Good Thing We Had Snow!

The day after New Year’s we were both off work and we had snow. I figured I didn’t have to go out at all so it didn’t bother me, but then in the afternoon, I felt like I should at least go for a walk and get a little exercise in. I joined Gerard and Abby, our dog, for one of their afternoon walks. I made it to the corner of our street and decided it was too cold, so let them continue on without me and I went back to my warm house.



Unfortunately, when I got to the porch I realized that I didn’t have my keys with me. Not intending to go outside, I left them on my dresser that morning. UGH! Well, off I went to track down Gerard and Abby. It actually was kind of fun following their footprints in the fresh snow. They were the only ones there which made it very easy which was good because they always go different ways.



In my desire to catch up quickly before they got too far away, I even ran! This was way more exercise than I planned on having, but was kind of fun. They were pretty far along by the time I caught up, so then I just kept on going along with them for the rest of the walk.


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I Am Such An Idiot!

Come again!

I was a nervous wreck a couple Fridays ago because I had to take off work for some follow-up tests:  a bone density, a bone scan and a CAT scan which would take all morning.  The doctor said if the insurance wouldn’t cover them, they we would skip them which makes me think they really aren’t necessary.  I was instructed not to eat anything after 6 a.m. since my tests were scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. I truly believe that both hospitals and veterinarians have such great technology now that they just like to use it any chance  they can, whether it's really necessary or not.  (What do you think about this?)

Gerard gets back from walking our dog between 5:30 and 6:00 usually and then I eat with him so in my mind I figure I can just keep my normal routine so didn’t give it anymore thought.  But they didn’t get back until after 6 a.m. that day and so I ate some yogurt before remembering I wasn’t supposed to eat after 6:00 a.m.  Oops, oh no!  The thought of going without breakfast does not sit well with me.  I like breakfast and am used to eating throughout the morning.

Abby and Karen

 After blowing up at myself for being such an idiot, yelling how stupid I am at the top of my lungs, I realized it was all Abby’s fault.   I realized that I shouldn’t let it ruin my day.  After all, getting upset won’t turn back the clock—what’s done is done.  Psalms 118:24 popped into my head which says:  This is the day which the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.  So, I chose to praise God and trust Him to help me through and started thinking where I wanted to go for a good lunch.  My mood quickly improved.

As it turned out, all I had to get was the bone density test because the insurance authorization hadn’t come through for the other two.  Guess those will get done another day.  I was out of that hospital within an hour and had my normal breakfast as soon as I got home.  The rest of the day was great and still enjoyed a good lunch at Cracker Barrel!


Don’t let circumstances steal your joy, rejoice in the Lord and have a good day!

What scripture has popped into your head recently?  Do you get mad at yourself when you forget things too or is it just me?  (Now I understand how my dad felt when he used to always forget things; not always, but often.)

Related Post: Sunday Snippets: Why Praise God? Share this:

What! A $10 Fee?

Just when I give a big shout out to Dollar Bank for their $1,000 giveaway, I received a statement for my extra checking account which said it has been inactive for a year so they are charging me a $10 fee which brought the balance to zero. It would have been nice if they could send a little warning like an email to let me know.

I use this checking account for my PayPal funding. I do not want to put my main checking or savings account numbers on there so I opened a special checking account to use specifically just for that and keep a very small amount in it. I didn't realize I hadn't put any money in or taken any out all year. The last time I transferred money to my PayPal account was December of 2009. Oops. I forgot I have to do something with it to avoid this fee.

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I Can't Believe I Did That--Thank God For Night Secretaries!

I really need to get more sleep but there just isn’t enough hours in the day to do all I want to do after work such as spending two to three hours reading and commenting on blogs in addition to tweaking my own and posting, checking out Facebook and Twitter, and watching a TV show. Oh, and let’s not forget supper and cleaning the litter boxes!

If you know me or have been reading this blog for some time, you know I do some pretty stupid things sometimes, but nothing serious. But a week ago I got a “wake-up” call when on my way home from the bus stop at 6:00 p.m., I realized I sent a court filing via UPS to the wrong place! I even specifically looked at the label before I put it into the mail slot and it didn’t register that I had it wrong. How could I be so stupid? YIKES!!!

I kept saying, “This is awful!”

“How could I have done that?”

“I have to call [to let the attorney know}, I hope she is still there.” (She was there and was very nice about it.)

“I can’t believe I did that!”

“I could lose my job over this!”

Fortunately, we have night secretaries that I called who said, "The UPS stuff is still sitting in the hall." I was SO relieved to hear that! One of them hunted down my erroneously addressed UPS envelope, canceled out the old label and created a new one with the correct address. The only logical explanation for this that I could think of was lack of sleep. I really am NOT an air head!

Thank God I thought of it soon enough to get it fixed before it actually got sent! I do not normally give work a second thought once I’m out so can only attribute this to God watching out for me. I was literally only five or six houses away from home when I finally realized what I did. Thank God for night secretaries! I wonder how many other crises they prevent from actually happening.

I am definitely getting to bed before 9:30 p.m. on work nights—no more excuses for me! I aim for 9:00 to make it by 9:30 p.m. So, to all my Facebook friends, please, please, please if you see I’m on there past 9 p.m., send me to bed! Does anyone else have a close call to share? Has a night shift crew ever helped you out? Do you see God involved in your everyday life?

(I debated if I wanted to share my stupidity with the world, especially since it was at work, but think it may help warn others to get enough sleep and no harm actually occurred.)

Related post of other people's stupidness for a laugh, it made me feel better:  Hodgepodgespv Spew Alert

Let's Rewind That and Do Over (Writer's Workshop)

When we were off Tuesday, I really could have used the super power of being able to go back in time and do things differently. I took my van up to the repair shop, Parma Tire, at the corner of our street to get it "winterized" and then went with Gerard to Dick's so he could use the gift card he got for Christmas. It was very cold outside but not as snowy as Monday was. He had put my club in his car because he knows his works hard and I don't like it.

After walking around about an hour, he finally bought a Browns hoodie that I suggested because he was looking at the hoodies and doesn't have any Browns shirts at all. When we got back to the car I realized the key to my club was at Parma Tire with my car keys so couldn't get the club off. For some reason, Gerard doesn't have the extra key I gave him on his key chain but keeps it in the house. Well, at that point I sure would have liked to have been able to hit my rewind button and go back in time to when I parked the car and not put on my club.

I tried backing up thinking I'd just drive with it on but soon realized I couldn't turn the steering wheel far enough to actually turn the car! The club really does work! I am thankful I had Parma Tire's phone number in my cell phone and called them. They were very nice and about 20 minutes later one of the mechanic's arrived in my van and gave me my club key. Back home we went, laughing at how we were a pair of goofs.

Ever wish you could rewind and go back to do something differently? I bet you have. Please share about your experience in the comments and make us feel better.

The Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop prompt I chose to do this week is You wake up one day with an unusual super power that seems pretty worthless—until you are caught in a situation that requires that specific “talent.”

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10 Foolish Things We've Done--Time To Vote For the Most Foolish!

Our Foolish Things series has come to an end. Hope you enjoyed it and feel very smart. Now it is time to vote. Please cast your vote for the most foolish thing we did in the comment section on this post. Here is the ballot:

Balance That Checkbook

Missing My Bus Stop

How Much Did That Cost?

Check All Your Pockets

"Lost" Cell Phone

Where Does That Pizza Go?

Out With The Garbage

TV Viewing

Locked Keys In Car--Twice

Oh, No, My Car's Been Stolen!

Foolish Things--Where Does the Pizza Go?

Scenario 7: Pizza In the Cupboard
We get pizza for lunch on Sundays and then I put a couple slices in my Tupperware container to take for lunch a Monday. (This is not the stupid part.) Twice now, I mistakenly put the Tupperware container with the pizza back in the cupboard instead of in the refrigerator! I get so angry at myself for letting this delicious pizza go to waste. I'm afraid it won't be any good if it sits out all night. Clearly, my mind was on other things. I was anxious to get to the computer to read my email and do some blogging. See, it's all your fault!
What I learned: I'm still trying to figure it out. How do I focus on what I'm doing in the kitchen? Maybe I should ask Gerard to take care of this task too.

Related post: I'm So Stupid

Foolish Things--"Lost" Cell Phone

Scenario 6: Scenario 6: I Thought I Lost My Cell Phone Coming home on the bus I was going to call Gerard on my cell and discovered it was gone! I quickly ran through me day in my mind thinking how it might have fallen out of my pocket and came up with lunch when I was reading in the library on the couch. I have side pockets in my pants and thought perhaps it had slipped out when I was there. When I got home, I called the night secretaries to check the library for me before looking to see if I even took it that day. Sure enough, there it was on top of the bookcase where I charge it. I never took it that day!
What I learned: Don't panic. Check for things around the house first before assuming they are lost.

Related post: Case Of Lost Cell Phone

Foolish Things--Check ALL Your Pockets

Scenario 5: Missing The Indians Game
I got free club seat tickets for an Indians game from work and invited a family from my church bowling league to go too because my husband wasn't interested since they weren't playing the Red Sox that day. Anyhow, I gave the mother the three tickets at the bowling alley and I kept one for myself and said I'd just meet them there. I was really looking forward to this because club seats are absolutely the best! You get great seats for watching the game along the first base line AND all the free food you can eat!! YUM, YUM!

So, I take the 40 minute bus ride to the game and when I present my ticket, it's rejected because it has the wrong date on it for a game that was already played. I flip out! I think, wow, why would they give me the wrong tickets. I should have checked them first. I'm so embarrassed and angry so go back to the bus stop and get a bus home. I'm so angry. First thing I do when I get home is call the family to apologize and their son who didn't go answers and tells me they're in there and were wondering where I was. (This is before cell phones and by now it's about an hour and a half into the game.) Then I discover I do have the right ticket for that day's game after all in my other pocket. By then I figure it's too late to go.

It turns out I never threw away my ticket from the previous game that I went to and it was still in my pocket. I pulled that one out by mistake. I never thought to check for the right ticket in my other pockets. What an idiot! Then I'm really mad at myself and just scream, scaring my poor cats. I cried because I felt so stupid and my cats comforted me.

What I Learned: Throw away your old tickets once they've been used.

Related post: Dumbest Thing I Ever Did--How Dumb Are You (quiz)

Foolish Things--How Much Did That Cost?

Scenario 4: $2,000 for an ad
Paying $2,000 for a tiny little black and white ad in the New York Times for just one day to promote my book was the biggest waste of money that I ever did.
What I learned: Limit spending to $100 or less for book promotion from now on and preferably not until I can make this up. Concentrate on free things to promote my book.

Related Post: Happy Birthday Dad Contest

Foolish Things--Missing My Bus Stop

Scenario 2: Missing My Bus Stop
The bus ride is always an adventure. Within the last two weeks, I missed my stop not once, but twice! The first time, I knew I was getting close and was watching for the lady who gets off at the stop ahead of mine to get off. Well, she wasn't on my bus that day and zoom, past my stop we go. I looked out the window and saw Auto Zone which is about four or five blocks past my stop. (It was dark when I come home and it's very hard to see where we are, especially through the dirty bus windows.) Well, I get off and call my husband who was waiting for me at my bus stop with the car on my cell phone to let him know I went too far and was walking back so he should meet me at the end of our street. The second time, again the lady that I use as my cue to get off wasn't on the bus. This time though, I was only one stop too far.
What I learned: Do not count on that lady! Get up at the main intersection before my stop and watch for it.

Foolish Things--Balance That Checkbook!

In honor of April Fools Day, I thought this week would be a good time to share some of our stupid things we do and let you vote for the stupidest one (I'm sure I'll win this!). Gerard and I sometimes feel like we are both idiots. The fact though that we both do stupid things helps us from yelling at the other one when they do something stupid. Feel free to make us feel better by sharing something stupid you've done and what you've learned from it. We all make mistakes, but the important thing is to learn from them and don't make the same mistake twice--We're still working at that part!

Scenario 1: Checkbook Goof
One day I went to bank at lunch to make a deposit and to my surprise, found out there were two overdrafts on our account! The bank teller was extremely nice and waived the $70 in fees since I guess she could see it was a mistake and they never have any problems with my account! After stopping at the post office for stamps, reviewed my checkbook to see what happened. I discovered I had made two stupid mistakes: (1) I miscopied a number when carrying the balance forward to the next page, and (2) I had written the wrong amount for the phone bill I paid online. What I learned: I really must take time to balance my checkbook more frequently!

Related post: "My Funny Dad, Harry" Makes Nice Gift

The Case of The Lost Cell Phone

At the beginning of every typical work day, I feed my cats, clean the litter boxes, read the paper during breakfast, have my devotions, put my cell phone in my pocket, play with and pet my cats, check my email and then off I go with my bag of stuff: purse, lunch, book.

Coming home from work last Thursday, I was running a bit late so I went to call my husband on my cell phone to let him know and it was gone! Immediately, I'm thinking when it could have slipped out of my pocket. I wear slacks to work that have the pockets on the side that go along the seam so have to make sure my phone is all the way at the bottom of the pocket so it doesn't slip out when I sit down. All I could think of was it may have fallen out at lunch when I was reading on the couch in our office library.

I knew there was a slight chance that I may have forgotten to take it that morning, but I was pretty sure I did. I put off looking, because I was afraid it would confirm that it was lost, so the first thing I did when I got home was to call the night secretaries and ask them to check for me. Before she called back, I checked on top of the bookcase where I charge it up and there it was! I was so glad to see it even though it confirmed that my memory is slipping. The night secretary called me back and I told her I had found it. Then I called my husband at the grocery store to let him know too because I knew he was upset that I was upset about it.

Oh what a relief that it wasn't lost after all! This was the stupid thing I did last week.

Spunky Doodle Solves the Clock Mystery

One of the things we kept from my dad's after he died was his big digital clock. He used to have it in his dining room and it was easily seen from the living room. It also lights up so I can see it in the dark. That's why I like it in my bedroom. If I squint without my glasses on, I can actually see what time it is when I wake up during the night without getting out of bed.

One day last week, after I was already up. Gerard says, "Hey, your clock isn't on." I immediately went to investigate. I first checked to make sure it was still plugged into the power strip and it was. I flipped the switch on the power strip but the clock still didn't go on. Hmmm. Well, before work, I'm on a very tight schedule so I said "I don't have time to fuss with this now. I'll fix it later."


The next morning, Spunky was walking around while I was combing my hair, and went over to the wall outlet and started sniffing it. That's when I noticed no plugs were in it. We use our new heat surge heater on cold nights in our bedroom which we plug right into the wall when in use and then we unplug it every morning.

Apparently, when I wasn't quite awake, I must have unplugged the power strip as well, thinking it was the heater plug. Ooops. No wonder the clock didn't work! Ha ha! Dummy me, the power strip only works if it's plugged in! Duh, boy did I feel stupid. Thanks, Spunky, for showing me what the problem was. Cats are so smart!

So, this is my most recent dumb thing I did. What's yours?