learned that lesson too well.

Now, at the ripe old age of 28 (wow, when did I get that old!),  I have trouble saying no to anyone.

Last night, one of Chad’s aunt’s called to find out what we were doing for Thanksgiving.  The two of them were chatting away and I was busy quilting some pot holders.  Then Chad brings the phone to me – his aunt had a question for me.   Last winter she had brought me a bunch of rectangles cut from old jeans and wanted to know if I would put them together into a couple of rag quilts for her.  My answer was automatically “Of course, I’d love to!” (or something to that effect).  I started on them while we were renovating our bathroom and could sew a bit before Chad got home from work and between holding drywall sheets.  Then my brother and his then-fiance decided to come visit for a weekend, which meant we had to get the bathroom finished and the rest of the house cleaned.  So the rag quilt pieces got boxed up and put upstairs in a corner.  Where I promptly forgot about them.

Until last night, when Chad’s aunt reminded me about them.  I couldn’t even remember where they were – we went hunting for them after I got off of the phone.  (Bonus – I did get part of my sewing room cleaned up during the hunt.)  Because I feel so bad for forgetting them for all of this time, I’m moving them to the top of my to-do list which is already too long anyway.  I have 2 small quilts to quilt and bind, 4 twin sized quilts to make to fill an order, a pair of photo pillow shams to match a quilt I made a year ago to fill another order, 4 small crayon rolls to make for orders, and a king sized quilt to finish binding for a gift.  Plus, my full time job to do, keep up on the housework, holiday stuff (cards, decorating, etc.), and pay attention to my husband and dog since they put up with me every day.

Can I request 36 hour days for the next month?

Remembering

Today marks the ninth anniversary of a good friend.   James was killed in a farm accident – a tractor fell off of a jack and onto him.  He was helping a neighbor take a tire off to be fixed when the accident occurred. 

The accident happened on my parents’ farm.  James was helping my dad.

It’s hard to believe that it’s been nine years.  Time has flown by.  But I know I’ll never forget that night.

 

To read more about James, click here.

High school days*

In honor of my 10 year** high school reunion this weekend (that I will not be attending because of a photography job), I thought a stroll down memory lane was appropriate for today.

1. Did you date someone from your High School?
Nope.  I didn’t date much in high school.

2. What kind of car did you drive?
I had a 2 door Ford Escort with a hatchback.  It was a great little car-my friends & I called it the roach-until I wrecked it.

3. What was the most embarrassing moment of High School for you?
Wow – there are too many to choose from!

4. Were you a party animal?
No,  I liked to have a good time with my friends, but we weren’t big partiers.

5. Were you considered a flirt?
Nope.

6. Were you in Band, Orchestra, or Choir?
I was in band, but being in band wasn’t the social-life-ending event that it was to many.

7. Were you a nerd?
I sure hope not, but I think I was.  (Of course I still am.  Nice to know somethings never change.)

8. Were you on any Varsity teams?
Nope – I’ve never been good at team sports

9. Did you ever get suspended/expelled?
Nope – Never even got a detention.

10. Can you still sing the fight song?
Hangs head in shame – Yes, I can.

11. Who were your favorite teachers?
I loved most of my teachers, but I liked/respected all of them.

12. Where did you sit during lunch?
In the cafeteria with my friends.  Small schools don’t offer any other choices.

13. What was your school’s full name?
Pawnee City High School

14. School mascot?
Indians

15. Did you go to Homecoming? With whom?
Yes – it was the social event of the fall semester.  I always went with a bunch of my friends, never a date.

16. If you could go back and do it again, would you?
High school was okay, but college was so much better. Can I go back and do that again please?

17. What do you remember most about graduation?
Not being recognized as part of the top 10% of the class – I graduated 3rd in my class.

18. Where did you go Senior Skip Day?
We didn’t have one.

19. Were you in any clubs?
National Honor Society, Speech team, Drama/Play Production, Math team, Quiz Bowl Team and probably a few more that I’ve forgotten.

20. Have you gained some weight since then?
Yep

21. Who was your Prom Date?
Junior Year – my boyfriend Nick from another school.  Senior year, I went with an underclassman friend of mine.

22. 10 year Reunion? Are you planning on going?
Yep – it’s this weekend.  I’m not going because I have a paying photography job.

23. Looking back, what advice would you give yourself?
I think I would tell myself to worry less about image, and more about the things that really matter.

*I realize that I’ve neglected this blog for over 2 months, but I refuse to comment on it.  It’s been a busy summer but my writer’s block wouldn’t let me tell you about it.

**I can’t believe that I’ve been out of high school for 10 years.  I can’t be that old yet!!

Wedding #2

My good friend from college, Ashley, got married this past weekend.  The day was wonderful – perfect weather, no major problems, and everyone had a great time!  I was one of her bridesmaids, so it was a full day.  Pictures are below.

Me with the beautiful bride:

The bride and her maids:

One down, one to go

My brother and his fiance wife (wow that sounds strange!) got married over the weekend. It was a beautiful day full of love and joy – a wonderful way to start a life together. The bride was lovely, the groom handsome, and a good time was had by all in attendance. I did my duty as their photographer and took lots of pictures, all of which are waiting for me to start editing. Instead I’m forced to show you a picture from the night they got engaged.

A good friend of mine from college is getting married this weekend, and I am in the wedding party so it’s another short week at work. Guess that means I’d better get back to it.