Look What I Saw!

Hi All!

I hope everyone had a very Happy New Year's Eve and New Year's Day! Me, I had a nice, quiet time at home with Hubby - just the way I like it.

Look what Hubby and I saw when we were at Church . . .

A beautiful, TALL Christmas tree covered in Chrismons! The tree is so tall, in fact, that it actually blocks one of the two screens where they project words to hymns, etc.

On closer examination . . . Hubby and I saw this lovely Chrismons! Yes, it is the Chrismons that I made. By hand! Yeah!

I was just happy that they put it on the tree. Most of the other Chrismons were much fancier with pearls and crystals but mine was just sort of plain. Just like me!

Let's see - what else is going on in my neck of the woods. . .

I had a wonderfully relaxing lunch with my friends Donna and Caroline this week. They are always such fun to talk to. We at at Souper Salad - one of my favorite places - and then headed over to check out the nearby book stores. I actually purchased a book. Of course, I had a coupon! It is a rare occurrence when I purchase a book from a bookstore which isn't Half-Price Books and isn't on their clearance shelves!

Wal Mart was the site of my weekly grocery shopping trip this week primarily because my local Kroger store doesn't carry much in the way of pork roasts and you HAVE to have pork on New Year's Day. With sauerkraut! You HAVE to!

I know a lot of people, especially those down here in the south say it is black-eyed peas but I am staying true to the traditions I grew up with up north!

Anyway - I DID buy another book at Wal Mart - a Christmas themed book which looked interesting. Of course, I have already finished reading it and I enjoyed it a lot. Hopefully, I will pass it on to someone else who likes to read so they can enjoy it as well.

Speaking of books . . . it has been a while since I did a book post and the pile of books I need to "talk" about is growing a bit unwieldy. Maybe I will simply pick the best of the pile to share. Such dilemmas!

Oh well!

Have a super day!

Trisha

Voice Update: Pretty good today even though I am not feeling too well. I have been working on getting rid of the sore spots on my neck and that is helping my voice - of course. I have also been trying to get in more inhalation voicing. The other day I only spoke in inhale around the house (I was talking to the cats and singing along with my ipod - all on the inhale). It seems to help me a lot.

In news sort of related to my voice - I got a bit motivated this morning and have been doing some planning for my SD support group. Hopefully, everything will keep falling into place.

Which reminds me . . . looking for a good place to donate money in 2010? Check out the National Spasmodic Dysphonia Association!

Turn Signals

Hi All!

Yesterday was a nice, peaceful day here in my neck of the woods. For the most part!

I headed over to our church to drop off a check (before the first of the year, you know!) and stopped at a little Chinese restaurant on the way home for some lunch. While the Chinese food wasn't' the best I had ever had, it was still good. I did wish that I had remembered to take my book or my ipod with me so I didn't just sit there by myself eating. That was a bit boring but . . . oh well!

Just as I pulled in our driveway it began to rain. About an hour later the rain turned into snow with big, fluffy flakes floating down from the sky. Within a half hour the ground was covered in white - the second time in a little over a week! Quite a record for Texas!

I snuggled up with the kitties and stayed warm while watching the snow. Hubby came home early from work just in case the roads turned nasty like they did last week. Thankfully, that didn't happen!

As I was snuggling with the kitties I was remembering my trip to work on Monday and thinking about turn signals on cars. They are still standard equipment on cars, right? They aren't optional, are they?

I was just wondering because pretty much NONE of the cars who cut me off during my drive to work on Monday were using their turn signals. In fact, I watched one man weave in and out of traffic for about five minutes with nary a signal in sight. He was totally oblivious to the fact that he was causing chaos on the road since the people he was cutting off had to slam on their brakes to avoid hitting him. This braking caused quite the chain reaction of braking and let me tell you - it wasn't fun! Did I mention that this particular man was chatting away on his cell phone the entire time?

After him came a young girl who was obviously in training for the Indy 500 because her speed was WAY too fast for the amount of traffic on the road. She too cut multiple people off trying to get ahead of the slower traffic. She too neglected to use her turn signals.

Just a minute later another car pulled in front of me sans signal and then braked nearly to a stop as he/she (I couldn't figure out which it was from the back) waited for a chance to get into the next lane. Never did this person signal.

After finally getting rid of that "good" driver, I watched yet another driver exit the highway - from the far left lane. This was accomplished without any turn signals to warn the other drivers and was done at a rather high rate of speed while fitting into the smallest of gaps between cars in the other lanes.

Finally, I was off the tollway and on a "surface road." Surely things would be better here, right? Guess again! Between the tollway and my office - three different cars apparently had never heard of turn signals.

What is going on? Is there a trend that I haven't heard of for conserving energy by not using turn signals? Are new cars not coming with these things standard anymore? Does driver's ed forget to tell people about turn signals? Or are people simply too lazy to flick a little stick to signal?

Come on, people! It isn't that hard!

Trisha

Voice Update: I am massaging and inhaling my little heart out. Last night while watching tv I noticed that my neck was sore, sore, sore. Not something I noticed before actually touching my neck. The muscles were all so tender! I spent a lot of time rubbing the muscles of my neck and jaw to make them feel better. This isn't something that is normal for me so I was a bit surprised at just how tender the muscles were. I guess I need to work on that as well as the other massage and the inhalation exercises this week.

Looking for a worthy charity to give money to before the first of the year? Why not check out the National Spasmodic Dysphonia Association?

My Civic Duty

Hi All!

Thanks for all of the comments on yesterday's post - I really felt welcomed back!

Work yesterday went well. Since there was only one therapist in the office things were a bit slower than normal - and that was nice! Of course, two other therapists "popped in" to see how work is going on the new offices. You did know that the office is moving, right? The proposed move date is January 8th but that all depends on if the work is complete and the carpet is in! I also found out yesterday that I am responsible for moving the office stuff since Linda probably won't be up to it. Fun, fun!

Oh well! I guess packing a few boxes won't kill me!

This weekend I got a notice that I have been selected for Jury duty. This will be the second time I have been selected since moving to Texas. The first time I was still working and wasn't selected because I had just testified in a child abuse case two days before showing up for jury duty. Not that the testifying was fun but it might have been better than getting selected for a jury. This time we will see what happens.

The whole jury duty has had me thinking about "civic duty." I remember being taught about civic duty in high school history classes - probably in Government class. Part of the duty was jury duty, of course, but we also were told that we had a duty to take care of our city, state, country and to do everything we could to make it a better place to live in. Part of that involved not littering.

I am sure that this was a "keep the high school cleaner" campaign but for some reason, it really stuck with me. Partly because it makes sense - littering just makes the place you live in dirty and who really wants that? Partly because keeping the area clean made me feel like I was doing something - however small - to help others around me.

Do you think they still teach that in schools today? Do parents reinforce these teachings at home?

I thought about this as I was filling up my car with gas. A truck full of teens pulled up at the pump next to me and while they were getting gas, one teen seemed to be "cleaning" out the truck cab. This involved basically shoveling anything deemed worthless out of the door and onto the ground. As I was waiting for the car to fill up I watched the shoveling with wonder. Part of me wondered if the "kids" were going to pick up the trash and deposit it in the trash can not more than five feet away from them. Another part of me just sighed because it knew the answer. Of course they weren't going to pick anything up!

Watching the old newspapers blow across the lot really got to me. In fact, I actually moved and chased the paper, picked it up and headed for the trash can. One of the teens actually looked at me in surprise. I asked him if he wanted the paper - he said no and I deposited it in the trash can.

I wanted to tell the teens that littering just makes a mess out of their environment but I didn't.

Would it have been my civic duty to tell them?

I wonder.

Trisha

Voice Update: Still doing okay. I didn't do my massage yesterday even though I did do some inhale voicing. Today I will need to get more of both in so that my voice improves. Sometimes it is annoying that I have to work at something - having a speaking voice - that pretty much everyone else just takes for granted. Then I think about the people who have to work at walking. And breathing. I am lucky I only have to work on my voice.

When Will I Learn?

Hi All!

Okay - now that Christmas is over I am going to try to get back to a regular schedule of posting on my blog. I found that I really miss it when I don't blog!

Christmas was good in our house. Hubby and I celebrated Christmas Eve alone while we watched it snow. Yes - SNOW! In fact, we didn't get to church for the candlelight service because it was snowing so hard and the roads were getting iced over. This was the deciding factor because here we don't have snow plows. Yes, we have trucks that trundle along spreading a mix of sand and salt but they don't clear anything from the roads and really don't do too much good at all so - the roads get VERY treacherous!

Hubby and I spent Christmas Eve watching the snow outside and the weather reports between baking Christmas cookies.

On Christmas day the sun came out and cleared the roads enough for us to head to my friend Monique's house to celebrate the day with her and her family. It was fun to spend time with them and different since we don't have any children and Monique has a seven-year old and a three-year old!

For the rest of the weekend Hubby and I stayed around the house - we cleaned and relaxed. Hubby watched a lot of football!

Now it is Monday and Hubby is off to work and . . . . so am I! Last week I had talked to Linda and she told me that she was going to work Monday and Wednesday this week (the only days either of us need to work since only Susan is in the office this week). I was a bit doubtful since she had Chemo on Tuesday but . . . . I held out hope. AND I was refusing to get my hopes up. I did NOT say that I wasn't working on Monday because, from experience I know that only "jinxes" me and I end up working.

Unfortunately, I was talking to Mom and . . . I said it. So - of course, I am working today!

I am hoping to head in really early so that I can get home early.

Wish me luck!

Trisha

Voice Update: I have been trying to do more inhale exercises because my voice has been having more "missed" than I would like. It seems to be doing the job. However, today I have a lot of drainage down the back of my throat and that always sort of messes things up a bit. If it isn't one thing - it is another! I am still a little nervous about losing my voice again - I met a man with SD whose voice was good for five years and then . . . he lost it again and now isn't doing well at all! yikes!

Christmas Eve

Hi All!

Well - it is finally Christmas Eve! Hopefully everyone is finished with their shopping and wrapping and can take time tonight to reflect on the reason we have a Christmas season. Hubby and I will be heading to a candlelight church service which will get out just as Christmas is arriving - midnight!

There is something almost magical about a midnight candlelight service on Christmas Eve. It really makes you think about the coming of Jesus and God's gift to us through His son.

Merry Christmas!

Trisha

Voice Update: Well - I am skipping more sounds than I would like but it is still here!

A Lazy Day

Hi All!

Well, I am still not feeling 100% but I am getting better. That is GOOD news!

Yesterday was a lazy day for me - I totally enjoyed it! I did my morning walk, chatted with Mom on IM, and then took a nice nap. I got up, showered, dressed, and finished reading a book that I had started a couple days ago. I had every intention of finishing it in time to stick it into the package we sent to my parents - I think my dad would like it - but . . . that didn't happen. I played the piano and washed a MOUNTAIN of dishes (which still need to be put away!).

I watched a Christmas special on TV - well, I had recorded it so it wasn't "live." It was a disappointment. I know these specials tend to be sappy but this one was just bad.

I know that when my mother reads this post and sees what I did she will be upset that I didn't "get out." However - I had an excuse. My car wouldn't start! Apparently, Hubby didn't get the tailgate completely closed and the battery wore down. Hence - no starting!

Luckily, I didn't have anywhere important to go - unlike today when I am planning on going to work!

Hubby and I managed to start my car by jumping it with his car last night. That was the first time I have ever been involved in jump starting a car and luckily, nothing blew up!

Last night I decided to take a walk around the neighborhood to take in the Christmas lights. There are a lot of people who have really done a good job with their lights this year. Several homes have their lights set to music which you can listen to on the radio while you watch their show. When did this get so popular? I must have missed the memo on that one. It is neat to watch though. I was particularly impressed by the house whose entire front yard was covered in lights under a blanket of "snow." The snow was batting since we don't actually get much snow here during the winter. I just kept thinking - "that had to have cost them a lot of money to get that much batting!" It looked like real snow from a distance. Impressive.

If you get a chance - head out to look at the lights in your neighborhood. When you walk you certainly get a totally different perspective than when you zip by in the car!

Trisha

Voice Update: Still doing really well. Knock on wood and keep your fingers crossed for me!

Hi All!

Well, it has been a couple days since I last posted. To be honest - the funk has returned in a very mello way. I can't say that I am in a big funk but there is a little funk running along with me these days.

I think the biggest reason for the funk is that I am having some problems with . . . gas. Not the kind you put in your car but rather the . . . errr . . . VERY natural kind! It seems like no matter what I eat - or don't eat - I have this gas problem.

At times the problem is so bad that I get a pain in my chest. Of course, one good belch and the pain disappears but, before that time . . . literally a pain! Such a pain that I have even been contemplating if I should go to the hospital to check if I am having a heart attack.

Luckily - that part of my problem is finally past. Now I seem to have a pain in my side - which I am sure is the result of a bubble!

Anyway - this gas problem has been making me cranky. I am hungry but don't want to eat too much because . . . well, it just makes things worse! When I do finally give in an eat something . . . I end up in worse shape than I was in before.

What a problem!

Anyway - that is why I haven't blogged lately. Any suggestions?

Trisha

Voice Update: Doing surprisingly well. I am happy with it at the moment!