Shhh....

In my spare time (HA!) I go to Face Book quite a bit. At first I liked to see what all my friends are doing these days. I've found many from as far back as middle school (yes, that's far back for me). I liked those silly quizzes "How Well Do You Know Your Friends?" (pretty well) or "What's Your Stripper Name?" (never took that one and never will). But recently, I've found that it's become a place for people to air their dirty laundry and stab one another in the back. Fun? Not so much anymore. Although, I must admit, I have posted in anger once or twice.
Believe it or not, Face Book, along with some personal relationships of late, have taught me to, wait for it, shut my mouth. OK, everyone can breathe now. It's not that I always speak WHATEVER is on my mind WHENEVER I wanted. I've learned as an adult there is a time and place for everything. Recently, though, I've learned how to be more tactful. As well, I've had to remind myself to choose my words very carefully. ( I ask you, where is the fun in that???!!!)
My favorite quote is "Knowledge is power". Apparently, I've become more knowledgeable. At my age. Go figure.

At the Beach

The move went as well as could be expected. There were a few little hiccups, but nothing major. I've been spending my time looking for a job, unpacking boxes, and re-arranging furniture. I would love to tell you that the above picture was taken at my beach, but I can't. I've yet to find my camera. But my beach looks something like this. :) I've been down to the shore once so far, and that was for only 5 minutes. I am sure once life becomes more settled I will have many pictures to share with all of my beach.
I've also yet to see a cruise ship go by my home. Mind you, I've been a bit too busy to look but I will try to make time this weekend. I'm not really sure I want to see the ships sail away without me. I've done the math and considering how far in debt being laid-off has left me, I believe my next cruise will be with Gavin for his 5th birthday. This is assuming of course Stephen and Casey will let me take him. 4 years seems very far off before I set foot on a ship again, but hey, I've survived worse, right? :)
Back to the grind I go...but I don't mind...I'm livin' the dream. I'm living near the beach!
p.s. Don't you just hate those :) at the end of a sentence. I know I do.

Ta, Ta...For Now

It's time to pack the computer. OMG...how will I survive 4 days without my extended limb, my laptop?!
Tomorrow morning the movers will be here, then on to Mom's apartment. Once they are done there it's on to Indian Harbour Beach for all of our stuff and my mom. Max, Ernie and myself will not leave until early Saturday morning. I don't like driving during high traffic times on the interstate. Friday afternoon in Florida is most assuredly a high volume traffic time. So I will wait for the more peaceful Saturday morning...6:00 am to be exact. And I will use the back roads as well. Nothing like a nice quiet drive through the Ocala Forest with a dog, a cat, the cat's litter box and my trusty laptop.
So, until I'm up and running and able to share my moving experience with you all, have a great, safe happy weekend.

The Words I've Been Waiting to Hear

Today I had my bi-annual visit with my oncologist. I asked him if he realized I had been coming to see him for 8 years now and told him that was longer than both my marriages had lasted. He laughed. We spent a lot of time talking about Electronic Health Records and I scolded him for not even knowing how to use a computer.
When he finally finished his exam, I said the same thing I always say at the end of my visit: "So, doc, I'm cured, right?" He normally responds with, "Well, remember Elaine you had a very advanced form of cancer that we had to treat very agressively. But because you are ___ years without a recurrence, it's LIKELY the cancer won't return." Blah, blah, blah. So today when I asked the question, he turned to me and said, "Elaine, I'm happy to report that given the amount of time that has past, based on all studies and clinical trials, you are cured. There is a 0% chance you will ever have a recurrence." All I could do was look at him oddly and say, "Seriously?" And he responded with "Very seriously." How freakin' cool is that? I feel the need to celebrate as I thought I would never hear those words from his mouth. He did, however, mention that he can't make any promises about lung cancer. His nice way of saying, 'quit the damn cigarettes'. I told him I was working on it, which is half true.
Needless to say, Mom and I are going out for dinner to celebrate!
What a great day!!

Feeling Lazy

I cannot believe how unmotivated I am right now. A week from today I will have moved to my new home. But before then, I have so much to do...and I don't want to do ANYTHING except lay on the couch and watch TV.
Today I went to Goodwill, did grocery shopping, cleaned and scrubbed one bathroom, cleaned out the refrigerator and loaded up the trunk of my car. But I have so much more to do and I can't seem to get moving. So, here I sit, blogging. Procrastinating.
My house is just about a done deal...a little more cleaning and a few more boxes to pack of odds and ends I will be done. However, I still have Mom's house to pack and clean. I figure if I do a little each day for the rest of the week both of our houses will be ready for the movers on Friday. Then she and the movers will head to the beach, while I stay behind and clean her apartment. On Saturday morning I will load my car with my personal belongings, including Max and Ernie for the 3 hour drive to Indian Harbour Beach. Ahh....arriving in Nirvana. I can't wait!!
I found out this week there is a hotel only blocks from my house and on Sunday afternoons, on their back Tiki bar deck they have a reggae fest. Once settled, I'm sure you will know where to find me on Sundays. Tiki bar, fru-fru drink, reggae music and the beach. What else could anyone ask for...well, except maybe a cruise. :)
Ok, I've procrastinated enough...back to the couch.

A Year Ago Today.....

...I forgot my friend Jaime's birthday. That is so not like me. But I had good reason...I had just gotten laid off and I was pretty drunk. But I didn't forget today...so....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAIME!!!
GO GATORS!!!!

blue....

And here I am a year later. As of tomorrow I will be unemployed again. This time by my own choosing. But I won't be for long.....

FRUSTRATION!!

Arrrggghhhhhh.....!!!!!! Do you know how frustrating it is when you give someone really good advice and they TOTALLY ignore you??? What's more frustrating is the fact that they didn't listen to you is going to affect many, many people in a bad way. What's worse, I cannot do anything about it. Frustrated, frustrated, frustrated. I feel the need to hit something. A wall. No wait, already did that when my advice was ignored. I think I shall go uproot some of my plants for the move to let out some of my frustration in a constructive manner. Very unusual for me, don't ya think?
Ugghhhh........

Another Great Weekend and Other Stuff

So, Stephen called early Friday afternoon and asked if I had any plans for the weekend. Well, of course I did...I'm moving in 2 weeks, right? Saturday was going to be spent packing at my mom's and Sunday was to be spent packing in my house, as Brett was coming to get his stuff. Anyway, Stephen says, "Would you like some company?" And all of a sudden, just like that, I had no plans for the weekend. "Absolutely, when will you be here?" was my reply.
And so, for the second weekend in a row, I spent 2 1/2 days with Stephen, Casey, Brett and Gavin. Not so much Brett...he's 19 and has a life, don't ya know. And in-between all the visiting, I actually got some packing done.
"Buck-a, buck-a, buck-a". This is Gavin's favorite saying. Have no idea what it means, but it's his answer to everything. And, and...this is so cool...AND I got kisses before he went to sleep the other night!! Love it, love it, love it. It's the little things in life I'm learning to appreciate again.
Casey looks amazing and we spent quite a bit of time talking. Stephen is Stephen...what a man he has become. I am so proud.
Only 4 days left of work...well paid work anyway. Then comes the down to the last minute, nitty-gritty packing and cleaning. I swear, this is my LAST move. Never again, never.
I found out this week that my new house is only 2 blocks from a hotel that has "reggae Sundays" on their back deck every Sunday. I have a feeling I know where I will be found on most Sundays. I must find a job quickly so I can afford all those laid-back Sunday's I'm dreaming about. And being so close to the beach...well...it's just a dream come true for me. However, it will be hard for me on Saturday's and Sunday's watching all those ships leave without me. One of these days I will be back to cruising again. :)
And happiness begins to take root....stay tuned.

Too Much Fun!!

What a fantastic weekend!! It's taken me this long to recuperate. Gavin's party was a huge success. So many family and friends together again. And then I had the honor of babysitting, along with my mom and Mike's (my ex) mom, Peggy. Mind you, Gavin ate entire cake all on is own and I think he had a bit of a sugar high. He was completely off his normal schedule as well, but we still had fun. We played with some of his new toys, had dinner (although much of his meal ended up on the floor), read books and, of course, bath time. He loves his rubber duckie and giggles when you splash water on him. Then it was off to bed, where he quietly drifted off to sleep almost immediately. He had a very long day. And so did I. I was "plum tuckered out" as they say in the South.
On Sunday we had breakfast together and some more play time. Then Casey came to pick him up. I was sad to see him go, but he waved "bye, bye" to me and I had to smile. I can't wait to see him again!
And now the real fun begins....countdown to move day: 16 days and counting.