ADHD

 Hiyas again.. I'm back I think! So I've been seeing small videos on Facebook about ADHD. I was never formally diagnosed with ADHD... only ADD until they changed it to OHI (Other Health Impairments).

I feel like it was always more ADHD than ADD. Yes, I had the Attention issues, but I was also hyper. I was constantly moving. If you made me sit still, I would fall asleep.

These videos I've come across talk about difference aspects of someone with ADHD and I fit just about all of them. And I've always thought in the back of my mind that some of my quirks stem from this. There are times when I wondered if there was something wrong with me. It always feels like I can't get my life together. Everything is a mess. Sometimes my stuff starts looking a wee bit hoarderish.

Here are a few things I've seen or read that fit:

• Taking criticism very personally. I find I do this at work. Especially when a co-worker is complaining about something and using the "whole crew" card. I sometimes make comments back defending myself because it feels like a jab at me even though he's talking about others.

• Not able to regulate auditory levels. I've always attributed it to having issues with hearing sometimes. And that can still be the case partly. I have found myself getting overly "excited" about something and my voice gets louder. I don't always realize my voice levels change unless I'm making a conscious effort to do so.

A recent example: I was helping a guy and his wife buy a TV. It was small enough to fit in the shopping cart on its side. I have always made a point to look at the top of the box for the Arrow telling which side of the box the glass is facing. I make sure the customer isn't leaning the TV against the cart on that side. I was trying to tell the guy about it. I pointed it out and said we should flip the TV to lean the other way (making the hand motion to just lean the TV to the other side of the cart. The guy I guess didn't understand me and started to pull the TV all the way out of the cart... I was like What are you doing??  you just needed to lean the TV the other way so it's not on the glass. He still pulled it all the way out and asked me what I needed. I tried to explain it again. Saying he didn't need to take the TV all the way out. He got mad and short with me. Which then made me defensive. I was just trying to help them. Looking back, I know my voice because a bit shrill when he started taking the TV out of the cart. My volume did go up. Though at the time I don't really realize it.

• That also brings up the Overthinking things you said hours ago. I try not to do this. I do find myself obsessing about certain things that were said or not said. In school I could never come up with quick responses to people when they were making fun of me. Hours later, I'd come up with all kinds of things I would have said or wished I could have said at times like that.

• Getting frustrated when you are stopped in the middle of a task you just started to get in the groove with. I have this problem at work all the time. It takes a lot of time and effort to get all the supplies together to start a project. You finally get to work on it and it's going pretty fast. Then you get stopped. In my case it usually means cleaning up something really quick because it can't be left out while I'm gone. I've learned to adapt kind of. It's still frustrating when I'm trying to get a lot of things done in one 8 hour day. I'm still working on letting things it go if I don't get everything I wanted to get done in 1 day. I can always do it tomorrow. Of course, sometimes the "doing it tomorrow" never happens because management wants something else done instead.

• There are times when I know what needs to be done and how to do it but have a hard time starting it. Especially if it's a mess that I'm having to deal with. If it is a task, I'm not really wanting to do, I may procrastinate until I can't. Right now, it's my costume dress pattern. I need to clean off a table big enough to work with the big paper I need to make the pattern pieces. There is a big table on the porch outside, but I've been waiting for the weather to get a bit warmer during the day to do it. Now I've been distracted by trying to clean and organize my stuff because I've finally gotten to the point where I can't stand the clutter. I'm good at procrastinating until the last moment. Then I rush to get it done and it usually comes out good. I just can't duplicate it. I try to not procrastinate. I tell myself I'm going to start early. I may even start early but then I get bored or something comes up that distracts me. I'm right back to where I would be if I procrastinated.

Supposedly people with ADHD rely on visual cues because working memory can't reliably hold information that isn't in plain sight. I can clean/organize everything and everybody else but can't seem to organize my own stuff. That's where the "Out of Sight, Out of Mind" becomes quite literal for us. Our messy piles of stuff are actually organized chaos our brains can work with. I try to clean and organize. I come up with a system to organize my stuff that seems logical to me at the time... problem is it's not logical the next time I try to remember how I organized my stuff. So you either spend the time and effort of looking for whatever it is you "lost" or you attempt to totally reorganize it to your "logical" pattern of the week. It'd exhausting. It's always frustrating when I organize the stuff at work and by the end of the week, I'm having to redo the drawers of supplies because the others can't bother to put things back where they found them. Yet I'm the one the boss relies on to keep it organized because i do such a good job. Yeaa me! I know I complain about it sometimes but most of the time I don't really mind it. I can set it straight pretty quickly.

Skipping 2018...

 2018 wasn't a very good year... so it kinda got skipped on hear. I did have a special blog going on instead.

My Life as a Super Hero...  Me vs. Breast Cancer

That's right...  In February of 2018 I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. We thought it was only Stage 2, but it ended up being Stage 3. My mom had Stage 0 Breast Cancer like the year before. My cousin had been going thru Breast Cancer herself right before I found out about mine.

My Cousin opted for a double mastectomy with reconstruction. Reconstruction is actually a series of surgeries before you have a finished product. Through her journey she hit alot of speed bumps and obstacles like infections and surgical site failing. Watching and reading about her troubles was one of many reasons why I opted out of reconstruction.

Yes I sometimes miss having the "girls". Fake ones are not quite the same. The weight might be there but it's detached now. The body is now a different shape... nothing feels the same and clothes don't always fit right. There are some clothes I just can't wear anymore... at least not until I figure out the Faux "girls" thing.

If you want to read along with the journey I went thru... just click on the link above. I'm still dealing with complications from Chemo. I'm still under hormone therapy to try and push me in to menopause early... which my body is fighting...

In 2018, I went thru my 1st Mammogram, 3 biopsies, Chemo, Radiation, and 4 surgeries in 8 months. (one of those surgeries was for a kidney problem they found while looking for cancer). I now deal with neuropathy in my hands, feet and legs. The muscles in my legs are weakened. My stamina and strength are weakened. I have issues with my muscles in my right foot. The bones in my feet have also thinned. Found that out when I found out I had a stress fracture in my right foot.

I'm a mess but I'm still going. I was out of work for about a year. I finally went back to work in 2019. One of the customer I've helped alot found out and made me a quilt. I took the quilt with me when I went in for Chemo because I was always cold.

I sometimes can't figure out how I make it thru my shifts at work... I just seem to muddle thru them.

The Power of 80

Just went to a kind of surprise party for a Family Friend... He's turning 80. Though to see him and know his personality you'd swear he's in his 60's. He's still bowling on the local bowling leagues. He used to bowl on the same league day as my Grandma. That's how I met him and his Lady Margie.

And it's a small world. Through knowing and meeting Chuck, I met his son, Charles. Later I find I'm working with Charles' wife...  So even though he started out as someone my Grandma knew... He's become a family friend...

So happy Birthday!!  Hope you bowl great tonight...

Dark Matter

I got interested in a new TV Show called Dark Matter. A group of people wake up on a ship out in space. Each one of them have no memory of who they are or where they were. They do find an android that can pilot the ship. Since they can't remember their names they call themselves by the names of the number order that they woke up...  one, two, three, four, and five.

They later find out they were wanted criminals with a rep... they just don't feel like they were criminals. They started doing good things which confused everyone they came into contact with. They were out to figure out what they wanted do and how to live. There were conflicts around every corner.

I got to go to DragonCon again this year... And the hightlight of it was the panels for Dark Matter. I made it to 2 different panels. Almost the whole crew was there. Only 2 members were missing. And my other highlights...

Me and the Dark Matter Crew..

Me and Jodelle Ferland... She plays Five on Dark Matter. She's my favorites on Dark Matter.

The Heir Chronicles

While at DragonCon 2015 in Atlanta I was waiting around for Mercedes Lackey to show up for her book signing session. One of the other Author tables had changed Authors. I kinda felt sorry for the Author as she had no one coming for Autographs, though she had an awesome poster with her. So I wondered over and asked if I could have a poster. Then I got her to sign the poster for me. I had briefly looked at her books when I wondered the "book store" the vendors had going on in the background. So I stood there a few minutes and talked to her about her books. They sounded interesting.

I told myself that I would look up one of her books when I got back home. Recently I was able to pick up the 1st book in her Heir Chronicles Series. For me it has a Young Adult feel to it. It kinda reminded me a bit of the tone of Harry Potter and Wizard of Oz and a few other similar stories.

The Author is Cinda Williams Chima.  A very interesting name...  I'm curious about book 2 of the series now. I have someone I talk to on Facebook who is going to try the book also... I had mentioned I was going to read the series. So I told her I just finished book 1 and liked it. Guess that was enough for her LOL...

Why can't the World Growup

I was reading this article on a website (Do Civilians Need to Just Grow Up About Military-breastfeeding?) And then I read some of the comments people left under the article.

Some are all for Breastfeeding but not while in Uniform. Some don't care about the Uniform if they are someplace private. Some said they should just change into Civilian clothes first. All of this has gotten me to thinking about what my stance is on all this.

So here's my take: I am all for Breastfeeding if it's comfortable for you and the baby and there aren't any complications. It's okay if you don't want to breastfeed or for some reason you can't. We should never make the Mothers feel like they aren't good Mothers because they don't or can't. It's a personal choice.

I don't think of it with any kind of sexual tones. It's a Mother feeding a child. The world has sexualized way too many things in life that are human nature. We do need to get over ourselves and grow up. We aren't teaching our children to be understanding or thoughtful or respectful anymore thru our actions.

And since the article is dealing with the breastfeeding in uniform.. here's what I think on that:  To respect the Uniform you have to respect the individual who is wearing that Uniform. They could end up putting their lives on the line to wear that Uniform. They have pride in their job and the military, but they also have pride in being a Mother. Why should they have to change their clothes to feed the baby. Do they have to change their clothes to feed themselves? It's kind of like saying..."Sorry baby I can't feed you right now because I'm in Uniform" Those who have kids should know how things work with kids. When a baby is hungry they want their food right then. We don't really wait to eat when we are really hungry. If you do.. more power to you.

Breastfeeding is a natural thing that has been going on for hundreds and hundreds of years. What do you think Mothers were doing way before bottles and formula came out? And do you really think they bothered to cover themselves up everytime they fed their children?

If you have a hard time with watching or seeing someone breastfeeding, I have one question for you... WHY are you watching or looking? If it bothers you then don't look. It's as easy as that. It's kinda of like that age old saying... If you can't say anything nice don't say anything at all..  In this case... if you don't like what you are seeing then don't look. Mayhaps I don't really want to watch you eat your food...

The only time you really see anything is when the Mother is changing sides or fixing her bra/shirt back. And that is something a Mother could work to try and minimize showing. But when a baby is actually feeding.. there really isn't much to see that you wouldn't see in some fashionable clothes. There is some high fashion that shows off more breast than breastfeeding ever does. But that is okay in society.. where as breastfeeding isn't?

Post-Dragons

Well I'm back from DragonCon. It was fun. I saw lots of interesting costumes. I got in to see the Ghost Hunters Panel. I went to a Seminar talking about making the Best Dungeons for D&D games. Went to a Dance party at a local club. Bought some purty dice. Drooled a bit over the kewl stuff at all the vendors...

I so need to save up more money.. Now I know how it all works kinda. I've learned to try not to do things back to back unless they are in same hotel. And even then it doesn't guarantee you will get into the stuff. You have to get there early and stand in line. They can only let in so many people.

The whole DragonCon Unit encompasses about 5 or 6 hotels on 3 or 4 different streets. So there is alot of walking involved sometimes. Even when the seminars and panels aren't going late at night there are parties going on into the wee hours in the lobbies and halls. I caught a group doing the Macarena...

I got some Autographs from some Authors...  My favorite Sherrilyn Kenyon, Mercedes Lackey, Margaret Weis, and an Author I haven't read yet... Cinda Williams Chima. Her books sounded interesting though.

I did a Cosplay Life Drawing session with a guy who used to work with Conan O'Brien.

I took hundreds of pictures of the Parade they had. I'll try to see if can share the pictures thru a link.

Also got to go to an After Hours party at the Georgia Aquarium. They did their first Costume contest. They picked people from the Audience of costumes to compete supposedly. There were some awesome detailed costumes.

It was soo hot. I don't know how the people with all the leather or the big hoop skirts and corsets could stand to walk from hotel to hotel...  though I can kinda of guess... when you love to dress up you do anything you can to wear that costume. Even brave the heat to show it off. I think most wore their costumes and then changed into regular clothes later usually with some kinda costume prop (ie. cat ears, beanies with animal faces, steampunk top hats, etc etc)

Where has the time gone..

Wow where has the time gone.... I can't believe I haven't posted anything here since May of 2014, I need to get back to it.

Currently I'm excited to be a Great-Aunt soon. My Niece is having a little boy in a few weeks. Today sometime my Cousin is going in to be induced to have her baby Girl...

Also currently in process of making a costume to dress up for the East Coast DragonCon in Atlanta. It'll almost be like going home sorta. One of these days I'll make it to the San Diego ComiCon. Then I will have all my bases covered... LOL

I'm excited.. my favorite author Sherrilyn Kenyon will be at DragonCon. And I know one of the Vendors that will be there...which is sorta kewl. He sells awesome leather goods and costume pieces. They are just a wee bit too expensive for me.. for time being LOL.

I'm still doing my Genealogy stuff... I've been working on a project I started. Trying to get it done before I go to Atlanta so I can take a copy to my Sister, Niece and my Nephews. Not sure if I can get it done... but I'll try inbetween sewing up a costume.

Blogging :)

This isn't my only blog i have.. I currently have 4 I think... besides this one. Here is a list and links for those who are interested in seeing other stuff I do or say.

Under a Burgandy Star    - This is the one that holds some of my poetry and I might add some short stories or other things I've written. I might eventually add some of my favorite poems there that others wrote.

I'm really big into Genealogy. I have a blog that I devote my finds and thoughts on for that purpose  here.. Who Do You Think You Are?

Most of the younger generation grew up playing video games... the only time I really got to play was when I was at the doctors office.. except you had to take turns with other kids. We really didn't have the money for gaming systems. I did play a few games on my computer as a teen though. Now that I'm older and I have a job I'm able to afford games and systems. I currently play NDS stuff, Xbox 360 stuff, and Wii stuff. I like the NDS for traveling. I like my xbox 360 with the kinect. So does my mom... probably why it's in the living room instead of my room, even though I bought it. I'll probably eventually move the Wii into my room. Mom bought the Wii but she really didn't like it much. I like playing Kirby's epic yarn on it. So I started a small blog that I can talk about games I've played on there...Library of Gaming! It is for anythinghaving to do with many different kind of games... from computer, gaming systems to good ole tabletop role play... debating on whether I wanna lump my "live action" type role play from renaissance faires in there too..

My newest one is mainly for me to "keep track" of interesting things I come across... but in this way I can share what I find kewl with other people... it's just a buncha of random tidbits of information.. Library of Tidbits

Just thought I'd share..   Enjoy... let me know what ya think...   :)

Only 2 More Weeks!!

I can't wait... I got permission to take time off around Memorial weekend to go see a concert. The concert is in Las Vegas at the House of Blues of all places...  that's just too kewl.

Who am I going to see??  Why Lindsey Stirling..  Youtube rising star of Violin music to some interesting techno type music. And she dances some while playing..  It's really kewl. Look her up sometime if you want to see something different.

Hoping to see one of my cousins and his family while I'm there... nervous about it though. I've never met this cousin though we kinda grew up seeing pictures of each other. Well he saw them when he visited Grandma and Grandpa. He and his sister both got to visit with the Grandparents more than I did.

I hate that I won't get to be in Las Vegas for more than 1 night... but I'll be there enough I think to get a zillion pictures of the hotels and lights on the strip.

hopefully i'll have some great pics to post when i get back.

Slightly Teary

I got slightly teary-eyed the other night at work. One of the regular customers that I know said hiyas to me when I came up to take over the register that he was at with his purchases. This particular customer is the owner of a local store that sometimes sponsors a Renaissance Fantasy Faire.

When he was done he went to walk away. He remembered something and came back asking me if I had a moment. The lady I was gonna take over the register from was still doing a transaction so I went to see what he wanted.

Sometimes his 7 year old son comes in with him. His son was quietly curious what was "wrong" with me... why I was a little different. I had no problem saying that it's a Birth Defect.. that I was born like this. I guess the subject prompted a discussion about "judging a book by it's cover" and people and their differences.

I remember he said something about his son realizing that having the kewl clothes and latest stuff doesn't make you a better person at school. It's how you act and treat other people.

He went on to tell me that he and his son thought I a good and sweet person that always seems to smile... well something like that as I can't remember all he said. He used a buncha kewl adjectives.

I am usually happy-go-lucky most of the time. It takes too much energy to be down and out. Besides being upbeat can be contagious to others. So here's to being sweet and smiling all over the place!!

:)

Smash Books

Okay so who has heard of Smashbooks??  I saw them in Walmart... They are kewl. It's basically a book of preprinted pages kind of like a scrapbook/journal style. You add pictures and write in it about whatever. They do come in different themes like wedding, nostagia, travel...  They sometimes have questions to answer. There are a lot of products to use from the company K & Company Smash*. They have decorative tapes, ribbons, markers, envelopes, stickers, and fun little embellishments to make it your own story.

I like what the company said in a video about the smashbook... "It's a catchall for the things that make you smile."  I just kinda make my own though... it's easy enough to do with a 3 ring binder and a buncha different scrapbooking papers. Add a buncha stickers and other stuff to make one kinda like it.

And I also came across the Photo Journaling craze. Where for a whole month you are given a topic per day. You use pictures and journaling to cover that topic...  I did a cross between a smashbook and Photo Journaling and Digi Scrapbooking to make a few pages... I thought they came out kewl but I couldn't keep up with doing one a day.. not with Working and sleeping.. LOL.

Here are the few I did...

Now I might not be able to keep up with 1 a day.. but I might be able to add 1 a week in addition to my other postings... I'm hoping to have things to post more than a few times a month.

Digi Scrapbooks

I love scrapbooks! I started a scrapbook from the first year I went to the North Carolina Renaissance Faire. It was quite an Experience but was fun. And I got to know alot of people.. the cast of volunteers who take time out of their busy schedules every year to put on these plays that last all day long. They entertain and teach some history.

My scrapbook for it was the cut and paste kind. I used stickers and lots of pictures and tried to capture most of the behind the scenes jokes that went on. Then when I started actually volunteering as one of the Street Actors (for the Fantasy group) I started getting people (from the cast) to sign near their pictures. Everyone kept saying how kewl the scrapbook was.. That they wished they had artsy talent or even the time to do one for themselves.

That got me to thinking... I've had some training with Graphic Design. And I my Stepfather had a program that did slideshows of pictures.. What if I turned each slide/picture into a scrapbook looking page. I kind of used my original scrapbook as a guide to get it started. I asked people if they could send me pictures they had from the years renaissance faire. I ended up with 100+ slides, each slide had up to 5 pictures on there. It really turned out good. I made copies on CDs for the volunteers. All they had to do was pop it in a computer and it would run the slideshow. The Director of the Renaissance Faire and The Historical Society ordered a slideshow cd for each member on the Board. That was kewl. I was working on a promotional CD for them to use to help get grants but I ended up moving and never got to finish it. I might be able to if I get a lil more info from them again.

I made like 3 different years worth of  scrapbook CDs. The last one was very hard for me cause it was after I had moved. I wasn't able to actually get to the faire. I had to rely on the others to tell me about little stories that went on and get me pictures. It was okay just not as personal as the first 2 were.

Here are a few examples:

This is just a few that I've done. Now I'm into scrapbooking digitally my life stuff... but that's another post!!!

My Personality... RICAS

My niece posted on Facebook about her results from taking a Personality test... I was curious so I went and took it too... She came out as "The Provider" while I came out as "The Composer".

It was interesting to see how close they are with what they said.. the only thing I didn't agree with was the point they kept saying that I didn't like puzzles and intellectual exercises... I do word puzzles all the time. I love doing Sudoku. I play games that exercises the memory skills.

Luckily my personality is what helps me get thru the day at work.. it's what people tend to see and respond to more and more than the fact that I'm "Different" in looks. I still feel uncomfortable when children are staring at me or commenting to their parents on things. Though it is nice to see parents actually reprimanding children for being kinda rude even though I know the kids are just curious. Luckily the tiny kids don't care... they wave, smile and say hiyas. I still have bouts of Awkwardness and discomfort. It's not as bad as when I was in school. I'm still emotionally driven and self-conscious.

I am still guarded with relationships and have a hard time telling how I feel. Or at least face to face I have a hard time telling how I feel. I can write it out okay sometimes. Or I use sarcasm to get my feelings across, or attempt to anyways. I have a hard time looking people in the eyes.

I'm still my happy-go-lucky bubbly personality though.. I find good in the little things. People know when something is wrong when I'm not bouncing all over the place with smiles... I either am not feeling good or I have a migraine (of coarse the sunglasses tip them off on the migraines LOL)

The website I did this personality test at is : Personality test @ LearnMyself

Random Acts of Kindness

Working as a Cashier I'm in a good position to see Random Acts of Kindness... Some are more pronounced and some are so small you could miss them if you blinked.

Some of the small things are people who leave their pennies or small change for us cashiers to use for someone who needs it. Sometimes people who have big baskets of stuff will wave someone with 1 or 2 items to go in front of them.

I was cashiering and the lady I was checking out mentioned to me that she wasn't use to having to get her bags off the turnstile. The guy who was waiting behind her came around and started putting her bags of groceries into to her basket for her.

A young guy was like 15 or 16 cents short so he was going to put something back. The guy behind him pulled a quarter out of his pocket and gave it to him so he didn't have to put something back.

The one that really got me was when I had a couple who were checking out. For some reason their card wasn't working. They were in process of calling the bank to figure out what was going on. A young couple behind them asked me how much their purchases were... which it was plainly seen so I went ahead and told him it was like $30 or $40. He told me he'd pay for their purchases... he pulled out his card and ran it. Then paid cash for his own purchases. I was like wow... not many people will pick up someones tab that is that much.

And it's so cute how excited kids are to be able to pay for their stuff on their own. Granted Mommie or Daddy might have given them the money but they get to put it on the belt separately. It makes them feel grown up some.

I celebrate in my head when I'm able to help someone that some people just aren't very patient with. It could be why some people come back thru my line. I do have some of a following. I'm fast, patient and helpful. I can sometimes be entertaining.  :)    I get a lot of families who have deaf members, children with Autism or otherwise unique peoples. I just wish I was more confident with sign language but it's been years since I took my class at the local community college in North Carolina. I remember some of my signs but am not confident I'll understand their signs. Finger-spelling would take too long.

Z-Clan History

I've been helping some cousins with the Z-Clan family tree. I've been piecing together different peoples to make a big family tree. The goal is to get back to where they came from... Germany. I also have a goal that I always like to do.. try to piece together as many peoples with the last name to the family tree.. I like trying to connect the dots.

Luckily most of the family lived in or around West Virginia for many generations. West Virginia is one of the states that has gone thru all their old documents and scanned them. They are posted up for free. So I can find birth, marriage, and death records (scanned copies of the actual documents) for people who lived in 1800's to the early 1900's.

Right now I'm going thru the Births... so far there are 127 with the one spelling. Though like most long germanic names there are many different ways to spell it. Change out an A here for a E there... it makes for a very long and confuzzling search sometimes. I've found ways to help though.   :)

Once I'm done I'll work on the Deaths as they usually have family listed on them. Lastly I'll connect the dots with the Marriages...

It's been fun looking at the different stuff I've been able to find. It's also kewl to make connections with other people who are distant cousins also researching the family because I can help them.

My latest connection is the sister-in-law of Pappal's Niece. She's helping her SIL research her Z-Clan family. I was able to show her some pictures and a letter her father wrote to the family farm that a cousin scanned and shared with me. They were excited to see the pieces of history that connects to the father.

Halloweenie Fun!

Pouts... I had to work on Halloween but I still had fun.

I hung out on Tuesday with a bunch of my guy friends... We usually do "Holiday/Birthday" stuff on whichever Tuesday is close to the actual holiday. So I decorated for Halloween at my friends house... Tuesday was our game night.

I had fun with the Rice Krispies I made for us to snack on...  I got to "Kill" the Rice Krispy treats LOL.

I found cute little chocolate knives. I found some glittery gel frosting to use for "Blood". I thought it worked out kewl.

Halloween I dressed up for work.. I finally got my outfit done that I was working on last year. Not really sure how to describe it... It's vampirish colors but kinda looks like a saloon girl but I had a witch hat on.

                                     

The boots were a kewl find last year at the Good Will thrift store. They fit and were in good condition for only $4.99. I hate that in the pictures you can't tell the bustle and train are a black leopard material... it's kinda see thru except the spots.. those are velvety.

Lil Miracles

I sometimes click on places people post on Facebook... I follow them to see where the links lead me... sometimes it leads me to several different stories.. several little miracles...  you can't help but smile!

Tonight I landed on Kaylee Rae's Facebook page. (https://www.facebook.com/KayleeRaesStory) She has many speed bumps in her little life... Obstacles she's slowly learning to overcome or get around. Her main obstacle is from Polymicrogyria  (basically translates to Many small/tiny wrinkles in the brain). It hasn't stopped her from learning to sit up by herself, enter toddler beauty pageants, go swimming with her cousin. She's a happy little girl. I loved looking at her pictures, at all the smiles. I like reading about the stuff she's done or is learning to do.

On her page she had a link to 2 of the cutest little boys... They were born with complications from CMV. They too are knocking their obstacles out of their way. Both boys are learning to sit up by themselves. They too are happy little toddlers. (https://www.facebook.com/CmvFightersLiamAndBrody?ref=profile)

A few weeks ago I read about a boy who had cancer in his eyes when he was a toddler. His mom has a very hard decision to make. In the end, after chemo, she felt he would have a better quality of life without his eyes. He has prosthetic eyes. Though the older he got the more he realized he could see by making clicking sounds. It was kind of like bats and echo location. He could ride a bike, play video games, and roller blade. All of that without having any eyes what so ever. Sadly he died from cancer in his teens. (His You tube Video Story )

I've met many different kids who will astound you with what they are capable of doing. With love, patience and the tools needed anything is possible to overcome or get around obstacles that are thrown in your path. A lesson I've learned from personal experience of my own and my family.

Styxx!

I'm currently reading "Styxx" by Sherrilyn Kenyon. I love her Dark Hunter series and this is the newest installment of that series. I'm about halfway thru the book. It's a rather thick book too.

The story is engaging and descriptive. It has Greek and fictional Atlantean gods running about terrorizing the lives of the mere mortals who worship them. This story zeros in on Styxx, the son of the King of Didymos. He's also the Twin of Acheron (who has his own story and book).

Through out the story of Acheron I had a roller coaster of emotions floating about in my head. That is the sign of a good story and a good author... She gets you hooked into the story and becoming somewhat emotionally involved. It is the same way with Styxx.

All he wanted was the love of his parents and his sister Rissa. His Twin brother was born with "God eyes" that set him apart from the rest of the family. Acheron was shunned by the King as a freak who should die. Styxx just wanted to spend time with his brother but somehow always got him into trouble. The king was always pulling Styxx away from Acheron. They soon learned that they couldn't "get rid of" Acheron... as his life force was tied to that of Styxx. Whatever happened to Acheron was felt by Styxx though no one understood that connection. Styxx was just thought of as a wimpy brat. His own sister thought he was jealous and vindictive when all he wanted was to be loved and to help his brother. He just didn't know how to. His father was King.. He was threatened by that King who was his father. As both boys grow up the one comes to hate the other while one still craves the love of the other.

Enter Bethany, the Atlantean Goddess of Wrath and Misery. She is sent to the mortal lands as a blind girl to look for the son of the Queen of Atlantis. He was sent to the mortal world to be raised mortal to hide him from his father who wanted to kill him because of a prophecy his half sisters told their father. While in the mortal world she meets "Hector" and falls in love... only to find out later that "Hector" is the Prince Styxx.

That's really paraphrasing the story... I didn't want to go into much detail of what goes on. Right now my emotions are running on Anger at the Gods who think mortals are play toys and frustration that his family abandoned him during his life. His father is a pompous Jerk of great enormity. The sister comes across as a whiney witch towards Styxx. She basically believed he could do no good despite all the good he had done. She never knew or saw that he was trying to protect her from their father.

Still I can't seem to put the book down no matter what emotion is raging at the time. I got the other half of the book to finish... I hope it has a similance of a semi-happy ending for Styxx, Acheron, and Bethany...

No longer the "Toy Lady"

I use to work in the Toy Dept of the local Wallie World (Walmart). I am no longer the "Toy Lady" though I think I will still always be the Toy Lady. I am now a Cashier. I get to talk to peoples .. alot... while scanning their food. I'm still not use to standing in one place for long periods of time... I'm constantly walking around my cash register area.

Being a cashier is okay... not my favorite job but for now it's a break. It's a bit less stressfull. The stress level had gone up some over the years as I worked in toys. Many of the customers think it's a step up to be a cashier. I'm not so sure.

We are kinda tied to our registers... We aren't supposed to leave them for anything. And sometimes it's hard because I know where something the customer was looking for. I wanna just run and get it for them but I can't. I seem to be one of the few in the store that knows where most of the stuff is. I get people (including other employees) asking where stuff is. Though I'm becoming lost in the store. I don't get to keep up with what is going on or where things are moved as much now. It kinda irks me to say "I dunno" sometimes now.