The Weekend is HERE

It's been days since I posted anything of interest. I worked some long days this week which leave me not wanting to do much on the computer. It will be nice on payday however, so it's worth it. All in all it was a good week and relatively uneventful.. All is well on the homefront, though it would be nice if the many questions with which we both live would be answered and resolved. Then we could move forward. Instead, we seem to both be in a holding pattern -- thankfully, we are able to hold each other and that makes it all worthwhile. Even though I haven't posted, I have done a little blog reading and I truly appreciate your posts. Hope your weekend is relaxing and fun. Hugs

So THAT is Who I Am?

You Are An ENFJ

The Giver You strive to maintain harmony in relationships, and usually succeed. Articulate and enthusiastic, you are good at making personal connections. Sometimes you idealize relationships too much - and end up being let down. You find the most energy and comfort in social situations ... where you shine. You would make a good writer, human resources director, or psychologist.

What's Your Personality Type?

Monday, Monday

Well, here it is Monday afternoon and the work week is already 20 percent done. HOORAY! It wasn't a bad weekend all in all. Ben and I ran a couple of errands on Saturday and then spent the rest of the day working on getting the house in a little better order. Sunday morning saw us going to church -- each is our own direction. It is difficult for me these days to go to church and be excited. There is much going on that feeds that, but the gist of the problem is that I simply no longer feel called to serve in the position or church in which I find myself. The conundrum is that leaving this position will leave me church-less with regard to my professional standing. The nearest churches in which I might legitimately serve are 50 - 100 miles away -- and they could only be beneficial IF they have a position in ministry in which I might serve. This conundrum calls into question the whole "call". And as I struggle with this issue, we continue to wait to see what is going to happen with Ben and his call. I am very frankly ready to resign my position and follow him wherever God and the ECUSA lead. This thought is troubling for Ben because he feels that I am putting my needs aside. While it may appear that way, my whole ministry call is in question at the moment, so I'm not putting anything anywhere except to put my faith and trust in God and in Ben to lead us somewhere. If I resign my post and don't find another within a year, I run the risk of losing my professional standing and effectively ending 20 years of active ministry. AH -- what to do, what to do? So, for the moment, I bide my time and drive 60+ miles each way once or twice a week to minister in a congregation that doesn't really seem to care if it participates in or even receives ministry. I likely will be leaving my church post in the very near future. A wise preacher told me once when I was seeking a position that perhaps I had to let go of the thing I was holding on to (a ministry position) in order for the next step to unfold. Heeding her advice, I resigned my position and within weeks was moving to a new pulpit. You cannot reach the far trapeze if you insist on holding on to the one you are swinging from. Anyway, that's the issue on this cold Monday afternoon in mid-Michigan. Thanks for listening.

TGIF

Happy Friday everyone. It is early in the morning and I am up a bit earlier than usual. I thought I'd use this extra time to check in with all you bloggers. I looked out and saw that it has been snowing in the night, so it will be the joy of de-snowing the car before going to work this morning -- oh fun! I am looking forward to tonight as it will be the first evening this week that Ben and I have been home at the same time. I moved here to be with him and we've both been busy all week -- I think they call that "life". Thankfully, waking early this morning had its benefits and it will be a brighter day for it. Work continues to be work -- I'm still waiting for my id badge, passwords and more, and am working on a computer on someone else's ID. I feel like the stepchild who hasn't quite blended in yet. Everyone has been very nice and I am getting along with them all so far -- though the gay issue hasn't come up -- not that I am hiding, it just hasn't come up yet. I'm sure it will and they will have to deal with it. The paycheck this week was a wonderful experience. It was more money than I've had in the bank at one time in several years. This job won't make me rich, but it's nice to be able to go out to eat or buy gas without having to count pennies. This is the first time in five years that I have received a forty hour (or more) paycheck and it feels good. So, it is now time to go get the morning coffee, take a shower, get ready and go to work. Eight hours later I can come home and hit the weekend. Hope you all enjoy your Friday. Hugs!!!

Remembering Blanche

Well, life goes on. On Monday I received a call from one of my former tenants to tell me that Blanche had passed away that afternoon. Blanche was one of my favorites in the building. She and Norm had been married for 61 years and were as much in love this week as when they married so many decaded ago. I remember seeing them snuggled together on the sofa watching TV until Blanche's back got to the point that such posture was no longer possible. My favorite memory of Blanche was seeing her standing in her living room window with a coffee mug, inviting me in after shoveling snow in the early morning hours. Blanche and Norm were part surrogate parents, part counselor, part friend, and surely a dumping ground for all of my emotional junk over the past two years. Norm, I am certain, is devastated by Blanche's rather unexpected passing, and I worry about him. I know that Blanche is at peace, free from pain and stress, and is waiting for Norm to come along. Her passing was a real blow to me -- when I moved two weeks ago, she was in apparent decent health. All at once, it seems, they discovered a blockage in the colon which turned out to be cancer. They did surgery, but then Blanche had a series of strokes, leaving her helpless. A day or two later, she received the ultimate healing. The folks in the apartment building will be shaken and will grieve her passing. Her family likewise are at a loss. I will remember Blanche fondly for a very long time and will miss the hours we spent chatting over her freely offered coffee.

Winter is HERE!

Well, after a rather warm and mild November and December, winter has arrived in our neighborhood this week. On Sunday I got up to freezing rain and snow. The "weather" has continued and the temps are down in the single and low double digits. NOW it feels like winter. We bought a load of firewood the other day, and I expect we will have many a roaring fire in the house over the next couple of months. The fireplace, a glass of wine, and snuggling with that special someone are my favorite parts of winter. Now if I didn't have to go anywhere until April, all would be well. Celebrate winter and remember that Spring is coming (sooner or later).

Gas Watch

Well, I haven't posted a gas watch in some time because they were so depressing. However, for the first time in recent history, prices are BELOW two dollars a gallon (and it's not even an election year). We got some for 1.97, and saw it even a bit cheaper today. Maybe there's hope. In searching for my graphic, I found a post from last June where the gas price was 3.05 per gallon. Ah, the good old days.

The Whirlwind Week Continues

Well, after the crazy busy weekend, it was back to work on Monday to end up with a 9.5 hour day. Tuesday saw an 8 hour work day followed by a long evening trip and meeting getting me home 14 hours after leaving home. On Wednesday, we began mandatory 10 hour work days, so it's been as crazy a week as the weekend was. When things settle down a little I will post something a bit more interesting, but for now this is the best I can do. Have a great day and hug someone!!

Where Did the Weekend Go

Well, here it is Monday morning and time to think about work again already. Ben had to go in early and work a 12 hour day -- poor baby. The weekend seemed to speed by at two to three times the speed of Monday-Friday. Saturday began with a call to the plumber to roto-root the pipes. It also included taking down most of the Christmas stuff -- the rest will follow soon. We did take time out to go to the movies -- went to see "Children of Men". It wasn't a bad movie, but probably one that requires multiple viewings to get it all. As we were leaving the movies to come home, some friends of Ben's called to ask for help in moving some of their antique business to a new location -- we just need you to help with a few things -- yeah, right...... Anyhow, that shot a couple of hours, then it was home to dinner (ham and mashed potatoes -- delicious if I do say so myself). By now we were both whupped and it was an early bed night. Sunday dawned with a trip to church. We attended a local Episcopal church so that Ben could meet the Rector and start getting active. I took the day off from my usual church duties to go with him. Next week, he's on his own. Then we stopped at Best Buy to pick up a wireless router to connect the laptop to the desktop. Now, here's where I get frutrated. They sell this stuff, making it sound like any dolt can connect it in a matter of minutes! It took both of us (both with some computer knowledge) better than two hours to figure out how to make it work. Then I started laundry. Before long, the phone rang -- you guessed it -- our friends needed a few last things moved ASAP. Again, what should have been one hour turned into three, but it was a good thing to do and all. Came home, shuffled laundry, watched about an hour of TV and crapped out for the night. Where did the weekend go?

TGIF

Hey all -- I survived the second dayon the new job. It wasn't so grueling as yesterday, though at one point I felt STUPID. I was performing a task on my own that I had done successfully several times yesterday with help. I got interrupted a couple of times. made several blunders, and took about four times as long to complete it as I should have. As the day went on, however, I began to get a handle on what I was doing -- not always sure WHY I was doing it, but at least getting some of the basics. It is a kind of "Clear as mud" thing right now. Now I have two whole days to forget everything I learned the past two days and begin again on Monday. Ah well, my trainer was very patient with me. Tomorrow will be laundry and working on getting stuff integrated in the house -- oh joy oh rapture. Ben should be home here in about an hour and I will try to have dinner just about ready. I am hoping for a nice quiet evening just enjoying his company (and anything else he offers LOL). So, until tomorrow, hug the one you love and be kind to one another.

Work Day One -- Report

Well, folks -- I survived the first day on the new job. I don't know the last time I sat for so long. My back is killing me this evening. All in all, day one went well. I am working with fairly nice folks and everyone was pleasant. I am not doing customer service type stuff -- hooray. I am a behind the scenes person -- a request handler in the Service Request Handling Department. That means that my job is primarily data entry. Some of the requests are simple one item requests, but I did one this afternoon that had fifteen actions on it -- more repetitious than taxing, but for this newbie it was kind of mind blowing. First I have to learn the rules -- then I have to learn all the exceptions. I am working at the same place as Ben, but the closest I came to seeing him today was seeing the truck in the lot when I went to lunch. Our hours are off by a couple and we work in different parts of the building, so we might as well be working in different cities, but it's decent money and not far from HOME. I just got home and greeted one of the cats -- she protested mildly but did not resist. Progress. Now we will see what the evening holds, then back to the office (a shared cubicle with a few others in a maze of cubicles. Has the whole corporate world become a maze of sameness? Ah well, let's see how a night's sleep affects what I learned today. And one more day and then a weekend -- HOORAY! Thank God they started me on Thursday -- work up to a full week gradually. I like that......Peace and hugs

Internet Woes

By now, some of you know that I am incommunicado as to email for a while. It's all because of the superior customer service that Verizon provided me when I called in preparation for the big move. In five different phone calls, I received six different answers to the same issue. I wanted to terminate my high speed service since Ben already has it but I wanted to retain (at least temporarily) my email address. That would have allowed me to either keep it long term or transition the info to a new email account. Yesterday was the last call --it lasted 45 minutes and the end result was that nothing can be done to retrieve my information. In fact, I found out that the very first answer I received in this quest was the correct one. They could have downgraded me to a dialup account and all would have been well. That is the answer I got when I called just to find out what the process was. When I called back to actually DO it, I was told that wasn't possible. I was told that they could ADD a dialup account (thus paying more for less which I knew did not make sense). Then I was given a website where I could retrieve my mail -- this answer was so convincing that I went ahead and terminated service -- my mistake. I then visited the site and got no where. So, I called again and this time got a different website -- which also did not do anything I needed. That led to yesterday's call in which I was first told that they could set up a FORWARD for my mail to a new address. That was also wrong, and I was bounced to another tech who informed me that they could do nothing since I had cancelled my account. She transferred me to billing where the operator tried to make my account active as a dial up (unsuccessful), and then another tech who said, "You can set up a dial up with the same name, but all of your information is gone." So, dear readers, watch for a new email link and drop me a line. I have lost every email address I had along with some inportant emails. I told them that in light of their wonderful custormer service of late, I would seek an email account elsewhere. That will be a project for the next day or two -- after work. So I remain reachable only through this blog. EEEEKKKK. Why can't customer service folks get the right info? I told then it was like calling IRS -- everyone had a different answer.

Work Begins

Well, here we are at long last. The move is complete--now it's time to put all the stuff somewhere. How does this stuff multiply? This morning I start the long awaited full time job and there are some feelings of worry as well as the feeling that something good is going to come of all this. I worry because it has been some time since I was on a regular forty hour work week. I welcome the idea of doing my job and then putting it behind me for the night -- no more tenants wanting something done in the middle of dinner or during the last 10 minutes of that four hour movie I was watching. And mo more 100 mile commutes to be with the man I love. Now THAT is worth any adjustments I need to make. So I am UP and about to jump in the shower, iron some clothes, pack a big boy lunch and head to the office for the first day. Almost makes me giddy with excitement (yeah, right).....Have a great day and think of me as I hit the afternoon slump and wish I could just sit back and watch TV or go for a walk or something. Discipline, Nick, discipline.

Relocation Woes

Hey bloggers! My historic move to Ben's is continuing more or less on track. In fact, as I write this, I am waiting for daylight so that I can unload the car from yesterday's trip. Today should finish the project as I go clean out the refrigerator, clean up the place a bit, and do the final paperwork that will end my tenure as a resident and employee and set the stage for the new job starting tomorrow -- so much for down time. You may remember that just before Christmas I lost my cell phone. It took 5 days to get it replaced==and it's taking a while to regather phone numbers and other info. No sooner did I get the new phone than it was time to deal with my ISP. I called to cancel my account and asked if it was possible to retain the email address. In four phone calls, I've had four different anwers -- and still have no access to my email -- AAARRRGGGGGHHHH!

Yesterday and today Ben had to work 12 hour shifts. Last night I had a meeting at church that meant I didn't get home until after 11. Needless to say, the reality of daily life (and kooky schedules) is hitting. Hopefully we will be able to spend the evening together tonight -- of course laundry and unpacking beckon so we shall see. At least we will both be home at the same time during waking hours. TAT! Keep me in your thoughts as I deal with starting a new job -- it's been a while since I was on a regular 40 hour per week regimen -- may take a little adjusting. Today, before heading out, it is time to unload the car, call for final job details, and call the ISP company and give them a piece of my mind. Then it's off to finish the move and stop by a funeral visitation on the way home. Oh joy, oh rapture. Does life ever slow down? Who knows? Thanks for listening! Hugs!!

Happy New Year!

Good Morning on this first day of 2007. My most exciting news is that my move to Ben's is almost complete. We have made a number of trips with truck and car and there's not much left to move. It never ceases to amaze me just how much STUFF one can accumulate. And there's a bunch of stuff that doesn't seem to fit in any particular category. I once had an uncle who said that when one moves, one should never mark a box "Miscellaneous." But everyone has stuff that doesn't fit anywhere else, and since he's not moving me, my boxes are all miscellaneous. HA HA. Makes unpacking them much more fun.

I was so pleasantly surprised today when I turned on TODAY and everyone was referring to 2007 and no one has said "two thousand AND seven". Maybe they are finally catching on to good grammar. HOORAY!

Today will be yet another trip to the old homestead for another load -- not much left but we need the truck and Ben is working long hours tomorrow so today is the day. Pray for good weather. The folks at the apartment complex had a going away party for me yesterday -- guess that means I really have to go now. As if I would change my mind -- yeah! right!

Let me take this opportunity to wish each of you a blessed and happy 2007. May each of your dreams and hopes become reality this year. That's all for now -- God bless.