Kenny Rogers, then Boredom

After working days on end it seems, now that I have two days off in a row, it's hard to know what to do with all this leisure time!  I've puttered and putzed around the house for two days.  Every early morning is my walk with Sadie -- weekend or not, she wants that early morning walk every day.  No sleeping in for this Gal!

Yesterday I washed my car, shopped for groceries, even took time to stop at a park and snap a photo or two -- it's May and that's the only month the Saguaro cactus blooms.  I vacuumed my entire bedroom, moving furniture, doing that annual thing called Spring Cleaning.  As I put things back, I put them away in their proper places.  Summer is coming and that's like our winter, so we tend to hibernate indoors where the AC lives. 

Today, I've managed to do all the laundry, fold and put it all away.  I painted the hall closet and put all those things back in their places as well.  Now it's just past 3pm and I'm wondering if I can eat dinner, take my shower and head for bed!  lol  Yep.  That's kinda how it is when you get older.  The only problem is when I go to bed too early, I'm up for work too early as well.  So that won't work. 

Which is why I decided to share my dream.  I was going to a concert ... a Kenny Rogers concert!  It was his farewell tour.  As jumbled as dreams are, I had trouble meeting up with the people who were coming to the concert.  Not that it was a large auditorium ... only about 3000 people could fit.  It was lovely and since I was alone, I stayed late to see if I could get his autograph.  He was kind, signed a few things for me, (program, etc).  When I woke up the next morning and headed out for a walk, I discovered the neighbor's house up for sale.  Peeking into the open garage door, I could see through the back door into the yard, the house had a beautiful pool, and was much larger, much grander than any of the other houses on the block.  How had I not noticed this before?  And there was Kenny Rogers, rolling up a hose in the garage.  I waved, he smiled and came out to talk to me.   He recognized me from the night before, signing all my souvenirs, and gave me some advice:  "Right after my final concert is when you should sell those things, they'll bring a high price.  By the time I'm dead, most folks won't even know who I was."  I was shaking my head, "Everyone will remember you."   He asked if I'd like a tour of the house ... I nodded and followed him inside. 

And Sadie barked and woke me up.

I wonder where this dream might have gone? 
Would we become Daytime Friends, Nighttime Lovers? 
Islands in the Stream? 
Would our friendship last Through the Years? 
(Sorry, couldn't resist adding in some of his song titles.
Forgive me! lol )

Why do dreams do this? and what are they really trying to say?  Some think it's some kind of issue in our mind that we're trying to resolve.  I can't think of any I need to resolve with Kenny R tho!


Sometimes it's just fun to write them down ... see where they go. 
Or didn't go, in this case.

BTW, this is how I picture him in my mind.  And to be totally honest, I had a dear friend back in the 80s who looked a whole lot like Kenny!  Heading out to the local bar after work, doing some bowling or dancing, it was pretty nice to have the attention of a handsome guy like this! (Wherever you are, Ed ..... I wish I knew! )

*sigh* so much for a fun dream ... back to boredom!  Then work again tomorrow .....

Purses and Handbags

Yesterday as I got out of the car, I had a brainstorm about a blog topic.  And sat down to write it, only to find that I'd forgotten what I wanted to write! 

Since my recall was horrible, I opted to let the topic simmer.  And this morning I remembered!  I had a thought about purses, specifically a woman's purse, or handbag.  They seem to have evolved from something for useful storage to a total fashion statement, including designer labels, monikers, and their pricey tags!

Back in the 50s, it was fashionable to match your shoes to your handbag.  And you never wore white before Easter, or after Labor Day!)  In the 60s, this fashion rule relaxed -- for the younger set!  It wasn't until 2001 that Coach became THE HANDBAG every woman wanted.  But yikes!  The price tag was too much for this woman!

To me, a handbag is just a nice looking storage system to carry my necessities to and from the places I go.  I've never been one to flaunt a fancy handbag -- or had several to switch from on a daily basis depending on my outfit!  Way too much work in that scenario! 

There was a time back in either the 80s or 90s where you could buy purses in the same basic style in many colors, and the inside was clear plastic with little pockets to hold everything.  This plastic insert was transferable from one colored bag to another in just a moment's time.  More my speed, but definitely didn't suit my style at all. 

I've always considered myself "not your normal woman", and relating to having many handbags to suit a mood or outfit isn't what I'm about.  I need a bag that's functional, easy to get things in and out of, with a couple extra pockets for the little things like chewing gum and a cell phone. 

Of course, with handbags, you need a way to store! 
(nope, can't imagine that!)


Handbags come in all kinds of shape and sizes, made out of every material you can think of!  I've seen hand crocheted bags, home made leather bags with tons of fringe.  I've seen fancy patent leather, velvet, and denim.  They come in extra large suitcase size to the other extreme - so small only a cell phone and a set of keys fit inside. 

The most fanciful purse I own is one formed in the shape of a bustier, made of black velvet.  To be honest, I never had the heart to toss that one out!  I have a suede patchwork purse, and the last purse I "retired" was made of denim.  (And lucky for me, my camera supplies fit inside, so now it's a camera carry-all!)  My current one is black leather, and it's two years old.  No holes, no scuffs = no reason to replace it yet! 

Or is there? 
I have a full weekend off work, and I haven't been shopping in AGES! 
Normally, I don't enjoy shopping, but every now and then .......
it can do a woman good to buy a new handbag!

Ancestry, the Finns

My sister took one of those DNA tests for ancestry, and we found that a good portion of our ancestry is Finnish!  Now, that surprised me, because we've always been told we're "Swedish and German".  lol  SO.... who's the Finn?    Seems like it's my Mom and her mother!  Who knew? 

But, me being me, of course I had to find something different about Finns.  And it seems there are some Finnish words that don't translate into English (or any other language).  Here are my favs:

Sisu
Dictionary translates sisu as “stick-with-it-ness”, and that is exactly what it is. It means to be stubborn, determined and sometimes stupidly brave, an expression used to describe the national character of a Finn. It means we will run head first to the brick wall until the wall gives in if we really believe there is something worth the trouble on the other side.

Tosikko
A person who takes life a bit too seriously and is often considered to completely lack a sense of humor.

Kalsarikänni
Surprisingly well-known — and loved — outside Finnish borders, kalsarikänni literally means to get drunk (alone) at home in your underwear with no intention of going out.

The first two, well, those could be me!  They seem to fit very well in the overall scheme -- the last?  If I was a drinker, that's how I'd be drinking!  (I'm very much a home body!)

And in other quick but interesting facts:

• Finland is one of the world's northernmost countries.
• Finland has about 168,000 lakes 
• Finland is the largest producer of wood in Europe and among the largest in the world. Forests play a key role in the country's economy. 
• Large and widely recognized wildlife mammals found in Finland are the brown bear (the national animal), gray wolf, wolverine, and elk.
• A quarter of Finland's territory lies within the Arctic Circle and the midnight sun can be experienced for more days the farther north one travels. At Finland's northernmost point, the sun does not set for 73 consecutive days during summer, and does not rise at all for 51 days during winter.
• With 3.9 million members, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland is one of the largest Lutheran churches in the world 

I wonder at the folks who emigrated; they wanted to start new lives, and some of them did, literally beginning once they reached America by changing their name.  I'm guessing some 'fudged' on where they were really originally from, the dates they were born, etc.  I know my own history doesn't go back very far because of these very reasons!

Just Plain Tired

Since March 11, I have been working 6+ days a week, and over 40 hours each week.

And dammit, I'm tired!

I thought after Inventory at my BigBox Store would be the end of it .....

but now there's new programs to learn, to run, to teach.

And not everyone at my store is "the brightest bulb in the box", so it's endless questions.  

All.  Day.  Long.

Ugh.

Is it crazy to be looking forward to a scheduled day off - June 8 - when I get to have my colonoscopy??? lol   At least I know I'll be in bed all day.  Hoo Ray!    hahahahahaha

Health Frets

I always thought I'd be a focused blogger, but naw, just like the usual me, I'm all over the board! 

Today, I'm fretting about health.  My doctor's office called yesterday afternoon, and said my "cholesterol is up, triglycerides are up, and I need to cut out meat, chicken and dairy; to only eat plants.  To eat better, exercise every day, then come back in 3 months to be retested."

Hmm.  Well, I suppose I could eat better, and try to get just a bit more exercise.  I realize that while I'm getting over 10k steps a day (my goal), I usually average just over 12k steps a day on a work day.  But while I may be in constant movement, it's not enough exertion to make my heart rate increase, so maybe it doesn't count as much???   Hard to say.  When my BigBox store is done with its annual inventory, my schedule should go back to being more "normal" and I can focus on some better exercise routines. 

In the mean time, I'm back to adding a cup of brown rice to my daily meal.  I boil my skinless, boneless chicken to reduce fat and sodium, and make sure that I eat an apple a day --- to keep the doctor away!  hehehe  It can get a little boring, but ... its for my health, so it's necessary.  I can always just add in a small treat to make things interesting, and still fill up on the "boring stuff".

I thought I was keeping good records of my cholesterol and such numbers, but I couldn't locate where I'd tucked that info away.  I have one log book where I write down all the medical procedures I've had because ... I'm finding that as I get older when I think about needing this or that, it always seems to me that I just did that!  Because Dad had colon cancer, I'm good about making sure I have a colonoscopy as recommended.  I had one in Dec 2014 and I can't believe it's already been 3 years!   I swear it feels like I just DID THAT!   But I'm the same way with the dentist as well.  lol  Probably because I dislike having to go to either of those places!?! 

I am pretty certain that the slight jump my doc saw in the cholesterol number was just a one time thing - maybe I didn't fast long enough?  or maybe before the office visit, I ate something that skewed the numbers just a bit?   We'll see in three months' time.

Meanwhile, here in the Valley of the Sun, summer is hitting us early; it was 104 on my drive home, and this isn't the first day we've had temps over 100!  Usually, we hope it holds off until the 15th of May --- not this year!  I wonder what that means for the rest of the summer?   Yikes!