Facie’s Ramblings

This afternoon while at the pool, J told me to put out my arms as she was going to jump into them. I obliged for some reason, but quickly regretted it, as her weight put quite a strain on my back. I grimaced in pain, which made J feel bad, and she immediately said, "I don't want to get older. I just want to stay like this," amid tears. She then went on to say that she does not want to grow up and that she wants to always live with us. I told her, as I have before, that of course she can always live with us, but I also said that when she is a teen, she probably won't want to be near us. Then she will go on to college and have fun and again won't think home is so great. Eventually she may find someone to marry, and she will want to be with that person. And she may one day have kids and will love them as much as I love her and they will be whom she wants to be with. Her response to this? "But when I have kids, you'll be dead." Sheesh, girl, it's n...

I learned two lessons in a three-day period. Except I already had "learned" those lessons before; I just chose to ignore conventional wisdom. Or, to put it more bluntly, I did two stupid things. First stupid thing On Thursday morning, I had a dentist appointment, followed very closely by a gynecologist's appointment. Like the majority of women, getting on the scale is one of the most dreaded parts of the appointment (I will let you figure out which part is the most dreaded). About four years ago, I had gained about five or six pounds over a several-month period. Within a month of getting laid off, I had managed to drop that weight. Other than an additional, stress-induced weight loss, and a couple of gained-back pounds, it seemed as if the original five pounds might be gone to stay. Except something happened this past fall during which time I ate more than I normally did. Having seconds became the norm. Working and volunteering in an elementary school do not help. And ...

Do you have something or several things (not people) that you cannot imagine your life without? Or maybe there is just a thing or three that has made your life better? I have a few such things in my world, one which most people would find odd. I have this most wonderful, soft eye mask that I wear to bed every night (if I remember, I will take a picture and post tomorrow). I have thin eyelids, and light finds its way into my eyes when I am sleeping, thanks also in part to mediocre, not-dark blinds. But it goes beyond the sun, which is not even out yet when I am up most days, and includes my ridiculously bright clock. I could not, not have a clock, but at least I can block it out (and easily lift up the mask when necessary). I am not kidding you when I say that most nights, I think to myself how much I love my eye mask. Yep, it does not take much to impress me. I know some of you would say you could not live without (or at least would not like your life without) your iPhone and iPads...

I really could not think of a good title to this post, and the one above says just about nothing. But I am sure, as usual, once I finish writing this post (which I already wrote in my head early this morning while trying to fall back asleep but most of which I forget), I will have come to no conclusions. Sports are on my mind right now, and I wanted to briefly (for me) touch on what are probably the most-talked-about topics as of late. First you have that jagoff, Lance Armstrong. I was one of the duped ones who wanted to believe this cyclist not only beat cancer but went on to do amazing things in a grueling event many times over. I love feel-good stories. And, as has been noted around these here parts, I like and want to believe the best about people. Further, when Armstrong denied the doping allegations and then went on to sue people who said he did dope, well, how could he have been lying? I don't know why Armstrong chose to, mostly, come clean at this point (or maybe I read...

The Pens are back on the ice! Yes, as many people said, it was billionaires fighting with millionaires, which is pretty sad. And I am still mad that the "everyday people" were out of work or lost business thanks to the stupid lockout. But with the Steelers not in the playoffs this year (and, even worse, the Patriots playing the Ravens in the AFC Championship Game; seriously, who do I root for?), I, and so many others, need hockey to start. I am so looking forward to the puck dropping on Saturday. And Sid staying healthy and being at the top of his. And Geno having a great year. And the power play improving. And Fleury doing some acrobatics while making some monster saves. And Kris Letang's hair. And seeing a Pittsburgh team in the playoffs (and hopefully hoisting a Cup). If only Jordan Stahl were still a 'Guin... The boys are back in town, and I feel fine.

While on Facebook this morning, I noticed that WTAE-TV Pittsburgh posted a video reporting about a massive brawl that occurred among local high school students and some parents/adults near a school bus stop after school yesterday. At one point there were as many as five different fights going on. Naturally, someone took the video and posted it to You Tube, because that seems to be a requirement anymore anytime something violent happens. Apparently, there were two different videos posted; a brawl actually happened two days in a row. WTAE posted a few snippets of the fights, blurring out the people since some are minors. If you want to view the video, you can find it on the station's website or Facebook page. I am guessing the complete videos, with full-on fighting are still on You Tube. I, however, have little interest in watching the savagery of people anymore than what I already witnessed. And, quite frankly, it is stretch for me to call these fighters "people." As I...

I swear that whenever I think my car will need new brakes or something else, it almost always ends up being fine as is. Just this past fall, the Saturn was fighting me almost every time I tried to turn the key in the ignition . I was fulling expecting to pay a lot of money to replace my lock cylinder, but my great mechanic tried graphite, and my key has failed to turn only one time in the past four months. Sure, the Vue is living on borrowed time, but I am happy to put that off as long as I can. Yesterday, I said to the hubby as well as to my mom that I really cannot think of what repairs my car would need during today's inspection. I am very hard on my brakes, but since I had those replaced less than two years ago, I figured I was fine. And after my tire debacle about a year ago, I was quite sure my just-under-one-year-old tires were going to be good at least until the end of this year (even though, of course, they are warranted for 80,000 miles). So what was left? Yes, there a...

I wanted to get a quick post in, mostly so I could upload a picture of our "Good Things" box that I referenced in my last post. So far, I have managed to find at least one positive thing to put in every day, and some days I have had more than one. Truth be told, I could come up with at least a half dozen if I really wanted to, but I am going for quality, not quantity. A few other things: I wish hockey season would start. I have a glimmer of hope, but it is tiny. Regardless, it was nice to see Team USA beat the Swedes today in the world junior hockey championships. I had never watched a hockey game at 8 a.m. but glad that today changed that. Worth noting is that four of Team USA's members hail from western PA. Equally as nice for me was watching those guys (kids, to me) enthusiastically sing the National Anthem after they had been awarded their gold medals. You just don't see that often. Today we "de-decorated." I feel a little bad about this because no...

I don't typically do resolutions. Not exactly, anyway. I try to use the end of one year/beginning of the next to think of ways I can do things better or differently (or eliminate or add some things). But coming up with a list of (lofty) things almost always leads to some disappointment or failure. Last year (in late January, in fact), I decided to write two thank-you notes per month . Unfortunately, I did not quite achieve that goal, but I did send out notes of appreciation in instances when I might not have normally. And times when, for whatever reason, I did not put pen to paper, I at least made sure I thanked people via the phone or email. Back in December, I called my aunt to thank her for the birthday card she sent me. She said she was touched that I would take the time to say thanks for a card when most people would not think to do that. I told her at my age, I hardly get any cards, so I was appreciative. I also sent that same aunt a thank-you note a few weeks later for ope...