Wandering The Neighborhood

I have been walking lately, around the neighborhood.  I set out walking in one direction or another, and I walk for at least 15 minutes before I turn and come back home.  That way I get at least a 30-minute walk a day.

Eler Beth is my companion on these walks, but she rides her bike while I walk.  If she were to walk with me, it would interrupt my stride; I'd have to forever be stopping to look at this or that or she'd be calling me to wait for her or to hurry up and catch up to her.

When I walk, I walk fast, and I set a pace and keep it.  I heard her tell Andrew after the first of our recent walks, "Mom walks fast even when she's going uphill!!"  So riding her bike is the perfect way to keep me company without cramping either my style or hers.  And she keeps me entertained, too!  I thought I knew a lot about our neighborhood, and the streets on the outer edges of our neighborhood, but she knows everything there is to know.  She knows where each cat we encounter belongs; which dogs are nice and which ones rush their fence when you walk by; she pointed out to me where the lady lives who owns a cockatiel and who enjoys talking to Eler Beth when she's walking Lucy (Eler Beth's cockatiel); she pointed out to me where "the girl lives that I met at Science Camp"; and she showed me where "usually there's a really fancy car parked here.  They rarely ever drive it."

Yes, I've been enjoying my walks with Eler Beth.

Finally Settling In

We had a great time over the weekend, and got in late Sunday night.  We didn't go too far away (just a couple of hours' drive), but we stayed in a really nice hotel (jacuzzi rooms!), with live entertainment in the hotel lounge and a wonderful hotel restaurant.  So we didn't even have to leave the hotel for entertainment!!  (Well of course not!)

Anyway, we had a wonderful time, and it was good to get home.  Monday I slept a lot and didn't do too much of anything else.  Unpacking, a little cleaning, and a little cooking, and that was about it.  Yesterday it rained most of the day, so the yard work that I had planned for me and the kids had to be postponed.

Today has been beautifully sunny and warm, so we got a little yard work done.  Andrew will be finishing that up this evening when it gets cool.  I've managed to get some laundry out on the line, and I have even sorted through some things that Eler Beth has outgrown and found a new home for them.  I've also managed to visit some journals and clear out my email inbox.

In local news, the body of the 4 year old missing boy, "Ivan" Cana, was found Saturday morning in a garbage bag in the back of a garbage truck.  I was sickened when I got home Sunday night and heard it on the news.  I wasn't really surprised that he'd been found dead, though.  He'd been missing so long, with no sightings, that I'd thought it would be a miracle if he'd been found alive.  The authorities are saying that his family are not considered suspects, but this morning a local news station obtained a copy of a search warrant issued for a house near the boys' family's home; the search warrant was for the home of a convicted sex offender.  Authorities are saying that he is not a suspect at this time, but then they have to say that.  I just hope they find whoever did it, and that the person is prosecuted justly.

I log on to our state's sex offender web site at least a couple times every month to check who on the list is living or working in our neighborhood and surrounding neighborhoods.  I also subscribe to Family Watchdog, which sends me an email everytime someone moves in or out of our vicinity.  I think it's a good idea to just stay informed, especially when I have an 11-year old daughter who plays in and rides her bike all over the neighborhood.  What's sad and scary is that there are offenders out there who have never been caught or prosecuted.  My heart goes out to little Ivan's family.

Tags: Ivan Cana, Family Watchdog, Sex Offender Registry

Ready For The Weekend

Good Morning!

I am trying this morning to take a bit of time to go visit everyone's journals.  I have not read or commented in any journals for about a week now, which is very unusual for me.  But I'm ready to get caught up with everyone now. 

 

Thomas and I are going away for the weekend (our little anniversary gift to ourselves), and I think I just about have everything packed and ready.  So while I'm finishing up I thought I'd drop in and out of journals throughout the morning.  I hope I get by to visit you! [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v679/helmswondermom/MeMe/mz_030406_10012882138.gif[/IMG]

Thank you to everyone who indulged my Posy of Deputies entry.  I just want to assure everyone that I don't take much notice of any grammatical or spelling errors in journals.  I enjoy everyone's own personal style of writing, and so many of you out there write in such a nice conversational style that makes it easy and enjoyable to read.   Yes, I'm picky about grammar and such, but that is just pertaining to myself when I write in my own journal.  (And I do feel horrified whenever I am caught out in a mistake!)  But my sisters like to tease me and I tease them, and sometimes it makes for some interesting exchanges of letters or emails.  (My sister, Barbara, and I used to write one another in Latin as a means of practicing our translation, but, sad to say, it has been so many years now that I doubt I could do that anymore.  But that should give you an idea of how we interact! lol)

I do have a few things I'd like to write about.  We have had several shootings, suicides, and other tragedies in our Louisville, KY/Southern Indiana neighborhoods in the last few weeks, and I'd like to mention a few of the things that have happened.

First of all, one of those 9 firemen who died in that Carolina fire was from a little community near us, so our community felt some effect from that.  Around the same time as that tragedy we had a couple of Sheriff's Deputies in a county bordering ours who, while answering a call to a domestic dispute, were shot.  One of them was killed; a husband and father of a two-year-old girl.  The young gunman, a 15-year-old, straight-A student, then killed himself.  He'd been having an argument with his mother over his marijuana use.  The officer who was not killed is still in rehab right now, but is expected to be going home soon.  Almost immediately following that tragedy there were a series of shootings and murder/suicides in our community and across the river in Louisville, including a father who killed his wife and her daughter, and wounded a stepson before killing himself.  Yesterday or late last night an Indiana State Trooper who stopped to aid what he thought was a stranded motorist was shot and killed by that motorist who then turned the gun on himself.  Why do these suicidal people have to harm someone else before taking their own lives? 

And lastly, a young 4-year-old Hispanic boy who disappeared from the Churchill Downs area of Louisville has been missing now for a week.  I don't think police have had any real leads in finding him yet.  So yes, we have had quite a tragic series of events in our part of the world over the past 6 weeks or so, and unusually so, it seems to me.  Perhaps these things are going on more often everywhere, and it just seems like we're having more of them in our area, I don't know.

I may be back today with another entry, but, regardless, I'd like to wish everyone a very good weekend.  I hope no one is suffering in the areas flooded by heavy rains or in the areas where the temps are topping 100.

A "Posy" of Deputy Sheriffs

Be duly warned that this will be a long post, but I think it will be so excessively worth it if you read the whole thing.  You'll be rolling on the floor laughing by the end.

I used to be a proofreader, and my editor was the master of all proofreaders.  He and I used to try very hard to find a mistake that the other one had missed.  It rarely happened for either of us.  I still proof automatically, but I don't usually point out mistakes to people, just to be pointing them out.  My sisters know that when they write me I am going to be editing mentally, but I only bring their attention to a mistake when it is something so very spectactularly, deliciously funny that I have to bring it up, knowing that they'll get as big a kick out of it as I will.  And they love to be able to crow when they catch me out in a mistake.

I particularly enjoy my sister Maxine's occassional goof-ups, because she is an atrocious speller, and she is an elementary school teacher.  She's a wonderful teacher, she just can't spell worth a hoot.  The "pity party post" I made earlier was originally an email sent to Maxine (aka Midge), and her reply to me was long, warm, and very loving.  It was full of family news, a story about a speeding ticket she had gotten, and lots of encouragement and cheer.  It was also full of mistakes.  Only a few of them stood out and gave me a good laugh, and I had no plans to point them out to her in a return email, although I was going to tease her about a couple of them the next time we spoke by phone.  Well, she tried to head me off by sending me a second email entitled "Corrections!!!???" in which she brought all of her mistakes to my attention, and either explained them or asked for advice on correcting them.  This wonderful email from her had me rolling on the floor laughing.  I had tears rolling down my cheeks.  I was shouting and gasping and holding my sides.   Thomas and the kids were a little worried for a few minutes.

I took this second email from her, broke it apart, added commentary and/or answered her questions, and basically responded as a smart-ass little sister would!

Warning!!  Do not have anything in your mouth when you read this, and if you think you might have to pee, go to the bathroom now!  It may only be a little bit ha-ha funny in the beginning, but as it rolls along those chuckles will turn into guffaws!

And so now, dear friends, for your very much reading pleasure, I give you .....

CORRECTIONS!!!??? REVISITED

Midge, below is your absolutely wonderful email where you point out all of the mistakes you caught when you re-read your letter to me.  I have added a bit of commentary of my own.

Sorry Lori for the amount of trauma you must have experienced with my last e-mail.  Spell check only catches sooooo much.  I was in a hurry to send it before my appointment and did not read it until later.  Sorry, sorry, sorry....

I actually didn't experience much trauma from it.  I usually just automatically proof and edit as I read so that my brain is reading it correctly, and therefore stays trauma-free.  I did, however, get a kick out of three mistakes, and you mentioned none of them!

In the third paragraph, I noticed I used "are" in the sentence about Evonne's family, should have been "is"??  Right or not??

Yes, it should have been "is".  Family is singular.

In paragraph six toward the end, "that that I was" strike one "that".

I did mentally, and again when I read it aloud to Thomas.

The seventh paragraph, fourth line; "had began" to "had begun" or just "began" strike the "had"?

This is really funny, because it is the SIXTH paragraph and the THIRD line!  Of course, it may be the fourth line on your screen, but I'm pretty sure it isn't the seventh paragraph for you.  And, yes, it should be either "had begun" or simply "began".  (And you left the "d" off of "awakened")

Same paragraph where I quoted the last sentence of the days text; I had typed in two of the word "the" and when I went back to correctly make one of them a "to", I incorrectly corrected.  Instead of it saying "to the" I made it say "the to" which makes no sense.  I'm sure your brain figured it out anyway.

I'm sure it did, too, and probably wasn't even bothered by it.  I'm glad to know, however, that it came about honestly from your endeavor to correct a mistake.  That makes it just precious somehow!  (And it is "day's" text, with an apostrophe, not days text.)

Last paragraph last sentence should read, "Tell Eler Beth Cousin Evonne was in the 7th grade before I would let her shave her legs."  Not the way it is written!  It actually might have been the eight grade.  I'll have to ask Evonne.

Really?!  It actually might have been the "eight" grade?  Are you sure it might not have been the "eighth" grade?  You are so funny!  I automatically removed the second "e" in "here" to make it "her", so no matter about that.  I'm surprised you were worried about such a little mistake.  But "eight" grade??  (And does it really matter enough for you to go to the trouble to check with Evonne if it was the seventh or the eighth grade?)  I had tears rolling down my cheeks when I first read this email!  Are you really that worried about my editing you?  I mentally edit everything, you know.  I can't help it.  And I only bring something to your attention if it's excessively funny or if I'm just in the mood to tease you.

These are only the few mistakes that I caught when I did go back and read it.  Perhaps we don't really want to know the others....

Well, you are going to have to know three of them at least, because they are my favorites.  The funny parts are highlighted in red:

First of all, I was so very interested to know that you, and I quote, "left my house driving as usual and, low and behold, they had a posy of deputy sheriffs sitting in wait for me."  Now I would like to have seen that!!  Do you think Barbara could draw for us what a "posy" of deputy sheriffs would look like?  I think you meant "posse".  A posy is a small bouquet of flowers.  And I believe it is simply "lo" when you mean to call attention to an amazing sight.  And did you know that my Oxford English Dictionary says that the phrase "lo and behold" is "a formula introducing a surprising or unexpected fact"?  A "posy" of deputy sheriffs certainly would qualify for that!  Okay, I guess I've bugged you enough about that one.

The third one that I got a kick out of you typed not once but twice in your second paragraph and then again two more times in your fourth paragraph.  It was the fourth paragraph that really "did me in", because in that paragraph you were giving me advice.  You recommended to me that if I "go for a message" I should do so before my chiropractor visit so that I can be good and loose.  You gave me this advice based on the fact that having your own "message" on Tuesday afternoon before having your adjustment on Wednesday did you a lot of good.  I will follow your advice, and make sure that should I ever want a "message" of any kind, I'll have it before I go to the chiropractor.  And what's equally funny is that in the second paragraph you actually spelled it right the first time, then wrong every time after that.

Okay, I think I have finished.  I feel a bit guilty about this very sarcastic letter I have written to you, but I console myself with the fact that I would not have even thought of writing it if you hadn't brought your mistakes and corrections to my attention first.  Now I probably would have teased you about the "posy" and the "message", but I wouldn't have gone to a lot of trouble to send you an email specifically pointing them out to you (like I'm doing now).  However, I am very glad that you did, because I have immensely enjoyed reading it and being able to respond to it.

Thank you, and I hope you have a wonderful day! :)

Your loving littlest sister,

Lori

Scalzi Sighting

A couple of days ago I was trying to decide whether to use "proved" or "proven" as a past participle in something I was writing, so I googled "grammatically correct proved or proven", and one of the things that came up was Whil Wheaten's web site; the very first post on his page when it came up, and practically the first sentence, gave John Scalzi as an example of a great writer.  I thought that was interesting.

Anyway, apparently either is correct, although some grammar experts maintain that one should use proven if it comes after a linking verb. 

Tags: Whil Wheaton, John Scalzi, Grammar, Proved or Proven

Another Note Of Appreciation

I wanted to thank everyone for their comments and emails wishing me well after my "pity party" a few days ago.  I have made an appointment on the 11th to have a full lab work up done.  Then on the 13th I will see my doctor for the results and to get the rest of my physical.  So we'll go from there.

My sister Dee emailed me in response to that email (on which my post was based), and told me to make sure I had my doc really do a good job of checking my heart, because she had experienced some of my symptoms right before they discovered that she had an aortal aneurysm.  She was also waking up in the night with chest pain, though, and I don't have that, thank goodness.  But I will tell him about it and see what happens.  (This was about sixteen years ago, by the way, and about 4 years ago she had surgery to repair it.  It had grown and got to the point where she had no choice but to have surgery.)  Her email was cute, though.  She closed it with this:  "You do a wonderful complaining letter.  You're an idiot, you know.  Love ya, Dee"

I told her she was right, and that I take after my big sisters. :)

A Note Of Appreciation

I didn't send out my usual "get your mammogram" reminder yesterday on the first day of the month, like I've been doing.  I simply forgot.  I got an email a couple days ago, though, from a fellow J-Lander who said that because of my emails regarding mammograms, she had gone to get hers for the first time in 14 years, and this after having pocketed the past two physician's orders for mammograms without following through on an appointment.  I really appreciated her letting me know that.  It made me feel like I had done something good.

I know mammograms don't always catch lumps, but I still think it's better to be safe than sorry.  When my mother was in her sixties she found a pea-sized lump in one of her breasts.  She had never had a mammogram.  She went for one and was immediately sent to a specialist.  A biopsy revealed cancer; thankfully a slow-growing one.  She opted for a mastectomy.  Her left breast and some lymph nodes were removed, and she began a very rapid recovery from the surgery.  The lymph nodes showed no spread of cancer, thankfully, and she is still going strong today at age 83.

I had my first mammogram last year, and have already scheduled my next one.  It's little enough inconvenience to put up with to be on the safe side.  So don't be a boob!  Get your yearly mammogram!

The Breast Cancer Site didn't quite get their 6 million clicks last month, although I think they were very close to 90%.  But their main sponsor has extended the challenge into this month, and they are now at over 93% of the goal.

Tags: Mammograms, Breast Cancer Site