Sleepless in Little Rock

We all know how important sleep is.  No one does too well without it.   We are lucky if we get through the next day with just crankiness.  Sometimes other things happen.  And they usually are not good. 

I realize there are various reasons for lack of sleep.  My sleepless night this time was a result of my jumpy legs acting up.  After being up all night, I had plenty of time to think about sleep and the lack of it.  My predicament brought to mind the movie, "Sleepless in Seattle."  However, none of my sleepless nights have turned out as well as the ones in "Sleepless in Seattle." I certainly don't look as perky as Meg Ryan after little or no sleep.   Maybe I don't look that perky with a good night's sleep either.  Hmmm.  

I had hoped to go directly to bed after finishing my middle-of-the-night post which was my way of trying to trick my legs into behaving.  However, it didn't happen.  Sleep was not forthcoming.  

So, I decided to jump into my chores, full force.  I spent the day vacuuming, dusting, washing clothes, and folding them.  You know the drill.  All those things that always have to be done over and over and over again. 

Miraculously, I got it all done just in time to go to the airport to pick up my daughter flying in from California.  Then the results of no sleep started making their appearances.  I was half way to the airport and I remembered I didn't have my phone. 

Not too big a deal except the flight info was on the phone--not in my head.  Why bother trying to remember details when you have them all in the phone, right?

Well, I knew she was arriving at 4:00 so obviously I could look at the arrival screens and find out if her flight had landed.  No phone?  No problem.  Right?  Not so much.  

Uh--I didn't see a 4:00 flight listed from California and I didn't know if she flew through Dallas or Phoenix or Las Vegas or what.  In fact, I didn't even know which airline she was flying on.

Now, don't be harsh in your judgment.  I know I should have known all of that.  But remember, too, I was operating on no sleep.

But it was all okay.  She found me.  We got her luggage and headed to the car where I asked her if she wanted to drive.  "No, you drive," she said.  She later questioned her judgment on that matter when I parked at the liquor store to purchase some wine for the night's dinner party.  

There were no other cars around and I just whipped into the parking space quick as a wink.  Only on coming out of the grocery store next door, did my parking skills come into question.  (Not by me, of course.)  The car was parked perfectly straight but perfectly straddling two places.  She drove the rest of the way home.

But actually, that is not the worst part of this story at all.  I thought I handled the evening fairly well and finally headed to bed that night about 11:00.  I did all (well, most) of the nighttime rituals--at least I got into my jammies.  

I can't remember if I did the full routine of teeth brushing, makeup removal, applying the cream to make me look younger and perkier by morning (I'm sure Meg Ryan does all that cream stuff every night), but I did remember to plug in my phone.  

Lights out.  Covers up.  Phone on the nightstand.  Great.  Turn over and go to sleep.  And, thankfully, I actually did fall fast asleep!  All is well until around 2:00 when the dog starts barking and barking and barking.  I reached to turn on the light and touched the phone instead.  Oh well.  Dog stopped barking.  I returned to slumber land.  

Next thing I knew it was morning.  Like always I immediately reach for my glasses and phone, and in the daylight I see my phone floating in my glass of sweet tea on the night stand. Holy moly!

When I reached for the light, I must have knocked it gently into the glass.  I didn't hear any splash and I know that phones should not purposely go in a glass of liquid, contrary to my daughters' "cute" comments.  Listen, I was sleep deprived, remember!

Now what is worse is that I didn't have a case on my phone this time.  I always have a case on it.  I have had the Otterbox case since I got this version of the smart phones.  And then my daughter had given me the new and improved case called the LifeProof iPhone Case--you know the one--it can withstand being under water or dropped from a thousand feet and claims to keep your iPhone safe and sound against anything and everything.  

I guess it actually has to be on the phone though.  I had taken it off because I was not able to hear or be heard.  Now, I must admit I also had that same problem of not being heard with the Otterbox; but, nevertheless, I was just seeing if it made a difference.

Well, I quickly put the water-logged phone in a bag of rice and waited until my daughter woke up.  She, being savvy about cameras and phones and computers, asked when I had backed it up.  "Recently?" she asked.  "Uh, no, not recently.  More like in never," I sheepishly admitted. 

She looked astonished and kinda rolled her eyes or laughed or did one of those things that young people do when you show how stupid you are about electronics.  Well, then she plugged it into the computer in hopes of at least saving the 10,043 pictures (mostly of grandson, of course) that filled my phone's camera roll app.   

After a few hours, the pictures were all backed up and saved on the computer.  Whew!  That was a relief.

I hated that I was going to have to go to the phone store and admit what had happened.  Well, mostly.  I did have a fleeting thought of getting to upgrade!  A new 5 version iPhone.  Ahhh.  How nice...but back to reality...expensive.

But miracle of miracles, I unplugged the phone from the computer late in the day, and behold--all the messages of the day popped up.  Then all the other apps popped up.  Everything was working!  YAY!  

Except the phone itself.  No way to make a call.  So back to the daughter.  She took the sim card out--dried it off a little--put it back in and called me.  

IT WORKED.   I could talk on the phone, get my messages and emails, take pictures, and even play my games.  All is well!  Who needs sleep anyway?

(Now, you know as well as I that none of these mishaps would have happened if I had not been sleep deprived.  I would never do such silly, crazy things.  You know me.  So there.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it--thank you very much.)

But I do hope I don't have any more sleepless nights in Little Rock.

All Through the House, Not a Creature Was Stirring except...

It's 2:00 a.m.  The husband is sleeping soundly in the bed.  The dog is comfy in his bed.  There is that rhythmic heavy breathing from the husband or the dog.  I'm not sure which.  Nevertheless, I wish I were a part of that melody.  But no.  It isn't happening for me tonight. 

It's been quite awhile since I have had such a night.  But tonight my legs are jumping, kicking, and being a total nuisance.  I haven't missed this one bit. 

It is so frustrating to go to bed and then have this cruel trick played on you.  You do all the prep work to go to bed--jammies on, the face cleaned, the teeth brushed, the creams applied--all routine.  Then you snuggle under the covers, start to drift off to sleep as planned and then it happens...a twinge in the legs begins.  Don't think about it, I admonish.  Keep thinking about that cozy bed.  Relax.  Go to sleep.  Count backwards. 

Shortly there is another twinge, then another, and then they become more than a twinge--they kick like a pony; they move like pedaling a bike; they cause my whole body to jump; and they refuse to let me ignore them.  I can't keep the legs still. 

After fighting it and realizing that sleep is not coming, I get up and take a hot bath.  That usually relaxes me so much that I am able to stumble back to bed and finally go to sleep.  

But not tonight.  So I do the only thing left to do to get relief--I walk.  And walk.  And walk.  The path is rather short--down the hall, through the living room, through the dining room, through the kitchen, back to the hall, and over and over I go.   So why tonight?  Why does my RLS kick in so dramatically now?  Not sure.  (Maybe the mojitos??  Naw, surely not.  It was a celebration for Memorial Day.  And it was only one and half.)  Like I said, this hasn't happened in a long time, thank goodness.  But it certainly messes up my plans for tomorrow--I have a feeling that when I do get to sleep, I won't feel like getting up early and finishing the cleaning for my out of town daughters to come.

But then again, I'm sure that the ingrained Strother attitude of getting everything done will kick in with or without sleep.   I can almost bet on it.

Wow!  It's really getting late (or early).  It is now 4:15 a.m.  You know, I actually may see the first  wagon load of day being pulled across the sky this morning.  I would prefer to be asleep.  Oh well.

My head is nodding again.  My legs seem to have calmed down.  Maybe it's time.  I hope.   See you when the sun comes up.    

Good night.  (I hope.)

PS--I guess my brain was foggier than I thought.  I didn't push the "publish" button before going to bed (and BTW--the rest of the nighttime hours were spent not sleeping either.  Good news though--I did get a lot of work done.  Bad news--my brain is still foggy!)

Do I or Don't I?

There are inevitably dilemmas that require a decision everyday.  Some are not really big or life-changing, but they are there.  So let me ask you what you would do.

When I drive through a Sonic (I've been known to do that quite often) and I throw away trash after getting my order, sometimes the trash (usually the paper covering the straw) doesn't make the trash can.  It falls to the ground.   So do you drive on or get out of the car, pick it up, and put it in the trash? 

On Sunday morning when it is rainy and cold, do you go ahead and go to church or do you stay in that cozy bed?

Do you give money to your church regularly?

Do you let someone go in front of you in the grocery line who has just an item or two?

When someone approaches you with a story of needing a little money for her grandbaby to have some food, do you hand over some cash or deny that you have any on you that day?

Well, those are just a few questions that may pop up during a day.  My answers are "No,"  "Yes," and for the rest of the questions, "Sometimes."

The last question faced me yesterday--maybe all of them would if it were Sunday and if I were still drinking my DDPs from Sonic (that's a whole other story!) and if I had stopped at Target for some "deals." 

I began deliberating these type of questions yesterday.  It all started when I was getting in the car to do a bunch of errands--post office, my flea market booth, Dollar Tree, Target--blah blah blah. You know the kind of day that was and you probably noticed the high end shopping that I do!

Nevertheless, when I was getting in the car, I saw a $10.00 bill stuck between the seat and the door. Whoopee!  There is nothing like found money. 

Anyway, I had just left Dollar Tree, when I was approached by a lady with very polite manners carrying a pizza box.  She apologized for perhaps startling me and assured me she would not hurt me, but would I be able to give her some money for her grandchild's pizza?  She only needed $14.52 more. 

Well, like I said, I had already been in Dollar Tree and had received change of $2.35 or so which I had stuck in my pocket.  So, I dug out the dollars and apologized, yes--apologized for not having more to give to her--and gave her all I had in my pocket--"Wait," I said.  "Here is some change."

She was seemingly grateful and I continued on my way.  Only after getting a few blocks away, I realized she already had the pizza, evidently, cause she had the box, so how did she get the pizza if she didn't have the money beforehand?

I seem to always have to pay before I leave a store with what I want.

So, I ask, do you give to people who approach you for a little help or not?  This time I did.  Sometimes I don't.  I can't tell you exactly what makes me choose to give or not because it's not always whether I have money in my pocket or not.

It made me think a bit about the general dilemmas one faces everyday.  I think my grandson has a good attitude right now.  If you ask him something, his answer is, "Sure do."  So sweet and positive. 

Maybe that should be my answer to some of these questions.

Let me try it out--"Sure do!" (sometimes!)

Juggling

I've always admired people who can juggle--balls, batons, whatever.  And I've admired even more those people that can juggle a lot of jobs or activities.  I think the word for it today is multitasking.

I've been multitasking for awhile since my "retirement," and I have come to the conclusion that I don't like it.  Maybe it is because I'm not good at it.  My idea of retirement was to play, read, do my crafts, and most importantly, keep the grandbaby--all at my leisure.

Of course, I didn't factor in doing laundry, cleaning the kitchen every day, vacuuming, (forget the dusting--it always gets pushed to the last thing to try to get done for company).  I guess I never really liked factoring those chores in.  When the girls caught me in a rush cleaning the house, they would always ask, "Who's coming over, Mom?" And sometimes I was just cleaning and no one was coming over.  Honest!

So, now I'm still supposed to do those chores although my husband pitches in some--well, a lot.  But I really would just like to keep the kiddo, do my creative stuff, manage the flea market booth, find bargains for my booth, go on trips, read, and write.  I can't quite figure out how to do all of that and the dreadful household necessities.

So, I ask you to guess which things I do first.  You are so right if you said keep the grandson and do the creative things.  So that always leaves me in a tizzy to get the dreadful chores done.

When I was growing up, my father traveled all week--leaving early Monday and sometimes not getting back until Saturday night.  When it was the day he was coming home, Mom always got us four  kids in high gear to get the house all clean.  Actually, the house was cleaner than mine on any given day.  She was an excellent manager because she didn't just keep the house clean, she cooked meals--no take-outs--she sewed for all of us, she worked at different stores, and I even caught her reading books!

Maybe it is genetic and I just didn't get that gene.  Of course, she also started her day early and didn't sit down much during the day or night.

Blast it all, I hate it when I figure out an answer to my situation and it requires something like getting up early, keeping to a plan, not putting things off, etc.  Is there a pill for all of that???

Probably not.  So I guess I'll practice my juggling.  Wish me luck or at least call me before you come over.  I can get a lot of chores done in 10 minutes if I have to!

Uh-oh, there's only 20 minutes before grandbaby gets here.  Gotta go!

Lucky Me!

"I cannot even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of friends who have given me a heart full of joy.  Let's face it, friends make life a lot more fun."  by Charles Swindoll


Life has been a lot of fun for me lately; and yes, it is because of some of my friends.   After a wonderful trip to Hawaii with my friend--my husband for 40 years, I got to go on another wonderful trip.  

Two of my close friends and I went to New Orleans for three nights last week. 

Here we are crossing into Louisiana.  Margaret was the driver and I am so glad that I didn't have to drive at all especially in New Orleans.  I was fine sitting in the backseat.  But she did it; we found our way; and it was fun.


We ate at some of the finest restaurants in New Orleans; we explored all sorts of places; we walked a million miles; we discovered many things we had not known before.  It was fun.

 
Becky, my other friend that went--in fact, she initiated the trip--has also been a wonderful friend for many years.  I believe our friendship started and developed through running together.  That in itself tells you how long we have been friends.  Now we do good if we walk.  (However, she looks so good that I think she must still run--maybe in the middle of the night!)


But those runs in the 80s and 90s were fantastic. They were therapeutic. We ran three miles--sometimes more. We even ran the hills. (Of course, if you run in Little Rock, you are bound to find a hill or two.) Those runs made us healthier--physically and emotionally--and closer; and they were fun. Even running is more fun with a friend.


Becky is also a phenomenal person.  (I told you I am lucky--lucky to have such good friends.)  She has a special way about her--she is funny, she remembers the details of our lives, she keeps journals about trips and turtles, she is diplomatic, she is kind, she loves to laugh, she understands, she is loyal, she is beautiful, and she is fun.


One interesting thing about Becky is her unique way of asking questions and getting answers from people--even strangers.  Because of her ability to get people to open up to her, she found out where some well-known stars live while in New Orleans; she found out many connections of people who had lived in Arkansas.


She found out for us many other things--like what makes the chandelier lights at Commanders Palace flicker as if they were lighted candles, and showed us where Paul McCartney stayed while in New Orleans years ago--details that make a trip with her particularly interesting and fun.  

Between Margaret and Becky, there is little left of New Orleans that we now don't know about.

So I am lucky; I do have a heart full of joy; and my friends do make my life a whole lot of fun.

Thank you, Becky and Margaret, for being fun friends.





   

There Are Nice Strangers

Okay, I finally made a plan to organize my time.  One part of the plan was to walk daily with Sonny.  Since I just made the plan last night, I hated to cop out on it the first day.  So Sonny and I went for a walk in the neighborhood after my storytime visit at the church's dayschool.

It's a beautiful day and it felt good to walk.  I told Sonny we would walk for twenty minutes.  He said that was fine.  In fact, everything was fine until...

We were moving along at a good clip with me pulling Sonny away from what I guess was various delicious smells to him.  One truck slowly passed.  We waved and continued the walk.  Then another truck, a red one, pulled slowly to the side to make sure we were safe and then it happened.

I hit a uneven piece of road which is quite common in our neighborhood.  But what is probably not common is to see a 60-ish (my pride is a little injured so I hesitate to say my real age) go flying through the air with the phone, sunglasses (prescription) and dog leash flying in their own directions.

I did have the recollection of what a physical therapist friend had told me long ago--when you fall, roll with it.

So that is what I did.  And I ended up on my back looking up at a fuzzy sky.  (Remember, my glasses were three feet away.)  Now, here is the best part.  The young man in the red truck hopped out and asked me if I was okay.

Silly question, I thought, and replied truthfully, "No, not really."  But really I was--no blood, no bones sticking out, no facial injuries.  My next sentence was to ask him to get my dog who was standing near by probably amazed at this spectacular walk.  I don't think the walks he has with the husband includes such excitement.

Then the very, very nice young man (and nice looking I might add--I'm not that old or that blind!) helped me up and proceeded to tell me he had been a military medic.  Since I told him I had hit my elbow and knee, he checked my wrist and had me move my hand up and down (something about pressure points) to make sure my elbow was okay which it was since it didn't hurt doing those motions.  He had me do the same with my foot to check on the knee.

So I am okay.  (Well, I could always use a little sympathy!)   But I am also very impressed with the kindness of this stranger.  He could have just driven on and I could have just laid there for awhile hoping to melt into the concrete, but he was very concerned and helpful.

Indeed there are nice people in this world--even nice strangers.  Thank you kind sir.

I just hope the rest of my organizational plan goes better or a nice (good-looking stranger) is nearby to help!

Reading vs Cleaning House

Last night we celebrated the husband's birthday with a dinner at our house which I didn't have to cook (thank goodness for take-out) and I didn't have to make the cake (thank goodness for the daughter who made a cake more superbly than I ever could or in fact, better than any bakery cake I've ever bought--which is what I usually do when I need a dessert) and a friend who brought a chocolate cream pie.

So, you say..."How easy that dinner party was!"  Yes, I agree and no, you don't know the whole story.  When I know I'm having company, I get into the "clean it up, YaYa" mode as the grandson would say.  That mode really comes from my mother who always had a tidy if not very clean house.  The grandson may have gotten that gene.  I definitely hope so.

Nevertheless, I always think the house must be spotless for company--no clutter out, no old newspapers or magazines untidily sitting around, no keys (or anything else, for that matter) left on the side table where they are not suppose to live, even rearranging furniture or pictures.  Everything needs to be as "magazine-perfect" as possible. 

The husband doesn't understand that notion because he says that we live here and, of course, things are out!  He doesn't understand that I don't think everyone lives with so much mess out and he didn't have my mother expecting one to actually put away their things, dust furniture on a weekly (at least) basis, and vacuum and mop not just weekly but more like daily if there was a spill or noticeable dust bunnies or spider webs.  (Oh my--I forgot to even check for those.  Yikes.)

So that brings me to last night.  I kept my precious grandson yesterday afternoon and I am known to leave things until the last minute, so there was plenty to do yesterday.  I did get a good amount done before he arrived, but then my time was his time.

For his time, he loves books.  "Go to my room and read book, YaYa."  So we did.  That brings me to the question or dilemma presented in the title of this post--"Reading vs Cleaning."  And I must tell you reading books to that sweet feller won out hands-down! 

So, the party went on quite well with a few spots on the kitchen floor and the furniture not dusted.  I don't even care if anyone was noticing or later criticizing the state of the house.  I did the most important job I have as YaYa--I read and loved on that grandson of mine!   I think my mama would understand and agree because he is SO cute.

"Read it again, YaYa."