Monday, December 18, 2006
The Texas Nutcracker
Thursday, December 14, 2006
I Promise I am not Dead
OK…so for all of those people who think I have fallen off the face of the earth, I wanted to let you know that I am alive and well and busy as all get out. In the pre-MTCI days, I am the time to MySpace all day and still get crap done around the house. Now that I am working again the last thing I want to do when I come home is sit in front of the computer some more. For those of you who don’t know, I am the accounts receivable manager for a government contracting firm now. In other words, I make all the money for the company. Some might say big deal but it is. Thanks to me the company makes over 1 million in revenue every month. Anyway, on top of my job, I have also taken over as FRG Advisor for Shawn’s squadron since the real advisor deployed to Iraq two weeks ago. As if I didn’t have enough with work, I add something else to my plate that I am totally unprepared for and have no clue what I am doing. I think it will be interesting but I am wondering more and more what I got myself into. I haven’t been an FRG leader before nor have I had the time to take any of the training. Man, am I in over my head.
And then there is the church retreat. Why did I say yes to that!?! I am enjoying being apart of something at the church but I didn’t realize it would take so much time.
That doesn’t include spending time with Shawn and all the other functions I have to attend right now. So, in case you were wondering why I have sent you a comment or written back to a message, it isn’t because I am ignoring you or that I don’t like you. I just simply haven’t had the time. Very few people are actually getting responses from me right now. It is not personal and please don’t remove me from your friend list because of it.
Monday, August 14, 2006
Too Funny Not to Share…Thanks Martha
TO: GOD
FROM: THE DOG
Dear God: Why do humans smell the flowers, but seldom, if ever, smell one another?
Dear God: When we get to heaven, can we sit on your couch? Or is it still the same old story?
Dear God: Why are there cars named after the jaguar, the cougar, the mustang, the colt, the stingray, and the rabbit, but not ONE named for a dog? How often do you see a cougar riding around? We do love a nice ride! Would it be so hard to rename the Chrysler Eagle the Chrysler Beagle?
Dear God: If a dog barks his head off in the forest and no human hears him, is he still a bad dog?
Dear God: More meatballs, less spaghetti, please.
Dear God: Are there mailmen in Heaven? If there are, do I still have to apologize?
Dear God: Let me give you a list of just some of the things I must remember to be a good dog.
1 . I will not eat the cat’s food before they eat it or after they throw it up.
2. I will not roll on dead seagulls, fish, crabs, etc., just because I like the way they smell.
3. The Litter Box is not a cookie jar.
4. The sofa is not a face towel.
5. The garbage collector is not stealing our stuff.
6. I will not play tug-of-war with Dad’s underwear when he’s on the toilet.
7. Sticking my nose into someone’s crotch is an unacceptable way of saying hello.
8. I don’t need to suddenly stand straight up when I’m under the coffee table.
9. I must shake the rainwater out of my fur BEFORE entering the house.
10. I will not come in from outside and immediately drag my butt.
11. I will not sit in the middle of the living room and lick my crotch.
12. The cat is not a squeaky toy so when I play with him and he makes that noise, it’s usually not a good thing.P.S. Dear God: When I get to Heaven may I have my testicles back?
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Nearing the End
Monday, June 5, 2006
Monday Night Boredom
Sunday, May 14, 2006
The Countdown Begins
Monday, April 24, 2006
7 HOURS!!!
Wednesday, April 5, 2006
It’s Official!
I turned in my notice yesterday. My last day at work will be the 21st. I will be officially unemployed after that until Shawn comes home and I start looking for a new job. This way I can spend some time at home this summer and not have to worry about taking time off to do the things I want to do.
Speaking of home, I spent all last week in Mobile and it was very hard to come back to Killeen. Jenny (my sis-in-law) and I made the trip to Mobile Monday morning after receiving the call Sunday afternoon that Nanny was gone. Mom tried to stop us from coming so soon since the funeral wasn’t going to be held until Clay was able to make it home. Turns out the Army doesn’t consider grandparents immediate family and won’t allow emergency leave for a grandparent’s funeral. So, Clay had to take is R & R 4 months early and made it to town Friday afternoon. The funeral was held Saturday afternoon and was a very touching statement to my grandmother’s life. Sunday morning, Jenny, Clay, Maverick and I loaded up the car and headed back to Texas. After a late arrival, Maverick, my 6 month old beagle, decided to keep me up all night.
Thank you to everyone who passed on condolences to me and my family. It was greatly appreciated.
By the way…18 days and Shawn will be home.
Friday, March 24, 2006
My Greatest Weakness: Shopping
K…first I must say I can’t believe that there is actually a myspace category for shopping so this is perfect for my entry.The time has come to admit that I am a shopaholic. Depression shopping is bad for me. Send my husband away for a year, give us extra money, and what do I do? Let me just put it this way: my house is fully decorated and I have only lived here 8 months.
By the way, I am going to shop for Cowboy Boots to wear to Denim and Diamonds tomorrow after work and the VTC. Afterall, I live in Texas now. It is only fitting that I own and wear cowboy (girl?) boots.
Now back to my point. I am the perfect shopping companion. If you just want to go shopping to leave the house but don’t really need to spend money, take me. I will do all the spending for you. I can’t help it. It makes me feel better. I like having pretty new things to look at or play with or wear. I am also guilty of finding one thing that I really like and buying several of them. Classic examples are my boots that I bought back at the beginning of fall. I loved the first pair so much I now own three pairs in different colors. But I wear them constantly. Also there are the fabulous new Investments pants they are selling in Dillard’s now. For the first time a company has realized that there are petite people shorter than 5′4″ and we need pants hemmed to fit us too. So when I discovered these pants, I bought 5 pairs of them. (Have you ever tried to find pants for someone who is 5′1″ and has a 27 inch inseam?)
So the question is, is this really a problem? I would say no because Shawn and I are very financially stable. I am an accountant after all. Being good with money is a given. However, there is the fact that I will soon be quitting my job so my income will be leaving us. Frankly I don’t worry too much about what I spend when I am working because I am contributing to the finances so I justify it by saying I am spending the money I earned. But I do have to deal with Shawn who tends to be a bit of a penny pincher at times. Not that that is a bad thing but I don’t like being told we don’t have money when I am the one in charge of the checkbook and know good and well that the opposite is true.
When my shopping habits become a problem is when I do something crazy (well not too crazy but a little on the mental side). I learned a lesson last week. Never take me to an auction. I should have known this knowing how I get on ebay but on ebay there is an auctioneer up in your face trying to get you to raise your bid. Let’s just say I walked away with a full scale spa day and we won’t talk about how much I spent on it. It was for a good cause though. The even better cause is getting to use the spa day right before Shawn comes home. That way I get to pamper myself before I pamper him.
So that is my story for this evening. Hello, my name is Julie and I am a shopaholic.
I should run. I need to get my beauty sleep. Tomorrow is the big video teleconference (VTC). I get to see Shawn for the first time in 6 months. We get to spend a whole 8 minutes talking to each other. We have had longer conversations than that when I have been half asleep or preoccupied with work. But I am not really complaining. I am just happy to get the opportunity to see his face again. Have a great weekend!
Thursday, March 23, 2006
You Can Never Really Go Home Again
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Update
Sunday, March 5, 2006
My Weekend
Sunday, February 26, 2006
Girl Scout Cookies
Thursday, February 23, 2006
How to tell if you are a true Alabamian
1. You can properly pronounce Arab, Opelika, Oneonta, and Eufaula. Add Mobile to this list of cities to be able to pronounce correctly. I get tired of hearing people butcher my hometown’s name.
2. You think people who complain about the heat in their states are sissies. I thought Alabama was hot until I moved to Texas. All I pray is that I don’t have to leave my house during the summer in this state.
3. A tornado warning siren is your signal to go out in the yard and look for a funnel. I have never lived anywhere that is in tornado alley. Hurricanes, however, are a different story.
4. You know that the true value of a parking space is not determined by the distance to the door, but by the availability of shade. Shade isn’t an option in Texas. We don’t have trees!
5. Stores don’t have bags or shopping carts, they have sacks and buggies.
Buggies are much more fun to drive. Just ask the Amish.
6. You’ve seen people wear bib overalls at funerals. I don’t know about bib overalls to funerals but at every buffet I have ever been to.
7. You think everyone from a bigger city has an accent. Mobile is the second largest city in Alabama so I guess I am one of those people. What I don’t understand is people in Texas (who are native Texans) telling me that I have an accent. Have they listened to themselves talk recently?
8. You measure distance in minutes. I have no concept of distance. Time is all that matters to me.
9. You go to the lake because you think it is like going to the ocean. No matter what anyone tells you, the Gulf of Mexico is NOT the ocean!
10. You listen to the weather forecast before picking out an outfit. You have to listen to the weather forecast because it will be 83 on Thursday and 47 on Friday. (actual weather last week in Killeen)
11. You know cowpies are not made of beef. I don’t even want to touch that one.
12. Someone you know has used a football schedule to plan their wedding date. OK…so I might be slightly guilty of this one. We did plan our wedding around a federal holiday (Veterans’ Day) but I also checked to make sure Alabama and Arkansas weren’t playing major games that weekend mostly because I didn’t want to miss them!
13. You have known someone who has a belt buckle bigger than your fist. I am beginning to think I am the only person in Texas who doesn’t own a giant belt buckle and cowboy boots. If I did, I don’t know that I would ever seriously wear them.
14. You aren’t surprised to find movie rental, ammunition, beer, and bait all in the same store. All I have to say is the Conoco in Marion, Alabama. Add gas and you are set. It was fun to walk around the life-sized deer target to get to the videos.
15. A Mercedes Benz isn’t a status symbol. A Chevy Silverado Extended Bed Crew Cab is. But I like my BMW!
16. You know everything goes better with Ranch. At this time I would like to thank the staff of the dining hall at Judson College for teaching me this lesson through my four years of terrible food and lots of bagels.
17. You learned how to shoot a gun before you learned how to multiply. Still can’t shot a gun and I don’t plan on learning. However, I have to multiply everyday at work.
18. You actually get these jokes and are “fixin’ ” to send them to your friends. I am afraid I get all of these and I don’t see what is wrong with fixin’!
Finally:
19. you are 100% Alabamian if you have ever had this conversation: “You wanna coke?” “Yeah.” “What kind?” “Dr Pepper.” I refuse to ever refer to a soft drink as anything other than a coke. The words soda and pop will never pass my lips!
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Borrowed Quote
“The greatest legacy you can ever leave is what you write. The greatest tragedy is that most of us will end our days with our words unwritten, our songs still trapped in our hearts.” Mark Twain
So true. I just hope I have the ability to leave my legacy behind. I am trying to write about the things I have learned through the deployments. It is just a matter of taking the time to get it all down on paper.