Blessing of the Hounds

Blessing for the Aiken Hounds by M Warfield, 2003

Dear God, Creator of all creatures, Lord of all Men,

Mindful, we are gathered here, beside this gate,

Symbolic entry to the Hitchcock Woods.

Our horses are restive, our spirits are joyful.

We are deeply greateful to be here to give praise and Thanksgiving

For all our gifts and blessings on this,

The true Thanksgiving Day in this Free land.

We thank you for these Woods, saved for us by the infinite wisdom

And prescience of our forebears, loving of sport and understanding

Of Nature's irreplaceable healing beauty.

Bless us all, especially our honest hounds, and our horses,

Keep us safe in our communion with these Woods.

Bless the creatures which fly, run, slither and scurry

Beneath this blessed canopy of trees.

Bless those who lay the scented line;

Those who lead and those who follow

And those who love and care for this sport of fellowship

Which harms no being.

Finally, we beseech you to bless our Aiken Hounds

In these hallowed Hitchcock Woods.

Keep forever save the souls of those

Who have galloped these forgiving trails in the past,

In the present, and in the years to come.
Amen.

A Case of the Mondays

Just a quick blog. I found the camera. Haven't found Kandice, yet. I would love to say that Friday was a better day at work, but it ended in tears, too (I think I may be slightly hormonal). Sunday we went to Aunt Esta's house. I told her the baby names we picked out. I wanted to wait until we knew for sure what we're having because our girl name is Esta, and I didn't want to get Aunt Esta's hopes up. But Dad really wanted me to go ahead and tell her. She's tickled! So yesterday was good (and it was Meli's bday). Then today was the pits. I hate to say it, but I had a killer case of the Mondays. It was rainy, cold, windy and gray. My parents were holding my cell phone hostage so I couldn't text Meli, and I kept getting a lot of stupid questions from people. Mom finally picked me up for lunch and reunited me with my phone. Joy! We ate at Panera. I definitely needed warm soup and bread today. I started to feel better. Now all I have to do to be happy is to think about dinner tomorrow night at my favorite local Italian restuarant with my Bunco girls! I can't wait. I hope Angela and Dana bring the babies! Anyway, I just have to get through two more days of work and then Aiken, SC, here I come! Bring on the turkey, the green bean casserole, the caramel cake, and the Blessing of the Hounds!

Two quick pics from Tybee:

For Just A Few Moments

For just a few moments this evening, everything was right in my world.

My day started off not so great when I was sitting at the four-way stop down the street, and some moron decided that since he was making a right turn (and I was to the right of him) that he could skip the stopping part. And because he had only scraped a tiny circle out of the frost on his windshield, he took the turn too wide and came thisclose to hitting me. He actually had to stop and backup. Topping it off, he had the nerve to glare at me! Wasn't my fault he can't follow the rules of the road.

I finally got caught up on everything at work just in time to balance an account that I have to balance monthly and hate doing. I hate it so much, I've been putting it off for the past ten days since Vicky's on surgery leave, and I could get away with it this one time. People, I was in tears. I had to go to Kelly's office for some therapy. There's no reason it shouldn't balance. Items come in. Items go out. Simple. Yet, it's only balanced once in the past 5 years.

Then before I left work Christy and I were discussing what to do about next Tuesday. It should be Bunco night, but nobody has volunteered to host. The October one got canceled at the last minute because four people decided at the last minute that they couldn't be there. We already had to ask two people to become back-up players because they couldn't be counted on to show up, and we lost another player due to distance issues. I'm really bummed because these ladies are the only friends I have outside of work that live in the area, and I love getting together with them once a month. I was really counting on those outings after Lambchop is born, and I'm a stay-at-home mom. But who knows what's going on with the group right now??

I walked out the door to the parking lot, big, fat snow flakes were falling, and I got a little bit giddy. And when I drove past my favorite gas station, I saw the price was down to $1.75. For just a few moments, everything was right in my world.

Then a crappy red Geo Metro tried to hit me on the interstate. Time now for some warm pasta, some comfort knitting (not baby sweaters), and some quality time with my tv.....Tomorrow will be a better day.

We Have A Bathroom!

This is the first night I've been back on the computer since my last post. We had some excitement at work, and I spent last week and the first part of this week playing catch-up. I was also up against my knitting deadline. I didn't reach it, but I got it done the next day. Now I've got to knit up two hats for my adopted soldiers for their Christmas boxes, and I've got to whip out at least two baby girl sweaters pretty quickly.

No pictures tonight. I don't know where the camera is at the moment. Probably hanging out with Kandice. He's been missing since my doctor's appointment two months ago. I know I came home with him; I just can't remember where I put him. Let's hope I'm better with Lambchop.

So one of Michelle's last blogs has the cutest pic of her baby bump and the news that her bump now measures 40 inches. I mention this because I had to get fitted for new boulder holders since my chest has expanded greatly, and my bust measurement is 43! I couldn't believe that my chest is 3 inches bigger than a 6 month baby bump! When I got home I measured my bump, and it's also 43 inches. No wonder my baby bump pictures have been unsuccessful. I'm expanding evenly. Definitely wish the chest would stop....

I've very happy to say that we showered in our new beautiful shower before leaving for Tybee Island. We didn't have the floor down or the toilet or sink put in, but it was great. Since returning, Jason laid the floor and installed the toilet, sink & mirror. We're back in business. He just has to put the baseboards back on and hang up the new towel bars. Ringo is not happy that he no longer has a vanity to lay on while he considers drinking water from the tap. He just doesn't know what to do about the new pedestal sink! (Neither cat will drink from a bowl unless they're vacationing at the vet.)

While we were gone, the cats did their best to drain our bank account. They both got their annual exams and shots. Ruthie got her semi-annual urinalysis to make sure her remaining kidney is healthy (it is). Ringo had to be sedated for his check-up. He got his ears cleaned and during the cleaning, Dr Berry found a suspicions lump. He took a biopsy. It came back inconclusively, but the lump has shrunk since the biopsy so I don't think it's anything to worry about. They'll be going back for Thanksgiving, where they will get anesthesia and teeth cleanings because they both have gingivitis. Great. Mom suggested I get pet insurance back when Ruthie had her kidney removed; I should've listened to her.

However, the cats' woes pale in comparison to Dakota's. Dakota is my sister-in-law's chocolate lab. Delayna found a lump in Dakota's chest. The biopsy came back positive for cancer. Breast cancer. She's only four. They're going to try chemo. I'd appreciate it if all you animal lovers would keep Dakota and Delayna in your thoughts.

Veteran's Day

Jason and I are getting ready to leave Tybee Island, but right now we're enjoying our last few moments with our two favorite veterans- his dad and his step-grandma.

Joe is retired from the Air Force. He did security on Air Force One when LBJ and Nixon were in office. He has some really neat stories about that time. (He was on the plane when Nixon went to China.) If you ever get to meet him, see if you can get him to tell you about some of his experiences.

Jason's step-grandma, Miss Abby, was in the Navy in WWII. She worked in communications in San Francisco. She has the neatest stories, too!

Please Don't All Rush Down Here

Hey, gang! Just a quick post to tell you that Tybee Island is great! Yesterday we went for a walk on the pier, which is right outside the condo window. Then we drove to Cockspur Island to Ft Pulaski. Then it was time for lunch at Uncle Bubba's. I had the low country boil, and it was excellent. I think most of you know about my undying love of any kind of shrimp. Well, the andouille sausage was so magnificent, I liked it better than the shrimp! Then it was time to come back to the condo for a food-induced coma/nap. After we were all recovered, we started watching "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" in preparation for today's jaunt into Savannah.

So yes, in just a little bit we're heading to Savannah. We'll probably eat there. We have to be back here at 2 for our dolphin viewing boat ride. I'm really excited about that!

I'll write a longer blog with pictures when we get home. I don't want to spend all my family quality time on the computer! Tybee Island is really nice and laid back. I would recommend coming here for a relaxing vacation. Just please don't all come at one time!

Like A Bad Penny

A million years ago, when Kelly went on maternity leave, I lived through 10 weeks of pure hell. I won't go into it here because it's a long, boring story, and it makes me cry to remember it. I did get to pick out a new fax machine for my floor then. It came about because the old one had low memory and would only fax about 15 sheets at a time and to top it off, it developed this high-pitched squeal whenever it printed. I finally went to Greg, who was CFO at the time, in tears (I cried a lot during those 10 weeks), begging for a new fax machine. He gave it the greenlight, and he even let me pick it out as long as I didn't spend too much money. I picked a fabulous machine that we've all been happy with for the past three years. It can fax, like, 60 sheets at a time. People even come from other floors of the building to use it. Until last week. New fax machine developed a sound of it's own. Richard described it as the sound of a body cracking on "The Rack." Yes, it sounds like crunching bones. Worse than old machine's squeal. After a week of piddling, the repair man brought in a temporary replacement so he can work on new machine. After he left, Mo, Eva & I gathered around the temporary machine while the first fax rolled out. Along with a high-pitched squeal. It's our old fax machine! I can't believe it. It should have been stripped for parts and/or recycled three years ago, but no...it made it's way back to me like a bad penny. I even cried a little bit today.

Well, I have to go pack for Tybee Island. I still don't know what we're going to do while we're there. I'll be happy as long as old/temporary fax machine doesn't follow me down there!

Here's a picture of Julie's baby Gracey in the sweater I knit.....

Glow In The Dark Yarn

I woke up this morning, and the world had not come to an end. While neither Jason nor I were very happy about last night's turn of events, we both agree that as our next president, Obama will have our support. I even said a prayer for him and his family today, and I pray about as often as I go to church. I really hope that he proves my gut-feeling about him to be wrong.

I went to Bernat's website to look for a pattern for some yarn I have, which turns out to not be Bernat. Anyway, I discovered that they have glow in the dark yarn. I'm speechless.

Rambling

There have been so many things in the past week that I've wanted to blog about, but between some new knitting, marathon reading, a wedding, shopping for maternity clothes, and just being too tired to get on the computer, I didn't do much more than stare stupidly into space. I apologize now for this blog entry. I think I will ramble and jump around. It's better than nothing, though.

First off, bartering is fun. Kimberly sells Cookie Lee jewelry, and there are some pieces that I want to get for the Christmas party. Her friend Kelly is about to have a baby girl and move to Michigan, and another friend is having a baby boy. So I'm knitting a little pink sweater and a blue & white blanket in exchange for free jewelry. Yay! I suppose she'll need the sweater soon. She has to have the blanket by the 15th. Jason & I are going to Tybee Island this weekend so I'm sure I'll get a lot of knitting time in the car and probably while we're there, too. (Has anyone else been to Tybee in November? What is there to do?)

So I'm watching the election results on ABC but using the cool, interactive map on MSN for my official numbers. I'm keeping Meli up to date via text message. I'm adding up possible numbers in my head, and I think (and I could be completely wrong) that it's possible for a minority of states to decide the president. Uh, that sucks. I strongly believe that we should get rid of the electoral college. If "every vote counts", then darnit, let every vote count! Use the popular vote instead of the stupid electoral college. I swear, when I rule the world, we'll get rid of the e.c. and free running will be an Olympic sport.

Ooooh. I just saw an add for the 2 hour premier of Lost in January. I already can't wait!

We're not supposed to talk politics at work (or religion or sex or money) but we do anyway. I love giving Richard a hard time. He's a fan of "The One." Last week I pointed out that for a Democrat, he sure does wear a lot of red. He owns about 20 red ties and 3 yellow ones. No blue ties. Interesting. Anyway, after razzing him for months, I told him the other day that I really don't care who he votes for, just that he votes. I'm serious about this, people. I really don't care who anybody votes for; I just care that people take the time to do it. Unlike my least favorite co-worker of all time who never votes. Never. Now, she's the first to bitch 'n moan about the president/economy/laws/etc. But. She. Never. Votes. Somehow I managed not to smack her today (or ever, amazingly).

I got to the court house this morning and found out that one precinct had been moved down the road to City Hall. It was my precint. I left my car at the court house and walked down the street so I could stand in line for 50 minutes to vote. The first 30 were spent outside in 40 degrees. I didn't wear socks today. Toes got a little frozen. About the time I was going to call my boss to tell her I'd be late, she walked out of the building, and I got to tell her in person. She had to wait an hour to vote. I didn't mind waiting for the privilege to vote. I once had to wait for 2 1/2 hours to vote when I lived in Georgia.

Remember my bathroom that was supposed to be finished the weekend before last? It's not. I just now jokingly said to Jason, "Let me guess- the bathroom's gonna be finished just in time for us to go away this weekend." And he said, "Probably not." That's not what I want to hear! I want, no, need a bathroom that's on the same floor as our bedroom.

Wednesday after the conference I told Vicky that it was a good thing that we'd had our costume contest because I didn't think I could get those pants on anymore. Then Thursday I couldn't get my roomy work pants to zip up all the way. Bella Band to the temporary rescue! During lunch, Gina and I had to go to out to pick up some stuff for our adopted soldiers in Afghanistan, and I hastily put together a maternity outfit that didn't actually envolve any maternity clothes. It's kind of hard to find work maternity clothes around this area. I finally found some pants and a coat on Friday and some shirts on Saturday. Meli wanted a picture of my bump. It's definitely noticable in 3D, but it doesn't really come across in 2D. I'm sure it will soon.

Saturday, Mom and I went to my friend Jesse's wedding. Jesse was my neighbor for the first 18 years of my life, which is huge because we grew up out in the country where there aren't a lot of neighbors. We ended up being neighbors again in Etown a few years ago. I went home one day and heard a voice calling my name. I peaked over the backyard fence, and there was Jesse! The wedding was at the Brown-Pusey House in Etown and was gorgeous. His wife, Jessica, is so beautiful, and you could see so much love between the two of them! My camera battery died (because I hadn't charged it in two months) so I didn't get a shot of Jesse & Jessica together, but I did get a shot of Luke, Jesse, me (looking adorable in a smock & turtleneck), and Johnny V. We all graduated together. I got to see Luke at the class reunion last year. I hadn't seen Johnny V since Project Graduation eleven years ago, and it was great to see him again!

Remember how I knit a blanket instead of a sweater for Amanda's baby? It's a good thing. Garren made his debut on the 28th, weighing in at whopping 11 pounds, 4 oz and measured 20 inches.

Well, I better end this for now. I've got a blanket to work on and election results to monitor on ABC and MSN. I suppose I should consider going to bed tonight, too.