Received via voicemail on Friday, February 10th:
"This is the Dallas Morning News. You may have received a message from us yesterday. This message was in error. Home delivery to your location is not being ended. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you."
HALLELUJAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sunday, February 12, 2006
Friday, February 10, 2006
Life As We Know It...
...is coming to an end. Got a call yesterday from the folks at the Dallas Morning News saying that, effective April 1st, they will stop providing the Paris area with both home delivery and paper box delivery.
I cannot believe this. This is going to change our lives.
Every morning of my life, that's what I do first thing. I retrieve the paper from the driveway (and it's always there. Our paper carrier is wonderful.), and read from page 1 to the classifieds. Every morning. Rain or shine, ice or heat. Back in December, we had an ice storm. Schools were closed. Soup and K-C postponed their first shifts. The paper was in the driveway at 5:15 a.m. Every morning.
When we go out of town, first thing we do when we come home is put the papers in chronological order, then read through them. Of course, we can skim over some of the wire service stories and national/international news, because no matter where we've been, we've read the newspapers. The local papers, where they're available. USA Today for absolute sure.
But we gotta get back to the Morning News for all the other stuff. Steve Blow, James Ragland, Scott Burns. The never-ending travails of the Dallas Independent School District. Laura Miller and the Dallas City Council.
The COMICS, for cryin' out loud. These are our soap operas, our daily fixes. Will Ralph become Sally Forth's boss again? Will B.D. and Boopsie be able to deal with all his issues? Will Elly really sell the bookstore? Will Satchel ever tell Bucky to sit on it? Will those blasted crocodiles ever give up trying to eat their "zeeba neighbas?!?" Will I ever NOT laugh at the "The Boondocks"?
Will "Non Sequitur" EVER make sense or be funny? I never give up hoping.
We are newpaper people, Randy and I. From our earliest days together, first with the the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, to The Roanoke Times, The Charlotte Observer, and now the Morning News and the Paris News, practically the first thing we do when we move to a new city or a new house is to call the paper.
Sure, we can get the online version. But we already keep up with online news on CNN or MSNBC.
Or on TV. Can't wait to hear Gloria Campos say "you can find out more about it in today's edition of the Dallas Morning News." Um-m-m...no. We can't.
And, as the nice girl at the DMN customer service desk said yesterday, we can sign up for mail delivery. Yeah, boy...that's what I'm talkin' about...three to five days after it happens, we'll be able to read about it. Woo hoo. Let's hear it for current events.
There's just something about sitting at the kitchen table with my glass of iced tea and the morning newspaper. I know that, to some people, this sounds preposterous, but this is just heartbreaking news to us.
Too bad we won't be able to read about it in the newspaper.
I cannot believe this. This is going to change our lives.
Every morning of my life, that's what I do first thing. I retrieve the paper from the driveway (and it's always there. Our paper carrier is wonderful.), and read from page 1 to the classifieds. Every morning. Rain or shine, ice or heat. Back in December, we had an ice storm. Schools were closed. Soup and K-C postponed their first shifts. The paper was in the driveway at 5:15 a.m. Every morning.
When we go out of town, first thing we do when we come home is put the papers in chronological order, then read through them. Of course, we can skim over some of the wire service stories and national/international news, because no matter where we've been, we've read the newspapers. The local papers, where they're available. USA Today for absolute sure.
But we gotta get back to the Morning News for all the other stuff. Steve Blow, James Ragland, Scott Burns. The never-ending travails of the Dallas Independent School District. Laura Miller and the Dallas City Council.
The COMICS, for cryin' out loud. These are our soap operas, our daily fixes. Will Ralph become Sally Forth's boss again? Will B.D. and Boopsie be able to deal with all his issues? Will Elly really sell the bookstore? Will Satchel ever tell Bucky to sit on it? Will those blasted crocodiles ever give up trying to eat their "zeeba neighbas?!?" Will I ever NOT laugh at the "The Boondocks"?
Will "Non Sequitur" EVER make sense or be funny? I never give up hoping.
We are newpaper people, Randy and I. From our earliest days together, first with the the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, to The Roanoke Times, The Charlotte Observer, and now the Morning News and the Paris News, practically the first thing we do when we move to a new city or a new house is to call the paper.
Sure, we can get the online version. But we already keep up with online news on CNN or MSNBC.
Or on TV. Can't wait to hear Gloria Campos say "you can find out more about it in today's edition of the Dallas Morning News." Um-m-m...no. We can't.
And, as the nice girl at the DMN customer service desk said yesterday, we can sign up for mail delivery. Yeah, boy...that's what I'm talkin' about...three to five days after it happens, we'll be able to read about it. Woo hoo. Let's hear it for current events.
There's just something about sitting at the kitchen table with my glass of iced tea and the morning newspaper. I know that, to some people, this sounds preposterous, but this is just heartbreaking news to us.
Too bad we won't be able to read about it in the newspaper.
Monday, February 06, 2006
Stately Reed Manor
We've been doing a little more work on the old homeplace this weekend. Randy started working on a landscaping project around the new deck, using some of the old slate stones he dug out of the ground around the old deck. Looks GREAT! He's always so good at that kind of stuff. I think I'll go out to the pond place this weekend and see about some water plants. And it's about time to make a trip up to Brannan's Bass Shop to rescue a few little goldfish from a prematurely shortened life as bait.
And he scraped all the cottage cheese junk off of the ceilings in the downstairs bath, laundry and entry from the garage, and I started painting the walls a lovely blue. I'll paint the ceilings once he's satisfied with their smoothness. Bumpy ceilings = yucky. Smooth ceilings = good.
I will never want to move from here.
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Never Send to Know for Whom the Bell Tolls
According to the Iraq Coalition Casualty Count: in January, 2006, there were at least 89, and possibly as many as 142 U.S. Military troops reported as wounded in Iraq, and 62 U.S. military fatalities.
I just wonder why only Bob Woodruff's injuries are worthy of a front page headline and a statement of sympathy from the White House.
I just wonder why only Bob Woodruff's injuries are worthy of a front page headline and a statement of sympathy from the White House.
Monday, January 23, 2006
Gainful Employment...
James has a job!! He starts work today at the GameStop here in town. Yep...my boy is growing up.
I can't wait until he gets his first paycheck and sees what's left for him after all the deductions!
I can't wait until he gets his first paycheck and sees what's left for him after all the deductions!
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
Look THAT up in your Funk & Wagnalls!
knuck·le·head
n. Informal A stupid person; a blockhead.
- n : these words are used to express a low opinion of someone's intelligence [syn: dunce, dunderhead, numskull, blockhead, bonehead, lunkhead, hammerhead, loggerhead, muttonhead]
Monday, January 16, 2006
Come Gather 'Round, People...
I've been lamenting to my kids that they are just not going to have the golden oldies when they are grown up like I do. It cracks them up that we can be playing name that tune on 70s on 7 on the XM radio, and even if I don't know the song...I can usually name the artist.
That's because "back in the day," there was an actual emphasis on voice...and on talent...not on the Look, or the Dance Move, or the Lack of Clothing.
What's funny is to look at the playlists on Amanda's or James' DJ. They have as many old songs as they do new ones. I like taking some credit for that, but the reality is...it's just good music.
Bob Dylan. Janis Joplin. The Eagles. Neil Diamond. Elvis. The Beatles. Chicago. Don McLean. The Temptations. Johnny Cash. John Denver. Dolly Parton. Jimmy Buffett. I can identify the artist, because I can hear his or her (or their, in the case of a group) actual voice, and the voice is most always distinctive enough to stand out from others. The song has a lyric that actually makes sense and means something. Not a lot of synthesizer, no god-awful drum beat that drowns out everything. Instead - a unique style, and a vocal and instrumental sound that, even if you've never heard the particular SONG, still lets you determine the particular ARTIST.
There's good music out there today, don't get me wrong, and I enjoy listening to some of it with the kids. Rob Thomas. Green Day. That "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" song. I love that song, even though it makes me sad - "my shadow is the only one who walks beside me" - how heart-breaking is that?!?
But twenty years later, I hear the first note sung by Karen Carpenter's gorgeous voice, and I know immediately who it is.
Twenty years from now...are my kids going to be able to tell their kids the difference between Brittney Spears or Jessica Simpson or Ashlee Simpson or Pink or Gwen Stefani with just a line from a song?
Nah...but they can't do it today, either. And it's no big loss.
That's because "back in the day," there was an actual emphasis on voice...and on talent...not on the Look, or the Dance Move, or the Lack of Clothing.
What's funny is to look at the playlists on Amanda's or James' DJ. They have as many old songs as they do new ones. I like taking some credit for that, but the reality is...it's just good music.
Bob Dylan. Janis Joplin. The Eagles. Neil Diamond. Elvis. The Beatles. Chicago. Don McLean. The Temptations. Johnny Cash. John Denver. Dolly Parton. Jimmy Buffett. I can identify the artist, because I can hear his or her (or their, in the case of a group) actual voice, and the voice is most always distinctive enough to stand out from others. The song has a lyric that actually makes sense and means something. Not a lot of synthesizer, no god-awful drum beat that drowns out everything. Instead - a unique style, and a vocal and instrumental sound that, even if you've never heard the particular SONG, still lets you determine the particular ARTIST.
There's good music out there today, don't get me wrong, and I enjoy listening to some of it with the kids. Rob Thomas. Green Day. That "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" song. I love that song, even though it makes me sad - "my shadow is the only one who walks beside me" - how heart-breaking is that?!?
But twenty years later, I hear the first note sung by Karen Carpenter's gorgeous voice, and I know immediately who it is.
Twenty years from now...are my kids going to be able to tell their kids the difference between Brittney Spears or Jessica Simpson or Ashlee Simpson or Pink or Gwen Stefani with just a line from a song?
Nah...but they can't do it today, either. And it's no big loss.
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
Thanks, Y'all
Saw this on westbound Interstate 20, just east of Meridian. The words to the right of "Thanks, Y'all" pretty much say what it is:"Mississippi: Proud. Strong. United."
Very cool state.
Monday, January 09, 2006
Back to Business
Well, things are getting back to the New Normal around here. I just got back from Tuscaloosa, where I dropped Amanda off for the spring semester. Just when we were getting used to having her around again...there she goes!
It was a good first visit home for her, I think. She got to meet back up with some old friends, and realized that many of them are growing away from the group, now that they're out in the college world. I guess that's kind of a sad realization for many of them - that the group they were sure were going to be "BFF"...really aren't.
But Amanda has a good head. I think she knows that her core friends will always be there, and the others...were really just friends by virtue of proximity: they shared classes and had commonalities that way, but weren't really the Friends of a Lifetime. I think she's hopefully making some of those friends now, because college is more about choosing friends because of shared interests and experiences rather than just who you grew up around.
And I think she enjoyed being with us, too! I know Randy and I had a great time with her.
GO BAMA!! ROLL TIDE!! (and take care of my baby girl...)
It was a good first visit home for her, I think. She got to meet back up with some old friends, and realized that many of them are growing away from the group, now that they're out in the college world. I guess that's kind of a sad realization for many of them - that the group they were sure were going to be "BFF"...really aren't.
But Amanda has a good head. I think she knows that her core friends will always be there, and the others...were really just friends by virtue of proximity: they shared classes and had commonalities that way, but weren't really the Friends of a Lifetime. I think she's hopefully making some of those friends now, because college is more about choosing friends because of shared interests and experiences rather than just who you grew up around.
And I think she enjoyed being with us, too! I know Randy and I had a great time with her.
GO BAMA!! ROLL TIDE!! (and take care of my baby girl...)
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Tuesday, January 03, 2006
I Miss Jon Stewart
I realized when I got home tonight and checked the TV schedule that "The Daily Show" is STILL on hiatus this week. Dang, I hate that. Here we've only had Comedy Central since maybe September, and I'm hooked.
I miss Jon Stewart. I miss his unique way of skewering idiocy, no matter the party affiliation (have you heard him riff on John Kerry? Hysterical). I miss what he can say with just a slight squint and a raised eyebrow. I miss his technique of actually listening to the person he's interviewing before he asks another question. Sure, sometimes he goes for the easy laugh, but still...
I miss the correspondent who's the Stephen Colbert wannabe...keep forgetting his name. Ed Helms. That's it. Do I miss dopey little Samantha Bee? Her...not so much.
I have seen the interview with Jake Gyllenhaal 47 and 14/15 times (missed the toss to The Colbert Report one time. MERRY CHRISTMAS, JON.), because that's at least how many times it seems that episode has been rerun.
And while we're at it, I miss The Colbert Report. Haven't had Tonight's Word in over TWO WEEKS. I love a TV show that you have to read as well as listen to. I love that he has what seems to be a sincerely sweet little smile when he realizes he's been bested by a guest, like Cokie Roberts, or the Walking the Bible guy, Bruce Feiler.
One more week. I can hold on until then.
I miss Jon Stewart. I miss his unique way of skewering idiocy, no matter the party affiliation (have you heard him riff on John Kerry? Hysterical). I miss what he can say with just a slight squint and a raised eyebrow. I miss his technique of actually listening to the person he's interviewing before he asks another question. Sure, sometimes he goes for the easy laugh, but still...
I miss the correspondent who's the Stephen Colbert wannabe...keep forgetting his name. Ed Helms. That's it. Do I miss dopey little Samantha Bee? Her...not so much.
I have seen the interview with Jake Gyllenhaal 47 and 14/15 times (missed the toss to The Colbert Report one time. MERRY CHRISTMAS, JON.), because that's at least how many times it seems that episode has been rerun.
And while we're at it, I miss The Colbert Report. Haven't had Tonight's Word in over TWO WEEKS. I love a TV show that you have to read as well as listen to. I love that he has what seems to be a sincerely sweet little smile when he realizes he's been bested by a guest, like Cokie Roberts, or the Walking the Bible guy, Bruce Feiler.
One more week. I can hold on until then.
Hey! I kinda remember this blog thing now!
Yeah, I know. It's been since what? AUGUST? that I've blogged.
It's been a busy Fall.
But we were visiting with my sister-in-law and her family on Sunday, and my niece-in-law, Kim, mentioned that she's been blogging. Cool! So I log on - http://www.icoulduseanap.blogspot.com - and I notice that she blogs REGULARLY!! And she has a 3 year old and a 10 month old at home!!
I have no excuse.
So I'm back. Regularly? Who knows.
To update from August - the hinky mammogram turned out fine. Nothing to worry about. The radiologist who took and read my second films was incredible. She was warm and reassuring. She showed me both sets of pictures, pointing out what they had been concerned about the first time, and then pointing out all the different views they took the second time, and what it was about them that made them think that everything is fine.
And she had warm hands. If you've ever had a mammogram, you know how important that is.
Amanda had a successful first semester at The University of Alabama. They're even letting her come back!! YAY! And she's made some good friends, and found a good church. Her roommate, Lex, is a jewel. I told Amanda that the day she got her acceptance letter from Bama, that I started praying for her roommate - whoever she was going to be. I think she thought I was nuts...but it's worked out well, I think. She goes back in a week.
My New Year's resolution...aside from the usual "lose 30 pounds, go to Curves every day, spend money more wisely, yadda yadda yadda"...is to blog more often. Umm-hmm...
It's been a busy Fall.
But we were visiting with my sister-in-law and her family on Sunday, and my niece-in-law, Kim, mentioned that she's been blogging. Cool! So I log on - http://www.icoulduseanap.blogspot.com - and I notice that she blogs REGULARLY!! And she has a 3 year old and a 10 month old at home!!
I have no excuse.
So I'm back. Regularly? Who knows.
To update from August - the hinky mammogram turned out fine. Nothing to worry about. The radiologist who took and read my second films was incredible. She was warm and reassuring. She showed me both sets of pictures, pointing out what they had been concerned about the first time, and then pointing out all the different views they took the second time, and what it was about them that made them think that everything is fine.
And she had warm hands. If you've ever had a mammogram, you know how important that is.
Amanda had a successful first semester at The University of Alabama. They're even letting her come back!! YAY! And she's made some good friends, and found a good church. Her roommate, Lex, is a jewel. I told Amanda that the day she got her acceptance letter from Bama, that I started praying for her roommate - whoever she was going to be. I think she thought I was nuts...but it's worked out well, I think. She goes back in a week.
My New Year's resolution...aside from the usual "lose 30 pounds, go to Curves every day, spend money more wisely, yadda yadda yadda"...is to blog more often. Umm-hmm...
Thursday, August 04, 2005
In the Big Middle of Oh-So-Much
There is SO much going on in the family right now. It's somewhat overwhelming, and I'm feeling a good bit of pressure to deal with it all.
Let's start a list:
Remodeling our house: This is the never-ending story. We started this back in MARCH. Three bathrooms at one time, and redoing most of the kitchen. We are SO close to being done we can taste it, but there's still finishing tiling the area around the tub (Randy promises that'll only take a couple of days' work), and recarpeting the bedroom and putting down wood laminate in the upstairs hallway, then putting up all the little stuff - hooks and towel bars and TP holder, etc. Then we'll order the new oven and it all will be done. YAY!! I'll never ever want to move out of this house.
New rent house: we bought a cute little house over on Briarwood this week. We've already had new tile put down, and Amanda and I painted the paneling in the kitchen. Behr Creamy White from The Home Depot. Bill Kitchens is coming Saturday to finish up the bathrooms, install the new range and dishwasher, and a few other little things, the gutter guy will come Saturday also, then Paul Stansell will do new countertops in the kitchen and hall bath next week, and we can hopefully rent that sucker quick.
Gentle Winds: September 16, 2004 - that's the day Hurricane Ivan blew through. Ron Kimbrough (a really nice guy) and his crew have been working on this complex since about October 1st. They're getting close to being done, but picking out stuff and making decisions about things from 600 miles away has not been loads of fun. Then even after we have a CO, we'll still have to find some time to go down there and furnish the place before it can be rented or stayed in.
Sandalwood. Several repairs needed before Ebby Halliday can rent it out. The tenant who has been there for five years just got deployed to Iraq. W's damn war is messin' up everything.
School starts Monday. This is my last year at Aikin, and already things are different for Pat. I haven't been up there AT ALL this summer. No "there every day from the middle of July till Day 1," no "I'll just stop by for a few minutes this morning that will turn into home by 7 p.m.," no nothing. How have they survived?!? No PowerPoint ready for the first day with teachers. Not every computer will be working on the first day of school. The world as Pat has known it is coming to an end.
Mammograms. I've never really minded having a yearly mammogram. It's just seemed like part of the price of being a girl. But I'll tell ya, when the doctor's office calls and says "there was a problem," well, it kind of makes your heart skip a beat. I was scheduled for a followup mammo yesterday, but the doctor got sick and had to go home early, so I'm rescheduled for Monday afternoon. WHAT KIND OF DOCTOR GETS SICK AND LEAVES WORK EARLY?!? That seems just so wrong. Whatever happened to "Physician, heal thyself?"
Amanda's leaving in two weeks. This will be a whole entire post unto itself. Nay, a multitude of posts.
In the meantime, we have piles everywhere. A pile to go to Gentle Winds. A pile for Briarwood. A pile to cart to Tuscaloosa. PILES of crap related to the 39th St. remodel. The normal Quizno's piles. A pile for a potential garage sale. Piles of trash.
Remember the old song "Signs?" Piles, piles, everywhere a pile...blocking out the scenery, breaking my mind....
Let's start a list:
- remodeling our house.
- buying and remodeling a new rent house.
- still trying to get Gentle Winds back on line after Hurricane Ivan. Remember...that was September 16, 2004. Yes. 2004.
- Arlington rent house is empty.
- school starts Monday for me.
- I had a hinky mammogram.
- oh, and yeah...Amanda is going away to college in 15 days. Two weeks from tomorrow, I'll be taking my baby girl to Tuscaloosa.
Remodeling our house: This is the never-ending story. We started this back in MARCH. Three bathrooms at one time, and redoing most of the kitchen. We are SO close to being done we can taste it, but there's still finishing tiling the area around the tub (Randy promises that'll only take a couple of days' work), and recarpeting the bedroom and putting down wood laminate in the upstairs hallway, then putting up all the little stuff - hooks and towel bars and TP holder, etc. Then we'll order the new oven and it all will be done. YAY!! I'll never ever want to move out of this house.
New rent house: we bought a cute little house over on Briarwood this week. We've already had new tile put down, and Amanda and I painted the paneling in the kitchen. Behr Creamy White from The Home Depot. Bill Kitchens is coming Saturday to finish up the bathrooms, install the new range and dishwasher, and a few other little things, the gutter guy will come Saturday also, then Paul Stansell will do new countertops in the kitchen and hall bath next week, and we can hopefully rent that sucker quick.
Gentle Winds: September 16, 2004 - that's the day Hurricane Ivan blew through. Ron Kimbrough (a really nice guy) and his crew have been working on this complex since about October 1st. They're getting close to being done, but picking out stuff and making decisions about things from 600 miles away has not been loads of fun. Then even after we have a CO, we'll still have to find some time to go down there and furnish the place before it can be rented or stayed in.
Sandalwood. Several repairs needed before Ebby Halliday can rent it out. The tenant who has been there for five years just got deployed to Iraq. W's damn war is messin' up everything.
School starts Monday. This is my last year at Aikin, and already things are different for Pat. I haven't been up there AT ALL this summer. No "there every day from the middle of July till Day 1," no "I'll just stop by for a few minutes this morning that will turn into home by 7 p.m.," no nothing. How have they survived?!? No PowerPoint ready for the first day with teachers. Not every computer will be working on the first day of school. The world as Pat has known it is coming to an end.
Mammograms. I've never really minded having a yearly mammogram. It's just seemed like part of the price of being a girl. But I'll tell ya, when the doctor's office calls and says "there was a problem," well, it kind of makes your heart skip a beat. I was scheduled for a followup mammo yesterday, but the doctor got sick and had to go home early, so I'm rescheduled for Monday afternoon. WHAT KIND OF DOCTOR GETS SICK AND LEAVES WORK EARLY?!? That seems just so wrong. Whatever happened to "Physician, heal thyself?"
Amanda's leaving in two weeks. This will be a whole entire post unto itself. Nay, a multitude of posts.
In the meantime, we have piles everywhere. A pile to go to Gentle Winds. A pile for Briarwood. A pile to cart to Tuscaloosa. PILES of crap related to the 39th St. remodel. The normal Quizno's piles. A pile for a potential garage sale. Piles of trash.
Remember the old song "Signs?" Piles, piles, everywhere a pile...blocking out the scenery, breaking my mind....
Start Me Up
I suppose it's somewhat surprising that it's taken me this long to create a blog, given how much I love to write. But it seems like it's time now, with everything that's going on with my family, that I have a place of my own...a journal...my OWN "xanga," which is apparently all the rage amongst the friends of the kids. Except they don't give their parents their addresses.
So I won't give my kids my address, either. Nyah, nyah, nyah.
So I won't give my kids my address, either. Nyah, nyah, nyah.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
