Painting Flower Pots con't

I have made a discovery. Some of you will remember my earlier post about frustration with an art project gone bad and my dissapointment with my painted flower pots. Well today my sister came over and we sat and visited and listened to music and brought some new life into those flower pots that I had somehow ruined with a brush and some paint. As I was sitting there and painting those flower pots I remembered my earlier aggravation and the post I made on here about how I wasn't artistic,yadayadayada... However now I realize. It's not about how beautiful or ugly your flower pots are, it's the thought and time that goes into them. It's enjoying the process and the people you're with. Much like life. Yours may not be as attractive or stylish as someone elses but it's about enjoying it and the people around you. So I am going to proudly display my painted flower pots on my porch for all to see, and I will enjoy my ordinary life however glamorous or unglamorous it may be, and I will love those around me that make my life so rich and full.

Ordinary week

This has been a rather ordinary week so far, and I must say I am enjoying a little sense of normalcy in my life. I have been able to cook dinner, clean my house, spend time with my husband and sister, and enjoy a little bit of relaxation. I love this time of year when the weather starts to cool off a little bit and it's somewhat comfortable to be outside. Football starts up and you've got the fair coming to town. Halloween upcoming and then thanksgiving. I love this time of year so much. This is a time of year that I'm enjoying thouroughly. It's these ordinary times that I love so much that remind me of what I'm thankful for. Family, friends, food, beautiful outdoors, and just being with those that I love.

Chaos

Well it seems that another monster hurricane is barreling its way to the gulf coast once again, just 3 short weeks after Hurricane Katrina hit. It is almost unfathomable to me the thought of another hurricane with similar intensity hitting again this season. How cruel is it to have people go through 2 of those storms in a short period of time. Perhaps it is my twisted perspective but it seems to me that more bad stuff is happening lately. There's the war in Iraq, talks of North Korea not wanting to give up their nuclear power, the tsunami was last year and it devestated several countries, and now we've had several particularly bad hurricanes lately, most recent being the famous Katrina. So many lives lost, so many people whose homes, lives, jobs, etc. were destroyed, and so much chaos. With all of this discord, increasing violence, it's rather disheartening just watching the news. Perhaps it's just that we have more technology now and we know about things on a worldwide basis. One hundred and fifty years ago we wouldn't have been able to turn on the TV and watch the news about the tsunami overseas, and we certainly wouldn't have been so aware of what was going on in the wars overseas. Volunteer efforts wouldn't be able to be so widely spread and we wouldn't be as knowledgeable about the crime rates, or about the chaos in other places. Is ignorance really bliss? I don't know. I wonder if the world has changed so much that it has become a worse place or if we just simply know too much these days. I just know that for my sanity I have to turn off the tv, go visit my friends and family, remember why I started my job in the first place, and do things that I enjoy so that I can focus on the positive. No matter how bad things are, someone has to have them worse than you.

Grad School, maybe???

Just when you think you have had enough...you go back for more. Yup, you got it, Jamie and I are thinking about going back for grad school next fall. I've done my homework, found out the requirements (which surprisingly we both excede) and I am actively working to be admitted to an online nurse practioner program next fall. So now the search begins for financial aid, etc... Jamie, lucky dog, actually has a coworker who is interested in going to school with him so they can work together on their masters work. For those of you who know my husband I'm sure you can understand me when I say, who would have thought Jamie might actually go to grad school!!!! I'm so proud of him!! Just for expressing an interest and actively trying to improve his education!! Jamie was so bored in undergrad because he knew so much of the material that he was really not challenged in a lot of his classes. I believe though that this will be different. To me, grad school is nothing like undergrad. You're studying in your area of interest, you only have 2 years to complete instead of 4, the course loads are much lighter, and you have people of similar interests in your classes. So I'm kind of excited about it. Of course we have to be accepted, get financial aid, etc... but we're actively looking now so I'm encouraged. Wish me luck!!!

Loss and Love

It seems that when it rains it pours in life. Just when you think that things are bad, they get worse. I got a call at work today and it was my husband telling me that his grandmother had passed away. This horrible loss is not fully understood unless you knew the relationship these two had. Jamie's grandmother was in every way shape and form, except for biological, a mother to him. She raised him, fed him, taught him how to tie his shoes, started him off in school, bought him his first car, and encouraged him throughout his childhood. A constant pillar of strength for him, she held his family together. This woman survived through losing her first husband to World War II and then as a single mother she worked for the railroad providing for her son, until she met Jamie's grandfather, from whom he's named, James Alston Pepper. They were wed after the war and they had one son, Jamie's father, and then when Jamie was born she raised him as well. Always full of life and energy she brought an element to the family, which is still felt today. Her great life I will always respect and honor for she is greatly responsible for the man my husband is today. I know if she could see him now she would be so proud to say "that's my baby, my grandson".
Somehow I hope to learn from these life lessons that I go through each day to appreciate and love those around me. We are not promised tomorrow and it's so vital to let people know that you care.

Irate and probably out of line, but unable to refrain from commenting

http://music.msn.com/music/article.aspx?news=200558

I have to say that as I surfed the web today, I found myself rather angry at this article. I am infuriated to read about how the "jazz landmarks" are gone in New Orleans but no mention is made of the people who have suffered, died, and are still struggling as a result of this hurricane. I'm not sure how others feel about this but it angers me to see so many people focused on New Orleans and Mississippi is overlooked. I realize that New Orleans was a big city, many people visited there, and there was much history in that one city. However, there were many cities that were destroyed by this storm, many still feeling the hurt of the storm that wiped away everything they had from their homes, jobs, and all of their belongings. There are entire cities that simply aren't there in the coastal region of Mississippi. How spoiled a country are we that we will moan and complain about the jazz landmarks that are gone, but we are not concerned about the people that have DIED from this storm. Casually they toss out the fact that corpses float in the water but the facts are that those corpses are someone wife, mother, husband, child....How jaded are we that we see this loss and worry about the JAZZ LANDMARKS!!!

Surviving The Wrath

On August 29, 2005 Hurricane Katrina, a category 5 storm, made landfall and changed life for all residents of Louisiana and Mississippi for years to come. The entire coastal region of Mississippi has been wiped away, like a floor swept with a broom. New Orleans as we once knew it is now under anywhere from 8-20 feet of water. Bedlam has been unleashed in these cities with people desperate to be rescued fighting for their lives. Looting, murders, rapes, all rampant among the desperate survivors who fight tooth and nail to survive. Gas has become a rare comodity, electricity and water a priviledge for only the very lucky, and family you thank God to have by your side. In one day my entire reality has changed to a world that I am scared to go out into. Somewhere in all this madness I am fighting to find some sanity. A glimpse of light out there in all of this hopelessness. My belief though is that the glimpse of light is us, the people who care. Those who will reach out and help someone, anyone, who has less than them can be that light in the darkness for someone else. My challenge to all who read this is to be that light. Help someone. Even if you think that you have nothing you can help someone. The people who reach out and make the difference are what will help us rebuild the cities that have been destroyed.