Flounder -- Not the Fish

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What's a girl to do that's not good at math?
No really. What am I going to do?

I want a Bachelor's degree. But in these times you pretty much have to be the best or the luckiest in order to get a good job with good pay. Apparently you also have to be a mathemetician. Which I am not. I am creative and artsy. Not good with numbers.

And I'm also indecisive. I went to a community college (a 2 year school) for 4 years! Finally to emerge with an Associates in Paralegal Studies. My sister graduated high school, declared "I'm going to be a Chemical Engineer!" and went with it. One of the highest paid degrees I might add. How do people do that? Am I the only one who thinks that they could probably do a lot of things good but I'm probably not going to be great at anything? I could probably go and get 10 degrees and still not know exactly which one I'd want to pursue.

I'd be a good chef.

I'd be a good Internet manager.

I'd be a good landscaper.

I'd be a good secretary.

I'd be a good masseuse.

But what will I be great at? Or am I just going to flounder around in life, thinking of a lot of things I'd like to do, but never finding the thing I'm going to love & really be great at.

Yup. I'm a flounderer. Is there a cure?

Hold My Hand?

see the little bald head?

I think that there is no cuter thing in this world than a little old couple.

There are lots of wonderful things about them but, the little old man is especially cute. He is short, hunched over just a little, he's got a shiny bald spot on the top of his head, and he wears a sweater vest. His wife is white headed and wears bright red lipstick from a silver tube. But the best thing about this couple is that their eyes are still shiny. You know what I mean. They still twinkle and sparkle when they talk to each other. And I'd like to pretend that they still hold hands. Don't we all want to be the couple that holds hands? They hold hands through it all, and you can see it in their eyes when they look at each other and he reaches for her hand, the memories that they've made and how they've always had a hand to count on, to hold onto. Through births and deaths and tests of love and endurance. Through job changes and moving and being broke.They may walk slower and talk slower than they used to, but they still hold each others hand, fingers entwined, firmly. And isn't holding hands just the epitome of love? Of true love? It's not asking for anything or demanding something...it's unassuming and reassuring. It just lets the other person know that you are there and that you're staying.

And, as a bonus, it's not all slobbery like kissing.
So tell me, is there anything better than holding hands?

The Never Ending Battle

With a husband there will be battles. Some of them, you've just gotta let go.

For instance, you don't bother him when he does laundry (because HE'S doing the laundry) and make sure he isn't using way too much detergent and sorting the socks and towels and washing the jeans separately.

You don't. bother. him. 

i repeat -- HE DOES THE LAUNDRY.

You also don't bother him if he's cleaning something. Anything really. I've found it's better to go clean it again later. This is a more rare occurrence so it's not one to worry about.

And do not ever ever ever ever bother him when he is rubbing your feet or back or bringing you wine. Lay perfectly still. I try to make him forget that he is even doing it. I don't say "oh, rub my right shoulder." or "can you massage that a little harder?" NO. You don't speak, barely even breathe. This is one of those things that is too good to mess up by talking to him. And when he is bringing you wine, you be sweet. Or he will bring you the wrong wine. And that is never good I promise.

yes, it says kitchen but heck! who cares! 

But some, you've gotta win.

When I first placed the soap in the bathroom, I placed it on the right side of the sink. (Right has two meanings and I believe in this case, I've got both of them covered.)

Then somehow it ended up on the left side of the sink.

So I put it back on the right.

And then again, it's back on the left!

WHAT?

How is this happening I wonder. Is it Meeko? He is pretty devious and sneaky and we did put him on a diet and is he that pissed off at me....? No.
It must be that other devious and sneaky house buddy of mine, the husband.
Why would he do this to me? I like my soap on the right. It is only right for it to be on the right I think.

This battle is still ongoing. We will see how it ends up.

In other news, in regards to my last post, my dearest hubby brought me home a big bag of pizza rolls, a tub of chocolate ice cream, and a large bottle of wine. I almost cried. What a lucky girl I am to have such a sweet manly man. What a good combination!!!

Also, why the heck don't they just send Lindsay Lohan to jail for good already?!

Thank God for Holidays

I think what I really mean is, thank God for holidays for which I receive presents. I am now celebrating a little known holiday (actually, I probably made it up) called

Hunting Season Is Over Praise Jesus! Day

I'm not sure if everyone knows what this day means to me. It means that these --

Stairs of Many Splinters will receive carpet! Please, don't hold yourself back...jump up and down for goodness sake!

In the mornings I get up and put my robe on (and pants of course) and slowly make my way down the Stairs of Many Splinters to make my Oatmeal Loving Husband some Loving Oatmeal. But do you know what you always forget in the morning when your ponytail is barely hanging on and your eyes will only open half way and your cat wants to walk between your legs while you navigate the treacherous stairs?

Your phone. I always leave it on the bedside table. 

Then, it never fails, that phone will ring or buzz or vibrate or make a ding dong noise and I'm like .... hmm.
It is far away. Up the Stairs of Many Splinters.
And all this brings me to my point....
This is what I need for Valentine's Day.

Doesn't she look happy? Wouldn't I look that happy if I had one? Am I that lazy? umm...I don't want to answer that? It looks fun though....
What I'm getting is this -

on these -

and gosh, aren't we just excited? (Don't they look very intimidating from the bottom? before you've had your coffee? before 8 a.m.? without carpet? can't you feel the burn?!) I thought so.

Now, as soon as we get this carpet down after the celebration of Hunting Season is Over Praise Jesus! Day you can bet I will wear my socks on my stairs and I will slide down them on my bottom sides. And there will be a picture.

And some random photos of my Meeko to end this post. 
In case anyone was worried about my cat's love of water, well, here ya go.

Now, everyone go out and do something wonderful with your hunter husband to celebrate the new holiday of Hunting Season is Over Praise Jesus! Day and to celebrate my getting carpet on the Stairs of Many Splinters day!

p.s. Just got a text from the hubby (and yes, I had to go upstairs and get my phone!!) and said he was cooking dinner tonight! What a great holiday so far! I wonder if next year kids will get out of school for this?

The Banana Bread That Came Too Late

I got up this morning.

Then I got back in bed. 

And as I watched the Today show, ate a swiss cake roll (WHAT?! yes, it's a breakfast food), and sipped my coffee I thought "I wish Brian was here to bring me the computer..." and then I thought "um, excuse me, Bonnie, what are you doing?!".

Do you know about our bird? At my parent's house there was this bird. A cardinal. He decided he loved our house and especially our windows. This little bird would fly himself into our windows from sun up to sun down.
all - day - looooooooooooong
He was a little annoying, but heck, poor guy! He didn't know what he was doing or why, he was just doing the same ole, same ole thing and it made you wonder....what are all the other cardinals doing? They are probably out being good daddies, looking stunning on tree branches, and pecking at yummy morsels of whatever it is cardinals love to eat the most.
But not our cardinal, his name should probably be Dougie, and you wonder why he was missing out on life? He was missing out on the grand life of the cardinal! And it makes your heart a little bit sad to know that it was our windows that distracted poor Dougie from his life. He saw himself in our windows and didn't like what he saw there, so he tried to fight himself, erase his unsatisfactory image, and in the end it just breaks your dang heart!!

A crash was heard throughout the Decker household one sad day, and outside we discovered him. Our little Dougie, crushed underneath (of all things) the bird feeder. The bird feeder!! It fell on him, and unexpectedly and out of nowhere, ended Dougie's little life.

And what had he done?

Exactly. What have I done? What has anyone done? Are we ever ready for our lives to end? Would it be better to know, do you think? Should we know when our lives are going to be over so we can be ready for it? I don't know. Are we just going through life, fighting ourselves and the things we can't change, while we are missing out on the meaning, the excitement, the LIFE for goodness sakes?!!!

from Pink of Perfection

 We are lucky that we have two neighbors out here on our little mountain. One is nice, one not. But isn't that how it always goes? Our nice neighbor is a little old man who once drove his lawn mower down the road and into our driveway and proceeded to mow all the way down one side. He brought me a baby pumpkin for fall and I knew then that he was my favorite neighbor. He talked to my hubby and as he left, he mowed down the other side of our driveway.

(I'm pretty sure he was telling my hubby to get out there and mow the yard for the love of a neat yard, neighbor!!)

He stopped by the house the other day on his way to town (to get his wife something to eat, she wasn't feeling well) while my sister and her boyfriend Matthew were here. Matthew is a pilot! GO SISTER! So he has these dorky electric airplanes and he brought them to fly around in our big field.
As greeting, my neighbor slowly rolled up the driveway and called out "I thought we was gettin' invaded!"

Too cute.
He told me about his wife, she wanted to come meet me soon!
And everyone wants their sweet elderly neighbors to love them the most. I was excited!
I thought, "I will bake these sweet neighbors some banana bread."
But last night his wife passed away. She had a heart attack.
And it really just hits you then....

What have I done?