Just a picture and a word!

WORD OF THE DAY!

ELUCIDATE

e·lu·ci·date /ɪˈlusɪˌdeɪt/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[i-loo-si-deyt] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation verb, -dat·ed, -dat·ing.
–verb (used with object)
1.
to make lucid or clear; throw light upon; explain: an explanation that elucidated his recent strange behavior. –verb (used without object)
2.
to provide clarification; explain.

REST?

I will start this morning with the word of the day, but first I need to explain! I am taking two vacation days, with one vacation day still owed to me, which I will take next month some time. So, anyway, I lay awake in bed, hoping that I can go back to sleep, but that just isn't going to happen. I get up and go outside in the brisk weather, in my slippers and sleeping clothes, which made it even brisker, to get my newspaper. I read a couple of articles, letters to the editor and such and then find my trusty pencil so that I can do the morning crossword puzzle. (I do crosswords in pencil because my Mother told me to never use a pen in case you have to erase something. If you can use a pen, you are just entirely too smart.) There I am, getting my brain exercise and come upon the weirdest clue that I have ever had. The word of the day is:

BACCHANAL

bac·cha·nal /n. ˌbɑkəˈnɑl, ˌbækəˈnæl, ˈbækənl; adj. ˈbækənl/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[n. bah-kuh-nahl, bak-uh-nal, bak-uh-nl; adj. bak-uh-nl] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun
1.
a follower of Bacchus.
2.
a drunken reveler.
3.
an occasion of drunken revelry; orgy; bacchanalia. –adjective
4.
pertaining to Bacchus; bacchanalian.

I grab my trusty Crossword puzzle dictionary, and it gives two possibilities. One of them is orgy! I am thinking what the hell kind of word is this to put in a puzzle. Well, of course, orgy doesn't fit into the spaces that I need to fill, so I just go on about my business and try to fill in more spaces, especially now that I have my trusty helper out. I try to work it for a while, but the word bacchanal is really bothering me and I think, man, that will be my word of the day. Actually, it's a pretty good word, and one that probably a lot of people don't know, except for those that are able to do crossword puzzles in pen.

In other happenings, there is not much going on. Christmas with the grandkids, John and Megan turned well, but kinda hectic and crazy, in a good way. I was sad to see them go, but I know that they needed to get back to their lives. Bailey and Wesley are in kindergarten and getting smarter every day, and Will is in a day care that also has a pre-school. Wesley can count in French and Will can count to 5 in Spanish. That was pretty impressive! Bailey is starting to sound out words and such, so they are doing well.

Ever since Sunday, when we did our Christmas, I have been thinking that the most horrible job to have would be a garbage man! I guess that the politically correct term is trash collector or something like that. I mean, I would really hate that job! It would probably seem that with a somewhat mundane job, the work load would double or even triple in less than a week. So, KUDOS to all of the hard working people in the City of Paducah that have this job, for cleaning up my trashy mess after the holidays! If you know any of them, tell them thanks for me. I don't know any trash collectors, but I am sure that they rarely hear thank you! Maybe I'll leave them something on top of the trash bin, but I would be afraid that it would get thrown away.

Two days off and what will I do? I can tell you what I AM doing! Laundry! How freakin' ironic is that? Anyone out there wanna give me a break? Just holler at me! Maybe a glass of wine, beer, or just chit chat for a while? Won't be much of a rest! On a final note, I guess that it's like my Mother says, "No rest for the wicked, and the righteous don't need any!" Wonder which category I would fall into.

Oh, by the way, one of my most favorite pictures that I have ever taken.

Exhaustion!

I am completely and totally exhausted! I am going back to work today in hopes of getting some rest. I hope that we will be done early though so that I can come home and take a nap. You would think that I would be rested after going to bed at 7:30 last night, but I guess that it wasn't enough. We have had a great time with Megan, John, Wesley, Bailey and Will. We did our Christmas yesterday, but it kind of made me feel out of sorts. It's been absolutely nuts in the household with 5 extra people staying here, but the time has been well spent and it's always nice to have your family around you. Saturday evening and Sunday morning, I spent my time cooking all of the things that we usually have for Christmas. I did a ham, homemade rolls, tons of gingersnaps, chocolate chip cookies, and several different appetizer type dishes. By the time that all of that was done, I was done also. (Thanks to Jill for all of her help.) We opened some gifts and we all got some really nice things. I got 2 pair of really cool shoes! One pair is red! But, anyway, I didn't take one single picture of anyone or anything, BAD ME, but who had the time?
Tomorrow, Edwin, Pete, Jill and I will do our Christmas after we have all had coffee and stuff, then I will be on vacation until the 31st of December. Now, that doesn't mean that my cell phone won't be ringing like crazy, but I really am going to try and rest my body and my mind starting this afternoon.
Mother, Cameron, and Sybil, I love you guys with every nth of my being and really wish that I could be there with you guys at this time of year. It just seems that it's never in the cards for me though. I hope that you all try and have a good Christmas and play some cards and laugh and all that stuff. Samantha, I love you too and I know that you will have a lot of fun considering that you have 2 young ones that still believe! The looks on those young faces on Christmas morning will be priceless.
Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention the fact that my car won't start! Maybe Pappy will work on it today! Just my luck!

WORD OF THE DAY:

I see this word in crossword puzzles all of the time, I guess that it's time that I learn what it means so that I can fill in some blanks!

ERSATZ
er·satz /ˈɛrzɑts, -sɑts, ɛrˈzɑts, -ˈsɑts/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[er-zahts, -sahts, er-zahts, -sahts] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–adjective
1.
serving as a substitute; synthetic; artificial: an ersatz coffee made from grain. –noun
2.
an artificial substance or article used to replace something natural or genuine; a substitute.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE!

I REALLY HATE CHRISTMAS SWEATERS

It's been a hell week so far at work. I really mean what I said in the post title. Now don't get me wrong, I love Santa and all that jazz, in fact I have renamed my living room, front room, or whatever that room is with the Christmas tree in it "Santa Hell" because of the collection of Santas that I have amassed. But, I just don't understand the point of having a sweater that you can only wear once a year for about a month. Don't get me wrong, I love clothes and am a shoe freak, but those things are really getting on my nerves. I have seen so many of those things this week that I think I am going to puke. I have seen them with little tiny Christmas lights on them, jingle bells on them, an actual Santa beard on them, sequins, glitter, you name it. Yeah, I know, I was trying to get back in the Christmas spirit, but these things are absolutely ridiculous! Maybe I shouldn't be so anal about it because it is Christmas, or maybe I'm just tired. Maybe I should change my attitude and think of it like the "little black dress" saying. You know the one that goes "every woman should have a little black dress", and say "every one needs a Christmas sweater", well, I don't need one and don't want one, but I do have a little black dress, and it's not so little. I prefer red anyway.

So much for my ranting, on a lighter note, in less than 24 hours my GRANDBABIES will be here! I am so excited to see them! We will do our family Christmas on Sunday and they will head home to South Carolina! It just won't be the same without them here for Christmas Eve and Christmas day. Won't be the same without Megan and John here either.

Picture is from Christmas last year. Sorry about the red eye!

WORD OF THE DAY! SOLICITOUS

so·lic·i·tous /səˈlɪsɪtəs/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[suh-lis-i-tuhs] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–adjective
1.
anxious or concerned (usually fol. by about, for, etc., or a clause): solicitous about a person's health.
2.
anxiously desirous: solicitous of the esteem of others.
3.
eager (usually fol. by an infinitive): He was always solicitous to please.
4.
careful or particular: a solicitous housekeeper

Gift

Last night I made a gift for a young friend of mine. A couple of weeks ago I took her and another friend of mine to the art galleries for Second Saturday. That's when the galleries stay open a little bit later to allow more folks to come and peruse their wares and such. She was so impressed. She's a very creative person and loves art and music, and she really enjoyed herself on top of that. So, I tried to put my creative mind to work and made a montage out of a couple of slides that I did during photography class. (Thanks to Beverly!) I didn't get to watch TV, or scratch my husbands back, but I feel that the time that I spent working on it gave me a good feeling. I will put it in a frame that I bought at Michael's and hope that she likes the outcome.

WORD OF THE DAY!

sub·lime /səˈblaɪm/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[suh-blahym] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation adjective, noun, verb, -limed, -lim·ing.
–adjective
1.
elevated or lofty in thought, language, etc.: Paradise Lost is sublime poetry.
2.
impressing the mind with a sense of grandeur or power; inspiring awe, veneration, etc.: Switzerland has sublime scenery.
3.
supreme or outstanding: a sublime dinner.
4.
complete; absolute; utter: sublime stupidity.
5.
Archaic.

Simple word for the day!

Christmases Past

My Christmas spirit is disappearing. I don't know what's wrong with me. Well, I do know part of the problem, but that is another post, which probably won't be written. So, instead of wallowing in the muck and mire, and trying not to become a horrible grinch, I have been trying to think of something to "light my Christmas fire", and it has nothing to do with mistletoe, so get your minds out of the gutter!
While growing up, I had the greatest parents you could imagine. Christmas was always the best time! There was ALWAYS at least a foot of snow on the ground, Mother was always making homemade fudge, homemade caramels, tons of wonderful goodies, and of course baking that EVER DREADFUL fruitcake! Of course, there were still chores to be done where Dad took charge. I particularly remember one Christmas when me and my little brother, Cameron, thought that we were going to outsmart Santa. We had been looking forward and planning for a couple of days. The only heat that we had came from a propane stove and it sat right in the living room, underneath the stairs that led upstairs to our rooms. So, the plan was, that we were going to make camp, underneath the stairs, near the stove, so that we wouldn't freeze to death. Bedtime came and our parents agreed to let us do this, probably because they knew that we wouldn't last too long. So, there we are, blankets and pillows on the floor, (why we didn't opt for the couch I do not know), and ready and willing to lay there and wait for Santa to come popping down that chimney through the stove pipe, and magically out into our living room through the vents in the front of the stove where the heat came out. I don't know if this is what Cameron thought, but I sure did believe it. We left the Santa treat near the stove, so that if we did happen to fall asleep we would hear him and it would wake us up. I couldn't tell you what happened or why, but the next thing that I knew I was awake, the treat for Santa was gone, there were gifts everywhere, I was warm, but my body was oh so stiff and sore, I guess from sleeping all night on that hardwood floor. I don't know why my parents didn't carry us up to bed after we konked out, probably to teach us some kind of valuable lesson, like don't wait up for Santa!! I think that on Christmas Day that year we played endlessly in the snow! We did that a lot though. Well, off to work I go! Oh, almost forgot, the WORD OF THE DAY IS: SPURIOUS (rhymes with furious!)

spu·ri·ous /ˈspyʊəriəs/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[spyoor-ee-uhs] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–adjective
1.
not genuine, authentic, or true; not from the claimed, pretended, or proper source; counterfeit.

AARGH!

WORD OF THE DAY IS CAVEAT! CAVEAT CAVEAT CAVEAT! I shouldn't need to say more!


ca·ve·at /ˈkæviˌɑt, -ˌæt, ˈkɑvi-, keɪ-/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[kav-ee-aht, -at, kah-vee-, key-] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun
1.
a warning or caution; admonition.



Have you ever realized that a yellow light is a caveat? Weird! Pain is a caveat! That sinking feeling you get in your gut that moves to the bottom of your toes is a caveat! So many caveats, so little time.

This Random Game

OK, so, as I said in a previous post, my kids all have the myspace account and all of that stuff. Well, I ventured there this morning to see what my daughter had to say and found that I had been tagged. So, now I have to do this ten random things about myself, but I told her that I would do it on my own personal blog-space and not on myspace. I'm sitting here thinking about what to write because she said that I would have some quote random facts unquote, about myself. Mind you, I will NOT reveal all little secrets, just some things that people may or may not know about me, they may or they may not be random. So, here goes.

#1- When I was six years old, my Dad pulled my first tooth.He took a piece of thread, tied it around the tooth, gave it a yank and I blacked out! Whacked the back of my head on the hardwood floor and I had a huge knot there for a week.

#2- My favorite season is winter. Not so much here in Kentucky, but if I were in Idaho, what fun I would be having in the snow.

#3- I used to weigh almost 300 pounds.

#4- Give me a bowl of refried beans, cheese melted in them and a bag of tortilla chips and I am pretty happy for a while!

THIS IS HARDER THAN I THOUGHT!

#5- I grew up on a dairy farm in Southeastern Idaho, so yes, I know how to milk a cow.

#6- I had a Saint Bernard when I was growing up and his name was Irving.

#7- One of the best days of my life was several years ago when my Mother (80 yrs. old at the time) rode the tram to the top of the Teton Mountains. It was an awesome day! She just sat around and looked around while we hiked around, took pictures, and stuff. She was truly amazed to be up that high! Some older people would have stayed below and not taken on the adventure. My brother and sister were there that day also, so it made for a really good day.

#8- It amazes me to watch Pete play the guitar.

#9- Caramel is better than chocolate.

#10- I am homesick most of the time.

Those are my random things. Now for the "word of the day". It's not really a word, just something that came up in conversation last night. I thought that I was going to laugh myself sick over it. How the word came about is yet another story that could take forever to explain.

I don't even have a definition for it, but you all will understand!

The word is REDNECKER. The sentence it was used in is as follows: The cage fighting at Murray, was MORE REDNECKER, than the cage fighting at the Big E!

I really don't need to dwell on that one.

Since this is random thought day, I will post a random picture for Patience. This particular photo reminds me of the craziness of the holiday season! A little bit of everything, going every which way!

WORD OF THE DAY

I have decided to start myself a "word of the the day" or "blog-word" of the day. I think that what I will do is when I post I will pick a word and give the definition. The word will have something to do with how my day went the previous day. I will not blog on about it, well, maybe sometimes, but I may also find new words to use and expand my knowledge a little bit. I have always been a little bit of a word freak though. I have loved to read since I was a child, I love crossword puzzles, word games and stuff like that. If I hear a word that is unfamiliar to me I usually try to look up the definition so that I can expand my vocabulary. Words are fascinating! Could you imagine a world if we didn't have words? The world would be dull and boring. Our faces would be all contorted and such from trying to communicate without using words, therefore there might be some rather ugly people in this world. There is always sign language, but to sign you have to have letters, which make up words, but I just want you to try and imagine a world WITHOUT words.
OK, so here's the word of the day! The word is INGRATE! Yes, INGRATE!
in·grate /ˈɪngreɪt/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[in-greyt] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun
1.
an ungrateful person. –adjective
2.
Archaic. ungrateful.

I won't say really how my day went yesterday, but, ingrates really puzzle me. I am thankful for everything that I have, and everything that I choose to do without having limitations posed upon me. I don't want something for nothing and never have.
I know this doesn't make much sense, but it's early and I need to get myself in the "work" frame of mind.

STEROID HELL

OK, so here's the story! I really hate these steroids. When I get done taking them it will be time for a long winter's nap! I have been up since 1:30 this morning, made a pot of coffee, drank some coffee, folded a load of clothes, washed my face, brushed my teeth, washed a load of clothes, and tried to think of something to blog about for the day! (These things were not necessarily done in that particular order!) What's really been strange is my unreal craving for coffee. Now, I really do like coffee, but this is getting ridiculous. I even found myself going into the breakroom yesterday at work and heating up coffee from the pot that I had made at 5:oo that morning, just so I could get a shot of the good old Java! What I was really wanting though, was a piping hot cup of Organic Love Buzz from etcetera!, but I couldn't leave the premises at that particular time.

Ok, so here's more to the story. Just got home from work (5:30 p.m.) and I am completeley exhausted, especially after my morning workout, thanks to the steroid buzz. I have decided that I just can't do it anymore. They are WIGGING me out!!! I am going to taper off on my own. I feel like my insides are going to blow up on me. So, is this a good thing or a bad thing? At least my back, hip and leg have quit hurting, but is SLEEP DEPRIVATION worth it? HELL NO! I need my beauty sleep! Just my humble opinion. VC

Advice for the holidays!

OK, this may be boring to most of you, but I hope that in some ways that it might also be helpful. I don't know why it's on my mind, but just something that I need to get off my chest that has been bugging me for about the last 10, yes, 10 years.

As most of you know I work at a local dry cleaner/laundry and have for 13 years. During a conversation the other night with some of the best neighbors in the world, the conversation came around to getting clothes clean, little tips and tricks and such, and it just so happened that in my "steroidal stupor", I must admit that I really spilled my guts about things that really bother me in this line of work. Don't get me wrong, I like my job and all of that, but there are just a few things that really get on my nerves, but I just want to offer a few little tidbits of advice to people to make life easier on you and me when bringing in all of your lovely Christmas sweaters, pretty clothes and such before and after the holidays. I guess that I will start at my #1 piece of advice and go from there. OK, so here it is!

#1- Remember that we are not miracle workers, also that some things work and some things don't. Just like every day life for all jobs that anyone does. If you spill something on your garment, please, oh, please, try and remember what you spilled on it. An identifiable stain is a lot easier to get out than one that is unidentifiable. Also, remember that we do use chemicals, some of them may be harsh to the fabrics, so therefore, if we can just get it to look better with a more "faint" looking stain, it's not because we didn't try, it's because we don't want to ruin the fabric. We do make a big effort to please everyone, but not everyone can be pleased!

#2-Another important one! Please check all of your pockets and hidey holes for things of importance to you. Ladies, you know, that expensive Clinique lipstick, men, get those lighters, as the list goes on I will name a lot of the things that I have found over the last several years that need to be pulled out of pockets, used and unused condoms, crack cocaine, marijuana, sex toys, sex videos, ink pens (expensive ones at that), stacks of business cards, MONEY, credit cards, checks for large amounts of money, and the list goes on and on. We give back what we do find, but just as a security measure for yourselves, it's best to get this stuff out before you bring it to the cleaner. Oh, and another thing, especially to those of you who are married, pull those phone numbers out, especially, the ones written with little messages on the cocktail napkins, this goes for women also. Remember, when we "mark in" your clothes that there is a ticket with a NAME on it, so we know who you are, not personally know you, but we see you on the news sometimes, sometimes in the paper and stuff like that, so, basically, you are letting us into your utmost private life and giving us little bits of information that we really would prefer not to know about!

#3-ALLERGIES! This is not a real biggie but kind of important. Some people are animal lovers and that is strictly their preference, but some people also have bad reactions to animal hair, especially cat hair. My friend Beverly had cats and she used to buy the enormous lint rollers at PetSmart or somewhere that would pull the cat hair of with very little ease. It would be so helpful if people would take that pretty Christmas sweater, or that lovely blanket, rug or whatever it may be and save us a little work. I know, I know, that's what we get paid to do, but it also saves us time, and makes our job a little easier. While speaking of animals, and stains, please warn us if your animal has had an accident on any item that you bring in, don't just roll it up and drop it on the counter, and expect to pick it up the next day! Stains like this are harder to get out, and that also goes for the human variety of excrements. Yes, I've seen that also. Not to be gross, but someone, who shall remain nameless, had spent the weekend in Vegas and brought a shirt in one Monday morning,(this was years ago), he had imbibed in WAY TOO MANY adult beverages, vomited all over himself, stuck the shirt in a plastic bag, and brought it to be cleaned when he got back to town. Come on now, THROW THE FREAKING SHIRT AWAY! Who wants to mess with that kind of stuff? I certainly didn't, but did it anyway, because it was my job! I guess that it all boils down to courtesy, I guess it being that don't send stuff in that you wouldn't really want to mess with yourself.

#4- And probably the most important piece of advice! When you leave work on Friday, go home, kick your shoes off, try to forget about the troubles and woes of work, and partake of your choice of adult beverage, and don't puke on yourself and send the clothing in for cleaning!

Well that's all for now folks. You all don't have to take this stuff to heart, but maybe just as some helpful hints. Merry Christmas to all of you! VC

UPSTART

Just for the sake of being trendy I guess, I have opted not to blog on myspace like so many other people. Yes, my children all have the my space thing, but this seems to be a little more controlled to a certain extent! Not that I am a control freak or anything, it's just that I think that I will like this better.

Last Saturday, as an early Christmas present I took my son for his 2nd tattoo, and I got one myself, in memory of my dad. It's pretty "epic" in Pete's words. The signature is pretty close to the original. Man did he have some beautiful penmanship. The stars about killed me though, pretty intense work if you asked me! But I like it! Now I have my father on one shoulder helping to lead me through life and our angel Emma Renee' on the other shoulder to help me out also.

Pete's tattoo is from one of his favorite bands "Circle Takes the Square" It's pretty cool looking. But, someone told me, "Hey! That's from Hollywood Squares!" And then I realized that Pete probably isn't old enough to realize what Hollywood squares really is!

I guess that this is a pretty good first post, not too much information, but just a starting out experience for me. Now if I can become professional at it like Samantha, Bill, or Patience, or the MasterBlogger, Aynex, I will be doing good!