trick or treat- yummy

Greetings, my Grainiacs!
It has been a while since I posted.  Shame, shame, Strawberry.  What can I say: life happens and it is a happenin' still.  I won't bore you with school stuff, but that's the crux of the business!  We also attended our church's regional meeting.  (Banana, I didn't see you at all!!!)  I gave a workshop on Advent Ideas for Small church ministry.  My cohort and I thought if we had 10 people we would be dancing in the street.  I can gladly say we are dancing on the moon!  About 30 people attended and it gave us hope that we are providing a much needed service.  Now I just wish a paycheck would come with that!!!!  LOL

Tonight our church is hosting a Trunk or Treat for neighborhood children.  If you haven't heard of it, this is where you decorate the trunk of your car or bed of your truck and gather with others and pass out candy to children....sort of a one-stop shopping!  We first heard of this at seminary.  Aren't we cute?  All my little scarecrows and one pacifist friend in camo!!!!  hahahaha...

I am in charge of decorating and thinking up the costumes.  I decided we would go as 2 of the Addams family but it is still hotter-n-hades down here in South Texas so I knew I would not be wearing a long sleeved/ skin tight black dress with a long black wig-- can we say Heat Stroke???  And I would not put my poor hubby in a black pinned-striped suit!  He doesn't own one and we are not buying one at this stage of the game.  So Wednesday and the little brother (what's his name?) are it.  Hubby would get by easy with the striped shirt, shorts, white socks, and black shoes.  But Wednesday?  I would have to go buy leggings and find a short black dress with a wide white belt.  This is sounding like too much work.

Yesterday I went to my wonderful HEB store where you can find anything and ta da!!!  We are going as "walkers."  Hubby and Boy (who wasn't going to participate till I bought the walker-looking mask) L.O.V.E. Walking Dead.  Truth be told I tolerate it.  I don't like all the head smashing and blood but I do like watching something that Boy will come in and watch with us.

So, taking a little time out of studying and dressing up to hand out candy to complete strangers---what could be better??/!!!!  No, don't go there.  Eating said candy myself is a no-no!

I'll post pictures next week.

Happy Halloween, Grainiacs,
Strawberry (41 pounds to go)

Press Time!

Yesterday was my annual mammogram and I'm just a nosey person.  While the tech was checking the scan and saving, etc. I walked over and looked too.  She was telling me what a great job she did (uh, hello? Who's boob was smashed and pictured? You're welcome!) and "Look! You can see the muscle under your arm."  AH! proof positive; I do still have muscle in my arm!!!  All that rabbit belly flap isn't all rabbit belly flap.

Did I tell you I'm presenting a workshop at my denominational level?  Yep.  And I've been working on it too.  Had to.  They wanted my handouts early so they could "approve" them.  We do things so "decent and orderly."  I appreciate that about my denomination.  For a scattered Strawberry, it is refreshing.  Hasn't helped ME to become decent and orderly but I'm working on it.  As a matter of fact, I have most all my seminary reading done this week and papers already submitted AND it's the first week!!!!

Okay, I can't get cocky; I always do this.  Start out with a bang and peter out.  I CAN get cocky, though, and show you my goodies--- no, not those goodies.  Funny story, while 5 of us robed up women were sitting in the "inner" waiting room with nothing but our flimsy robes between us, Ellen Degeneres' guest was Chelsea Handler.  Google them.  Chelsea asks Ellen to be on her show in a shower scene.  So although body parts are bleeped out, you can tell Chelsea is buck naked in the shower with Ellen!!! hahahahahaha... Chelsea says nobody is gonna sell her nude photos and make money; she'll sell them to ya for free!  I don't even know what loving my body is. For as long as I can remember I always found a flaw....even when I weighed 120 pounds.  I'm not planning to walk naked (don't worry about that) but I do want to love my body- bumps, bruises, flaps, and all; and I want to love it at whatever stage I'm at.  Amen?

So, here's a picture of MY goodies.

black and pink!!! love it

I'm exposing these babies all over town AND at my presentation!

ba bam!

There's something about the early morning and the late evening that sends my furmily into hyper-active mode.  I might have to organize a daycare and nightcare room for them.  They get W.I.L.D.  Running and chasing. Tumbling and fighting.  Tuesday night I got caught in the cross-hair of one such chase.

It looked like something out of a Dick Van Dyke movie (I'm Dick in this scenario).  Cosmos and Baby Kitty were playing chase and tag.  I wasn't.  So why was I the one to get tagged?  I had an arm-full of papers and the kitten ran in between my legs and the dog followed.  Papers flew up and my body vaulted downward...right on my knees.  We have tile floors.  Let me just say I sat on the ground not knowing whether to laugh or cry.  Instead I got mad.  Really mad.  Poor Cosmos stood by my side as I pulled off my best Nancy Kerrigan cry "Why me???"  Baby Kitty was the smartest and hid behind the couch.

I don't need a cane or a walker.  I have my broom.  I carried that broom around in the morning and in the evening.  Anytime I see that kitten, I sweep that broom and she high-tails it in the opposite direction.  Cosmos isn't any better in the mornings.  He runs and turns and basically gets under foot.  My broom is my ba bam sweeper.  Think I could market it?

and the beat goes on....

Drummin' in my head! The beat goes on....

Here we go again, Grainiacs!!!  School has officially started in the Strawberry Patch and you know what that means-- crazy-eyed Strawberry!  This is about the time I decide to look for a job or cut my hair or take up a new hobby....read a new book-- anything to keep my mind off my studies!  Or  I become so obsessed with studies that I eat, drink, live, talk all things Christian education.

So how about I go against the grain and act like a true senior (who has a horrible case of senioritis) and just say "who cares!"  You know that book I mentioned a post or two back?  Well it hasn't gotten any better.  No redeeming qualities about it and I'm still scratching my head asking "WTH!!!"  That's the thing about some of these seminary classes.  I like closure.  I like movies that conclude; unless it is a good sequel that I know is coming.  I don't like movies that leave you hanging-- well is she alive or isn't she?  Does the man get the woman?  Yuck, don't leave me wondering- tell me already!!!  So this book is one of those "horrible doesn't end" type of stories.  Phooey; my senioritis is kicking in.

It could be the new semester starting, but I don't think I like my blog anymore.  I started out on a weight-loss journey and I'm still walking that beat.  And the beat goes on....

Earlier I mentioned a crazy-eyed strawberry and I think that crazy is in my head.  Moana is yelling to think of anything other than studying.  So I will push her back and not think about re-organizing a blog or taking up a new project (although I do have some Christmas projects to work on) or.... or.....fill in the blanks and you will be inside my head.

I will tell you one radical thing I did- I gave up caffeine and that includes diet coke (I'm drinking Diet Sprite--I'll give up aspartame as soon as I kick the caffeine habit).  No coffee...maybe a few little chocolates but not huge amounts of it.  Last Wednesday I went on a cleaning frenzy in the kitchen.  Thursday I wasn't feeling well and wound up sleeping most of the day (I'm tellin' ya, housework is detrimental to your health!) so I didn't drink any dark drinks nor did I have any caffeinated coffee.  Friday my head felt like it would explode....so I slept more.  Saturday I wasn't 100% better but I did get out and then back to bed early.  Sunday I was fine.  Imagine, if I get back on caffeine, I have 3 days of detox if I decide to quit again.  I think it will be easier to just stay off the crack and maybe my beat-as in heartbeat- will go on a lot longer.

Happy Monday, Grainiacs.  May the Force be with you (and me!).
Strawberry (44 pounds to go)

read, read, repeat

I really can't believe it is October! Where did my summer go?  Why is fall barreling down upon us and pretty soon it will be Christmas.

I know many of you are saying "Quit rushing Christmas, Strawberry!" but it is truly right around the corner.

Guess what else is upon me?  My seminary semester!  Classes officially start next week but true to form, many of us are already reading.  You see, we have lives outside of class and well, our first week's assignment is to read a whole book!  The teacher assigned 165 pages and although that doesn't seem like much, the wordage on the pages seem to repeat themselves....over and over.  Here's an example taken from The Fall to Violence (Marjorie Hewitt Suchocki) page 34: The transcendent infinity envisioned by Niebuhr was a boundless infinity without number; the still transcendent infinity encountered within finitude is a boundless infinity with number.  And so the whole chapter continues with infinity and finitude!!!  This book is definitely taking an "infinity" to read with no "finitude" in sight.  sheesh.  So I tend to reread sentences because my eyes glaze over and the repetition of certain words (infinity and finitude/ posit/ well-being) repeated in each sentence make it harder to focus on just one sentence knowing that those same dang words will be in the next sentence and the next....(whew, deep breath).

Why is it Christmas is around the corner, but the end of this book is ages away?

Sort of like dishes and laundry.  Wait, didn't I just wash those shirts?  We seem to have more glasses and coffee mugs in the dishwasher than plates and pots; a telling sign we are eating out more.  Recently I've noticed more plates and dishes.  Good sign!

So, today is an ordinary day with ordinary tasks.  I am now on page 82 in my book and only heaven knows what I've read.  That's the problem; when an author uses words or phrases ad nauseum I tend to glaze over them.  Probably exactly what you are doing with this blog post today!

Keep the lumps out of your cups

This is another post that will be all over the place.  Humor and sadness.  No poop!

I'll start with the light stuff.

Soooooo, this made me LOL (laugh out LOUD!!!).  In honor of my post yesterday, let me keep it going!  Things ya just don't talk about.

don't know the origin of this cartoon, but brilliant!!!!  LOL  still laughing here

On a more serious note.  Today is October 1st.  For every female that should mean one thing:  get your mammogram.....now.  Call.  Make that appointment.  I don't care that it doesn't run in your family.  There is always a first!  Don't let it be you that is caught off-guard.  I love you.  Do it for me.

Monday I called and made my annual mammogram appointment.  Was it a pain?  Yes.  Did I have to repeat everything they SHOULD have in their databank?  Oh yeah.  Did I finally say: don't you already have this information in your computer; after all, I was here one year ago....and one year before that....and before that....and......

Yes.  I was getting frustrated.  But I got my appointment.  

And here's the kicker.  The next day I got an email from a friend whose lab report came back: breast cancer.  That message took my breath away.  Cancer seems to be on the rise....again.  Or maybe it is just hitting closer to home.  I have many friends who are cancer-free today, but I have said "good-bye" to a great deal of friends too.

Is it just me or should we have cancer beat by now?  Some say there is a cure, but curing cancer would put a great many out of work.  I can't go down that road.  Cancer touches everyone.  Many doctors and researchers go in that field for the very reason that they lost a loved one to damn cancer.  Why would they hold back?  No, I will not believe that.

During October, let's pray or send positive vibes to end cancer once and for all.