FACEBOOK

Wow I have been on face book for almost two weeks now and have learned A LOT about people. And I don't mean that like it sounds. First, let me put a disclaimer...........I like face book... ALOT!!
I have reconnected with people that I went to high school with that I haven't talked to in literally 20 years or more. I have reconnected with former students who made my early teaching days the BEST of my career. And I have gotten to SHARE my family and the things I have done with people who used to be an every day part of my life. It is a good thing. HOWEVER, yes dear reader you knew this was coming, it is NOT a good thing for people who don't realize what it is and what it is for. For instance, there are people who post every single detail, emotion, and activity of their day...all day...every minute.........oh my gosh and then there are those who make "mystery" posts..........just a sigh or a smiley face or a sad face so that people will ask and ask and ask what is wrong. I mean clearly face book is a narcissists DREAM!!! And the enablers like it a lot too I imagine....And the whole friend request thing?? I have people who barely know me or barely knew me or didn't even LIKE me that now want to be friends with me! I know that "didn't even like me" sort of made you pause, right? trying to imagine that? but alas it is true. And once they ask to be your friend they have NO CONTACT with you whatsoever?? I have a "friend" on FB that I have known since elementary school and I have messaged her, chatted her and commented her and she has yet to respond ONE TIME. I believe that I am just part of her "how many friends can I have on face book quest". But all in all, the good outweighs the bad. It is those drama-filled, needy, insecure people that make it sort of a bummer and I have decided to delete them and I am pretty sure they won't even notice. But as I said, for the most part, it is cool and I am a little "addicted" but feel sure that will pass in time. And if I become an obsessed FB fan who bores you with EVERY piece of minutia of my life feel free to comment and tell me to "get a grip". And I will be grateful.................OR I will delete you :o)

Global Warming, Carbon Footprints, and Plastic

I am a litterbug!! Yes, I am!! Not constantly but sometimes I throw stuff out the window. Okay, I almost ALWAYS throw stuff out of my window. If I remember to get a trashbag at the carwash then I will use it but alas, with my dementia, that hardly ever happens. So, yeah, I throw it out. I mean, hey, my car is clean and I don't want that crap in it. Which leads me to the whole SAVE THE EARTH campaign. I think we are probably supposed to save the SOULS of the earth by telling them about Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour but I don't know about all that other. You see, I believe that God created the world in six days. I believe that. I also believe that God will destroy the earth in HIS time at the appointed hour. I believe this because the Bible tells me so. (I think they wrote a song with that exact line in it!) I DO NOT believe that God is in heaven ON HIS THRONE walking around with His head in His hands shouting "oh the plastic, the plastic!!" I do not believe He is frantic about smog or gas emissions nor do I believe that He is organizing the angels for a benefit concert to raise money to try to fix the a hole in our ozone!!! He created this earth and I believe that He will destroy it just like He said. I DO NOT believe that we, as mere humans, can interrupt His plan in any way shape form or fashion. Yes, litter is ugly (especially so in my car) and smog and air pollution is dangerous to breathe, and yeah the seasons they seem to be changing. BUT, if you read the Bible, HE told us this was going to happen. He told us these would be signs of the end times (not smog or litter but the earthquakes, tsunami's, and weird weather). In fact, the FACT that He doesn't even MENTION plastic or the ozone comforts me even more. I cringe when I hear someone say "we need to save Mother Earth". Really? The Earth is a mother? How do we know that? Was there DNA testing done? And when I go to the grocery store I want plastic bags and no I don't throw them out the window to snag the trees (that is just stupid, they have groceries in them). If you carry your groceries INTO your house how do those bags get outside anyway? I use them to carry my lunch to school where the bag goes into the trash and I stuff a bunch under my sink to put in my bathroom trash cans. HEY that's called RECYCLING!!! Pardon me while I run out and hug a tree!!! Besides, picking up trash gives the criminally inclined a job when they go to jail so I am also helping provide jobs and boosting the economy and I KNOW people are concerned about that!!! Just trying to do my part!!

The Old Gray Mare She Ain't What She Used To Be!!

Okay, so I run every week. Twice a week. And I have hit five miles each day and in the last month my time has gotten really good. So.......I sometimes forget how old I REALLY am!! Yesterday while trying to give my students a "feel" for the Roaring Twenties and what flappers were and how much fun the era was I performed the Charleston. And very well I might add. I performed it so well that I decided to do it again the next class period. And when I was finished with much gusto my knee sort of went.....OW!!!
By the next class period, I was sort of hobbling and by lunch I was barely making the stairs. In the class period FOLLOWING lunch we had a freaking fire drill. Yep, back down the stairs, out to the back forty behind the building, standing around on uneven muddy ground (did I mention that I was in heels) and then back into the building and BACK up the stairs. Okay now I am having a serious knee issue. Went to the trainer after school and it is a POSSIBILITY that ALL I HAVE done is dislocated my knee cap. So, no heels for a few days (I do NOT own a pair of shoes that do not have heels except my tennis shoes and flip flops or my Uggs which I have to wear with jeans)NO RUNNING and ice and ibuprofen and REST!!! YEP, right here at Christmas with a two hour concert at church THREE nights in a row, getting kids ready for semester exams (which requires a lot of walking around the classroom, not to mention the beatings) and Christmas shopping. Had to get permission to wear a wind suit so I could wear tennis shoes. I am SO not wearing tennis shoes with ANY THING else. BUT, the classes that got to SEE me do the Charleston PASSED THE EXAM TODAY WITH FLYING COLORS!!!! You see, I forget that I am old(er)!! I truly do. Bottom line........the old gray mare ain't what she used to be. But she still ain't that bad!!!

Going Postal

It has been many years, thank goodness, since it has happened. But in years past, there were a rash of shootings in post offices by postal employees. Evidently the stress and pressures of the job, caused them to want to shoot their bosses, co-workers and even themselves. Hence the saying, "going postal." Well, I have some issues with that. I was at the post office the other day, as I have been many times, and the line was to the door and there were THREE, yep that's right, THREE employees. Because of new laws that require a passport to go to Mexico, and because we live in what is now "little Mexico", there are MANY people who are there wanting passports. This takes anywhere from 20 minutes to two days for the employee to explain and get done. They should have a passport PERSON but no, any one who goes to any station can start that long process. While those of us needing, I don't know STAMPS or something else that takes all of 2 minutes must wait. And INVARIABLY, no matter HOW MANY people are in line, one of the THREE (and there are NEVER more than three) employees will put up their "window closed" sign and continue to work slowly and calmly while we all stand there and stare at them in disbelief. If looks could kill, that white haired man with the glasses, would be at Johnson's Funeral Home as we speak. A supervisor will usually make an appearance and see the LONG line and decide to "HELP". This is laughable. Yes, it is. In fact I was laughing almost out loud as I typed that. She goes up and down the aisle asking what people need and guess what? She tells ALL of them "I can't do that, you will have to see the clerk." In fact ALL SHE CAN DO, evidently, is see if you need help and direct you to the clerk which is what you were standing in line for in the first place. I believe her real job is to placate you but all she does is make me even madder. I think she can go get certified letters for you, provided you show her your birth certificate and slip her a $100 bill. So after the clerk that has closed their window (and it is always the white haired guy by the way), works SLOWLY for a while at his window.........he opens back up. WHAT???????? He couldn't have just stayed open and done whatever he was doing LATER? Perhaps when the line didn't contain 18 people? And might I add that throughout this whole ordeal, the passport couple ARE STILL THERE and not ANY closer to getting one it seems. So, the post office employees find THEIR job so stressful that they bring guns to work? ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? They are as slow as tortoises. They feel no pressure as they face an ANGRY MOB (line, same thing) of people who just want to get their business done and get out. They close their work stations WHENEVER they feel like it. And HEAVEN FORBID, if it is time for their break, while they are WAITING on a person, they just clock out. SERIOUSLY!! So where does the anger come from? I can tell you..........IT IS WITH ME!!!!!!!!! I was so "postal" by the time I had stood in line (with only 8 people in front of me, all of whom were just buying stamps or mailing something) for over thirty minutes, they are lucky I DON'T carry a gun!! And it is that way EVERY time I go there. What is that? And yet, we should pity the postal worker and ALL that they go through? Not me baby. I used to visit with my postman, talk about the weather, joke about the bills and stuff, but not anymore. I am afraid that I will pummel him about the face and head profusely and scream, "what is up with the freaking post office?" So, I just smile and wave and fight the bitterness that is welling up within me. Going Postal? Yeah, I do EVERY time I go in the building. And the couple trying to get the passport?? I drove by the NEXT day and they were STILL there and the line was OUT OF THE BUILDING........going postal..........JEESH!!!!

Mean Girls

I absolutely LOVED and STILL LOVE the movie "mean girls". It is just the epitome of high school. In fact, most of us, NEVER really leave high school, we just leave the building. In fact, I am STILL in the freaking building. There are still cliques, and gossip, and slander, and criticizing no matter how old you get. I, for one, was a "plastic" in high school (shocking) though at the time we were called "jets". And not after the movie West Side Story, but after the term "jetsetter" meaning a person of importance. We were "pop", short for popular. We had "jocks", "geeks", "nerds", (not sure now why those weren't the same except I think the "geeks" were smart), "thugs", "band nerds", and "hoods". Can you hear the smile in my voice as I write this. Oh yeah. It was classic mean girl world. Oh yeah and the "wannabes" which we still have today in every area of society. I can't imagine NOT BEING popular and while I know that makes me sound shallow and vain, high school was wonderful for the"jetsetters/plastics". Any drama we had was within ourselves and even though we were mean, when it came to the down and dirty, we took care of our own. We could be mean to each other but no one could be mean to us. We were imitated and people wanted to be like us or be liked BY us. Just like the "plastics". We also wanted to be like each other. A lot like Gretchen in the movie. One girl would wear something "new" and by weeks end everyone was wearing it. And yeah, what does that say about individuality and independence? Not much, but we were in high school. In fact, today we ALL still IMITATE stars, or "popular people" or people we admire. That is where all the fashion ideas come from for pete's sake. Women dress for women. We don't care what men think of what we have on or how we do our hair. We care what the "ladies" are going to think. Yeah, there is a little "plastic" in all of us. As a "plastic" gets older they are no longer mean-spirited like high school but just plain mean. I choose to think of it as sarcastic, sharp, and witty with a broken "give a damn" meter. So are you a mean girl? These might help you decide:
YOU MIGHT BE A MEAN GIRL IF:

1) you notice what others are wearing and have an opinion about it
2) you're appearance (at ALL times) is important to you
3) other people's appearance is important to you
4)you can't stand annoying people and don't even try to
5) you know the fashion "dos and don'ts" and live by them
6) you have a BFF that is also a mean girl
7) you and above mentioned person talk about other people and what they are wearing and how good/bad they look
8) you are smart and informed about important things............like fashion and what is in the latest issue of People magazine
9) you like yourself A LOT
10)and last but not least...........other people like you too...and if they don't it is because they are jealous!!!!

What Not to Wear (revisited)

People magazine usually puts out an issue on how to "glam" it up for the summer. It is full of helpful tips and cost effective ways to "look like a star." I have decided to help my dear friends, coworkers, and students who either don't subscribe to People or who can't afford to purchase one at Wal-Mart. So here are MY fashion DOS AND DON'TS.

DOS

do bathe regularly (wasn't something I thought I would have to mention until one of my students just walked up to my desk as I was preparing to type)

do use deodorant (see above)

do wash hair (AT LEAST 4 of the SEVEN days of the week)

do STYLE hair (and that does not mean like "carrot top, it also means no do-rags, headbands, caps or scarves. I have several friends for whom cap screams "didn't take time to do my hair)

do use product if hair is unruly. (doesn't have to be salon style.. a Wal-Mart brand will work, so $$$ is not an excuse)

do WEAR MAKE-UP (unless you are a "natural beauty" which I have yet to see EVER in anyone OVER 30 years old!!) And might I add here that I had to wear make-up beginning at the age of 5 so no natural beauty here.

do wear clothes APPROPRIATE to the seasons (yes we are in West Texas but there are STILL seasons and they should be observed LIKE THE REST OF THE WORLD. We may be isolated but we don't have to be ignorant.)

do ACCENTUATE the positive

do CAMOUFLAGE the negative (these are elementary people)

do SMILE (as long as you are brushing your teeth regularly...do we even have to mention that ladies?)

do dress your age (there is something sexy about a woman who feels good in her own skin....unless that is all you have on)

And before you think I am just being "mean". I am surrounded by students AND adults
( Shocking I know) that these apply to. And not just at school either.

Now for the DON'TS

don't buy, wear, or even look at white shoes EVER (unless you are a nurse over 50 and still wear the white uniform) This does NOT apply to tennis shoes however. (they are in a whole different category)But white shoes.....only for girls under 12 EVER

don't wear above mentioned shoes (if you just insist on having a pair) until EASTER. (Hello, may I introduce you to Emily Post? Believe you me, go with ivory, or taupe but BACK AWAY FROM THE WHITE RIGHT NOW YOUNG LADY!!! I have NEVER heard someone say "I Love your shoes, where did you get them?" about white.. just so you know)

don't wear hose (period)

okay that is not a real rule... the rule is don't wear hose that are DARKER than your shoes!!!( I feel silly even having to mention it.)

don't wear clothes that are too tight (we have gone over this in previous blog part 1)

don't wear clothes too big (once again see part 1)

don't wear tennis shoes with jeans if you are over 35. (It is an Elly Mae Clampett disaster waiting to happen. A long legged jeans with some kind of heel gives you height and poise and keeps you from looking like a frumpy or "wannabe" teenager. And make sure the jeans are long enough for your shoes. Otherwise we are talking a whole other fashion disaster)

don't wear tennis shoes with ANYTHING unless it is a sport look i.e. windpants, sweats, or workout clothes.

don't wear your daughter's jewelry. that rope, plastic, and bangle stuff was not meant for Hannah's(as in Montana) mom. Buy your own and make it age appropriate. Doesn't have to be expensive

don't tuck in ANYTHING unless you are within 5 pounds of your high school weight. or have never given birth

don't frump up because you feel bad about yourself. if you feel unattractive, don't take it out on your clothes.... go work out or eat less. I sometimes feel extremely unattractive (shocking I know) but my clothes NEVER betray that emotion. When I wear sweats or dress "down" I make it look like it is on purpose and that I am having a "lazy" day!

don't go to YOUR JOB without make-up. It says I don't care enough about myself so how could I possibly care about my job? See above comment about "natural beauty."

don't make excuses or apologize for your appearance because A) it means you know you look bad and should have taken a little more time or B) that you are trying to justify your fashion faux paus

If you follow these little helpful hints you won't have to call atttention or deflect attention from yourself. No matter the mood, the clothes will say, I feel good because I look good. That is all.