Some health problems have plagued me, including some damage to my arms and hands.
I’ve started a gratitude attitude. It helps.
Things I am grateful for today: I learned how to make outstanding chicken stock. My husband. My snuggler cat. Flannel pajamas. The state park so close to us.
I am blessed. And lucky.
Yes, I’m still here. Yes, I’m still in training. Yes, I still haven’t passed another test. (SOB)
Autumn in the midwest is gorgeous. I haven’t gone apple picking and made applesauce, but I should have! I should have done a lot of things, and next year when I have graduated and am working, I’m going to do that.
Sigh.
What a ghastly day in school. Much high-speed practice. Six tests! So exhausting that I canceled lunch with a friend. And I did not even get close on any of those tests. So frustrating.
And then I read blogs of sick kids (how worried must their parents be?) and other tragedies. In the news are things like earthquakes that killed thousands. A woman’s car hit a power pole, and she died of electrical shock. A baby was snatched by a fake FBI agent.
Perspective.
I am doing the hardest thing I have ever done in life. It causes physical pain, it takes me away from family and friends. It humiliates me. But what I’m doing will have a positive result. All of those things I mentioned? Not so much.
Yet another entry in my grateful book.
I was reading a magazine article yesterday that asked various women who the most powerful woman was in their life. Power was defined not as having money or title, but as having the ability to get things done.
My sister immediately came to mind. Whether it’s her friends or her family or projects or reading books, my sister always reaches her goals. I don’t always agree with her methods. She likes to use guilt. A lot.
Ellen DeGeneres is another woman who came to mind. She came from nothing, endured a scandal, and is now so far on top I can’t imagine anything she’s not into. I think her methods are being nice and working hard.
It was a thought-provoking question for me. Five years ago, I would have called myself powerful. I ran a successful business, I got my college degree late in life while doing that, I was traveling all over the country and the world. Then I decided to change careers. Now I can go weeks without passing a test. I guess that means it’s time for me to reexamine and redefine my methods of practicing and setting goals. It’s time to gain my power back.
Actually, I’m a mediocre cook. For too many years I was focused on my career and other hobbies. It was not a problem in our home, since Bob’s mom was a horrible cook and he thinks garlic attracts devils and mushrooms are harmful. He’s never met a condiment he liked. His most favorite meal is hot dogs, no matter how you cook them, but don’t try to put onions or mustard on them. Now that I am trying to cook new things, this is a problem.
I stumbled onto a fabulous crock pot site, http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/ . Cooking in a crock pot fascinates me as it’s usually easy, and it’s something you can throw together in the morning that provides a wonderful, welcoming scent when you arrive home in the evening. Or, in my case, makes you salivate all day while you’re in class. It is usually less expensive, since you can use cheaper cuts of meat and less spices, including salt. And if you watch recipes, they can be much healthier with lots of vegetables.
This is the recipe that got me started: http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/11/crockpot-turkey-and-wild-rice-soup.html . I found it when I had a turkey carcass from a holiday dinner. I did this recipe a bit differently, in that I made the broth, but refrigerated it for a day so I could defat it. Then I went on to step two. This was quite possibly the most delicious soup that I ever made and Bob asked for an encore. But beyond that, it taught me to never make turkey or chicken soup on the stovetop. I will, from now on, always simmer the meat and/or carcass in a crock pot.
I don’t like it, but soup season has arrived. That site also has an interesting-looking recipe for Autumn Sausage Stew, and I have all of the ingredients ready to go for tomorrow.
On 9/11, I was on a plane, trying to get to Milwaukee for business. My flight was due to leave at 9:00. A few minutes after 9:00, the pilot announced that a plane on our runway sprung a fuel leak, and we had to leave that runway and go to a holding area until another runway became available. I had no reason to suspect that was not true.
When we got to the holding area about 9:15, we were told that they had no idea how long we would be there. We could use our cellphones, which was unheard of at the time. I first called my client in Milwaukee to explain I would be late, and was soundly chastised. Then I called my client in Florida, the one I was contracting to and who was sending me there. My contact said, “Oh my God, you have no idea what happened, do you?” Just then, a flight attendant came running at me, screaming to turn off my cellphone. At the time, FAA rules dictated planes could not move if cellphones were on. She was desperate to get back to the terminal. She said a plane had hit the World Trade Center. I turned my phone off, with still no idea what was going on.
We returned to the terminal, and I was instructed to go to the gate agent to rebook my flight for the next day. I was second in line. There was a team of two men in front of me. One was on the phone trying to book a rental car, and was getting more and more frantic that none were available. I thought our city had crappy rental car agencies. When I got to the podium, I rebooked for the next day. I asked to get my luggage, and was told there was so much coming off of planes, it probably would not be available until 4:00. I asked to get it anyway. Bob had dropped me off that morning, and I had no idea when he could pick me up, so I wasn’t worried about that.
I rolled my briefcase toward the business club and heard the announcement that our airport was locked down. Nobody in, nobody out. I got into the club, fired up my laptop, went for a cup of coffee, and passed a TV. And saw it. I saw the first, then the second plane hit. I saw the people jumping out. And I wept. I couldn’t move. I didn’t go for coffee for a while, didn’t check to see if my luggage was there. Later, when I did go down to check luggage, I tried to return to the club and couldn’t get through security because I hadn’t brought my ticket. A person with a turban stopped me. A person who looked just like those who tried to bring down my country, and like those who rejoiced in it. I had to get a gate agent to verify my authenticity to him.
The next day, I had expected to be working. Instead, I decided to clean my office. I sat in there, watching TV. I watched replays of the planes hitting. of the towers collapsing, of the people jumping. I watched people showing pictures of husbands, wives, kids, brothers, sisters, loved ones who were missing. I did not move all day, and when Bob got home at 6 and found me still in my pajamas, still in my chair, he gently moved me away from the TV and made dinner and we ate and talked. And I did not watch TV the next day.
I got on a plane the following Monday, the first business day travel was possible, and completed that business trip. But I still have not healed. And I will never forget.
To all of you who serve to protect me and my freedoms, thank you. I am so grateful.
This is far more eloquent:
http://wizbangblog.com/content/2009/09/11/what-911-means.php
This is hard. No wonder I’ll make a decent living.
I did pass a test two weeks ago. Oddly enough, since I fooled around on Labor Day weekend, had a day off from school, and generally did not apply myself, I have not passed another test since.
I tried to make up for that this week. Class was grueling every day this week, with four hours of almost constant writing and testing Monday through Thursday. I got some extra practice in most days, but not much. Today I made up for it with four hours of solid practice. I challenged Trudi to an RTC duel this weekend. We haven’t decided what the winner will get yet, but it better be good since it will be me. I need to get this done.
We finally got around to viewing this movie tonight. We both really enjoyed it immensely.
I’ve always been a Clint Eastwood fan, and this was no exception. His acting and directing were outstanding. The movie was set in Detroit, and showed some of the nicer old neighborhoods. The cast was great. Two things stood out for me.
First, it made me cry. Not all movies move me, and many are not meant to. But I like books and movies that make me take a minute and think and feel.
And that leads to the second point, which is the fact that there was lots of fodder for conversation. “So, do you think it was lung cancer?” “Do you think everyone’s family is screwed up like that?” “Do you think that would have really ended the problem in real life?”
Of course, having to pause while Bob got rid of the mouse the cats brought in was just another highlight.
The key to success really is practice, practice, practice.
I passed a 160 Lit this week! We had RPR style class again yesterday, and again I had not one keeper in the bunch.
No wonder this training drives people nuts.
On both Wednesday and Thursday this week, we had RPR-style practice. That means practicing all three legs at 40 wpm above our testing speed, then 20, doing it again, then testing. We did this twice. I took six tests both days. Darn it, not a keeper in the bunch. I really though I was on the edge of passing last week, but my writing is changing and that will take time to adapt.
On another note, RealTime Coach is a hit with me! I purchased it last month and spent four hours on Barrier Busters today. It’s fun, it’s challenging, and it’s addictive. I highly recommend it.
