25 Random things about me... not that you care or anything :)

My husband found one of my old updates from Facebook ... yes, I have my own personal Cyber Stalker and I love him. :) I've updated some since things have changed over the last 4 years and thought my Mom would enjoy reading it so that's why it is here. I can't get her to log onto Face Book but she does come here to check our VACATION COUNTDOWN  ...

Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.

1. I can take a computer apart and put it back together with my eyes closed.

2. I've been playing softball for 30 years..... oh my god....ack...well, now it's been 34 years

3. My husband is my best friend and my better half. My mom is my bestest friend.

4. A lot of people think I'm a bitch and I'm OK with that.

5. I'm not shy, people just aggravate me.

6. My husband tells me that I intimidate people. Men love it while women hate it. I say that I'm just comfortable in my skin and confident in my abilities.

7. You will always know where you stand with me. Honesty, even brutal at times, is necessary. Life is too short for the bull shit. Don't ask me if you look fat in a dress unless you want to really know ...

8. I finally have my natural color hair back and it's long again (middle of my back). I think it's prettier than the fake stuff. Of course, gray is taking over, slowly, but my brother says that I'll look great with gray hair (bastard).

9. I'm taller than the average bear.

10. I read constantly, just about anything, but Sci-Fi and Fantasy are my favorites. I couldn't even begin to guess the number of books I've read. I started a library in our work break room for everyone to share books because I had so many books in my house.

11. Softball starts again in a few weeks. I can't wait. I want to feel the dirt under my cleats as I pick up a hard hit ground ball. I'll then take a few steps over to second base, tag the corner of the bag as I run across it and wind up for the throw to first to make the double play...ouuuuu, I have goose bumps.

12. High school was a very painful part of my life and Softball was my outlet. I also had some cool friends who kept things in perspective (Thanks Mary-Beth, Jenn, Jason, Billy and the rest of you).

13. I love my family, deeply. The children especially. Alizabeth is my beautiful niece and my newest cousin is Ava Mei, a wonderful little girl from China. I'm sure I'll have some pictures to post at some point. I now what two more little additions to the Family, Jade Love Gaucher and Calia Grace Bent

14. I have two step-children from my husband. The oldest is a junior at RPI in Troy NY and the youngest is 17 and a junior in high school. Both are smart and are destined to make a difference in the world, hopefully. Oldest is now living in NY as an Engineer and the youngest is a Junior at Emmerson College....

15. My husband loves his daughters deeply. It's one of the reasons I fell in love with him.

16. We bought our first house just over 5 (9) years ago. It's an old farm house that was built in or around 1890. The yard is the best part. A landscaped treasure trove of flowers and trees. It's wonderful but a lot of work in the summer. Good thing my husband is up for the task (still).

17. I've talked to more old school friends in the last year than I have since I graduated high school or college. The internet is a wonderful thing isn't it?

18. I love my job, I get to boss myself around and create my own schedule. I am IT for a huge global manufacturer and report to the CFO and President but it is a family owned, personal and laid back atmosphere, most days. still at the same job but the stress level has escalated dramatically... I must read #19 repeatedly...

19 The days that I hate my job I keep repeating "Would you like fries with that" until I get a better grip on my attitude and change it.

20. I am a firm believer that YOU are the only person in life that can make YOU happy. Mentally, we all need to take responsibility for our happiness. In doing that, you will be a much happier person. Really, it works. It's not easy but it does work.

21. It took me over a week to cry because of my Grandmother's passing. I didn't realize it until I talked to my husband about it. He was worried about me because I was numb and not my usual happy self. I just went through the paces and did what everyone needed me to do. It wasn't until I let myself cry that I started to feel better. I feel much better now, and so do the people around me. Apparently people notice when I'm not happy. I guess that's a good thing. I have good friends.

22. Crying sucks. Itchy eyes, stuffy nose, red blotchy face, no wonder I don't cry often. :)

23. I lived in Alaska when I was 8, in a little town on the water called Homer. Little did I know but my real father (who I didn't hear from until I was 30) lives on Kodiak Island. I remember going to the beach, across from where I lived, and I would look out at the whales splashing in the water and I could see an island mountain range in the distance. I wonder if I was looking at Kodiak Island and my father... hmmmm, life is strange.

24. I love animals, all kinds except sharks

25. I use to sing in a Blues Band every now and then. Singing is still one of my greatest stress relievers. It's better than Primal Screaming which can destroy your vocal cords (I tried it). I love to sing a variety of types of songs but now I sing in my truck instead of on a stage.

Well, I guess not much has really changed and I'm OK with that. 

A ramble from 2009 that I never published

I found the following "ramble" in my drafts folder. I find it interesting because nothing much has changed.

Here it is:

I've found that life has slowed down a bit for me and I like it. My job is busier than ever. The company I work for isn't busy, don't misunderstand me. Because we have let so many people go over the last few months, everyone has extra work to do, in the same amount of time as before, when they had less to do, which didn't seem like less at the time and only now seems like less, because they have more to do .... I love run-on sentences, much to the chagrin of my old English teachers.... I digress.... what was I thinking about...oh yeah.... nothing really, just rambling...

Would you believe that over 4 years later, the people that were let go were never replaced and now everyone is over-stressed and tired. Business has more than doubled. We've bought up competitors and evolved our web presence to a profitible venture. Yet, we have not supplemented our staff or expanded our workforce outside of the minimum wage base.

Sadly it is the result of Corporate Greed. While I understand the financial concerns of the "higher ups", I also see the pain in the eyes of the employees who suffer the most. While my skill set allows me to push through the financial ramifications, the woman who empties everyone's trash and keeps the bathrooms spotless, can't heat her home so she wears jackets around the house. She cries when I give her my old clothes and shoes. It's humbling... and sad. I'm more disappointed in the company I work for than the President of the United States, whom they like to blame for our hardships, lack to raises and the decrease in our healthcare coverage. When/Why/How did the big Corporations stop seeing their employees as people and start seeing them as part of the cost of their product?

I have some decisions to make...